Holland is a former CIA assassin who lives quietly and peacefully on the Cayman Islands. He is persuaded out of retirement by the death of Jorge Hidalgo, a friend and dissident journalist. Hidalgo was murdered by Clement Molloch, a Welsh doctor who lives in Guatemala. Molloch is an expert in the science of torture and sells his knowledge and skills to any government that can pay his price. He lives under government protection in Guatemala.