The Damage Man

A SHORT STORY FROM THE WORLD OF ORPHAN X

Once the U.S. government’s deadliest off-the-books assassin, Evan Smoak was known only by the codename Orphan X. But he broke free, vanished, and reinvented himself as The Nowhere Man, the last hope for those with nowhere else to turn.

When Evan has a chance encounter with a desperate father named Rusty, he agrees to help free Rusty’s estranged son from the grip of violent, merciless organisation who will stop at nothing to get their way. But what looks like a straightforward rescue mission quickly spirals into something far more dangerous and personal.

At the same time, Evan is forced to confront the one ghost he’s never been able to escape: the father who abandoned him. In a world where every move could be his last, Orphan X will finally have to face the past he buried - if the present doesn’t kill him first.

PRAISE FOR THE ORPHAN X SERIES

‘One of the very best thriller series of all time . . . Orphan X redefines the modern vigilante spy thriller’
COLLIDER

‘Non-stop action and a wonderful lightness of touch. Hurwitz kills it again’
DAILY EXPRESS

'Weapons-grade thriller writing'
THE GUARDIAN

'Feels like a missile launch'
DAVID BALDACCI

'Outstanding in every way'
LEE CHILD

'Makes the Jack Reacher books look quaint'
SUN

© Gregg Hurwitz 2027 (P) Penguin Audio 2027