In a retrospection, Mallory, a Special Forces leader, recalls the mission in Faryab Province, Afghanistan, that took place six months ago. That fateful day, two of Mallory’s men died in an explosion, and one in coma due to a fatal decision that he made.
Meanwhile, back on the streets, with nothing to lose, Mallory has a darkness growing inside him, a dangerous need to seek out trouble. Then, one day at the hospital, he meets Donno's mother, Susan Del who asks him for help. It seems that her other son, Scott, has gone missing in South Africa, and she wants Mallory to find him. She is willing to pay him for the service.
Perhaps it's redemption time, or perhaps he's looking for revenge on the world, but suddenly Mallory has a purpose and a mission in his life again.
Meanwhile, Mallory has to race against time to locate Scott and to uncover a mysterious code demanded by his kidnappers. His mission takes him from the UK to South Africa, and to the United States before returning back to the UK. In the process, he discovers some shocking truths - that Bartho, who is a geophysicist, had uncovered oil reserves in Anambra, a state in Nigeria when he was working on a humanitarian project for a foundation using satellites to X-ray the earth in search of fluid deposits below the surface to help drought relief efforts in some of the worst hit regions of Africa. That was when he accidentally hit on the oil reserves. To prevent those greedy people from a group called Sentinel from exploiting his discovery for themselves, Bartho kept his findings in coded files downloaded onto microchips hidden inside the pendants he gave to each of his sons before his death. Mallory also finds out that Bartho's death is no accident.
Middleton offers an explosive thriller that captures the imagination of the readers and sends them on a non-stop exciting ride.