Autumn, 1970: Hostage-taking separatists in Quebec abduct a foreign diplomat and a cabinet minister and threaten violence across the country. As fear sets in, the government turns to Luc Cadotte, a specialist on international terrorism and veteran of the clandestine struggles in Latin America.

From the jungles of Colombia to Montreal under siege, former diplomat James Bartleman plots a turbulent thriller based on events he witnessed first-hand. Swerving between fanatical ideologues and crass careerists with bloody hands, Cadotte has to choose sides when they all seem dirty, and put everything on the line in a crisis that puts all that he stands for to the test.