Duty's Cost

Black Sea, midnight. CIA-trained HUMINT operator Val Rafter is kidnapped by Russian gunmen-a lifetime of tradecraft, betrayal, and divided loyalties comes to a boil as Ukraine ignites in 2014.

Val's luck may have finally run out. Kidnapped by Russians and held at gunpoint on a ship crossing the Black Sea at night toward Crimea, Val is forced to confront the events and decisions that brought him to this desperate moment. Part of a top-secret US Army human intelligence program, Val is an expert at recruiting and running spies. Years ago, while training at the CIA's legendary Farm, he met Sydney, whose beauty, intelligence, and ambition made her a formidable agency covert intelligence officer. The attraction was immediate, but their timing was terrible. Soon after, while serving in the cauldron of Kosovo, Val forged an unlikely friendship with Alexei Volkov, a Russian army officer. When the three are sent to the prestigious Marshall Center for Security Studies in Germany, they become entangled in secrets that will haunt them for the rest of their careers. As global tensions rise, duty and loyalty conflict and propel the three old friends toward a disastrous reckoning in Ukraine in 2014...

In a globe spanning story that takes the reader from top secret CIA training, to Kosovo, Eastern Europe, Iraq, and Syria, Russ weaves a tale that is as thrilling as it is thought-provoking. Exploring the demands of duty, honor, and friendship in a world that often puts them at odds, this is an unforgettable novel that will leave readers questioning the nature of loyalty and the cost of Duty.