The Hammer Commission

Mark's job seems pretty dull, working as an investigator into crimes committed against Church property, theft of holy objects, vandalism; nothing terribly exciting but he does get to travel the world. That's just the window dressing. Mark does work for the Church, but as an elite member of a thousand year old secret society that hunts down devils, demons, and other evils. His job is not just to find them, but to remove, dispel, or kill them: He's on the front lines of the secret ongoing war between Heaven and Hell.

Mark just watched his partner and best friend of 10 years torn limb from limb by the kind of unholy horror that leaves most people gibbering in terror. Only a combination of luck and skill kept Mark from sharing his partner's fate and being killed by an abomination that by rights shouldn't exist in this day and age.

With having to leave the commission for a year while things cool off politically, Mark finds that the church has loaned him out to the FBI, who have been trying for years now to get an experienced monster and demon expert in their newest division, to help train and educate the agents there on just what they will be facing. Finding out that Mark actually is one of those very monsters has made them want him even more - not just for what he can bring to the table but because they do need to check off that newest minority checkbox, even if no one knows they exist.

Being on loan to the FBI has its advantages, and for the first time in far too long, Mark is taking a few weeks off with his family. But he's barely gotten started when he finds his brother unwittingly entangled in a mess that can be traced directly back to an attempt on Mark's life some months ago.