Getting a well paid nine-to-five job is pretty difficult when you're over a hundred and sixty years old, your CV is a list of noteworthy murders and you shot your last boss. Which is why Ezekiel Barker is spending most of his time hiding in a draughty flat in Whitechapel, consuming gin at a rate that would make even Oliver Reed raise an eyebrow. He's a wanted man, and it's a race against time to see what'll kill him first, the booze or the Custodians, the United Kingdom's supernatural police force. They'd like a quiet word with him about the whole "noteworthy murders" thing.But he's not as well hidden as he thought, because one night the telephone rings and an anonymous caller offers him a job. It's an offer he can't refuse; fail to complete the job and his location will be revealed to the Custodians. At first glance it seems quite straightforward - travel to a remote Cornish fishing village and retrieve a stolen artefact. But Barker quickly discovers that he hasn't been given all the details. The thief is a man with homicidal tendencies, an unusual talent for disguise, and a ridiculous name: Gary Lazarus. He knows all about Barker, and has very specific reasons for wanting to meet him. He wants to play a game. A game only one of them can possibly survive...