John Wells may have left the CIA, but he hasn't left the high-stakes world of espionage, where hidden battles determine the fate of nations. In Saudi Arabia, King Abdullah is losing his hold on his family and his people. A series of terrorist attacks has put the kingdom on edge. Powerful factions are plotting against Abdullah, and his own secret police cannot be trusted. With nowhere to turn, the aged king asks for Wells's help. Reluctantly, and with the secret blessing of Ellis Shafer, his former boss at the CIA, Wells agrees, and goes undercover to investigate. But as he begins to unravel the conspiracy, it takes an unexpected twist, becoming more dangerous than Wells ever expected. The plotters want more than the fall of a monarch. They want to spark the final conflagration between America and Islam.