Today I have an excerpt from Maltese Steel by Stuart Field.
Maltese Steel
Stuart Field
A woman is found dead on the island of Gozo. The cops say she fell from the Azure Window tourist spot, but her father thinks otherwise.
CIA Section Chief Foster needs help to prove it was murder, so he turns to the only person he knows can get the job done: John Steel.
The Hive, securely seated under the US Embassy on the island of Malta, is an operation that monitors all passage from North Africa and the Middle East into Europe and the US. A platform that requires the latest in technology and facial recognition.
In seven days, that software will be updated. In two days, all hell will break loose. And the clock is ticking for an attack on American soil.
Together with the beautiful Sammara Malk of Mossad, can Steel find out who killed Lucy – and stop whoever is behind the impending attack?
Amazon UK | Goodreads | Amazon US
This is where John Steel meets the Mossad agent Samara for the first time. The start of an explosive relationship.
The figure laughed and pulled her up slowly. As she neared the top, she pulled her arm back, ready to launch an attack. She knew a fat open palm hit could cause a lot of pain, and she was ready. She held her breath and prepared herself. She was ready. Suddenly as she neared the edge, she stopped. As Samara dangled for a brief moment, she wondered what was coming next. Was he going to drop her, leave her hanging until the others arrived? Then she heard an electronic click. He’d taken a photo of her. What for? Proof? ‘OK, you can grab the ledge now,’ her captor said. She looked up at the stone edge of the wall. She threw up her free arm and held on just as her other arm was released.
Samara pulled herself up and over. As she stood, Samara looked up at her savour, John Steel. ‘You know, there is a door,’ Steel joked, watching her brush stone dust and undergrowth from her clothes. ‘Sorry, I don’t speak to strangers,’ Samara said. ‘Strangers? I think we are way past strangers, don’t you? I mean, we do keep running into each other – so to speak,’ Steel smiled and extending a hand to shake. Samara looked down at his hand and then back to his face. ‘It’s a small island. We are bound to bump into each other. It happens all the time,’ she said unconvincingly. A sudden commotion from the museum gate caught her attention. Two men looked down the road and straight at her. It was the other snatch team.
‘Friends of yours?’ Steel said. Samara shot him an angry glare and ran off across the street with Steel fast behind her. ‘By the way, my name is Steel – John Steel,’ Steel yelled at the fast-moving woman. ‘Not interested,’ she lied. ‘You know we would be a lot safer if we rejoined the group if we could find them,’ Steel suggested. He felt his smartwatch vibrate, and he pulled out his phone. As he looked at the message he had just gotten. It was from the office in Whitehall with a quick background check on Samara. Steel smiled broadly before putting his phone away. Now he knew who she was – Agent Samara Malka, of Mossad. The big question now was why she was following him?
Stuart Field is a veteran who now works in security after serving twenty-two years in the British Army. As well as working full time he writes in his spare time. Stuart was born and raised in the West Midlands in the UK. His love for travel has been an inspiration in some of his work with his John Steel thriller series. As well as future John Steel novels, Stuart is working on a new series and standalone novels.
Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads
everywhere-and-nowhere.com 