United States president Steve Wade believes his latest affair, with the beautiful Lucia Benoni, is a secret. When Lucia is murdered under mysterious circumstances, FBI agent Kelly Smith is called to investigate. As he dives deeper into the case, he uncovers links between Lucia, a hostile foreign power, a group of vicious white supremacists, and a shadowy high-placed Washington figure known only as "Fox."
As Wade continues to deny the affair, the press gets on the trail and latches onto the sensational breaking story with increasing tenacity. Because of the national security implications, there are demands in Congress for his impeachment. Vice President Ellen Trevathan should, by law, take power, but "Fox" and his associates have other plans. As time runs out, Kelly may hold the only key to preventing a coup d'etat and nothing short of civil war.