Following a mission in pursuit of a mysterious manuscript, and a very disturbing encounter in Italy with Aleister Crowley, Samson Plews finds himself in the unusual position of being the prey rather than the hunter. He needs to regain the initiative in order to survive, but the forces arraigned against him are powerful and seek to exploit his one weakness; Miss Sha. 'The Chief' has a very different problem. His political mission is to keep America out of the European conflict that broke out in 1914, but there are foreign plotters with agendas of their own. One of his best investigative journalists kills himself so he turns to Plews, who now has a dual mission. Not only does he have to uncover the truth, but he also has to try and discover what has been ailing Miss Sha. She has become grievously troubled and he doesn't know how or why. The truth, in both cases, is terrifying.