While Sam is beginning her investigation, she has a feeling of being watched. This is confirmed when her father, who she was told had been killed when she was a child, appears asking for her help. He had been a member of a team for the British SAS and had been a part of the assassination of more than 40 Irish IRA members. Now he wants to make this information public and seeks redemption. The government is, of course, doing its best to suppress this information by eliminating the team. Sam is plagued by nightmares from her youth and is seeking help from therapist, Reg Ellison. With her partner, Allan, Sam finds secrets in Harry's family and discovers Harry's identical twin, David. This is a case of "the good brother and the bad brother." It is up to Sam to find Harry before he becomes too emersed in his brother's misdeeds. She must also resolve the problem with her father, which also has endangered her relations with her mother and brother.

This is as much a psychological study of the principal character, Sam, as it is a mystery. The search for Harry and its consequences are suspenseful. But Sam's problems are involved and intriguing, and are treated in depth and with understanding.. There are interesting side trips into the art of judo and the sport of rowing at Oxford with its rivalries and competitions. The atmospheres of both Oxford and London are realistically portrayed.