On his way to see the Emperor’s spy, Junio is distracted by something even more unpleasant . . . Glevum, Britannia, 200 AD. Britannia is still reeling from the brutal Succession Wars. After the defeat and execution of Britannia’s governor, Clodius Albinus, Emperor Severus is determined to seek out his enemies in the Roman Empire’s northernmost outpost. In such troubled times, the arrival of the plague and the activities of Appius Limpnus, a suspected spy for Emperor Severus, are the last thing Glevum needs. Senior magistrate Marcus Septimus asks Libertus’s adopted son Junio to keep an eye on Appius by creating a mosaic outside his property. But when Junio discovers two bodies near the road on his way to Appius’s townhouse, he is reluctantly diverted to investigating another mystery. Suddenly Junio must navigate a deadly trail of spying, scheming and betrayal that leads to a killer . . .
