Tammy Paradis

In Australia...a U.S. Air Force computer operator receives a terrifying radio transmission out of Ayers Rock that knocks out the world's communications. In New Mexico...a boozy college engineering professor is suddenly escorted into a waiting car by two armed military men. In New York...a tall, slender woman leaves her husband a note on the refrigerator saying that she's leaving -- but can't tell him where she's going. And in England...a beautiful twenty-three-year-old mathematician prepares for a journey that will change her life forever.

When Max Krupin - Russia's leader - discovers that his kidney cancer has spread to his brain, he's determined to hide his diagnosis. He begins by getting rid of anyone threatening to him - as well as creating chaos in the region to keep the world's attention diverted. Soon, Krupin's illness becomes serious enough that he needs a more dramatic diversion, prompting him to invade the Baltics. Desperate to understand what's causing Krupin's unusually erratic behavior and Russia's aggressive moves in the region, America begins working with Russia's disgraced prime minister to stage a coup.