Assassin's Revenge

By Samuel Tooma

Dr. Samantha Stone of The SOOF returns for a new adventure in Assassin's Revenge.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Koehler Books
• Release date: Oct 18, 2022
• ISBN: 9781646638000

Samuel Tooma

Samuel Tooma worked for the Navy as a civilian physical oceanographer for over thirty-six years. In that time, he worked on submarines; Navy aircraft; Navy, Coast Guard, and civilian ships; and spent time in scientific camps on the Arctic Ocean ice pack. He spent two years as the environmental science advisor on the staff of the commander of the submarine forces in the Pacific (COMSUBPAC), after which he was awarded the Meritorious Civilian Service medal by Admiral Austin Scott. Samuel also worked as an editor for technical publications for the Naval Oceanographic Office for over two years and has published six scientific papers in peer-reviewed journals, nine papers in other technical publications, one trade magazine article, and numerous papers printed in the proceedings of technical symposia. In 2021, he published the novel The SOOF; Assassin's Revenge is the sequel.

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PRAISE FOR

ASSASSIN’S REVENGE

A heart-pounding and breath-holding thriller.

—Galen D. Peterson, Author of Strike Hard and Expect No Mercy

"If you found Samuel G. Tooma’s first novel, The SOOF, riveting, its sequel, Assassin’s Revenge, will have you on the edge of your seat throughout. In Assassin’s Revenge, Tooma pushes his protagonist, Samantha Stone, to new heights as she pursues a villain as vile as the world has ever seen. Anton Yulov, AKA the Ghost, soon learns what it’s like to be the object of a woman scorned."

—Joseph C. Pinto, Educator

"A swirling vortex of action is the only way to describe Assassin’s Revenge by Samuel G. Tooma. It’s the perfect follow-up to his excellent novel The SOOF. Full of twists, surprises, mayhem, and even a traitor, this sequel doesn’t disappoint. Buy it. Read it."

—James A. Davison, Author of Trinity 3.11, I Am Lazarus, and Bottom Feeder

"The clever and talented Samantha Stone is back and pitting her skills against a depraved and ruthless international assassin in this exciting sequel to The SOOF. I really enjoyed Tooma’s engaging and often witty storytelling in this intriguing action-thriller."

—Robert Smoot, Senior Software Architect for a major international corporation

"I live an ordinary life. But Assassin’s Revenge took me for an exciting ride with extraordinary characters ranging from the depraved to the sublime. And Tooma somehow weaves them into a riveting plot with a female protagonist, Samantha Stone, who carries the show. I can’t wait for the next Samantha Stone novel."

—Kathleen Sturm, Book Lover

"Assassin’s Revenge is an action-packed thriller that kept my attention during the entire book. There were many surprises as the plot unfolded and came to an unexpected and happy ending. It was a quick read that can be enjoyed by any reader. Samuel G. Tooma has come up with a complementary sequel to his previous book, The SOOF."

—Jonathan Rubin, Air Force Veteran

"I thoroughly enjoyed Samuel G. Tooma’s first novel, The SOOF. In fact, I didn’t want it to end. It’s sequel, Assassin’s Revenge, thrilled me to the max. It is full of action and suspense with many twists and turns along the way. The protagonist, Dr. Samantha Stone, is a breath of fresh air and remains either a real human superhero or a humble female James Bond. I anxiously awaited every scene she was in. The story culminates in an eyebrow and pulse-raising ending that I didn’t see coming. I certainly hope there are future Samantha Stone adventures on the horizon. Loved this book."

—Dr. Larry C. Gunn, MD

"I found Assassin’s Revenge exciting and suspenseful. I read it in one sitting. Just couldn’t put it down. The Christian undertone woven throughout the story was uplifting to me. I recommend Tooma’s book to all who love to read."

—Timothy Scharold, MD

"Assassin’s Revenge is the fast paced, can’t put down sequel to The SOOF. An amazing protagonist in a non-stop chess match with an evil foe accelerates the tension to the thrilling conclusion."

—Richard D Groves, Author of The Hidden Game

Assassin’s Revenge

by Samuel G. Tooma

© Copyright 2022 Samuel G. Tooma

ISBN 978-1-64663-800-0

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other—except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior written permission of the author.

This is a work of fiction. All the characters in this book are fictitious, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. The names, incidents, dialogue, and opinions expressed are products of the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real.

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BE SURE TO READ

DR. SAMANTHA STONE’S FIRST ADVENTURE

The SOOF by Samuel G. Tooma

CAST OF CHARACTERS

Dr. Samantha Stone—Environmental scientist, Naval Research Laboratory

Captain Ira Coen—Commanding officer, USS Hawkbill (SSN-999)

Commander Fred Boone—Executive officer, USS Hawkbill (SSN-999)

Harlan Bradbury—Director, Central Intelligence Agency

Admiral Roger Flaxon—Chief of Naval Operations

James Milsap—President of the United States

Lieutenant Odd Bergstrom—Norwegian Navy

Lieutenant Commander Lars Sarsgaard—Commanding officer, Norwegian Outpost OP-247

Ragnar Solberg—Head, Norwegian Security Agency

Captain Forrest Jenkins—Lead officer, Team Bravo

Commander Jared Townsend—Lead officer, DEVGRU SEAL Platoon

Lieutenant Josh Freeman—Junior officer, DEVGRU SEAL Platoon

Master Chief Bryan Boxer—Chief of the boat (COB), USS Hawkbill

Sonar Tech 1st class Twigs Twigerton

Anton Yulov—Russian Minister of Finance; AKA The Ghost

Anna Yulov—Daughter of Anton Yulov

Rhetta Yulov—Wife of Anton Yulov

Mr. and Mrs. Smith—CIA spies

Mary Graham—Department head, CIA

Captain (Commodore) Dimitri Gregarin—Commodore of three Russian ASW frigates

Jean Barlow—Secretary to CIA Director Harlan Bradbury

Frank Bilger—CIA Witness Relocation chief

Bill Williams—CIA Witness Relocation deputy

Bartholomew (Bart) Frampton—Samantha’s junior bodyguard in Telluride

James Breland—Samantha’s senior bodyguard in Telluride

Guy Andrews—Ira Coen’s bodyguard

Henry Biggsbie—CIA agent in Telluride

Dr. Jenkins—Hospital doctor in Telluride

Jack and Jill Hill—CIA surrogate parents for Samantha’s twins

Matthias Roberts—Chief CIA agent assigned to protect Samantha

Nathanial Breakstone—Samantha’s junior bodyguard in Gulfport

Gilbert Stewart—Samantha’s Oregon State University boyfriend and bush pilot

Big John—Secret Service agent for President Milsap

Wanda Bedford—Nurse, Norfolk Hospital

Dr. Larry Gunner Gunn—Samantha’s doctor in Norfolk

Simon Prather—Samantha’s junior bodyguard in Norfolk

Irena Rossova—Anna Yulov’s friend in Grindelwald, Switzerland

Gunther Kemp—Anna Yulov’s German friend in Grindelwald

Heinrich Schlosser—Anna Yulov’s German friend in Grindelwald

Rodrigo Ortiz—CIA agent in Grindelwald

Carrie Sheffield—Samantha’s name in Grindelwald

Joe Pinto—Samantha’s bodyguard and martial arts teacher in Virginia Beach

PROLOGUE

A RUSSIAN MILITARY COUP THAT was ten years in the planning threatened the very existence of the world order as we know it. The coup’s objective was to topple the existing Russian government by replacing the incumbent political leaders with carefully selected military generals and admirals. Concomitant with this political coup, a blitzkrieg of conventional forces was to be carried out to overrun western Europe, and the United States was to be rendered powerless by a barrage of tactical nuclear missiles launched by five specially designed nuclear submarines stationed under the Arctic Ocean ice pack just north of Canada. Fortunately, a young Norwegian naval officer stationed at a remote observation outpost on the highest elevation in northernmost Norway observed suspicious Russian naval activity being conducted in the Barents Sea north of Russia.

This unusual activity was brought to the attention of the Norwegian Intelligence Service and to the Norwegian Security Agency. By comparing this new information with seemingly unrelated intelligence data, a picture began to form of a possible Russian effort to establish world domination.

The Norwegians quickly decided to bring this potential threat to the attention of the US Central Intelligence Agency. When the director of the CIA was briefed on the Russian activity, he presented the Norwegian information to key CIA department heads. It was clear that the CIA had not picked up on what the Russians were up to. The director quickly set up a briefing to the president, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the Chief of Naval Operations.

When the briefing to the president was over, he was extremely angry that his extensive intelligence service and his military leaders had not picked up on the Russian military coup. He immediately initiated a plan to thwart the Russian attempt for world domination. Key to the president’s plan was the destruction of the Russian secret command and control facility which was built under the waves and ice pack of the Sea of Okhotsk. This facility, called the SOOF, for Sea of Okhotsk Facility, was essential for the Russians if their plan was to succeed. It was believed that without central command and control, their evil objective would fail. With this in mind, a suicide mission was designed to send a nuclear submarine into the Sea of Okhotsk with an embedded platoon of Navy SEALs to destroy the SOOF the day before the surprise Russian plan was to be initiated.

To accomplish this mission, the commanding officer of the USS Hawkbill SSN 999, Captain Ira Coen, had to remain undetected until the SOOF was destroyed. At any time, if this secrecy was compromised, Captain Coen was prepared to ram the SOOF with the Hawkbill at the cost of the 140-plus people on board. Failure to destroy the SOOF was not an option.

The most serious threat to the Hawkbill was two of Russia’s most deadly attack submarines commanded by two of its most senior naval officers. Their mission was to protect the SOOF at all times. Of equal importance to the success of the mission was to deal with the harsh and unknown environment of the Sea of Okhotsk. To overcome this deficiency, the most knowledgeable American environmental scientist on the Sea of Okhotsk, Dr. Samantha Stone, was asked by the president to help plan and carry out this mission.

Captain Coen’s submarine tactical skills and Dr. Stone’s environmental knowledge were fully put to the test during this extremely important and dangerous mission designed to save the world.

Although Ira initially rejected Samantha to be on the mission because of her lack of military experience, it soon became clear to him how valuable her knowledge was if the personnel on the Hawkbill had any chance of returning alive. As preparation of the mission was proceeding in Pearl Harbor, an attraction between Ira and Samantha began to grow. Even though the attraction was mutual and strong, they realized that it had to remain in check in order to not jeopardize the mission. However, once their duty had been discharged, Ira proclaimed his deep love for Samantha, and she did the same by telling him to call her Sam. Even before their death, she had never allowed anyone else other than her parents to call her that. But now, she realized that she loved Ira just as dearly as she had them, and she wanted to build a life with him.

PART ONE

IDYLLIC

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Hero of the Russian Federation Medal with Gold Star

CHAPTER 1

HOMECOMING

AS THE NUCLEAR SUBMARINE USS Hawkbill SSN 999, neared her home port of Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, the commanding officer, Captain Ira Coen, made an announcement to the crew.

This is the captain. We are about one hour from port. I want the on-deck detail dressed in whites and ready to man your mooring stations. Quartermaster, have the Jolly Roger ensign ready to hoist. I want everyone to know that our mission was a success. We will be coming to the surface shortly. I understand that the seas are calm, and our ride into the harbor should be smooth. Once again, I want to thank everyone on board for a job well done.

Ira handed the mic back to his executive officer, Lieutenant Commander Fred Boone. Well, it’s almost over, Fred. To be honest, I never really thought we’d make it back alive.

I tried not to think about it, Ira. It was always in the back of my mind, but I was able to keep it there. Fred thought for a few seconds then said in a whisper, The truth is, if it weren’t for Samantha, we probably wouldn’t be talking here right now.

I tried to tell her that very thing when the mission was over, but she passed the credit back to me.

Hmph. That’s Samantha.

Sure is. Ira turned to the petty officer manning the pilot’s station. Pilot, bring us to the surface slowly. Officer of the Deck, check for surface ships.

Aye, sir. To the surface slowly, the pilot repeated.

Aye, sir. Checking for surface traffic, repeated the OOD.

Once on the surface, the mooring detail was set and the Jolly Roger ensign was hoisted, signifying Mission Accomplished. It was a beautiful sight to see with the boat’s black deck lined with brave submariners, all dressed in white and standing at attention.

However, as the assigned mooring pier came into sight, an even more amazing sight was seen. The pier was filled with hundreds of people. A military band began playing Anchors Aweigh. As Hawkbill neared the pier, the men on the deck could see numerous admirals and generals standing at attention saluting the returning heroes. They also saw that families of the crew had been flown to Pearl to welcome them home. And most surprising of all was that the president of the United States, James Milsap, was there as well. Numerous media vans were parked nearby, and television crews were recording the event of the returning submarine.

When the gangway was secured connecting Hawkbill with the pier, the band began playing Hail To The Chief, and President Milsap went across the gangway to greet Captain Coen on the quarterdeck.

President Milsap came up to Ira, shook his hand, hugged him, and said in his ear, Well done, Ira. Well done.

Thank you, Mr. President. But to be honest, all this hoopla on the pier is a surprise. You could have warned me.

I wanted it to be a surprise. Welcome back.

The president began shaking the hands of the XO Fred Boone, the Navy SEAL officers, and the other officers on the deck. When he reached Samantha, he took both her hands in his and took a step backward stretching out their arms. Milsap then smiled and shook his head. He then pulled her toward him and gave her a long, hard hug. When he did this, everyone on the submarine’s deck erupted into cheers and clapping. He said to her, God, Samantha. I am so proud of you. I thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Thank you, Mr. President. But it was Captain Coen, Commander Townsend, and Lieutenant Freeman that did all the work. I was just an advisor.

Milsap looked at her, smiled, and shook his head. He then said, There’s a certain admiral on the pier that can’t wait to give you a hug. I won’t tell you who it is, but his initials are Roger Flaxon.

Roger is on the pier? she said excitedly, craning her neck to see if she could pick him out.

Yes, he is.

Captain Coen then announced to the crew that they were free to disembark the boat and meet their families. The crew on deck again erupted into loud cheers. And the band began playing Anchors Aweigh once again.

On the pier, joyous family reunions took place, television crews conducted interviews with officers and men of the Hawkbill, the governor of Hawaii talked with President Milsap, and the band kept playing rousing military songs.

Then, for Samantha and Admiral Flaxon, the action around them seemed to stop as their eyes met on the pier. They approached one another, said nothing, then hugged. After at least a minute of this embrace, Flaxon said, Samantha, you are like a daughter to me, and I honestly thought I would never see you again. Thank you for coming back.

Roger, you are making me cry. She hugged the admiral again.

A voice behind them said, What are you two lovebirds doing? And why are there tears in your eyes?

Forrest! Samantha yelled out. She immediately threw her arms around Captain Forrest Jenkins, the leader of the team that planned the mission to destroy the SOOF. It’s so good to see you. Are you still going to church?

Forrest ignored Samantha’s remark and kissed her on the cheek. He then said, Unlike the admiral here, I never had any doubts that you’d make it back. My only regret is that I couldn’t sail with you to see you in action. From what I hear, you were magnificent.

What’s going on here with you guys. All I did was stand around and make some suggestions.

The admiral and Captain Jenkins looked at each other and laughed. Forrest said, Samantha. There is somebody standing right behind you that is waiting very patiently for his chance to get his welcome home hug.

Samantha turned around and there stood the young Norwegian navy lieutenant, Odd Bergstrom. Lieutenant Bergstrom was the Norwegian navy officer who had initially detected the sinister Russian naval activity in the Barents Sea. My God, Odd. I see that you are a lieutenant commander now. Congratulations!

Thanks, Samantha. The promotion came through just last week. Well, enough of this. When do I get my hug?

They embraced warmly for a long time. Odd said, It’s been one hell of a year for us, hasn’t it?

Now that you mention it, Odd, it certainly has.

Meanwhile, Captain Jenkins and Captain Coen’s eyes met through the crowd. They immediately walked quickly toward each other and embraced. The two naval men had a serious falling out as junior officers that plagued them throughout their naval careers. Just before the Okhotsk Sea mission, they both admitted to each other the poor decisions they made that led to the fracturing of their relationship. With heartfelt conviction, they forgave one another for their childish actions.

Ira said, God, Forrest, I wish you had been with us in the Sea of O. It was very scary but exciting at the same time.

"I felt so depressed watching the Hawkbill leave the pier. I wanted to be on it with you and the others."

Ira looked at Forrest with tears in his eyes. Well, we have to get together soon over a few beers, and I’ll fill you in on all the details. As I said, it was quite exciting.

I’ll bet, especially with Samantha involved.

Forrest, she was a gift from heaven.

CHAPTER 2

HOME SWEET HOME

EVENTUALLY, THE JUBILANT ACTIVITY ON the pier began to die down. The returning submariners and the SEALs united with their families and began leaving to spend time with one another. The band packed their instruments and left in a bus, and the media vans drove off. The governor’s entourage departed. Left standing on the pier was the original Team Bravo—Captain Forrest Jenkins, Captain Ira Coen, Commander Jared Townsend, Lieutenant Josh Freeman, Lieutenant Commander Fred Boone, and Dr. Samantha Stone. With them was the president of the United States, Admiral Roger Flaxon, and Lieutenant Commander Odd Bergstrom.

Admiral Flaxon finally announced, Well, here we are. Mission accomplished. Let’s celebrate. If that’s okay with you, Mr. President?

President Milsap nodded his head and said, I’ve already arranged to have a buffet set up at Carter House on the base housing facility. Open bar. Milsap gave his ever-present entourage of military aides and secret service agents a wave of his hand, and limos began approaching the group. The president began walking toward the approaching vehicles. He turned around and said, Are you coming, Samantha?

She responded, I thought you’d never ask.

Ira smiled broadly knowing that this was her favorite line.

Thirty minutes later, the group was comfortably settled in the elegant Carter House, which had been Samantha’s and Odd’s home during the planning of Project IDES, the classified code name for the mission to destroy the SOOF.

Home sweet home. Right, Odd?

Well, I’ve been here about five days now since we got back from the Arctic Ocean.

You’ll have to tell me all about your encounter with the Russian Borei subs.

Likewise. He said, I’m sure it was far more exciting for you than it was for me.

Samantha just smiled and nodded.

They looked at one another in admiration for several seconds. Then Samantha said, Odd, you should be so proud. If it weren’t for you, we’d probably all be dead now. You saved us—and the world.

Odd shook his head and said, All I did was notice something out of the ordinary was happening, and I reported it to my superior officer. He looked at Samantha with a serious smile. Besides, if I asked everyone here who they think is the one person most responsible for the success of IDES, from what I’ve heard, the vote would be unanimously in favor of you.

Samantha shook her head in disbelief. Odd, you need to get some sleep. You are delirious and talking nonsense.

After everyone had enjoyed the buffet and drank a couple of glasses of wine, the president announced, "Let’s get comfortable in the living room. I want to bring the Hawkbill people up to speed on what’s been happening since the Ides of March a couple of weeks ago. I just got word from the CIA director, Harlan Bradbury, that he has landed at Joint Base Hickam and should be here with us in about twenty minutes. Hopefully, he can update me on what I was told earlier today during my morning brief."

When they were comfortably seated in the living room and their wine glasses refilled, President Milsap began.

"As you know, the Russian coup was contained before it even began. On fifteen March, the day before their planned D-Day, in a coordinated preemptive strike, we caught their ground and air forces in Europe during their final mobilization, totally unaware. We destroyed a high percentage of their forces. And without command and control that would have been provided by the SOOF, they willingly hoisted the white flag of surrender. In the Arctic Ocean, thanks to Lieutenant Commander Bergstrom here, we sank the five Borei subs before they fired a single missile. At sea, our attack subs sank many of their subs, essentially rendering the remaining ones harmless against our surface naval forces. And, thanks to you people on the Hawkbill, their command-and-control facility, the SOOF, was destroyed. The coup was over before it ever started, and millions of lives were saved."

The president relaxed in his chair and took a sip of wine. He again leaned forward in his chair. "All right. The coup is over. What’s next? During the three months of planning before IDES, we began to identify very secretly who the military and civilian leaders were that were behind the coup. As they were identified, we began to develop dossiers on each of them. Once we had them all identified, the plan was to round them up so we could put them on trial for crimes against humanity. For security reasons, we could not seek Russian help in this process. But once the coup was contained, Russian help was available to us in locating