Chapters (96)
- Cover
- Berkley titles by David Ricciardi
- Dedication
- Epigraph
- CHARACTER LIST
- PROLOGUE
- ONE
- TWO
- THREE
- FOUR
- FIVE
- SIX
- SEVEN
- EIGHT
- NINE
- TEN
- ELEVEN
- TWELVE
- THIRTEEN
- FOURTEEN
- FIFTEEN
- SIXTEEN
- SEVENTEEN
- EIGHTEEN
- NINETEEN
- TWENTY
- TWENTY-ONE
- TWENTY-TWO
- TWENTY-THREE
- TWENTY-FOUR
- TWENTY-FIVE
- TWENTY-SIX
- TWENTY-SEVEN
- TWENTY-EIGHT
- TWENTY-NINE
- THIRTY
- THIRTY-ONE
- THIRTY-TWO
- THIRTY-THREE
- THIRTY-FOUR
- THIRTY-FIVE
- THIRTY-SIX
- THIRTY-SEVEN
- THIRTY-EIGHT
- THIRTY-NINE
- FORTY
- FORTY-ONE
- FORTY-TWO
- FORTY-THREE
- FORTY-FOUR
- FORTY-FIVE
- FORTY-SIX
- FORTY-SEVEN
- FORTY-EIGHT
- FORTY-NINE
- FIFTY
- FIFTY-ONE
- FIFTY-TWO
- FIFTY-THREE
- FIFTY-FOUR
- FIFTY-FIVE
- FIFTY-SIX
- FIFTY-SEVEN
- FIFTY-EIGHT
- FIFTY-NINE
- SIXTY
- SIXTY-ONE
- SIXTY-TWO
- SIXTY-THREE
- SIXTY-FOUR
- SIXTY-FIVE
- SIXTY-SIX
- SIXTY-SEVEN
- SIXTY-EIGHT
- SIXTY-NINE
- SEVENTY
- SEVENTY-ONE
- SEVENTY-TWO
- SEVENTY-THREE
- SEVENTY-FOUR
- SEVENTY-FIVE
- SEVENTY-SIX
- SEVENTY-SEVEN
- SEVENTY-EIGHT
- SEVENTY-NINE
- EIGHTY
- EIGHTY-ONE
- EIGHTY-TWO
- EIGHTY-THREE
- EIGHTY-FOUR
- EIGHTY-FIVE
- EIGHTY-SIX
- EIGHTY-SEVEN
- Children of Fallen Patriots Foundation
- ABOUT THE AUTHOR
- What’s next onyour reading list?
“Good.” She stood. “Now let’s eat something. I’m starving.”
The two of them stood in the kitchen for half an hour, picking through leftovers and sharing a bottle of wine.
“So what inspired your change of heart?” said Athena.
“Disillusionment, I suppose. There are some parts of my career that I’ve come to despise.”
Athena finished the bite of cold moussaka she’d been chewing.
“Everyone hates some part of what they do. The hours and the stress get to all of us.”
Though Athena undoubtedly suspected who Jake worked for, he still couldn’t tell her what he did. “My boss and I often differ on the best way to accomplish our goals.”
“Like the Symi?”
Jake nodded. The death toll from the Symi might end up being a rounding error if Yaxaas dispersed the bioweapon into the general population.
“Have you thought about doing something else?” she asked.
“Protecting my country is what drives me forward.”
“Could you do it somewhere else, maybe work for a different group?”
Jake stood there in the kitchen, watching Athena eat leftovers with her fingers, and realized that she’d zeroed in on exactly what was bothering him.
“No,” Jake said. “I need to be exactly where I am to counterbalance my boss. It’s where I can do the most good.”
“Then you’re in the right place. You have the first half of your answer.”
Jake nodded again. It was as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders.
“What’s the second half?” he said.
“Can you do this job and have a personal life?”
Jake walked to Athena and took her hands in his. “I can if I work harder at it.”
She kissed him gently on the mouth. “Let’s go for a walk on the beach.”
Jake smiled. “I’ll get the Land Rover.”
“Not tonight.” Athena pointed to her casual shoes. “Go say hello to my father while I bring the car around.”
—
JAKE WATCHED HER walk up the driveway, with her footsteps crunching on the gravel and her silhouette framed by the soft exterior lighting. Athena looked over her shoulder and saw him. They both smiled as she walked out of sight. It was a warm night for December, with clear skies and a single songbird chirping in the trees. For the first time in a long time, Jake felt at peace.
But it all changed in an instant.
SIXTY-SEVEN
THE SKY FLASHED orange and the ground shook, followed by a deafening roar a fraction of a second later.
Jake sprinted up the driveway toward a column of smoke that was billowing into the night sky. Broken glass and debris littered the ground: The Land Rover wasn’t much more than a collection of twisted metal and charred plastic. Tendrils of flame rose from its frame.