Book excerpt: Charity Stuart and her younger sister Joyce have lost their beloved father under mysterious and ruinous circumstances. On their way to London to live with their great-aunt who wants to sponsor Joyce for the Season, they meet Oliver Blackburn in a small inn. They don’t guess that this enthralling man is a courier for the government, traveling back and forth across the Channel. That night, their trunk is stolen. All they have left is Charity’s small case, but they continue on to London. The next time Charity encounters Mr. Blackburn, she learns he is Lord Blackburn. He seems oddly interested in her life before her father’s death. His reputation is far from pristine, but she is drawn to him, fascinated by his bold kisses. The truth about her father’s death shadows their growing attraction, and they must solve the puzzle of it before death strikes again.