Annabelle is a beautiful stranger with a mysterious past, planning the heist of the century - two short cons to fund a long con, then a life of unashamed luxury, incognito in a foreign land.

Jonathan DeHaven, the shy head of the Rare Books Division at the Library of Congress, is planning nothing more than an uneventful day amongst his cherished collection.

But when Jonathan is found dead by Caleb Shaw, a member of the Camel Club, two conspiracies are destined to meet as the Club determines to track down the dead man's long-lost wife - and Annabelle decides to avenge the death of her beloved ex-husband.

Unfortunately, the victim of Annabelle's long con has sworn eternal revenge and Jonathan's killers will stop at nothing to keep the truth about his death, and the code they have perfected over the years, from surfacing . . .