The Russian bear is stirring- and it's hungry. The first disturbing report reaches Presidential Agent Charley Castillo as he sits down for Christmas Day dinner. The caller on the Virginia safe house's secure line confirms that an investigative reporter worling for Castillo's European newspapers - and snooping after German and Russian theives involved in the Iraq oil-for-food scandal - have been brutally murdered in Marburg. Next comes the call from the director of National Intelligence, who asks whether Castillo knows anything about the Kuls - an Austrian couple serving as Central Intelligence Agency geep-cover assests since World War II - who have just been found dead in a Vienna park, strangled by stainless steel garrotes. And within hours, Castillo learns of two assassination attempts that occured on Christmas Eve: against U.S. Secret Service Special Agent Jack Britton and his wife in Philadelphia, and against Gendarmeria Nacional Comandante Liam Duffy and his wife and children in Beunos Aires. All narrowly escaped automatic gunfire from assailants unknown - unknown except for the fact that the hits were professional. As Castillo shares the news with his group of troubleshooters in the innocuously named Office of Organizational Analysis - a menacing mix of military and former CIA, FBI, Secret Service and other agents - two conclusions are immediately reached. One; these are no coincidences - this is payback. Two: Delta Force Lieutenant Colonel C.G. Castillo is likely the next target. Operating the OOA under a Top Secret Presidential Finding and reporting only to the President of the United States, Castillo has made more than a few enemies, both foriegn and domestic. Confiscating some sixty million illicit dollars and leaving a trail of dead bad guys top the list of reasons why. Still, it's the question of 'Who?' that has everyone watching his back. South American drug lords angry rhat Castillo's helicoper destroyed their manufacturing plant during his clandestine rescue of a DEA agent? Muslim extremists wanting revenge for Castillos finding and stealing back the explosives-filled 727 aircraft that the terrorists were going to crash into the Liberty Bell? Ex-members of AVH and ex-Srasi - former Hungarian and East German secret police - ruthless professionals infamous for their use of garrotes? As Castillo and his operatives try and connect the dots, two Russian SVR rezidents turn his world upside down. They want to defect - but to Castillo, not to the CIA, which is already bragging that they've bagged the pair. And being top-level foreign intelligence service officers, they bear great gifts...including what they claim is Russian intel about who's making weapons of mass destruction and where. There's more than one big surprise in all this for Presidential Agent C.G. Castillo. If he can stay alive.
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