Two boys hug and jump... One man blows his brains out and does his lady a last favour... Alone in his cell another sets a ball rolling that may demolish a glittering career... Everyone keeps secrets and sometimes not just their own. In an Edinburgh winter the wind blows chill and penetrating. For Rebus it slams one door shut only to open another. Investigating the disappearance of the Provost's daughter leads him from the Old Town to Silicon Gel, from drug addicts to government ministers. And plants the seed that grows into a nagging belief that there may be some criminals beyond the grasp of modern justice.