The Specialist

Captain Ray Quick and Colonel Ned Trent are on a CIA mission to blow up a car transporting a South American cocaine dealer. A little girl is inside the car, and Ray urges aborting the strike, but Ned presses on and the explosion kills both the dealer and the child. Enraged, Ray beats Ned and resigns from the CIA.

The disastrous mission ends with Ray resigning from the CIA in disgust after the confrontation with Ned. He decides to withdraw from field work and take his own path.

Years pass and Ray operates as a freelance hit man in Miami, taking jobs on a case-by-case basis. He starts responding to ads placed by a woman named May Munro and weighs each assignment carefully. The underground world of hits becomes his new life.

May Munro reaches out through job ads, seeking a professional to take on a dangerous assignment. She is revealed to be the daughter of parents who were killed by Tomas Leon and his men, amplifying her motivation. Ray weighs the risk before deciding whether to accept.

Against her better judgment, May ingratiates herself into Tomas Leon's world by posing as his girlfriend, Adrian Hastings. Her infiltration helps the plan unfold, and Ray is persuaded to accept the job despite initial hesitation.

Ned Trent now works for Joe Leon, Tomas's father and crime syndicate director. To coax Ray out of hiding, they arrange for Ned to be placed in their bomb squad and use the setup to draw Ray back into the field.

It is revealed that May has been forced into a partnership with Ned, whose goal is to lure Ray out of hiding and into a trap. The uneasy alliance fuels the dangerous game between the former CIA man and the criminals.

A trap for Tomas is set, with May in the room when the blast erupts. The explosion appears to kill both May and Tomas, though May's fate will prove to be more complicated as the story develops.

Ned goes to Joe Leon's domain to pay his respects, and Joe lets Ned live so he can find Ray and capture him alive before Tomas is buried. The vendetta between Ray and Ned intensifies as their paths cross again.

Ray and Ned initially believe May is dead, but bulletin board messages continue to appear, and Ray realizes Ned is behind the traps. He baits Ned into an explosive tirade, turning the tables in their deadly game.

At the funeral of Adrian Hastings, Ray discovers that May is alive. The two go to the Fontainebleau Hotel and share a tense, charged encounter before May leaves again. The reunion rekindles their dangerous bond.

Ned learns that the casket's occupant is not May, while May herself evades capture and warns Ray of looming danger. A henchman is ordered to move her to a car, but she seizes a restroom moment to call Ray and warn him of a trap.

Ned arranges a meeting at a seafood restaurant, and May uses secret coding to signal Ray that it is a trap before the call ends. The restaurant explodes, and Ray and May flee to Ray's warehouse, beginning the final chase.

Ned arrives with an army of police to corner Ray and May at the booby-trapped warehouse. During the pursuit, Ned inadvertently steps on a mine, triggering a massive explosion that destroys the warehouse and allows Ray and May to escape through a tunnel.

The next day, Joe Leon opens his mail and finds a necklace containing a picture of May's parents, rigged with a bomb that kills him instantly. Ray asks May how she feels, and she simply says, 'Better.' They drive off together to start a new life.