The year is 1961. "Ex-MI5 officer Alex Swan, and his associate Arthur Gable, are at a missile base in Lincolnshire investigating the death of an RAF policeman who was found at the scene of a launch pad fire. Meanwhile, Action 500 continues to protest the deployment of the American-built missiles. Its leaders are determined to do what it takes to have them sent back to the United States. But this endeavor could render a vast area of the north of England radioactive."