1983 In scenes similar to the great depression, unemployment stands at a record high in Britain. The Brinks Mat robbers steal 26 million in gold from a warehouse at Heathrow Airport and DI Jack Castle of the Flying Squad has unwittingly assisted the escape of an armed assassin.

On the 9th of February, a prominent Arab businessman suddenly cashed in all his oilwells on the third floor of the Wellesley Clinic, St John's Wood, London when a full clip of ammunition from an MP40 sub-machine gun was emptied into him.

He is the fourth victim in as many weeks.

DI Jack Castle is put on the case and sent to investigate a group of mysterious murders among the rich and powerful of Knightsbridge and the affluent inhabitants of the French Riviera.

At first sight it appears that these leading Arab oil sheikhs and business entrepreneurs have been murdered to warn others of their kind to pay over multi-million-dollar blackmail sums to stay alive. But all is not as it appears...