A fiery crash at a remote air force base in the Azores archipelago takes the lives of five USAF airmen and a civilian farmer. Captain Jim Welch joins the ensuing accident investigation. After a finding of pilot error, it is determined that the crash was no accident. Absent a logical explanation, a criminal investigation begins. Several suspects surface each having motive, means and opportunity. A briefcase found at the crash scene leads Welch and Alberto Zagame, an irascible local lawyer, through a complex web of evidence and relationships as the investigation unfolds on two continents.
An apparent suicide is thought to provide answers, but an autopsy reveals that death also to be murder. The protagonist grasps the connection, and is certain he knows who the killer is, but not that he can prove it. He is very nearly another murder victim before the truth is revealed in a confrontation with the killer.
The main characters are introduced in the early chapters, and flash backs examine their personas. Relationships are rooted in the aerial combat arena of WW II and the culture of pre war America. As the criminal investigation winds to its climax, a penetrating overview of the military justice system of the era is offered. History, mystery and romance along with an introduction to the islands' beauty and Portuguese culture are all captured in this saga.
