Elizabeth Hunter-Payne is convalescing after her brutal takedown of a ruthless killer. Troubled by nightmares and a nagging ghost of a memory, she is approached by Horatio Cumberland. He and his wife Fleur, the greatest scientist couple in the empire, hold radical ideas of sexual freedom. They report a stolen automaton, a highly sophisticated sex machine.

Miss Clayton, the cool, prickly and experienced agent of the Queen, joins the Investigation Bureau and takes on the case. Her investigation takes her to the shadowy London docks, the music halls and pubs of Whitechapel, as well as a luxurious four-poster bed.

Is the theft just a routine crime, or is something more afoot? Can Elizabeth, working in the background, solve the puzzle and defy her injuries to save Miss Clayton's life? Another thrilling steampunk adventure with brilliant, sexy scientists, automatons, ruthless spies, submarines, and razor-sharp swordsticks.