China schemes to steal the plans for America's newest nuclear submarine, the Columbia Class. China is furious that the newly signed AUKUS agreement allows Australia to deploy those subs in the China sea. A spy is sent to infiltrate the sub's manufacturer, but a TV reporter intervenes, and U.S. security services mount an all-out effort to flip him, turn him into a double agent. It is a tale of espionage, deception, blackmail, and deadly reprisals which involve cynical spymasters in deadly duels on land and at sea.