August, 2015 The Machine is gone. At least, she has been for 3 months. While enjoying his kinda vacation, John is beginning to notice the effects her absence is having on his world. And it's not good. Finch is waking him earlier and earlier, obsessed with discovering a way to open his briefcase and rebuild the Machine. The circles beneath his eyes are a testament to his obvious lack of sleep. Root is desperate. Without the Machine in her ear, her only report on the outside world comes from Fusco, who hasn't been shelled up in their hideout for 3 months. Without Shaw by her side, nobody can keep her calm. New York is battleground. Samaritan has allowed chaos to ensue: an unofficial cleansing that doesn't seem to be working. Without Elias or the Brotherhood at the head, crime is at a peak, and bodies are arriving in the morgue daily. Until the Machine manages to send one fateful message from its compressed prison: the number of Anna Markham. Book 3 in The Stone Chronicles. Sequel to Double Ode and MED.