1867-The American Civil War has ended.A Union Army surgeon returns home to England with the savage brutalities of the battles at Gettysburg and Shiloh buried deep within his mind. The nightmares are becoming more frequent and now he must use his abilities to try and save his own father from the terrifying agonies of leprosy.He must find and acquire the only known medicinal treatment for the disease; a serum from a tree nut found in India called Chaulmoogra oil. That, and human blood are the only known effective treatments for his fathers disease.Newly discovered friends on his voyage home are offering their support, but can he trust them to absolute secrecy? And will they truly help him in finding the needed human blood?