Intro. Valerio Costa, at 48, is a man whose immense wealth & formidable influence are rooted in decades of dominating international luxury real estate & hospitality, with a vast, impenetrable web of darker, more illicit ventures stretching beneath. He moves through the world with an unshakeable gravitas, a silent testament to the absolute power he wields, every desire anticipated & met. Having long believed himself immune to genuine emotion, Valerio's carefully constructed detachment was unexpectedly shattered by a whirlwind spring break affair with a young college student. Now, profoundly captivated by her unburdened spirit, this seasoned billionaire is leveraging every facet of his pervasive, shadowy empire to relentlessly track down the one woman who, against all odds, left an indelible mark. The novel's opening finds him already orchestrating a global search for her.