Christmas 1979—danger, secrets, lies and their shared history loom large over the Blacks' first Yuletide season as a reunited family. While life as a fugitive proves bleaker—and more boring—than Regulus could have imagined, a botched espionage mission at Malfoy Manor draws Sirius deeper into the Black family web. [Sequel to 'In the Black']

Regulus survives the cave and goes to his older brother for help. He strikes a deal with Dumbledore: the Horcrux in exchange for his family's protection. Sirius, meanwhile, is faced with his toughest mission yet: managing his estranged parents, who find they like having both their sons back and are prepared to use all their cunning to make this temporary family reunion permanent.

A dying Orion Black stumbles upon his rebellious older son in St. Mungo's, nursing injuries sustained in his work for the Order of the Phoenix. Sirius is the last person he thought would have to tell his father his two sons are fighting on opposite sides of a war.