An unpaid bar bill leads Flavia Albia to her most bitter and complex case yet. Decades earlier Appius Tranquillus Surus wrote his will, it freed his slaves and bequeathed his businesses to them. The arrangement has led to a feud between the two families, each of which has its own internal strife. Albias investigation must cut through decades of secrets, arguments, lies and violence to reach a startling truth.