An unthinkable crime. A fatal conspiracy. A suspect without a trace. Two of the Empire's most powerful families are moments away from war - ready to come to blows over an unforgiveable murder that one of their sons has apparently committed. If a single drop of blood is spilled, the empire could be plunged into chaos. Once again, it falls to the great detective Ana Dolabra and her assistant Din to solve an impossible case: proving the murderer's innocence, despite incontrovertible evidence against him. But within hours, the pair discover a greater pattern behind the crime: a subtle web of death being woven in plain sight, by a mastermind with an ancient magical technology at his disposal. With the two rival clans at boiling point, even Ana's uncanny insight is of little use when each new suspect she uncovers ends up dead. And as Din pursues their adversary through the canton's wild ranges, sprawling ranches, and reeking slaughterhouses, he finds his loyalties divided in unexpected ways. . . Eccentric yet brilliant detective Ana Dolabra must prove a man's innocence to stop a civil war in the third book of the series that began with the award-winning The Tainted Cup.