Diego is an employee at the Ministry of Justice in Rome and the father of a gravely disabled boy. Though the birth of his son sent shockwaves through his life and his marriage, Diego is managing, now, to give himself and his family some semblance of routine and normality. His universe and its relative calm are thrown into turmoil by his meeting with Walid, an elegant and mysterious Middle Eastern man who is also the father of a disabled child. The two men, united by their shared pain, become friends and even as Walid’s behavior grows increasingly mysterious, Diego is seduced by the man’s charm and magnetism. He follows Walid on nocturnal odysseys into the underbelly of the Eternal City, on visits to dark places peopled with obscurely threatening figures. All evidence now points to the enigmatic figure’s connection to sinister dealings and Diego senses that his association with Walid is involving him in matters that will threaten everything he holds dear.

What does Diego really know about Walid other than his being the father of a disabled son, like himself? What exactly is he: terrorist? spy? international criminal? Or is Diego guilty of projecting his own barely acknowledged fears and doubts onto an innocent man? To answer these questions, Diego will have to follow his relationship with this man through to its frightful end, in the process asking himself some hard questions about his own nature.

Giancarlo De Cataldo
Giancarlo De Cataldo is the author of the bestselling novel, Romanzo Criminale, an essayist, the author of numerous TV screenplays, and a judge on the circuit court of Rome.