Tricks, sleight of hand, artful finesse, and old-fashioned hanky-panky are techniques used by ... Wilkie Collins, an international family of covert operatives, ranging in age from fourteen to eighty. The team accepts a new contract: Disrupt the gunrunning activities of Hong Kong resident, Chin Howqua. Meanwhile, the town of Boltwood is abuzz with gossip. A mysterious rosewood box filled with artifacts from the China Trade Era has been discovered. Wilkie Collins' youngest recruit, Gee Wiley, traces the provenance of the items. What he discovers leads to murder and high-jinks from the Far East to Timbuktu. Not to be outdone, the senior members of the team watch for nefarious characters as they sell antiques and participate in the revival of the famous mystery/comedy, Arsenic and Old Lace.