Major Macconnach has tried to leave the mistakes of his past behind, to make a new life. Greatest of all, he wishes to do no harm, to preserve life.
His powers allow him to spare those whose time is not yet come, to do battle with unspeakable evils, and yet he knows he cannot protect the one person who has become of utmost importance.
Isabel Alderton only knows that he has withdrawn, and will not see her. With wounded heart and pride, she sets off for Mumbai to greet her uncle, who has journeyed from England.
Too late, Macconnach realizes that someone else has designs on her – too late to prevent her meeting a preternaturally charming nobleman on his own Grand Tour – too late to realize that he too has his own secrets to keep.