Keely Fey's first assignment, as the Lord’s Shadow, is to spy on Var Royd’s nemesis, Haydn Koehler. She must use her Talents, but with access to Vereinen—the only other schattenkind—denied, and no one with the knowledge to teach her, the mission seems doomed to fail. A chance meeting with a stranger changes everything. Mr. Mortonson, a student of history and member of the Ahnenerbe Society, claims to be an authority on the schattenkind. Does Mort have the information needed to complete her assignment and find Vereinen? Or is he another player in the game to control Keely and her Talents?