It is the year 221 B.C. and there is a tenuous peace between the two rival states of Carthage and Rome, but vengeance, not peace is on the mind of Herotyrus -- one of Carthages' noble citizens. When his plans of revenge fail, Herotyrus is forced from the streets of Carthage to Hannibal's army in Iberia, where he is consigned to the dead, so he can become Hannibal's personal spy. But as a Carthaginian on Roman soil, Hero's loyalties are tested as he discovers slavery, treachery and love -- slavery that brings him to the brink of death, treachery that spans the Mediterranean Sea and love that transcends the hate of two warring nations. With traitors hunting him within the ranks of those he should trust, Hero fights to survive, going from spy to assassin in an attempt to end the corruption threatening Hannibal's campaign and his own life.