Samuel Carver makes bad accidents happen to worse people. He's very good at his job. But nobody's perfect. And one of Carver's targets has got away. Now the world faces a new age of conflict driven by religious fanaticism. In Russia, the government have admitted they no longer know the whereabouts of one hundred small-scale 'suitcase nukes'. In Afghanistan and Kosovo, ruthless terrorists plot the downfall of their hated enemies. In Texas, a dying billionaire plots his own personal Armageddon. And Carver can do nothing to stop them. He was beaten and tortured and left to die, but Samuel Carver is a hard man to kill.When he awakes in a Swiss sanatorium from weeks of torment, he discovers that the woman he loves has vanished. Somehow he must find the strength to track her down.

Samuel Carver is a good guy who makes bad things happen to bad people. He is called to do a hit at very short notice. When he discovers the identity of his target, and the identity of the target's companion, he knows that his life is over. This is a secret too big to let him live, unless he can track down the real villains before they get to him.