When a deadly tide of poison flows into Alaskan waters, threatening ocean life globally, NUMA troubleshooter Dirk Pitt is dispatched to uncover the source. What begins as an environmental crisis quickly spirals into a massive international conspiracy involving a ghost ship, a burning Soviet liner, and the shocking disappearance of the President of the United States. From icy northern waters to a sinister Asian shipping empire, Pitt must risk everything to save his country and stop a fiendish plot before time runs out.