According to Jewish scripture, there are thirty-six righteous people on earth. Without them, humanity would perish. But the thirty-six do not know that they are the chosen ones.

In Beijing, a monk collapses in his chamber. A fiery mark has spread across his back and down his spine. In Mumbai, a man who served the poor dies suddenly. His body shows the same mark. Similar deaths are reported in cities around the world - the victims all humanitarians, all with the same death mark.

In Copenhagen, it falls to veteran detective Niels Bentzon to investigate. He is told to find eight 'good people' of Denmark and warn them of this threat. But Bentzon is trained to see the worst in people and he becomes increasingly skeptical as he realizes that not everyone perceived to be good is truly good.

It is only when Niels meets Hannah, a brilliant astrophysicist mourning the death of her husband, that the pair begin to piece together the puzzle and a pattern emerges. There have been thirty-four deaths and there are two more to come. According to the pattern, Bentzon and Hannah can predict the time and place of the final two. The murders will occur in Venice and Copenhagen. And the time is now.