"When David Martinez receives an ancient map from his dying grandfather, the unanswered questions of his orphaned past begin to reveal themselves. The map leads David into the heart of the Basque mountains, where a genetic curse lies buried and a frightening secret about the Western world is hidden. Meanwhile, London journalist Simon Quinn is investigating two violent murders. Both victims had once been interred in a top-secret about the Western world is hidden. From the frozen Scottish islands to the Arizona desert, from the graveyards of the Spanish countryside to the heart of colonial Africa, their separate quests will converge to explain the shocking truth of what drives human beings to violence, genocide, and war" -- Cover verso.