Tom Moynihan is a young, American attaché living in Cairo, Egypt. Although naïve, Tom is friendly, charming, and exciting to be around. That's the way his best friend, Sam Mansour, describes him. Bored with their daily routine, they decide to have a little adventure on a Nile showboat. The Mustafa's highlight is an all-girl band, featuring singers Zara and Mira, the Nightingales. When Tom first sees Zara on stage, he is smitten. Zara Kedar, a Muslim from Azerbaijan, is seeking liberation from her old-fashioned Shiite clan. From the beginning, the fiery mix of religion and culture doom the star-crossed lovers. When Tom gets a new assignment as "liaison" with an Egyptian military the narrative heats up. Heading the unit is Elshan Kedar, Zara's eldest brother. Elshan is not merely director of the section; he is secretly the leader of a Shia resistance cult planning revenge on the Sunni Islamic world and its allies in the West. From the outset, Christian Tom and Muslim Elshan are at odds. A dangerous conflict is launched when Elshan learns that Moynihan is a spy within his unit. Taking personal affront to Moynihan's actions, Kedar plans retribution. Later, after Elshan learns that Zara and Tom have been dating, and are now living together, the deeply religious Elshan is humiliated and enraged. He tells his sister to come home, but Zara will not go. Not to be ignored, Elshan arranges her forced return. Meanwhile, as Tom races to Zara's rescue, he is wounded in a street protest gone wrong. Tom has failed to save Zara and is medevacked to the States for surgery. When Elshan learns Zara is pregnant; it's too much - his sister has broken a prearranged marriage contract and dishonored the family - Elshan orders an "honor killing," but not until the baby is born. Part one ends as Zara narrates her own, horrific dying experience. After a year, Moynihan emerges from a coma and learns the bad news: Zara and the baby are dead. After months of recuperation, Tom meets and marries Katie Kowalski. They have a son, Jake. One night, Tom receives a mysterious memo from Mira - Zara and the baby are alive. It is Elshan's trap, of course. Upon arrival, Tom learns that Elshan has kidnapped Sam, and sets out to rescue his friend. As they escape, Tom sees a little boy with Elshan. It is Tom's son, Conor. There is nothing Tom can do for the moment, and as time passes quickly Moynihan joins an anti-terrorism unit headed by his old boss, JK Burke. When Burke is assassinated - setting off a religious war between Christians and Muslims - Moynihan is made the head. Tom and colleagues begin the hunt to capture Elshan. In the end, Moynihan arrests Kedar when they set a trap in Baku. Elshan is convicted and sentenced to 25 years in prison. Years later, Tom and Zara's son, Conor - now a young man - demands to know the truth about his mother's death. Mira reveals that Elshan ordered the killing. Conor is enraged and vows revenge. The stars become aligned for the conclusion of Moynihan's Journey when Elshan is released from prison, and Tom returns to Azerbaijan for Conor's high school graduation and 19th birthday. When Elshan learns that Moynihan will visit he plans the murder of his old nemesis. Elshan's men attack and Tom is wounded. After seeing his father injured, Conor decides to confront and kill his Uncle. Returning to the hospital, Conor learns that his father is critically ill. Within a few days, Tom dies of Sepsis. Tom's other son, Jake, wants to murder someone, any Muslim will do. After the funeral, traveling from the cottage, Jake asks the driver to stop - he wants one last look. Then Jake makes a promise, "One day I will return to this place... to confront my brother and rescue my father's bones from this heathen land."

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