Her nose found the body easily when the breeze shifted. It wasn't just that the head was missing. It was the way the neck was ripped and torn. But it was the characteristic heat damage that convinced her. She'd seen this before. Skiff: here to prepare Earth for first contact, she is loved and hated by clients and the intelligence community, none of whom are aware of her mission. Hated because she is always far enough ahead to wrong-foot any attempts to recruit her; loved for her uncrackable integrity. Link: expert hacker with a murky past. Exactly who Skiff needs as a wingman. Boscombe: a weapons merchant from off-planet. Wars are good: who wouldn't sell atomics to chimps for a profit? His first contact on earth is the ideal customer: Vladimir, a vicious Russian gangster. A science fiction/techno thriller of espionage and politics; packed with action, suspense, and charismatic heroes.