When archaeologist Annja Creed reluctantly agrees to help an old colleague on a dig in Antarctica, she wonders what he's gotten her into. It turns out that her former associate has found a necklace made of an unknown metal depicting three snakes. He claims it's over forty thousand years old—and that it may not have earthly origins. As the pair conduct their research, Annja soon realizes she has more to worry about than being caught in snow slides. Because everyone is hiding something—from her friend, to the U. S. military personnel guarding the site. With no one to trust and someone out to kill her, Annja has nowhere to turn. And everything to lose.