During an inspection following a fire, James and Steve uncover a mummified corpse in a half-destroyed house located in a soon-to-be residential area. The body is identified as that of a soldier who had disappeared a few years earlier. This soldier had been accused of nearly jeopardising a mission in Afghanistan, during which four of his comrades were killed and a fifth was left paralysed. At the time, his sudden disappearance was presumed to be a suicide driven by guilt and remorse. However, the discovery of his body casts doubt on this narrative. Could he have been silenced by the real culprits? What secrets did he take to his grave? James and Steve must uncover the truth and restore the honour that had been unjustly taken from him. Their investigation, however, takes a darker turn as they are drawn into another horrific case: the brutal murder of five people in the home of Washington's future governor. Was it a politically motivated attack? A robbery gone wrong? The mystery culminates in a dramatic gunfight, where James comes face to face with death itself, feeling its icy breath at his side.