Harvard professor Wilson Chaney's position in life is hanging by a thread; his marriage, his reputation, not to mention his tenure at Harvard are in the hands of a blackmaller, someone willing to sell his secrets at very high prices. His enviable life could disappear into thin air should his indiscretions with a young, white student become public knowledge. So he hires Carlotta Carlyle to track down the blackmailer and put a stop to the scheme. Can she do it? Of course, but should she? The professor, while not a criminal, doesn't inspire much loyalty, and when a suspicious death becomes part of the backstory her sixth sense warns her the case might be dangerous.