The year is 39 BC. Orphaned at birth, Lydia lives in Cleopatra's palace at the demand of Cleopatra and her royal child, the son of Julius Caesar. But her beauty is becoming a liability to the aging queen, and the visiting King Herod's undisguised interest makes matters worse. When Lydia's mentor is murdered, she inherits a daunting task. She must leave the nearest thing she's had to family and flee to Jerusalem. And the future of the Israelites depends on it.