XIII MYSTERY GN (2025)

"He was XIII's most dogged enemy from the start, but who really was the Mongoose, that mysterious assassin-for-hire who nearly killed the amnesiac hero so many times? During an encounter between him and Kim Rowland - an event that took place just before the start of the XIII series - the merciless hitman tells the story of his childhood and how he became a contract killer. 'Anyone would have in my circumstances,' he claims. But would they? You be the judge."

Belarus, in Soviet times. Irina is an unremarkable young woman growing up in an orphanage. One night, a mysterious visitor demands to see her and her best friend Julia. The latter goes first, then Irina is told she won't be needed after all. The next day, Julia has vanished without a trace... Thus begins a quest for truth and vengeance, from Minsk to Moscow to Washington, one that will lead Irina to discover her true calling.

What kind of childhood could have forged the iron lady XIII came to know? Chicago, the Seventies. Life is tough when you're an orphan in the streets-and even more so if you're black. Little Jones, 10, doesn't even know her real name. All she has is a brother who flirts with the Black Panthers, a streak of cunning and determination a mile wide, and a dream: that of some day enlisting into the Army. A chance encounter with war hero Major Whittaker will change her life forever...

Discover the past of the dogged, one-armed FBI agent who became one of XIII's staunchest allies. Colonel Amos is the head of the FBI's Counterterrorism Division. His current investigation sends him on the trail of an agent of Mossad - Israeli intelligence. The ensuing operation-a joint FBI/CIA effort - will prove to be a difficult one. Not only because of the agent's skill, or because the colonel and his CIA counterpart Giordino don't get along, but also because before coming to the USA, Samuel Amos was a founding member of Mossad.