Genoan navigator Christopher Columbus has a dream to find an alternative route to sail to the Indies, by traveling west instead of east, across the unchartered Ocean sea. After failing to find backing from the Portugese, he goes to the Spanish court to ask Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand for help. After surviving a grilling from the Head of the Spanish Inquisition Tomas de Torquemada, he eventually gets the blessing from Queen Isabella and sets sail in three ships to travel into the unknown. Along the way he must deal with sabotage from Portugese spies and mutiny from a rebellious crew.

Carter Page III holds a special place in Washington society: the gay son and grandson of powerful men, he has connections, manners, and he's no threat, so he's an available escort when a woman's husband would rather not accompany her to a public event. When the secret lover of one of his women friends is murdered, she asks Carter to cover for her, and his acquiescence gets him into immediate trouble with the police and an ambitious prosecutor. Carter, with the help of his lover Emek, starts his own investigation. They're warned off by someone's hired muscle. Can Carter figure out what happened or will he lose more than he realizes he has? Human behavior is a mystery.