Dylan Kane is an agent with the CIA.
He is probably their best agent in the field, a man who has on many occasions gone into the darkest alleys and remotest regions, usually working alone, and handled situations that seemed nearly impossible. He would do this with an extremely cool demeanor and a dedication to purpose, putting aside all distractions until the job was done. Only then would he loosen up.
He loosened up a lot. He made very good money but lived simply back in the states with a small apartment and an average car because "ostentatiousness was frowned upon at the Agency". However, when he was on vacation, usually in a foreign country where he was as anonymous as he could get, he loved to live well. He did NOT save for retirement because he was certain in his line of work, taking the risks that he routinely had to take, some things were just never going to happen.
Kane is in his early to mid 30s as the series opens. He is principally a loner with no real attachments. His parents were both still living and he had a fair relationship with them but his travel kept him away so much they had become more a part of his past than his present. He had no siblings. He had no romantic relationships. When he was relaxing, he had abundant non-romantic relationships but there was never any chance they would grow deeper. Kane was a loner and he enjoyed it.
The only person he would think of as friend was Chris Leroux, a high school pal who was the book worm who tutored the athletic jock Kane. In exchange, Kane kept the bullies off Leroux and introduced him, peripherally at least, to a world of excitement outside a book. High school ended and the two went their separate ways but years later they would meet up again. Kane was a CIA field agent. Leroux was a happily desk-bound CIA analyst. They were still quite a bit different but they would quickly realize they were both still very good friends, possibly the only one the other had. That friendship and ability to work well together would come in handy as time went by.
Kane came to the CIA by way of Delta Force. Being very athletic and craving action, Kane was in college on a football scholarship when 9/11 happened. He knew he could not stay there. He had a long talk with his favorite professor, archeology expert James Acton, a man who had become a mentor to him and decided that he needed to get involved.
Involved he certainly got. Several years with Delta working in the harsh terrains of Iraq and Afghanistan were followed up an offer from the Agency and the types of locations he would risk his life would become more varied but the chances of survival would remain the same - bleak.
Kane would not have it any other way.