It is 1324 BC and for Rahotep, chief detective, life is about to get very complicated. The cryptically mutilated bodies of several young people are discovered in Thebes. These brutal acts are destabilizing a ruthless regime already made precarious by corruption, dissent, the strain of distant wars, and the appalling divide between rich and poor. Meanwhile, Tutankhamun has inherited an empire that should be at the height of power and glory. But the King, just eighteen, faces only the political conspiracies of the Court, and a bitter struggle for ascendancy. And when his own security is threatened by an intruder in the palace, he needs an outsider he can trust to track down the traitor. Already perplexed by the ongoing murder investigation, Rahotep receives a mysterious invitation to the labyrinthine halls of the Royal Palace. But what he discovers at the dark heart of power will put his life, and his family, in grave danger...