The haunted Captain of a Soviet submarine holds the fate of the world in his hands. Forced to leave his family behind, he is charged with leading a covert mission cloaked in mystery.

Ray Fernandez is a slick charmer who cons lonely women out of their savings. Then he meets Martha Beck, a woman of similar morals and modus operandi, and they're perfect for each other. He continues seducing women out of their savings, however, leading to jealousy on Martha's part. The result is a series of murders across several states. On their trail is a pair of jaded yet experienced and resourceful police detectives.

In 1999 an up-and-coming political staffer at the Department of Defence, Scott Huffman, is given the job of investigating a request to upgrade an award to the Medal of Honour. After conspicuous acts of gallantry Airman William H Pitsenbarger was killed in Vietnam in 1966. He was recommended for the MoH but his award was downgraded to the Air Force Cross. For over 30 years his comrades and family have been lobbying for him to receive the medal. Huffman cares more about his own career than this case but the more he looks into it, the more convinced he is that Pitsenbarger deserves the MoH and should have received it in 1966. Why didn't he then?