Justin Alastair is the Duke of Avon and he is the hero in this story. He is jaded and has lived a life of hedonistic pleasures and vices. He is always coolly aloof, never one to indulge into a fit of temper, and has the most dry sense of humour that is very amusing. He is not known as the kindest of gentlemen, being known by his peers as "Satanas" (or Devil), he has quite the black reputation.

While in France, by chance he comes across a young boy in the back streets of Paris as the boy is being chased by his older brother. The Duke takes pity on the boy and buys him from his sibling and takes him to his residence near-by. Needless to say, the boy is no boy but a girl, the heroine named Leonie. The heroine is quite young, in comparison to the hero, but her mischief and innocence is captivating. Her charm is her youthful exuberance and honesty and unaffectedness.

Alastair sets up the "boy" as his page and as the story unfolds it becomes clear that the Duke did not take Leonie in out of the kindness of his heart, but that he has other more ulterior motives in mind. Namely, to use her in his game of vendetta against another, a French nobleman he crossed paths 20 years before.