The Chains of Okmok

About the Book

When the Okmok Caldera erupts in a fury of molten rock and ash, the pressure wave generated by the explosion ruins a Russian plot to hijack the aircraft carrying a CIA scientist who’s being transported to the maximum-security prison located on Alaska’s frozen outpost of Adak Island.

As the aircraft ditches into the stormy waters of Shelikof Strait, fates frees the scientist, and a sadistic serial killer who tortures his victims before killing them and carving jewelry from their bones. Now the Russian submarine commander who had been waiting to rendezvous with the hijackers in the Bering Sea must make a decision: return home or sail deep into American territory. In a bold and unexpected move, he decides to gamble everything and trespass into American waters in a valiant, but desperate effort to complete his mission. Waiting for the Russians to make their move is a US Navy frigate under the command of their most gifted anti-submarine warfare tactician. From the start of the Russian operation, US Intelligence has been aware of the threat and in a strategic counterstroke they have sent the frigate to intercept them. The Navy’s orders are simple – stop the Russians at all costs: they cannot be allowed to possess the formula to the world’s most lethal biological warfare agent.

When the devastating earthquake caused by the Okmok eruption disables the security systems of Adak’s maximum-security prison a ruthless Neo-Nazi survivalist manages to do the impossible - escape. Stealing a boat, he disappears into the vast expanses of the Bering Sea in a reckless bid for freedom.

Racing to the rescue of the downed airplane is the crew of the fishing vessel Neptune. In a cruel twist of fate, the serial killer slays the first mate and takes a young female crewmember hostage. Stealing a motorboat, the criminals head to the nearest shore. They do not know they are heading for Kodiak Island – a wilderness dominated by towering, snow-capped mountains and home to the world’s largest land carnivore – the Kodiak Brown Bear.

With the entire state reeling from the disaster, the Alaska Department of Corrections is forced to divide its scarce resources over hundreds of miles of wilderness in a courageous effort to recapture the fugitives and save a hostage before her tormentor can satisfy his blood lust.

Ordered to recapture the Neo-Nazi is a team from the prison on Adak led by a tough and wily corrections veteran. Along with a Tlingit warrior and a courageous young corporal he will lead the hunt for this notorious terrorist in an epic chase that unfolds across raging seas and windswept islands.

Leading the hunt for the fugitives on Kodiak Island is a quiet, determined Eskimo from the Arctic Village of Kaktovik. Using all the skills he mastered while tracking game in the treeless expanses of the North Slope, he will lead his partner on a quest to bring one of Alaska’s most cunning murderers back into custody and to restore the honor of the department by finishing his assignment to transport the scientist to Adak Island.

Locked in a race to be the first to reach Kodiak Island and capture the scientist, the Russian submarine commander and the US Navy commander will deploy their soldiers to hunt down the scientist and kill any who stand in their way, while they challenge each other in a brilliant, but lethal game of stroke, counterstroke played out among the raging seas of the North Pacific and the magnificent fjords of Kodiak Island.

For three harrowing days, law enforcement, and the US and Russian military will face the elements and each other as they vie to capture the fugitives, rescue an innocent young hostage, and emerge victorious in a struggle where military supremacy hangs in the balance.

About the Author

D.M. Stolworthy is a 13-year resident of Alaska. A former Probation and Parole Officer, he currently serves as Deputy Commissioner for the Alaska Department of Corrections where he oversees all security operations, including prisoner transportation. A graduate of the University of Wyoming with a degree in History, he resides in Eagle River with his girlfriend Kelley and their dog Jax.