Brigadier General Jonathan Carleton has pledged his allegiance to the newly elected commander of the rebel force, George Washington. But his heart belongs to fiery Elizabeth Howard, the beautiful daughter of Loyalists who, as the elusive courier Oriole, charms British officers by day and by night delivers their secrets to the Sons of Liberty. When General Washington arrives in Cambridge to take command of the American forces, he orders Carleton to undertake a perilous journey deep into Indian territory while Elizabeth continues to spy on the British in Boston. But as she expands her connections within Loyalist circles and gains access to the intelligence Washington so desperately needs, she receives news that far out in the wilderness Carleton has been captured by the Seneca. Despite all attempts to find him, his fate remains cloaked in mystery. In the summer of 1776, the war moves to New York, where British General William Howe prepares to unleash an overwhelming invasion force against Washington s badly outmatched army at Brooklyn Heights. And gradually reports begin to filter back from the western frontiers that a new war chief has arisen among the Shawnee, a canny warrior named White Eagle who is leading devastating raids against both British and American outposts on the frontier."