Damien Daniels has been murdered; shot out of the saddle by an expert marksman while exercising his horse. It looks like a professional job, but who would want to kill a popular ex-jockey who trains racehorses for living? Animal behaviourist Gideon Blake witnesses the shooting and is able to provide information that leads to an arrest, however, many questions remain unanswered. Do a series of mysterious break-ins have any bearing on the case? What is the significance of the cryptic list found amongst the dead man's things? Gideon soon finds himself drawn deeper into the mystery, and before long, a dark and terrible conspiracy comes to light which threatens to destroy the lives of those closest to him.