April 2003: As his nation descends into chaos, an Iraqi boy loots an ancient clay tablet from a long-forgotten vault in the Baghdad Museum of Antiquities-unaware that his actions could ignite the war to end all wars.Years later, on the eve of a historic Israeli-Palestinian peace accord, bodyguards for Israel's prime minister gun down a possible assassin-and discover a blood-stained note clutched in the dead man's hand.With Middle Eastern tensions rapidly reaching the boiling point-in the wake of a frightening wave of seemingly random revenge killings-Maggie Costello is sent by Washington to try to keep the peace. A government negotiator with old sins to atone for, she immediately comes face-to-face with ancient secrets, extremist violence, and sudden, inexplicable death. For Maggie seems to hold the key to the last unsolved riddle of the Bible-a shocking revelation that could end the world's most bitter conflict . . . or leave the earth in ruins.