Kek Huuygens

It is 1948, and few in Belgium live comfortably enough to haggle over payment - particularly those who make their living outside the law. Kek Huuygens is an exception. As far as his wife knows, this dapper gentleman is an art appraiser who moves in the finest circles. But although Kek knows all there is to know about art, he does not appraise it. He moves it - from one thief to another. Kek is the finest smuggler in Europe, and he charges accordingly. After all, his wife has expensive taste.

In the aftermath of World War II, young couples stroll through Brussels, but they do not speak of love. Instead they might talk about papers, passports, or relocation - and most of all, they speak of currency. As Europe rebuilds itself, fortunes are made and lost in hours, and money is worthless until it is converted into dollars.