Mrs. Rachel Bruner is a very rich woman. So rich that she can offer Nero Wolfe a retainer of over a hundred thousand dollars to take on "the whole damn Federal Bureau of Investiagation" - single handed. A pretty tough proposition, even for the great Nero Wolfe. But Wolfe likes money as much as he hates the F.B.I.

The assignment turns out to be not only preposterous, but practically impossible. It's Wolfe and his able legman, Archie Goodwin, versus the G-Men - and somebody's got to lose...