In the formidable Colonel Garrison's updated version of the old Redskins program, operatives actually have and maintain an authentic identity very different from that of spy. As Colonel Garrison likes to say, "It is easier to make an agent out of a real person than a real person out of an agent." Dan O'Donovan, former Marine, partner in and heir to a local family department store chain, is one such operative.

On a business trip to Turkey Mary Sue Hooper finds herself held for ransom along with several other women. Her brother Pres and their partner Dan O'Donovan both receive ransom notes and leave for Istanbul. But just before Dan leaves, his control contacts him with orders to "free those women" for reasons that don't quite ring true. Generosity and humanitarianism are not traits one associates with Colonel Garrison. In Istanbul Dan deals with the situation and with Pres who is, as usual, clueless but determined to save his sister. On this mission, Dan finds himself involved in a cooperative effort to free the women that includes branches of Turkey's police and military as well as officials from several other countries. As events unfold, Dan also discovers there is much more to the situation than a simple kidnapping.