"When beauty's the prize

What mortal fears dying?"

Tim Hawk plans his assassinations well, rehearsing them with cool detachment, and his professionalism makes him a rising star in Kazan's gang. Hawk's only other interest, an unexpected love for baroque opera, is kept concealed. When Kazan returns with his beautiful bride-to-be, Hawk presents the pair with a macabre wedding present. Other guests are shocked, but Kazan and Irena are intrigued. Then Kazan, fatefully, charges Hawk with protecting his prized young bride – who is half Kazan's age, and much the same age as Tim Hawk.

It isn't only Kazan's marriage that is vulnerable. His empire is under siege. As the threats and danger mount, Kazan finds himself betrayed and let down on all sides. The only people he can rely on, it seems, are his wife and the trusted Hawk. Hawk brings in another friend, Cecille, and on Guy Fawkes night, as a full-scale gang war breaks out, these four alone must face the enemy.