Nuclear negotiations between the United States and Iran have reached a crisis point. The new American administration is determined to move ahead, but there are several stumbling blocks, not the least of which is Lieutenant Colonel Kasem Khalidi, the Iranian intelligence officer the CIA has hidden away in one of its safe houses. As always, John and Meredith Dale are caught in the middle. Mossad - the Israeli intelligence agency - wants Meredith's help to find the lead Iranian rocket scientist; while John is in a desperate race to keep Kasem one step ahead of an Iranian hit squad. They are pawns in an international chess game, and any player knows you cannot capture the king without sacrificing some pawns.