BERLIN, NOVEMBER 1918: The war is ending. The Empire is falling. For robbery detective Gerhard Hoehner these dark days of a German winter are as much a struggle for food, fuel, and news as they are for any Berliner. So, when the disappearance of wounded soldiers starts him on the trail of an elusive doctor, drawing the attention of dark forces that are not at all ready to concede that the war has been lost, he faces a series of cases that almost defy explanation.