Frances once had a life of her own, and a future in a world that was throwing off old shackles. That was before she was hauled back home to be chained by convention and family, and the dearest person in the world to her went missing, presumed dead. Then a battered wooden box arrives, bearing a cryptic message from someone she thought long dead.

Zerris is a man of many talents: thieving, procuring, and more, peddling his trades in a city at the edge of the empire and between two cultures. He has a built a life and sterling reputation through guile, cunning, and constant vigilance in hiding what and who he is.Then a cocky stranger barrels through all his careful planning, and a contract goes horribly wrong. As he struggles to recover his plans and save his name, Zerris instead finds his world collapsing, until all that's left is the first true friend he'd ever had.

On a quest to avenge the murder of her lover, Helgaer is attacked by bandits and badly wounded in the fight. The very last thing she expects is to be rescued, least of all by an intriguing foreign woman, a hunter eager to leave behind the burdens and betrayals that drove her away. One seeking vengeance, the other seeking freedom, the very last thing either needs is attachment...