Painkiller

The quasi-retired, Virgin Islands-based CIA operative known only as W. Cooper lives his life free-diving and philandering along a quarter-mile of white sand — a necessary slice of paradise for a man seeking to kill the pain of torturous memories. His life of leisure is rudely interrupted, however, when he's tapped by the local police to "dispose" of a bullet-ridden, mysteriously scarred body deposited on the island's shore by a passing hurricane. Sensing the cops are merely looking to duck the labor of a proper homicide investigation, Cooper declines — only to encounter a haunting form of déjà vu that brings with it a strange sense of comradeship with the anonymous victim. Knowing he'd be better off leaving well enough alone, Cooper decides to investigate where no one else seems willing.At CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia, junior analyst Julie Laramie discovers, almost by accident, evidence of a massive, clandestine military buildup in China — and elsewhere. ....