As a respected special investigator for the state police, Kamal Agha is committed to keeping the empire safe from threats inside and out. But these are dangerous times. Under the sultan's autocratic regime, no one is beyond suspicion. When a naked man covered in tattoos appears on the banks of the Seine and murders a passerby, Kamal is tasked with tracking him down. But asking too many questions can be a highly risky endeavour - especially when the mysterious man's trail leads Kamal to a secret buried deep in the empire's past, a secret that goes to the very core of the empire's success. A secret the sultan and his security services will do anything to silence. Kamal is forced to question his own loyalty when his own family attracts unwelcome attention from the security services. Soon, he has no choice but to flee. But on the run from the all-seeing organisation where he built his reputation, can he save himself and his family? And, if he does, what might that mean for the existence of the Empire itself? Its past, its present and its future