Wrongly imprisoned in the Tower of London and with her execution imminent, Henrietta, great grandniece of Queen Elizabeth and secret scion of King Henry's line, has entrusted her last hope - King Henry's ruby cross - to the guard with kindness in his eyes. Will this mysterious stranger prove worthy of such blind trust? Will word reach the queen before the executioner's axe ends her life? All things hang in the balance for the de Greys, even the fate of Coudenoure itself as the Tudor line yields to the Stuarts, a family with no ancestral gratitude for everything the de Greys have sacrificed for the crown. Will this be the end of Coudenoure?