Forensic psychiatrist Dr James Carter meets a woman on a train, apparently randomly, and she offers him an alternative to a life that he is finding rather dull. This alternative, however, leads to two murders, one in Baltimore, the other in his flat in Bath, and forces him into a search for justice as he becomes a fugitive and a prime suspect for both murders, a situation for which he is totally unprepared.
There is nothing in his past to prepare him for dealing with this situation except his natural charm. He is unfit, middle-aged and totally out of his usual environment, but he is capable of using his charm to extricate himself from seemingly impossible situations.
He finds himself involved in a world of blackmail, theft, gun running and intrigue involving people in high office. There seems to be nobody he can trust until, by chance, friends he had thought unremarkable come to his aid and provide the answers he needs to solve the crimes and establish his own innocence. As a result, there is an unforeseen outcome that changes his life entirely…