As the year 1326 draws to a close, London is in flames. King Edward II is held prisoner, and the mercenaries and rebels led by the vengeful Queen Isabella and her lover, Sir Roger Mortimer, are in the ascendant. While the richest in the kingdom fight over the spoils of the invasion, the Bardi family, bankers who once funded the King, are in a quandary. They must look to their own future with the Queen as the mob rampages over the city, steering a careful course between rival factions. But money can tempt the heart of even the most honorable, and in this age of corruption the bankers must guard their lives, as well as their coffers. Others, too, find their loyalties torn. In a small village the local priest realizes that his church holds a chest that could tempt a saint. His treasure could change the fate of the whole kingdom. He must take it to the King.