In 1892, Commander Peter Wake has left the world of espionage behind and is back in the seagoing navy. But duty has called him from his new Spanish lover back to Key West to investigate an assassination and prevent another one—all of which leads him to old German foes in Mexico as well as Spanish ones in Cuba and Tampa. The life of the great patriot of Cuba, José Martí, is at stake.

In December of 1892 a little-known event changed world history, and its influence can be seen in headlines today. This 12th novel in the award-winning Honor series is woven around that event.

Commander Peter Wake, U.S.N., is finally happy. In command of a newly commissioned light cruiser in the Caribbean, he is back at sea where all real sailors belong. All his years of espionage in the more sordid corners of the world are over. Ashore, he has the sincere love of a beautiful, fascinating, exotic woman. After years as a lonely widower, he is considering marriage.

Everything changes when a man is found murdered aboard a steamer at Key West. Summoned to investigate, Wake uses his naval intelligence skills to decipher the strange clues left behind and discovers an important man will be assassinated by a foreign team of killers in eight days. But who, where, and why?

The clues lead him on a desperate voyage to save the man and stop a war. Germans in Mexico, Cuban rebels in Key West, and Spanish counterintelligence agents in Tampa are all part of the equation he must solve. But nothing is as it seems, and when Wake finally learns the truth, the victim is much closer than he thought—and the consequences of failure are much larger.

How far will Peter Wake go to save a life and change history? War hangs in the balance. Time is running out.