A corrupt family of bankers, assisted by their unscrupulous attorney and the Chicago mob, build a business empire in southern Indiana. But the empire is threatened through a bizarre turn of events relating to the brutal beating of a poor, pathetic high school outcast and petty thief. The heir to the banking empire, David Weiss, and his closest friends in high school enter into a secret pact of life-long silence to cover up an unspeakable crime. Can Weiss trust his friends to remain true to the pact, or will they turn on their leader and bring down the business empire built by generations of the Weiss family? David was a star football player and an A student, who married the most popular girl in Grassville High School. But after the golden boy of Grassville inherits the family banking empire, his privileged life and the business are threatened by a possible violation of the secret pact. Weiss receives a threatening letter from a blackmailer who knows about the crime covered up by the six friends. Who other than the six members of the secret pact knows what they did? David Weiss is determined to discover the identity of the one who would dare to blackmail him. He applies his own extraordinary intellect and will to the mission, and he utilizes the considerable resources available through his family connections with Chicago mobsters. John Gemmer's latest novel takes the reader on a journey beginning in pre-war Germany, and after many twists and turns, ends in a rundown out-building on a farm outside of Indianapolis. About the Author: John W. Gemmer is a native Hoosier originally from Goshen, Indiana. Following his retirement in 1999, Gemmer lived in Naples and Orlando, Florida for nine years. He has since moved back to Indiana and resides in Elkhart. He is a graduate of Indiana University in South Bend, Indiana, where he received a Bachelor of Science degree in Business. Gemmer served on a destroyer, the USS Harold J. Ellison DD-864 and worked at SACLANT, a NATO Command, for the United States Navy from 1968 to 1972. John enjoys target shooting, automotive restoration, reading, watching movies, traveling, and writing. He is an avid Notre Dame and Indiana Pacers fan.