Samantha Reid, a beautiful and brilliant director of the White House Office of Homeland Security, is enjoying a rare evening away from the White House at a Florida charity ball when a timed bomb mistriggers, sending the ball's well-heeled patrons stampeding for the exits. Reid's investigation into the bombing leads her to team up with an FBI special agent in a race to unravel an explosive plot that threatens the lives of international financial leaders and would sink stock markets worldwide.