Way back during the crusades Richard I presented the Huntingforest family with the tiny Balkan state of Averna. Since that time the kingdom has been forgotten until circumstances in Europe suddenly render it strategically important to the British Government. They hire unconventional detective Albert Campion to recover the long-missing proofs of ownership
- the deeds a crown & a receipt
- which are apparently hidden in the village of Pontisbright. In Pontisbright Campion & his friends meet the eccentric flame-haired Amanda Fitton & her family who claim to be the rightful heirs to Averna & join in the hunt. Unfortunately criminal financier Brett Savanake is also interested in finding the evidence for his own ends. Things get rather rough in the village as Savanake's heavies up the pressure on Campion to solve the mystery before they do.. .