Captain Ivan Vorpatril is happy with his relatively uneventful bachelor’s life as a staff officer to a Barrayaran admiral. Cousin to imperial troubleshooter Miles Vorkosigan, Ivan is not much down the hereditary list for the emperorship. Thankfully, new heirs possess directed that headaches elsewhere, leaving Ivan to take pleasure from his existence on Komarr, definately not the byzantine courtroom politics of his house system. But when a vintage friend in Barrayaran cleverness asks Ivan to safeguard an attractive& about Captain Vorpatril’s Alliance nbsp;young woman who could be in the hit list of a criminal syndicate, his chivalrous nature takes over. It seems risk and adventure have got once more found Captain Vorpatril.

Tej Arqua and her half-sister and servant Rish are fleeing the violent overthrow of their clan about free-for-all world Jackson’s Whole. Today it seems Tej may have a very secret of which even she may not be aware-a secret that could corrupt the center of a highly regarded Barrayaran family members and provide the final advantage for the thugs who look for to overthrow Tej’s homeworld. But non-e of Tej’s formidable adversaries have counted on Ivan Vorpatril. For behind Ivan’s façade of wry and self-effacing laughter lies a genuine and cunning protector who’ll never keep a distressed woman in the lurch-making the ultimate sacrifice to maintain her from damage: the cherished and hard-won freedom from his personal fate like a scion of Barrayar.