Having left behind careers in theatre and decorating in London and New York, Sydney Reardon moved to a calmer life in Santa Fe with John, her third husband and the love of her life. She began doing houses. If you would like to re-create a colonial gem from Oaxaca or a farmhouse from Tuscany, I'm your girl, she explained to a new acquaintance. But she is devastated when John is killed in a bizarre accident. Still recovering from her loss she is invited by John's best friend for a visit in Salamanca. She has always loved Spain and accepts, looking forward to the holiday. Her host asks her to stop in Avila, the famous old walled town, to deliver a holy relic to a monastery and seeing it as an exotic but worthwhile errand, she readily agrees. Within hours of her arrival there, Ben Harris, a personable young man with whom she shared wine, dinner and conversation on the airplane, has fallen-or been pushed-from one of the walls. What she had thought would be a delightful week as a tourist turns into a nightmare as she is pursued by jewel thieves, kidnappers-and murderers.