The North West Frontier 1910.The screams of a wounded British officer abandoned at the bottom of a dark ravine are heard by a young Scottish subaltern. Ignoring the command to retreat, the Highlander sets out alone to rescue his fellow officer from the Pathan tribesmen who are slowly torturing him to death.Twelve years later the backwash from this tragic incident threatens to engulf Detective Joe Sandilands. On secondment from Scotland Yard, Joe is spending a fortnight's leave with an old army friend, James Lindsay, commander of the front line fort at Gor Khatri. An uneasy truce has been holding with the Afghans to the north but everyone is aware of the local saying, "When the peace treaty has been signed - that's when the war starts."Into this delicate situation there comes an ill-assorted group of visitors to the fort. War observer, spy, doctor, trader, each has a strong personal reason for being in this volatile and dangerous place. To his dismay, Joe is charged with the safety of one of them, Lily, a rich and self-assured American girl. When another of the guests, a handsome Pathan prince, dies mysteriously in the night the fragile peace between the British and the surrounding tribe is jeopardized. Joe and James have seven days in which to identify, arrest and execute the murderer before the frontier erupts into war. Assistance from an unlikley quarter - Lily - is forthcoming. But can Joe trust her? Read Less