Bert Franks, a former Marine and Gulf War veteran, is no stranger to hazardous situations. As a troubleshooter for Vermilion Oil Company, he applies his well-honed survival skills to the cutthroat business of navigating the cultural minefields of Yemen, where Vermilion operates a profitable oilfield concession. His duties include everything from hobnobbing with government officials to negotiating contracts-whatever it takes to smooth Vermilion Oil Company's way. When negotiations for a minor contract turn sour, everything seems to falls apart at once. Bert finds himself at the epicenter of a chain of events that results in a shakeup of the Yemen Oil Ministry, the nationalization and seizure of Vermilion's assets, and his ejection from Yemen as persona non grata. Along the way his girlfriend Gretchen disappears, while his brother-in-law Sidney, the guiding hand of Vermilion since its inception, dies back in the States in an apparent suicide. As soon as he can get back to Yemen, Bert begins searching for Gretchen-immediately stepping into a snake pit of political intrigue, government corruption, and international terrorism. But it's all a day's work for Bert, and he refuses to let little things like betrayal and attempts on his life stand in his way. Little does he know that the danger is much closer to home than he ever suspects, and that the hand tugging the strings behind the scenes is determined to destroy the person he holds most dear. The oil industry can be a cutthroat business, and no one knows that better than troubleshooter Bert Franks. As a consultant and plenipotentiary for Vermilion Oil Company (the Houston-based firm owned by his adoptive sister and brother-in-law), he specializes in navigating the political minefields of the Middle Eastern nation of Yemen, where Vermilion operates a profitable oilfield concession. Bert spends his days dealing with the needs of the oilfield employees, maintaining contacts in the local expatriate community, meeting and socializing with government officials, even handling major negotiations-anything necessary to smooth the way for Vermilion's interests. When a minor contractual dispute spirals out of control, Bert finds himself at the center of a storm of corporate cupidity, government corruption, political controversy...and murder. His brother-in-law is dead, his girlfriend has vanished, Vermilion is on the brink of bankruptcy-and suddenly he's persona non grata in a country he's adopted as his own. And the whole time, he never suspects that the real danger to all he cares for lies not in the Yemeni desert, but much, much closer to home... Vermilion Oil Company is heavily invested in the nation of Yemen, where it controls a hard-won concession in the lucrative Safir Oilfields. Bert Franks, Sid's brother-in-law, is the man on the ground in Yemen, where he takes care of Vermilion's interests in a wide variety of matters. So it's just another day in the office when he leaves his flat in the Yemen capital of Sana'a to attend a meeting with the Oil Minister, Abrahim Abdu-Aziz, with whom he shares a very friendly relationship. Little does he know that the meeting, which involves a disputed catering contract with a powerful local businessman and tribal leader, presages a political whirlwind that will soon engulf everything Bert cares about, and threaten his very life.