An investigation into the 2001 U.S. anthrax attacks leads to the realization that a new and terrible arms race may soon be upon us, one that spans the globe and is driven by an array of forces working with deadly microorganisms. Penetrating what they regard as an international "bioweapons mafia," Bob Coen and Eric Nadler encounter scientists, capitalists, politicians, and assassins — all playing with the world's most dangerous germs.

Coen and Nadler pursue leads across four continents in an attempt to illuminate the secret world of international biological weapons research. They probe the mysterious deaths of some of the world's leading germ war scientists, including the death of Bruce Ivins — the man the FBI controversially insists is the lone perpetrator of the anthrax attacks. They also examine the suspicious suicide of British scientist and weapons inspector David Kelly, who was found dead in the woods the same week U.K. officials killed an investigation into illegal human experimentation at the top–secret facility where he once worked.

As the plot darkens, it becomes clear that the 2001 anthrax attacks are a portal into a new and lucrative "biomilitary–industrial complex," and one of the most frightening stories of our time.