The world of successful New York lawyer Frank Kramer unravels when his daughter, Nicole, is kidnapped. Her abductors, Matty and Ruby, send him on an exhausting odyssey crisscrossing New York City. Every time the phone rings, Frank is forced to comply with the kidnappers' increasingly outrageous demands. Twenty-four hours later, Frank has stolen a quarter of a million dollars from his office, been beaten up in Harlem, and is no closer to his daughter. He has no idea that the kidnappers want more than his money. They want Rachel.

When her brother disappears during a brief travel layover in Mexico, Mitch begins a desperate search that will eventually lead the young divorcee into the capital city's most notorious neighborhood. But even with the aid of the American Ambassador, her plight is only met with indifference and inaction from the authorities. As the story unfolds, Mitch is forced to look for help in the least likely places as she races against time in a dangerous quest to find answers and locate her brother.