Benedict Mason, recently discharged from the British Army after a training accident, is a claims investigator with an insurance company in Bristol. He is ordered to do a fast-track course relating to diamonds and then to join a team charged with setting up a database on diamond theft and recovery. But before he gets very far with any investigations he becomes trapped into an armed robbery of a large quantity of diamonds – there is a fatality.
The mastermind behind the robbery is a well-respected and skilled solicitor, who is also a criminal of breath-taking proportions. The stolen diamonds belong to a rich collector who is planning to sell his fabulous stones – which to him are more than carbon. Mason is attracted to Sir Vivian's secretary and they both become entangled in a dangerous game when the stolen diamonds are stolen again by another gang. The chase is on with Mason and Jenny, the criminals and the police all trying to track down and recover the diamonds worth several million pounds. There are several tense life-threatening moments and more deaths.
The final scenes take place in an old stream-driven mill and involve desperate struggles with several lives precariously in the balance. When the diamonds are eventually recovered there are several more surprises.
