The Roman Catholic Pope is planning a reconciliatory meeting with the head of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, an event awaited for many generations. But suddenly, right while the Pope is addressing the crowds gathered in the Piazza Navone, a nun is assassinated by a Ukrainian, placing the upcoming talks between the two leaders in jeopardy. And the head of the American diplomatic corps (the nun was an American) assigns the investigation of the killing to one of his underlings, which leads the young man to investigate the Russicum, a center for the study of Russia within the Vatican city. And from there he finds himself caught up in an intrigue of international proportions, filled with agents and double agents, and ending with a revelation most unexpected.

El Papa de Roma planea una reunión para reconciliarse con el jefe de la Iglesia Ortodoxa de Ucrania, algo deseado durante generaciones. Pero, inesperadamente, ocurre un hecho que pone en peligro tan importante cita: mientras el Papa se dirige a miles de peregrinos, una monja es asesinada por un ucraniano. El jefe de la diplomacia estadounidense asigna la resolución del caso a uno de sus hombres. El joven empieza por investigar la Russicum, un centro de estudios rusos situado en la ciudad del Vaticano. Se ve entonces envuelto en una compleja intriga de carácter internacional.