By 1481, England has been free from civil war for ten years. The Elder family have discovered a fragile peace in the lands they fought to win back, yet scars from the past remain with them all. Given time, they might heal, but when did the Elders ever have enough time? And close to home in Ludlow, trouble is stirring. Born out of the bloody devastation of the Wars of the Roses, young John Elder is now the heir to his father’s legacy, but he finds it a poisonous one. Driven from the woman he loves by a duty he fears, John abandons his legacy and flees the country to become a mercenary in Flanders. In his absence, stalked by a ruthless outlaw, the Elder family must face a deadly storm of blood and chaos. When the young heir to the throne, Edward, Prince of Wales, is caught up in their bitter struggle, the future appears bleak. Only if the Elders can put the scars from the past behind them, is there any hope of survival.