Recognizing that for 2,000 years the actual ending of the Gospel of Mark has been a mystery, American biblical scholars Jack and Michelle Townsend struggle to find the true conclusion to the Gospel they contend is hidden in Rome. When their work becomes known, Jonus De Lateran realizes that a family secret holds the answer to the Townsends’ quest, but he fears what may follow.
The Townsends don’t realize how vulnerable they are to attack from two sides: Dr. Albert Stein, a German scholar envious of their successful projects and a terrorist group known as the “Scorpion” which wants to rid Italy of all Americans. Even when a bomb destroys the Townsends’ office, Jack Townsend holds firm to a belief that humanity’s struggles are the only way healing will ever come to the world.
In a riveting final confrontation beneath the baptistry of the Church of St. John of Lateran, an unexpected surprise is revealed about the ending of Mark’s Gospel and the value of redemptive suffering.