About the book: 2015 / Petrograd, February 1915. Klim Panteleevich Ardashev, State Councilor of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, learns from his wife about the misfortune that befell her milliner, who worked in the Madame Duclay atelier. Seamstress Anna Izvozova was attacked by an unknown person. She was chloroformed and blinded, leaving deep lacerations on her face. What was amazing was that their “pattern” resembled inverted crosses. To expose the criminal, Ardashev will have to not only understand the motives of his atrocities, but also test the strength of family ties by becoming the lover... of his own wife!