A commanding officer is charged with sexual assault and brought to Fort Meade to find out if the accusations are true. Meanwhile, the young star of a college basketball team is suspected of accepting bribe money in exchange for playing for the school. The Lightman Group is hired to determine whether or not the young star took money for his cooperation.
Lightman and Foster investigate the disappearance of an 11-year-old girl who may have been murdered. Meanwhile, Loker and Torres must determine whether a famous peace activist is who she claims to be and if her bestselling memoir is true, but Loker's attraction to the socially conscious woman may be clouding his assessment of her.
When Lightman is hired to find a corporate spy at a pharmaceutical company, he discovers a high-level conspiracy surrounding a new drug that could put thousands of lives at risk. The team is also hired by the State Department to assist with negotiations for the release of two Americans imprisoned in Yemen.
Ben Reynolds, an FBI agent who's been pursuing a serial rapist terrorizing the Washington area, partners with The Lightman Group for its toughest case yet. Lightman infiltrates a prison to befriend Andrew Jenkins, a convicted criminal and a pathological liar who the serial rapist may be copycatting. Meanwhile, Torres and Loker search Jenkins' fan mail, and Foster questions one of the rapist's recent victims.
After a terrorist bombing outside of Washington, DC, FBI Agent Ben Reynolds calls on The Lightman Group to help identify those responsible and prevent more attacks. The case takes a personal turn for one member of the team and begs the question of whether honesty is indeed the best policy. Zoe helps Lightman with the investigation and both are concerned about their daughter's safety.
When a government witness is murdered, the FBI hires The Lightman Group to determine who leaked the witness' whereabouts to the killers and to protect Agent Reynolds, the star witness in the case. When Reynolds refuses to testify in the case, Lightman and Foster learn he is hiding something in his past.
Lightman, Foster and Reynolds travel to Las Vegas to help locate a missing finalist in the World Series of Poker. Lightman uses his skills to read the other competitors' faces to figure out which one knows about the disappearance. Meanwhile, Loker and Torres analyze Loker's new relationship, and as a result, get closer to each other.
During a political protest in Washington, D.C., a disgruntled farmer parks his explosives-packed tractor near the Treasury Department building, forcing Lightman and his team to make some crucial life-or-death decisions. Meanwhile, a third-grade field trip gets stuck in the Lightman Group offices and Loker has to play babysitter.