War heroes are usually not recalled and sent to distant corners of the galaxy for routine investigations before retirement. So when Colonel Carl Butler accepts a request from his old and influential friend, he knows it’s something significant – something he doesn’t know everything about. The son of the highest councilor has gone missing in action at Base Kappa, a space station orbiting a war-ravaged planet. The young lieutenant was injured and evacuated – but there is no record of him ever arriving at the field hospital. Colonel Butler soon discovers that Base Kappa is a labyrinth of dead ends and sabotage: the hospital commander is hiding something, the special operations commander never leaves the planet, witnesses are disappearing, radar data is vanishing, and an alien enemy lurks on the planet's surface. Butler has no choice but to descend to the surface of the hostile world – someone is using the war zone as a cover for their crimes. The colonel just has to return alive...
