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.