Op een dag krijgt een rijke, machtige ondernemer die zich bezighoudt met duistere zaken.

In 1700 ligt Paus Innocentius XI in Rome op sterven. Kerkelijke en wereldlijke leiders voeren al overleg over de opvolging. Ook Abt Atto Melani, diplomaat en spion van de Zonnekoning, komt met dat doel naar Rome.

On the tiny Caribbean island of Mill Walk, the rich play tennis, polo and golf, trying to ignore the distasteful realities of life. So when Tom Pasmore, the grandson of a powerful establishment figure, develops a passion for detective work - particularly murder cases - his reputation undergoes a subtle darkening. One murder in particular fascinates Tom - the 1925 killing of Jeanine Thielman at Eagle Lake, a resort patronized only by the cream of the island's upper crust community. But when he starts investigating the case, Tom arouses much more than mere disapproval. On the edge of a web of corruption, deceit and violence, he is in danger of uncovering the darkest secrets of the people who own and run Mill Walk.

Detective Alex Cross is on his way to resign from the Washington, D.C., police force when his partner shows up at his door with a case he can't refuse. One of John Sampson's oldest friends, from their days together in Vietnam, has been arrested for murder. Worse yet, he is subject to the iron hand of the United States Army. The evidence against him is strong enough to send hem to the gas chamber.

"The multi-million copy bestselling Frederick Forsyth is back on familiar ground. And for Forsyth that means murder, mystery, intrigue, deception and revenge. The five stories in this collection move from London to Siena, from the Second World War to the Battle of Little Big Horn. Whether his theme is international espionage, miraculous events in war-torn Italy or a Customs and Excise drugs bust, these stories all share Forsyth's trademark of compulsive storytelling, his clinical eye for authentic detail and an unnerving sense of suspense. "

From the internationally bestselling author of Absolute Power and The Winner, this is a novel about a murderous conspiracy at the heart of the American legal system.