The Red Symbol

Maurice Wynn, a seasoned special correspondent, is thrust into a sudden assignment that sends him racing from London’s streets to the icy corridors of St. Petersburg. While juggling a fraught dinner at the Savage Club and a tangled personal hope—him proposing to Anne Pendennis—he is confronted with a cryptic “red symbol” whispered in French, hinting at a deeper conspiracy. The opening act weaves together the buzz of high‑society intrigue, a looming foreign mystery, and the palpable tension of a reporter on the brink of a dangerous story.

As the train departs and the Russian capital looms, Wynn finds himself drawn into a web of secret societies, suspicious strangers, and a portrait stained with blood that seems to echo his own doubts. The narrative balances sharp observations of Edwardian life with mounting suspense, inviting listeners to follow a journalist whose curiosity may be his greatest asset—or his undoing.