Two years have passed since the emperor's loyal Praetorian guardsman
Gnaeus Marcius Rustius Rufinus foiled Lucilla's great assassination
plot. Plagued by the ghosts of his past, Rufinus has enacted his own
form of justice upon the Praetorian cavalrymen who murdered the imperial
agent Dis two years earlier. But the Fates will not let Rufinus rest.
Rome is beginning to seethe with rumour and conspiracy as Perennis, the
prefect of the Praetorian Guard, and Cleander, the imperial chamberlain,
continue to play their 'great game'.
With the tide of opinion turning against their commander, Rufinus and
his friends embark upon a mission to save the Prefect's family, only to
uncover a plot that runs deep...to the very heart of the empire.
Armed with rare and dangerous evidence, Rufinus faces insurmountable
odds in an attempt to bring the truth to light. To save his prefect. To
save Rome. To save everyone he cares about.