Charlie McKenzie is the best at what he does, and what he does is covert operations. At least he did until the U.S. government betrayed him and he ended up in jail.

He's now a free man, but he's never forgiven the people who locked him up and wouldn't even give him a pass to attend his beloved wife's funeral. But the government is in big trouble when a beautiful Russian spy gets her hands on a top-secret "cloaking device" called Whirlwind. Only Charlie McKenzie has what it takes to find the Russian agent and retrieve the stolen device.

Charlie's smart enough to exact a huge payment for the job, and even more important, set it up so his employers can't betray him again. But even Charlie's intricate plans may fail to keep him safe when the weak-spined Secretary of State, who personally hates Charlie, brings in a murderous South African soldier of fortune and puts him on the spy's - and Charlie's - trail.

Joseph R. Garber is the author of the international bestseller Vertical Run and two other novels. Prior to becoming a novelist he was a journalist and businessman. He lives in northern California, where he is working on a new thriller.