England, late 18th century. Somewhere there are balls, satin dresses and embroidered vests, and somewhere there is dirt, poverty and death. London, 1781. A hot June day. On the quayside at Deptford, the corpse of a man is hung by a hook, bearing signs of terrible torture and bearing the mark of a slave. A few days later, Captain Harry Corsham is visited by the sister of Ted Archer, his old friend. She claims he was about to expose a truth that could cause irreparable damage to the British slave industry. And now he’s completely disappeared... To find out what happened to Tad, Harry is forced to investigate and penetrate into the very heart of the conspiracy that Tad uncovered. This investigation will jeopardize Harry's future in politics and the happiness of his family, forcing him to come face to face with dark secrets from his past that could destroy him.