After her first assignment in Venezuela goes disastrously awry, rookie officer Kyra Stryker is brought back to Langley to work in the Red Cell, the CIA's out-of-the-box think tank. There she's paired with Jonathan Burke, an analyst who has alienated his colleagues with his unorthodox methods and a knack for always being right, consequences be damned.
When a raid on Chinese spies in Taiwan ends in a shootout and the release of a deadly chemical, CIA director Kathy Cooke turns to the Red Cell to figure out why China is ready to invade without any fear of reprisal from the U.S. Navy. Stryker and Burke's only lead is the top CIA asset in China, code named Pioneer. But when Pioneer reports that Chinese security has him under surveillance, Stryker is offered a chance for redemption with a highly dangerous mission: extract Pioneer from China before he's arrested and executed. The answers he holds could mean the difference between peace in the Pacific or another world war.
