Chapter 1

The streets of Istanbul filled with spectators. It's the start of the playoffs for Super Lig, The Turkish football league. The crowd in Fenerbahce stadium goes wild as a player scores a goal. The revelers rejoice as they stream down a road toward an enormous square where a huge party is happening. Heavily armed Police guards are here and there, but the atmosphere is celebration and excitement.

In this sea of celebration, a Red Toyota GR Supra pulls up in front of a row of businesses. A black man walks out wearing a pair of aviators, dressed in a black Harrington jacket, an open black shirt, light gray jeans, and a pair of oxfords. We will all come to know this man as ISA (U.S. Intelligence Support Activity) operative Mathayus Hammer. He stands 6'2, maybe around thirty-four, has an athletic build, and has a handsome face with soulful eyes and black hair.

Hammer is an intense, solitary man whose dry humor emerges over time. A strategist/Tactician, investigator/surveillance, espionage, hand-to-to-hand combat, marksmanship/ weapon maintenance, bilingual, good improvisational skills, hyper-vigilant and quick thinking often helps him deal with any sticky situation. Out of all his skills, his compassion for people trumps them all.

A small earwig transmitter is hidden in Hammer's ear, and on the other end feeding him intel is Justice Wilson. His tactical and surveillance support monitors his actions and communicates with him via a remote comm. No one's better with a keyboard.

The thirty-two-year-old sits behind a nest of surveillance equipment, one of which is a live satellite feed in a DXS Surveillance van.

"You're looking very fashionable today." Said Wilson through the comms. "We located Givens cellphone that the Echelon system found and tracked it to the opening of an abandoned subway tunnel beneath this construction site. We lost the signal when it went below ground, but you may be able to pick it up again once you get into the tunnels. Your cover story is already in place."

Hammer's phone chimes, and he opens the text that gives him the cover story. As he closes out of the text, it automatically deletes itself, leaving no digital trace of its existence.

He steps away from the car blending into the crowd, pushes through the parade, and heads into a construction site. As he enters the entrance, he spots an Escalade that looks out of place. Shiny, as a beetle's back. It was parked with dusty pickups and bangers. It more and likely belonged to the company Hammer was meeting with.

The rental blocks were going up fast on a hundred-acre lot just off the throughway exit. And they were filling with tenants as fast as they could be built. By the time the first course of the block was laid on a thirty-unit, the leases were filled out.

Hammer approached the security booth with Asik & Manners Contract Construction logo on the doors. Before he took another step, a man wearing a windbreaker over his button-down shirt and jeans stepped out of a booth. His jacket said security across the back in white letters.

"You, Stop!" said the worker. "Where do you think you're going?"

Hammer, nonchalant, handed the worker a business card. The worker read the card, and it read: Reign Mercer. Shipping, distribution, contributor. One of many cover stories for him.

The worker scans a visitor list on his tablet, sees Mercer's name on the list, and checks it.

As Hammer enters, the guard interrupts, "Mr. Mercer-"

Hammer turns back to the guard as he gestures to the security station.

"If you don't mind."

"Of course." Hammer steps up, and the security guy wands him and gets nothing.

Hammer, keeping a low profile, knew a concealed weapon would draw attention. A concealed weapon is the number one thing that gets an operative agent busted.

"You can call the Turkish ministry to clarify." Hammer suggested.

"I don't care. Nobody goes down there without a hard hat." The security guard holding orange hardhat hands it to Hammer.

Hammer accepts the hat and says, "Of course, safety comes first."

Hammer enters the yard, and the construction project is more significant than it seems. It operates twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, with all the attendant mountains of mud, grit, and massive earth-moving equipment. Tons of earth are moved, tons of cement are produced, and miles of steel are welded. Day and night, work never stops. Shifts of men come on, and others go off.

Giant cranes stand like creatures from another planet, moving under the glare of oversized braces of construction lights. Under this, a hundred men labor at the backbreaking work of highway construction.

Hammer, ignoring the security guard's orders, tosses the hardhat. It navigates towards the site's perimeter: rows and rows of trailers, some offices, most dormitories, and long mobile caravans.

"This construction site marks the point we lost Givens signal," informed Wilson. "We need to determine if Givens research is still on site."

Hammer aims to find the Department of Defense, Dr. Elliot Givens, research on an advanced battery for military applications. Givens found himself working on a project, and with a research grant, it's folded into a larger one. Weary for the worst as Givens hasn't been heard from in weeks and is either presumed missing or dead.

Yazmin Givens, Elliot's daughter, was sent a distressed signal.

Hammer looks up and sees a construction worker walking his way. The worker with an Adidas sports bag in hand drops it in front of a Portakabin. From the looks of it, it's Dr. Givens' office.

"Strong silent type, I see." Said Hammer sarcastically.

The construction worker didn't respond. He just gave the nod gesturing towards the door. As the worker walks off, Hammer obliges and heads for the Portakabin. He surveyed the derelict office; a cabinet, a small fridge, a microwave, a lab workstation, iPad, and a desk with a desktop computer.

"The worker suggested I come in the Portakabin, but I don't see anything but office furniture and supplies, plus a desktop computer."

"A Tyrannosaurus or Triceratops?" Wilson said jokingly. "The Portakabin you're presently in is where Givens last worked. Perhaps the Jurassic Park souvenir on the desk can help."

Hammer smiled as he got the joke calling the desktop a dinosaur. He took out his smartphone, and its technology is so advanced that it allows unauthorized access to the desktop. The progress bar on the screen crept forward at a steady, methodical pace that chafed at his usual stoicism.

An electronic chime signals it is finished and the collected data is sent to Wilson, who skims it over.

"We've cloned that computer's hard drive. I'll pass it on to our analysts. Continue searching the area."

Hammer surveying the office, walks over to the workstation and notices a splinter of glass on the floor and desk as if someone didn't get all of it up. He also saw something different about the dry way.

"The drywall," Hammer pointed out. "It's been patched and repainted. There are also fragments of glass on the floor. Wait-" Hammer kneels and notices a shard of glass with specks of blood on it. "Looks like Givens was attacked at his workstation. He tried to get away. And then the attacker pinned him to the wall."

"That would explain the plaster on the wall."

"Givens spent his final moments crawling toward the cabinet. Why didn't he try to leave the lab?"

"Holy crap, it's a hidden door. What were you hiding? Dr. Givens."

Hammer investigates the workstation, there's a phone number on a stick note, and it's not a Turkish area code. It could be something. He glances at an old noir movie poster, odd for a movie poster in the work lab. The release date could be significant if the movie meant something to Givens. Givens made specific notes of these dates. A thermostat to control temperatures hangs on the right above the work lab. It's unclear what this connects to. However, there's a display with room for six digits.

"Hammer, you quiet what's going on?"

"The code digits to unlock the hidden door are in this room, and I just have to piece the numbers together. The thermostat could double as a keypad," he turned to the microwave. Odd... he's never seen a microwave like this before. "I have an old microwave here, and the keypad is modified with computer parts not typically found in this sort of appliance."

"And the display?"

"It has room for three digits."

"Maybe it's for more than just late-night burritos."

Hammer looks down at the iPad. "Givens tablet. Might be remote access to the door."

"The iPad. Is it locked?"

"Yep. It requires a four-digit passcode. But then again, the iPad would be too obvious," his eyes return to the sticky note with a North American phone number. The area code is 127. It's underlined, and North American area codes are not permitted to begin with 1. He types the numbers into the old microwave keypad and hears the mechanism moving to unlock the hidden door. "That did it. Let's find out if Givens kept his research hidden below."

Hammer unzipped the Adidas bag. Inside were Glock 17 9mm handguns with a Rosewood custom grip and a stainless-steel slide with a tribal pattern. A Sig-Sauer MPX submachine gun fitted with a Maxim stock, Knight's Armament Company M5 RAS hand guard, flash bangs, Korean SJ-600 Revolver tear gas shell launcher, and six 38mm tear gas shells.

He took out an ammo magazine, slid into it, and put it into his jacket pocket. Hammer only took the Glock 17, flash bangs, and the submachine gun, which came with a strap that he slung over his shoulders. The rest he left as it would be overkill. Hiding the bag under the desk, he descended underground as the hidden door built into the shelf closed behind him.

Hammer walked down a long subterranean tunnel with pipes along the ceilings and the walls. It was very humid. He felt the tunnel vibrate. A train was thundering past in an adjacent tunnel. The ear-comm transmission is so advanced that Wilson can remain in communication with Hammer underground.

"Wherever you are, Givens signal is near you. Keep pushing forward."

"Copy that!"

After walking half a mile, he comes to a three-way crossway and stops in the middle, weighing his options.

"Wilson. I've come to a three-way stop. Which way do I go?"

"Take the third tunnel on your right."

Hammer obliges and heads down a narrow tunnel that intersects the main one. He approached an iron door hidden in a niche that Hammer almost didn't see. Prying the door open, he looked up and saw an access ladder.

Hammer took out the Sig Sauer, climbed the ladder, stopped, and listened.

He heard the faintest murmur of a voice echoing from above. There was static, then the words ceased. Someone is reporting on a walkie. A vote on the other end came through.

"Yinson is on his way down for the flash drive. Make sure he gets in and out."

"Copy that!"

"Wilson, this can't be good. They must have the research on a flash drive."

"Not good. I'm sure you know the ramifications if a military application gets into the wrong hands."

"I'm quite aware, Wilson."

Hammer eased the floor hatch open just enough to where you could only see the pupil of his eyes. He was in the main station room; the room was empty, and Hammer climbed his way out of the shaft. The station room is in a niche. Hammer stayed low, looked out the window, and estimated it was about twenty yards from the station's platform. There were other niches on both sides of the tunnel, but the closest two to him had no doors he could see. Low-wattage bulbs glowered on either side of the tunnel in small recesses. They barely provided any light at all. Hammer looked to his left. The station platform glowed like a golden jewel. Three blue skylights were in the ceiling, and city lights were shafting down through them. They had wrought-iron designs like giant ornate iron butterflies hovering above. The terracotta tiles on the station platform were black and gold and followed the roof's curve.

On the platform were four-armed men, all in black, carrying AK-47 assault rifles with 378 mm front sights and curved magazines. They looked to Hammer like mercenaries. Three of them were at the far end. The fourth man stood beside the wooden booth, smoking a cigarette. This gave Hammer enough time to snoop around the station. He turned, and in disbelief, he saw Givens sitting in a chair, dead, wrapped up in plastic.

He walks towards the body and opens a small slit of plastic, just enough to check for a pulse.

"Wilson," said Hammer in a low tone. "I found Givens. His dead."

"Oh, man! This is going to crush Yasmine. He must have had a contingency plan in case he died, setting off the distress signal."

That's when Hammer heard footsteps coming down the platform toward the mercenaries. It's Yinson, a middle eastern man carrying a small device. Hammer took out his cell phone, aimed it at Yinson's face, and snapped a picture with the flash off.

"I just sent you a picture for facial rec. Wait-" Hammer heard a beeping noise. That's when he looked down and saw it. "Great, just great."

"What?"

"There's a motion sensor on his body. What the fu- It's a trap."

"You gotta get outta there!"

Staying low, he moves to the window and see's the men are now alerted by the motion sensor inside the central station. That's when the station began to vibrate with the sound of the oncoming train. Hammer could see its light growing brighter in the mouth of the tunnel.

He had only seconds to take out the fourth man.

He picked up the Sig-Sauer MPX submachine gun and slammed in the magazine and flipped up the M.P. night-vision goggles.

The subway train thundered into the station.

Hammer stepped right back into the shadow of the niche, flattening himself against the concrete wall. If the driver wasn't looking for anyone on the platform, he certainly wasn't looking for anyone on the platform. He certainly wasn't going to be scouring the tunnel niches for figures. But Hammer didn't want a flash of reflection to catch the driver's eye.

The train raced through the station without slowing. As the first carriage passed the niche, Hammer stepped out and aimed the Sig-Sauer MPX at the platform. He centered the sight on the side window of the wooden booth. He could see the figure of the mercenary in it.

With the loud clattering of the subway train still coming through the station to mask the noise, Hammer fired a burst with the MPX.

The window shattered.

Part of the mercenary's head was blown away.

Then the train was past the niche and rumbled down the tunnel, making the turn to head back into the city.

In the station's doorway, Hammer fired a burst from the MPX.

The bullets hit the mercenary's three bodies. He jerked around like a puppet and was thrown against the storage room door, sliding down it. The sound of the staccato fire was deafening on the platform.

Hammer stepped out of the hut and pulled a flashbang out of his pocket. He flung two flash bangs as the mercenaries unhooked the AK-47s from their shoulders. White light exploded around them. Bullets erupted out of the streaming white smoke, slamming into the station. Coughing and choking are immediately heard from Hammer. Hammer saw the silhouetted figures as they were staggering as the C.S. gas enveloped them. They couldn't see Hammer.

More bullets hit the hut, but they were wild. Hammer fired the MPX at the silhouetted figures in the streaming tear gas smoke. Two of them convulsed and collapsed onto the platform.

Yinson took the flash drive and retreated into the enveloping white cloud.

Four hostiles down.

Hammer moved back inside the station and reloaded.

"Mathayus, if you can hear me. I'm headed to the distraction point now."

"Watch your six. Once I retrieve the flash drive, I'll meet you there shortly."

An instant later, the window on the platform side of the station blew out in a burst of gunfire. The spiraling glass silvers tore into Hammer's face, lacerating it, blood spitting up from half a dozen deep cuts. Blood spilled from a jagged cut over his right eye, almost blinding him.

He fired the MPX through the rough window opening.

The last mercenary on the platform was thrown back into the drifting tear gas and lay still.

Hammer enters the station and races after Yinson heading down a corridor.

Yinson runs for his life, takes a wrong turn down another tunnel, and in a last attempt, he beings firing on the move. It's open season on everything.

Hammer ducks, weaves, and, not fazed from being shot at, presses on.

Yinson ran up some stairs, and once he reached the top, he edged around the top of a staircase and fired down at Hammer's figure. He took cover as the bullets rained down the stairs.

The shooting stopped as Yinson made his way through the doorway. Hammer ran up the staircase and through the doorway. At the top of the entrance, to his surprise, was the lower level of the stadium. He looked up and saw Yinson racing down a corridor. Hammer tries to keep up but is losing ground.

Yinson almost collides with pedestrians or workers, making his escape. He is now through a gate and heading up a ramp. Two security men run towards him, and he shoots one, sending the other diving for cover and moving incredibly fast, giving a fantastic display of free running. He takes a left, runs up a catwalk, and approaches the unexpected after running close to 100 feet. He was now on a scaffolding on the edge, looking out into the distance.

Yinson quickly plugs the flash drive into a small device in his jacket.

He turns and sees Hammer right behind him. Yinson, using his right hand, raises his gun aiming for Hammer's head, and pulls the trigger. Click! Nothing.

"Learn to count." Said Hammer.

Yinson hurls the empty gun at Hammer, who catches it and throws it straight back, hitting him between the eyes and dropping Yinson and the device. Hammer goes for him but is kicked back into the metal struts. They fight like men possessed, neither giving any quarter, two hundred feet up. One slip and they would plunge to their deaths.

Yinson smashes Hammer's head against the ironwork, stunning him. He goes in for a cross hook, but Hammer ducks and rolls back onto his attacker with a reverse elbow. The hit is brutal, causing Yinson to stumble around and lose his footing. Hammer threw a hard punch at Yinson's jaw, putting his weight into it. The blow knocked Yinson's head to one side, and Hammer followed it up with a right, a left, and an elbow to the face.

He plunges in a last attempt, but this goes wrong as Hammer lifts his knee and effectively pushes forward, executing a push kick. Yinson stumbles back, falling off the scaffolding, and his body hits the ground below. Hammer looks over to the edge and peers down at Yinson's body lying at the bottom, his neck broken.

He picks up the device, and the screen reads: Application complete.

"Hammer," said Wilson through the ear comms. "I hear through radio shatter the authorities are headed your way. You should high-tail it out of there."

Just Hammer is about to respond. The scaffolding broke free, began to crack and fall, and collapsed, sending him tumbling down. The debris pours down on him, and a storm of wreckage suddenly drives him down.

Wilson hears the boards crashing in his comms, and after a brief pause, he calls out Hammer's name. "Mathayus. Mathayus, do you copy?"

A moment of silence seemed like the entirety to Wilson, and then he heard Hammer groaning.

Hammer pushes several boards back and pulls himself out using his boy leverage. Luckily for him, nothing was broken due to the sand pit below. He winces and grabs his left arm as if it were broken.

"I'm never going to live that one down." Said Hammer.

"Damn it, Mathayus!" Exclaimed Wilson. "Are you alright?"

"I won't be pitching for the minors anytime soon, that's for sure."

When Wilson realized Hammer hadn't been harmed, he released a loud sigh of relief. "So, I see you're okay."

"I'll live."

Above, Hammer hears boots and the chatter of the police on the scaffolding. Two of the officers move to the edge and look down, searching. Yinson's body is in plain sight, but Hammer is nowhere to be seen.

Hammer jumps from a wall and heads down an alley. He turns down to another alley and jogs into darkness as the emergency sirens grow louder and louder.

"Wilson, I'm headed to the distraction point. I have the flash drive, but I was too late. The guy I was chasing downloaded it to some device," Hammer looks up and see's Wilson surveillance van several blocks away. "I see you stay put. I don't know what's happening, but we must get out of here."

"Once I get the flash drive, I'll comb through it and see what-"

Just then, something huge explodes. Black smoke and flame pour skyward from Wilson's vicinity, a massive crater. Screams and chaos are heard everywhere.

Hammer can only watch in horror as he witnesses his friend dying in a horrific explosion.

The mission was compromised. Either there was a mold or trader in the ranks. Either way, emotions ran high for Mathayus, and he had seen enough of it to be done.