After two high-risk missions, CIA special agent John Wells is a man living on the edge. His nights are filled with disturbing dreams, but he knows he has no time for rest. He has made many enemies, and the world never stays quiet for long. But what happens next shocks him to the core. He and his fiancee Jennifer Exley are targeted by assassins sent by a psychotic arms dealer out for revenge. Among the dead and wounded is Exley, who is gravely injured. When Wells discovers the assailants are Russian, he immediately leaves for Moscow to seek vengeance. What Wells finds there is far from what he expected. A plan of terrifying consequences has been set in motion - by terrorists who have infiltrated Russia's nuclear complex. With the clock ticking, Wells rapidly realises that to stand a chance of preventing them, he mustn't let a personal vendetta get in his way - the future of the West depends upon him.