Set in Poland, Paris and Berlin in the years leading up to the Second World War. At the French embassy in Warsaw, Colonel Jean-Francois Mercier, is drawn into a world of abduction, betrayal and intrigue in the diplomatic salons and back alleys of the city. At the same time, he is involved in a passionate love affair with a Parisian woman of Polish heritage. Risking his life, Mercier works in the shadows amid a remarkable cast of characters, some known to him as spies, some never to be revealed.