When Eric O'Neill is promoted from a low-level surveillance job into the headquarters of the FBI, his dream of becoming a full-fledged agent is on the verge of reality. He is hand picked to work for the renowned operative Robert Hanssen within "information assurance, " a new division created to protect all classified FBI intelligence. Eric quickly discovers the true reason for his hire: Hanssen is the sole subject of a long-term, top-secret investigation,...

State of play: A petty thief and a pizza deliveryman are gunned down in an alley. A US Congressman's assistant falls in front of a subway train - three seemingly unrelated deaths. The dead assistant was the chief researcher for Congressman Stephen Collins, spearheading hearings into the role of private security firm PointCorp. She was also his lover. Cal McAffrey, a rumpled, old-school metro reporter at the Washington Globe is covering the first story....