A bomb explodes in a busy Montreal street . . .
A mob lawyer blown apart, an innocent child murdered. Watching and powerless to prevent it is Montreal's most illustrious policeman - Emile Cinq-Mars. Then the corpse of a young man is found hung from a rafter with the inscription M-5 dangling round his neck. M-5, March 5th, a calling card in English.
Linking the two crimes, the detective finds himself in the midst of the Canadian mob. Their new ally is the ruthless Russian mafia, and in particular an enigmatic crime boss known as the Czar. When Cinq-Mars uncovers the identity of a mole within the Czar's organisation, he knows it is a race against time. Can she help him catch the Czar? Can he save her from almost certain death?
In his desperate search through the icy streets of Montreal, Emile Cinq-Mars has only his morality and formidable intelligence to guide him in a world where black is white and white is black . . .
