Lovely young Nicola Beaufort is spirited, stubborn, spoiled and determined. Top British Intelligence agent Charles Forsyth is tough, resourceful, sardonic and experienced. Their initial encounter at London Airport is explosive, setting a pattern to be repeated in Rumania, where both are seeking - for different reasons - Tony Rothman, fellow operative to Forsyth and one-time suitor to Nicola. Soon immersed in a whirlpool of moves and countermoves, intrigues, threats, violence, deceit and desperate adventure, Nicola and Forsyth - still antagonistic yet deeply drawn to each other - realise the key to their search lies in the discovery of the missing 1,000 year-old crown of St, Stephen, a much sought-after prize of gravest international significance. Cover art by Paul Bacon.