Scottie Roberts is a high-profile criminal defense attorney who represents some of the country’s most well-known mafiosi. One of his clients, Sammy Costello, asks him to help negotiate a deal to buy a mega entertainment conglomerate. Sammy wants him in on the deal because Scottie’s boyhood friend Joey Torino is a priest who works at the Vatican Bank and he feels he can help finance the deal.

Things become complicated when Anthony Longo, another boyhood friend of Scottie’s, turns up seeking revenge for his father’s murder, claiming that Scottie was involved.

The story takes you from the streets of Chicago to the glitter of Hollywood and then behind the scenes in Las Vegas. You will see firsthand how Vatican City, a sovereign state, controls its finances through the Vatican Bank, which has been dogged for decades by scandals involving the illegal transfer of funds and money laundering.

You will meet people like Soraya Dubi, a millionaire California real estate person who becomes Scottie’s partner; Alice, Scottie’s secretary who, unbeknownst to him, leads two separate lives; and Maurice Gross, the owner of Entertainment World.

Negotiating is part of everyday life, but in business, it’s absolutely critical to success. Scottie is not only a top defense attorney, he is also an expert in negotiating a deal. Emotion, luck, and magic have no place in a successful negotiation. It takes an iron gut, street smarts, and unblinking discipline to make a good deal; and Scottie has them all.