Line of Descent — M.K. Jones

Maze Investigations has been operating for six months and has been an exciting international success. Maggie is still doing her weekly radio slot. Zelah has discovered a new talent and Nick â€" is still slogging away at what he does best: finding the truth in hidden places.

But they have been so busy that there hasn't been time to stop and think, or evaluate. Christmas provides a much needed break. But the outcome isn't what any of them expected. Maggie announces some unexpected news about a potential career development for herself. But this isn't well received, particularly by Zelah. There is an argument and a stand-off. 

Nick, who watches the rift develop, has been planning news of his own over Christmas and despite the tension in Maze he goes ahead and asks Maggie for help. He has decided to open up about his past and resolve his own family mystery. This could be dangerous for him and it means he will have to expose more of his own inner disquietude. 

The rift between Zelah and Maggie leads them down different paths of research. An angry Zelah has taken on a new client without speaking to Maggie and Nick. And for the first time in her family researching history she is struggling. She is so determined to make this case a success on her own that she doesn't see that this Canadian client is not what he seems. Maggie meanwhile has been asked to help out with a local case which is more about heir hunting than genealogy. The subject â€" a lost child from the Spanish Civil War â€" grips her and draws her in. But heir hunting is a specialised subject that Maze had already decided it would not take on.

As Maggie and Zelah both head off abroad on their own separate quests, Nick is left to face his own history and demons: psychological, spiritual and real.

Can the investigators resolve their differences, or was Maze Investigations a good idea that failed because of a clash of stubborn characters who could not compromise enough to work together to resolve their differences?