A whirlpool of events overwhelms Grigory Bystrov and takes him from a quiet provincial harbor to the operational space - to the northern capital. Petrograd in the twenties. Life is in full swing in the era of NEP: the enthusiasm of the masses, ostentatious Nepman luxury, Komsomol members, security officers, taverns, raiders, cab drivers, former officers, counter-revolutionary conspiracies. Lenka Panteleev is walking around here somewhere, other gangs and lone criminals are playing pranks. The police have something to do, and Grigory Bystrov finds himself involved in all of this. But the main thing he must do is to save his sister’s husband from being falsely accused of murder. If it is, of course, false...The book is recommended for reading by persons over 16 years of age.