Extremis

Extremis is an NCIS: Los Angeles novel written by Jerome Preisler.
==Synopsis==
In a division of NCIS that is charged with apprehending dangerous and elusive criminals that pose a threat to the nation's security, this team of highly trained agents put their lives on the line in the field to bring down their targets. An 85-year-old retired rear admiral and two-term California senator is found murdered in his home, the place ransacked, and his computer's hard drive stolen. Special Agents G. Callen and Sam Hanna are called in to investigate. They, along with the rest of the team, soon uncover a connection to a top-secret U.S. Navy project dating back to World War Two. Putting the pieces together they are quickly caught up in a race against time to prevent a very real, very deadly threat in the here-and-now.
==Plot==
In May 1945 at Port Hueneme, California, Navy Lieutenant Elias P. Sutton stands on a wooden deck, awaiting the arrival of two Navy destroyers, the USS Linette and USS Phillips that have intercepted a U-boat at sea while looking northward at the two red-and-white escort tugs and their large, low slung captive, the two having just appeared minutes ago as they wend their way towards the harbor.
He then raises the binoculars for a better look, having understood that the two destroyers have sailed from Pearl Harbor shortly after the German skipper radioed his intent to surrender.
He's interrupted by the arrival of OSS officer Tip Holloway who Sutton notes walks like a ghost on tiptoes, making no sound coming up behind the Navy Lieutenant.
Holloway who's tall, lean and in his mid-twenties regards Sutton through his aviator sunglasses. He's wearing expensive, perfectly tailored civvies- a tan, sport coat with a monogramed pocket square, cuffed brown pants and a snap brim fedora with a pleated silk hatband as the tops of his polished leathered wingtips gleam in the abundant sunlight.
Sutton remembers hearing that the German admiral Karl Donetz gave his fleet the order to surface and raise their black flags while the U-boat, a Type IXD2 longrunner was cruising somewhere around Malaysia with the Nazis finally calling it a war.
For the next few minutes, Holloway and Sutton discuss things, the two men comparing this to fishing with Holloway remarking that the gratifying part is when you finally haul in one of those bastards. 
As Holloway smokes a Carmel cigarette, having produced one earlier and lit it, he tells Sutton ULTRA hit a goldmine with this one and that he's got a stack of cables between Tokyo and Berlin, the sub crew's full list and unofficial passenger list as well as a full cargo manifest unless there was an eleventh hour change of plans.
Sutton notes the two dozen Seamen in blue denim working uniforms that are standing at ease while beyond them is a large group of print and newsreel journalist who are waiting in the shadows of the tall shipyard cranes, their camera gear ready and positioned behind a rope, they've arrived to take pictures of the prisoners who will soon disembark.
Holloway states they've instructed the news people they can take their snapshots but that they are not to ask any questions or speak to the prisoners at all. 
The Germans are being brought to NAS Point Mogu where they'll board a plane for Washington and the other four will remain on the boat and be debriefed separately with Holloway even revealing he's personally selected the agents who will conduct the interrogations.
After more conversations between the two including Holloway voicing his confidence Reynolds will keep his end of the arrangement as they don't want the beast, just what's in its belly, Sutton brings up the goggles up to his eyes and notes the group of vessels in questions are now less than a half mile from the port and some of the American sailors who have boarded the U-boat are standing on its foredeck.
Eventually, once they've finished talking some more about music, Sutton tells Holloway the tugs will have that boat here soon and they better prepare.
Forty minutes later, the two men have arrived onto the submarine's foredeck which is full of puddles and draped in seaweed.
As Sutton goes ahead, Holloway is following right behind on the gangway while holding onto his hat in the gusty breeze while pulled horizontal to the pier itself, the boat lists gently on the water, held by her mooring lines.
Immediately, Boyd and Holloway meet a young officer named Boyd who's presumably assigned to the U.S.S. Linette and he welcomes Sutton.
Sutton returns the salute, noting the expression on Boyd's face as Boyd seems downcast, somehow even grim and that it's unusual for a sailor looking forward to two weeks of shore leave in the States and whose ship has netted a significant prize but Sutton believes he's reading Boyd wrong and misinterpreting his weariness after an extended stay at sea.
Holloway notes that the U-437 has gone on one Hell of a trip of her own. After embarking from Germany in January, she'd made her only stop in the Atlantic at Kristiansand, Norway where the ballast in her kneel hold had been replaced with her secret cargo. From there, she looped around southwest around the English coast, crossed the equator into the South Atlantic, rounded the Cape of Good Hope into the Indian Ocean and then sailed south of Madagascar to Kobe, Japan.
Sutton silently thinks that it's quite the journey, indeed. 
All told, her crew's travelled almost two thousand nautical miles and spent three months in a cramped steel tube without setting foot on land.
He then asks Boyd to show them below decks.
Holloway agrees, stating "Amen" and with his hand on his hat, sniffs and wrinkles his nose, wondering what the awful stink is?
Sutton, being an old salt has barely noticed.
He then tells Holloway it's life on a submarine, rotting seaweed, dead fish, they get stuck on the rails antenna- you name it and count on it being even smaller than below.
He looks down at the OSS man's feet, remarking Holloway might want to clean those fancy puppies of his before they strain.
Holloway looks down at his shoes, then frowns in disgust as wet ribbons of kelp hang limply from his laces. He goes "My God!" and then leans forward to pluck them off.
Glancing at Boyd, Sutton tells the young sailor to lead the way.
After Boyd says, "Yes, sir", he nods and then hesitates, telling Sutton there's something he should know about the scientists.
Sutton looks at him and then asks Boyd to tell him with the sailor complying.
Some time later, Holloway doesn't understand how this could happen. He's pale and as he turns away from the dead men on the bunks, he pulls his handkerchief from his pocket to cover his nose and mouth while telling Boyd the prisoners were supposed to be under constant watch.
Boyd insists they were, to the best of their abilities.
Holloway is in disbelief, wondering if Boyd calls this their best?
He waves his free hand at the bunks without looking back at them and the fact reminds that Boyd and his men were under strict orders.
Boyd looks uncomfortable, revealing it's a tight fit in here. Seventy-five Germen seamen, plus all the cargo and supplies.. 
As Holloway can see, it didn't leave them much room. They managed a detachment of twelve guards, besides Boyd himself.
Holloway breathes through the handkerchief, staring at Boyd in the dimness of the crew compartment, Holloway lost for words.
Sutton, on the other hand, believes that Holloway might be trying to keep his stomach down. Walking aft between the wooden crates that lined the hull from stem to stern, he'd smelled metal, machine oil, stale sweat and above all the diesel smoke that's left a dark coat of soot over everything around them. That's typical eau-de-pigboat: Sutton had commanded one for a full year and hadn't been surprised.
But four men poisoning themselves to death has left a different kind of smell. From the looks of their contorted bodies and soiled hammocks and the sickening puddles on the floor underneath them, Sutton knows they hadn't gone gently or held a lot inside their bowls and bladders.
Sutton tells Boyd to run through everything for us and that they both could use some clarification.
Boyd bods and reveals that the U-boat's officers told their Japanese guests demanded privacy for their sleeping area. He then motions to the canvas hanging he's yanked down from an overhead pipe and that they had this fabric aboard and let them use it as a curtain.
"On a German boat that amounts to five-star accommodations", Sutton states.
Boyd agrees and glancing at the occupants of the hammocks, reveals they were ranking officers. A major, a full colonel and two lieutenant commanders.
Sutton, however, knows better as the four were not military men and that their uniforms and ranks were assigned for the journey so that they would not be prosecuted as spies if captured.
He then tells Boyd to go on.
Boyd reveals that a week ago, the German Naval Command radioed out orders for its whole submarine fleet to surrender. When these officers insisted that the sub take them to Japan, there was a dispute about it and they lost...
Holloway interrupts, informing Boyd he thinks that's plain and upon making an impatient winding gesture, wonders if they can cut to the chase?
Boyd continues, revealing the Japanese insisted their country was still at war and refused to give up. They finally asked for two bottles of luminal tablets and some extra drinking water and then pulled the curtain.
Sutton remarks that Tojo must have a shortage of cyanide as it would have been quicker and probably a little neater.
Boyd tells him he wouldn't say the Germans were hunky dory with it. The men stayed alive for three days and it wasn't pretty.
Holloway tells Boyd it's more of the obvious before wondering if the crew searched the bodies for documents?
After doing a quick side-to-side head wobble, Boyd reveals that he assumes it would be done when they brought them ashore to be processed before telling them in a low voice to listen. He then states that before the crews of the Linette and Phillips come ashore, they will be sworn to secrecy about the details of this submarine's capture, in writing and that it isn't be discussed with anyone, meaning wives, girlfriends, barroom floozies or even cocker spaniels under the penalty of court martial.
He's then silent before his eyes go to Sutton with Boyd wondering if he can speak freely.
Sutton tells him to go ahead.
Boyd remark it's very irregular and he can't presume to respond for his captain.
When Sutton asks for the name of the captain, Boyd reveals it's Taylor with Sutton feeling some empathy for the lieutenant. He then tells Boyd he'll get it squared with Captain Taylor and in the meantime, Boyd is excused.
When Boyd prompts further, adding "Sir?", Sutton tells him to return to the control room and stand by. He'll let Boyd know when they're done in here.
Boyd hesitates for a second. He then salutes, spins around and moves back towards the nose of the submarine, his footsteps clanking dully on the riveted metal floor.
Having waited until Boyd's passed through the forward hatch, Sutton breaks his silence, telling Holloway Boyd is Navy and to stay out of his way as Sutton won't stand for it.
Holloway meets Sutton's gaze and shrugs before telling Sutton he's not here to start a fight and they're in this thing together.
There's a pause.
Holloway then shrugs again.
He tells Sutton he's going to undress these sons of bitches and then search them inside and out before telling Sutton to feel free to help.
Sutton folds his arms across his chest, simply telling Holloway if it's all the same, he'll stand lookout.
Holloway stuffs his handkerchief into his pocket, irked. 
He then goes to work on one of the corpses, his face creasing in revulsion as he bent to unfasten the corpse's pants.
Thirty seconds later, Holloway vomits on his shoes.
Sutton gives the agent credit as he hadn't expected the other man to last more than twenty-five.
In the present day, at Santa Barbara, California, the old man or Sutton reflects on his dead wife who regarded him as a creature of habit and that he understands her reasons for believing it but even with his wife, Mara gone five years to the day, he would have said she was wrong, arguing the difference between habit and routine while reflecting on the fact their marriage was one of convenience, a passionless one that merged two families, allowing the top of the class Annapolis grad with political aspirations and the beautiful socialite with roots to Vermont and her social connections to mingle in different worlds, something that worked to their mutual benefit.
When she died, his tears were real and mostly for himself.
In his eighties, he'd wondered how much of his life he would have traded for the embrace of true love but it was a fleeting regret.
It's four-fifteen in the afternoon when he returns from the cemetery.
Swinging off the main road that climbs uphill to his Montecito cape house, the old man gets out of the car, silently thinking that his staffers are careful or gun-shy, choosing their words around him.
He bids farewell to his driver, Ronald while informing him his housekeeper, Angie or Angelica is here if he needs anything, having asked Ronald to go to the filing station, gas up the car and please be so kind as to bring back today's paper.
Once Ronald's left, the old man heads inside and attempts to unlock the door, only to discover it's ajar, the bolt withdrawn.
Heading inside, he notices that his dog, an Airedale, Colin isn't barking and spends the next few minutes, calling for Angie but there's no response.
As he goes further into the house, he discovers Angie dead on the floor, sprawled on her side, a bloody hole in the middle of her forehead, her blouse and apron splattered with red which leaves him stunned.
Despite that, the old man continues in, half-limping and cursing his own slowness as he continues looking for his dog.
Outside, he discovers his beloved dog on its side against the hedge, the dog also dead which leaves the old man devastated and giving a groan of anguish.
He then goes towards the dog but he drops his cane.
As he retrieves it, he stops upon hearing something.
He turns around, only to see someone standing between the veranda doors, a compact submarine gun with a silencer on its barrell held on in front of his chest while the cloth mask pulled over his face is black, exposing only the man's eyes which are narrowed.
The old man looks back, his cane slipping from his fingers while wondering if someone's moving about in the living room, behind the intruder?
He then sees someone and hopes against hope it's his driver.
He then asks the masked intruder what he wants with the man replying, "Nothing. It's already ours".
The old man's eyes fill with a mixture of understanding and regret.
Drawing up straight, he then inhales deeply, smelling the sweet perfume of the bougainvillea before nodding in sober acknowledgement.
A second later, the masked intruder pulls the trigger, firing a three-round burst into the old man's face, killing him.
With the dead man identified as Elias Sutton, an Admiral in the United States Navy and also a three-term Senator, the NCIS Office of Special Projects takes over despite resistance from the Los Angeles Police Department or rather one of the LAPD's Detectives Frank Varno who OSP had previously worked a case with in Santa Barbara the previous year or so involving a Mexican panga boat carrying a hundred pounds of heroin and a partially decomposed corpse had washed ashore on Arroyo Burro Beach and it had eventually led the two sides to discovering it was part of a three-way deal gone sour- the other part involving a black market shipment of guns and explosives to jihadist revolutionaries in Afghanistan and although NCIS Special Agent Kensi Blye and LAPD Detective Marty Deeks had led the investigation, Callen himself had wound up in the thick of things and they had gotten dicey, involving a mansion blowing up which had gotten Varno into all kinds of hot water with the millionaire taxpayers in the hills of Los Angeles.
Eventually, the team discover Sutton's murder along with the deaths of hacker Erasmo Greer and criminal Zory Daggut are connected to a shipment of uranium Sutton and OSS officer Tip Holloway secretly took possession during the Second World War with the two crews in the submarines responsible for capturing the U-boat also being sworn to secrecy as they would be subjected to a court-martial or executed for treason if they ever told anyone else what had happened that day.
During the investigation, they also learn that Holloway was abducted by a mysterious group and then released without harm with Holloway even pulling strings to have the case concerning his kidnapping closed.
Thanks to the efforts of NCIS Assistant Director Owen Granger, the team also realize that Sutton and Holloway ripped off the uranium with the German submariners also taking oaths of secrecy to the Reich.
Furthermore, when Sam informs them the date is April 24, Hetty grimly tells them that a little over a century ago, three hundred innocent members of Constantinople's Armenian community were slaughtered by the military government, the massacre being the first of several killings that would take a million and a half lives in Turkish-controlled lands over the next decade. This led to the Armenian Justice Commandos being formed in the 1970s, the group being primarily involved in attacks against Turkish diplomats and calling for recognition of the genocide by the government in Istanbul, Turkey. A more violent offshoot called the Armenian Secret Army soon emerged, broadening the terrorist activities through Europe and even added Armenian self-rule to their demands but when Armenia declared independence in 1999, the Justice Commandos disappeared but the Secret Army had many angry factions, the groups insisting the Turks admit to their crimes against humanity and even pay reparations to survivors with the Americans taking the lead in imposing sanctions for noncompliance which the US didn't do as they were too busy fighting other battles.
Hetty remarks the SA's rhetoric hasn't helped their cause, either and every now and then, they surface to advocate reprisals against the Turks and their allies. She also believes that it's widely thought the group's funding dried up years ago and the intelligence agencies believe they're dormant although Sam knows better, having come to the realization the group is targeting the Nazi uranium in hopes of building a dirty bomb, having kidnapped one person and murdered four other people in an attempt to gain possession of the uranium in question.
After that, having received new information, Kensi contacts Holloway to talk to him while announcing she and Deeks will be bringing him in regards to the operation "Deep Dive" with Holloway reluctantly agreeing to do so but when Kensi, Deeks and Holloway's carer/bodyguard, John Murphy arrive at the condo, they discover Holloway has committed suicide by hanging himself.
Thanks to the assistance of NCIS Tech Operator and Intelligence Analyst Nell Jones as well as Hetty's connections, Callen and Sam discover the group's safehouse which is in Flor Linda and with the assistance of the LASD- presumably the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, they launch a raid on the safehouse, only to discover it's completely empty with chem-bio tests later revealing the presence of smokeless gunpowder and worse still, traces of nitroamide. 
Meanwhile, the group in question hijack a trainer while one of their members, Alysha using the alias "Melina James" who's befriended Drew Sarver, a conductor who works on the trains edges closer to seeing the barrels for herself.
When Kensi and Deeks arrive at the yard, they meet a small group of the terrorists and attack but even though they stop a few of them, Deeks is left injured after being shot in his left arm.
The two manage to flee their vehicle as a forklift approaches.
Seconds later, it blows up, destroying the vehicle while also killing the driver of the forklift with the two vehicles now engulfed in flames with Deeks and Kensi realizing that the train that was there is now gone.
In the tunnel, Drew tries to help Alysha/Melina, only to be knocked unconscious when she attacks him a brick. She strikes him again before whispering "Never trust" into his bloodied ear before she flees.
Kensi later contacts Callen and Sam who are heading into downtown LA, informing them that she believes a inbound Metroline train has been hijacked with Callen learning from Eric of the train's movement which has him realizing the train's final destination is Angels Stadium where the Rail series game is being held.
It's soon revealed that the train has been hijacked so that the group can get revenge for those who died in Medz Yeghern, the Great Crime against the Armenian people.
Arriving in a car park near the stadium where the game is being held, Callen and Sam devise their plan: Callen will take the ramp while Sam takes the platform.
The train soon arrives and one of the terrorists, Matous then proceeds to drive his van into the group, killing an unknown number including two cops. 
With the help of his associates, Davit, Gasper and Narem, the four then proceed to emerge from the van and fire their weapons, hitting anyone in their path with two more cops dying at Matous's hand while leaving a single officer alive.
However, the group's plans change when Davit is shot and killed by Callen or a man who's wearing a blue windbreaker with the words "NCIS" on its front, a semiautomatic pistol in his hands.
Callen shoots another member of the group dead, only to realize the van's driver has escaped. He then informs Sam that the driver or the man in the beard is coming his way and that the guy in question is armed and wired.
When Callen confronts the remaining passenger, he realizes the man has a detonator, his finger on the button.
As that goes on, Sam heads for the train and manages to sneak on board, meeting Matous with the two engaging in a vicious fight before Sam shoots Matous dead to stop the other man from firing his weapon on the train.
When the second shooter emerges, having heard the gunfire, Sam shoots the man while telling the passengers to stay in their seats. The man survives long enough to thank Sam before dying, causing Sam to remark, "You got it".
Back on the platform, Callen is still confronting the passenger who is showing signs of not wanting to die and as soon as he surrenders, Callen orders another group of cops to apprehend the man before he tells Sam everything's under control.
Meanwhile, Deeks and Kensi have arrived at the tunnel and accompanied by an NCIS/FBI tac team, head down the ladder where they have to stay on their toes, Kensi having found the phone belonging to the conductor's honeytrap date and believing the woman in question had used the phone's tracker as a homing beacon for the men on the forklifts.
In addition, the emojis the woman also used were a coded signal to some or all of the hijackers. 
They soon find Drew Sarver lying on the floor, curled up in a near-fetal position, Deeks discovering that a chunk of brick with Drew's blood had been used to attack him. 
Kensi then checks for a pulse and finds Drew alive but he's in a bad state as Drew whispers, "Hlpp" (help) and for her to "Plss h-hllp me" (please help me).
When she asks if he's Drew, he confirms with "Y-y-yess".
She then places her hand on Drew's shoulder, telling him to stay still and that they're the good guys.
Later, Alysha and Jaz are at a house in the San Gabriel Mountains, the two reflecting on the day's events but when Azarian attempts to join Alysha in fleeing the country and living with her, he learns to his shock she has a gun, a Beretta aimed point-blank at his chest.
This has Alysha informing Azarian she was merely heeding his own advice and that their group needs to be light on their feet and with too many man hunting himself, Azarian himself is a dangerous weight.
Even though Azarian confesses that he loves her and she has his heart, Alysha, her own eyes flat tells him the heart is a useless thing and he should be grateful she's ridding him of its pains before she fires the gun twice, presumably killing Azarian.
As soon as that is done, Alysha takes the portfolio envelope off the table and flees under the darkness of the night.
In OSP Headquarters, the team regroup and note that even though they've averted a disaster, saving many lives in the process, no-one's in the mood to celebrate as too many innocent people are now dead.
Gathering in the bullpen for a debriefing with Deeks's injured left arm even freshly dressed, it's revealed that the Department of Homeland Security are in the Piggyback Yard, wearing HazMat suits as they presumably remove the barrels of uranium that have been hidden in there in piles since the Second World War.
Kensi also reveals that the doctors have informed her that Drew Sarver will be OK but he's suffering from short memory loss with Drew unable to remember how he wound up in the tunnel or the femme fatale who left him for dead, Sam regarding the unnamed woman as stone-cold and also a professional killer.
Hetty then informs the team she wants their case reports filled in an hour and she's giving them a glass of aged Scotch whiskey, a drink she believes is the best antidote for pondering life's grand designs. 
She tells them she'll have a bottle in her office when they're finished those reports.
Category:NCIS: Los Angeles Novels