It is the summer of 1553, a time of danger and deceit. Brendan Prescott, an orphan, is reared in the household of the powerful Dudley family. He is brought to court and finds that he is to be sent on an illicit mission to the King"s brilliant but enigmatic sister, Princess Elizabeth. But soon Brendan is compelled to work as a double agent by Elizabeth"s protector, William Cecil - who promises in exchange to help him unravel the secret of his own mysterious past. A dark plot swirls around Elizabeth"s quest to unravel the truth about the ominous disappearance of her seriously ill brother, King Edward VI. With Elizabeth"s lady-in-waiting at his side, Brendan plunges into a ruthless gambit of half-truths, lies and murder.