From the #1 New York Times and #1 Wall Street Journal bestselling author Brad Thor comes “his very best” ( The Washington Times ) thriller, following covert operative Scot Harvath as he is called upon to stop an ISIS-led plot to destroy the Vatican. As a storm rages across the Mediterranean Sea, a terrifying distress call is made to the Italian Coast Guard. Days later, a body washes ashore. Identified as a high value but missing terrorism suspect, his name sends panic through the Central Intelligence Agency. Where was he headed? What was he planning? And could he be connected to the “spectacular attack” they have been fearing all summer? In a race against time, the CIA taps an unorthodox source to get answers: Navy SEAL turned covert counterterrorism operative, Scot Harvath. Hired on a black contract, Harvath provides the deniability the United States needs, while he breaks every rule along the way. Teeming with fascinating characters and electrifying intrigue, Brad Thor does it again and proves why he is known around-the-world as a master of thrillers. "Adrenaline junkies, this one's for you . . . Filled with action, patriotism, and plot twists, this adventure will keep you on the edge of your seat from the first page to the last."-- "Today.com" "No one writes a better thriller than Brad Thor--and USE OF FORCE...will be viewed by many as his very best."-- "The Washington Times" "Pure thriller gold...well conceived, perfectly timed...elegantly paced, harking back to the best of masters like Alistair MacLean and David Morrell."-- "The Providence Journal" "The best thriller writer ever."-- "Bergen Record" "When you pick up a novel by Brad Thor, you should prepare to become fully immersed in the machinations and inner workings of modern-day counterterrorism operations . . . . I sleep better at night knowing that peole like Thor and Harvath are out there doing what the rest of us are unable to do to keep our world safe."-- "Bookreporter.com" "Brad Thor writes like a high-octane mix of Tom Clancy and Robert Ludlum." --Andrew Mayne, Bestselling Author of NAME OF THE DEVIL "His best book yet. Powerful and reads like the news of what is going on today." --Glenn Beck, #1 New York Times Bestselling Author Brad Thor is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of twenty-five thrillers, including Edge of Honor , Black Ice ( ThrillerFix Best Thriller of the Year), Near Dark (one of Suspense Magazine ’s Best Books of the Year), Backlash (nominated for the Barry Award for Best Thriller of the Year), Spymaster (“One of the all-time best thriller novels” — The Washington Times ), The Last Patriot (nominated Best Thriller of the Year by the International Thriller Writers association), and Blowback (one of the “Top 100 Killer Thrillers of All Time” —NPR). Visit his website at BradThor.com and follow him on Facebook @BradThorOfficial, on Instagram @RealBradThor, and on X @BradThor. Chapter 1 CHAPTER 1 BURNING MAN FESTIVAL BLACK ROCK DESERT, NEVADA TWO DAYS LATER Scot Harvath wasn’t supposed to be here. The CIA was forbidden to conduct operations inside the United States—especially the kind he was about to undertake. Desperate times, though, called for desperate measures. The seven-day Burning Man event was an extreme, weeklong summer solstice festival held on a flat, prehistoric lakebed three hours outside Reno, Nevada. Outrageous costumes were encouraged—as was “tasteful” nudity. Costumes ran the gamut from Mad Max to Carnival in Rio. As fit as he was, he could have gotten away without wearing much of anything. That wasn’t his style, though. It also wouldn’t have made sense for his assignment. Instead, the five-foot-ten-inch Harvath, with his sandy brown hair and his glacierlike blue eyes, wore a Continental Army coat and a full face of Cherokee war paint, obscuring his handsome features. As the wind kicked up again, he pulled a pair of steampunk goggles over his eyes and wrapped a keffiyeh around his face. Clouds of the fine alkaline dust that covered the playa were swirling everywhere. Visibility was dropping. “Fifty meters,” a disembodied voice said over the device pushed deep into his left ear. He kept walking, scanning from left to right. Burning Man took place in a temporary “metropolis” built in the Black Rock Desert, which was called Black Rock City. With more than seventy thousand attendees, BRC was twice as dense as the City of London. Seen from above, the festival was laid out in the shape of a giant letter C, or two-thirds of a circle. It looked like a blueprint for the Death Star with a good chunk blown away. It was a mile and a half across, and a quarter mile out from the center of the C was the “Man”—a giant effigy that would be set on fire Saturday night. There were no accommodations in Black Rock City, only what you hauled in (and hauled back out) yourself. “Burners,” as attendees were known, spent months in advance planning elaborately themed camps and