Rodney Fenton knows when to let things be, to not complain. His wife, Brenda, apparently did not.

When their Damarg Overloards on planet Pelgraff come to pick up Rodney for something Brenda has done, the one-time collaborator goes on the run using a dead man's name. He ends up with the very Resistance people whose ideology he hates, including the wife of the man whose name he now wears.

Death from either side seems a not unlikely end, so Rodney must pick his way through the minefield of an insurrection, hoping that his next mistake won't be his last one. If fortunate, he will escape from both sides, still living. If not, well, death isn't the worst that could happen.