Inspector Ian Rutledge receives an astonishing tip about a legendary crime that could lead to capturing Alan Barrington--the suspect in an appalling murder during Black Ascot, the famous 1910 royal horse races that honored the late King Edward VII. Barrington's disappearance baffled Scotland Yard and consumed all of Britain for nearly a decade. But why should Barrington return to England now? The Yard orders Rutledge to quietly investigate.Rutledge begins to know Alan Barrington well, uncovering secrets that hadn't surfaced in 1910. As he draws closer--perhaps too close--to the man, the investigation is suddenly thrown into turmoil when Rutledge's sanity is questioned by a shocking turn of events, and his life is changed by his darkest fear--the exposure of his shell shock. The Yard is already demanding his resignation, and Rutledge realizes that the only way to save his career, much less his honor, is to find Barrington. But what if the tip was wrong, what if Barrington actually never returned to England at all . . . ?
