Ruby Drake secures the position of Crown Princess but is soon cast aside, her true identity exposed and her life thrown into peril. Refusing to become a mere concubine, Mabel Drake allies with Arthur Redford in a daring fight for survival. In the midst of ruthless power struggles, Crown Prince Matthew Young and the Empress are imprisoned and exiled. In the end, Mabel and Arthur retreat to a peaceful life together, while the intertwined destinies of the Drake and Redford families reveal the sweeping intrigues both within the royal household and in the halls of power.
