First, a large magnate and president of a company turned to Wolfe. As it seemed, for a simple matter — the theft of money from the desk of one of the vice presidents of his company — but the case turns out to be rather tangled…
… later, Nero Wolfe hires a group of people for his own interests, in the past adventure seekers. They tell Wolfe that at one time they saved from death the heir of an English lord while he was in the United States. He promised them that after he accepted the title of lord, he would pass on to them part of his inheritance. Many years later, he returns to the United States as a rich lord. The rescuers who have lived to this day demand the promised reward from him. But someone begins to kill them…