Nine Lives Read online

  Table of Contents

  PROLOGUE

  CHAPTER 1

  CHAPTER 2

  CHAPTER 3

  CHAPTER 4

  CHAPTER 5

  CHAPTER 6

  CHAPTER 7

  CHAPTER 8

  CHAPTER 9

  CHAPTER 10

  CHAPTER 11

  CHAPTER 12

  CHAPTER 13

  CHAPTER 14

  CHAPTER 15

  CHAPTER 16

  CHAPTER 17

  CHAPTER 18

  CHAPTER 19

  CHAPTER 20

  CHAPTER 21

  CHAPTER 22

  CHAPTER 23

  CHAPTER 24

  CHAPTER 25

  CHAPTER 26

  CHAPTER 27

  CHAPTER 28

  CHAPTER 29

  CHAPTER 30

  CHAPTER 31

  CHAPTER 32

  CHAPTER 33

  CHAPTER 34

  CHAPTER 35

  CHAPTER 36

  CHAPTER 37

  CHAPTER 38

  CHAPTER 39

  CHAPTER 40

  CHAPTER 41

  CHAPTER 42

  CHAPTER 43

  CHAPTER 44

  CHAPTER 45

  FREE PREVIEW, “LIVE TO TELL”

  CLAIM YOUR FREE BONUS BOOK

  POST A REVIEW

  READY FOR MORE?

  ABOUT GARY WINSTON BROWN

  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  COPYRIGHT & AUTHOR’S NOTE

  NINE LIVES

  JORDAN QUEST FBI THRILLER SERIES, BOOK 4

  _________________

  Gary Winston Brown

  “There’s no chance, no destiny, no fate, that can circumvent

  or hinder or control the firm resolve of a determined soul.”

  Ella Wheeler

  PROLOGUE

  SARASOTA, FLORIDA

  THE TEENS STARED in disbelief at the words on the computer screen: DOWNLOAD COMPLETE.

  The cursor blinked, awaited their next command.

  “Whoa, Tommy,” Billy Reynolds said, his words tinged with elements of both excitement and fear. “Do you realize what you just did?”

  Tommy Moore sat back in his chair and let out a long sigh. “Yeah,” he replied. “I just hacked the goddamn Department of Defense.”

  The logo for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency stared back at them from the screen.

  “DARPA is supposed to be unhackable,” Billy said. “How the hell did you do it?”

  Tommy smiled. “I’m a frickin’ genius,” he replied.

  Billy stood, paced around his friend’s bedroom. He was nervous, scared. He rubbed his hands together, wiped his face. “Jesus Christ, Tommy,” he said. “This is no ordinary hack. This is way over the line. If they find out you got in…”

  “They won’t.”

  “But if they do...”

  “Nothing will happen. Trust me.”

  “Easy for you to say,” Billy exclaimed. “But when the military busts into your parents’ house in the middle of the night…”

  “This computer will be gone,” Tommy said. He removed the USB drive onto which he had saved the files from the machine. The first file was named CHANNELER, the second LEEDA. He put the drive in his pocket. “Besides, it’s their own damn fault. This division, Dynamic Life Sciences, must be a small-time operation. Their whole system crashed less than a minute after I got in. What kind of military operation would leave themselves that vulnerable?”

  “Listen to me, Tommy,” Billy warned. “You’re in way over your head. You need to erase those files now. Do you even know the first thing about DARPA?”

  “Should I care?”

  “Damn right! They’re the military’s technological division. We’re talking cutting-edge defensive shit… weapons, anti-terrorism, out-of-the-box science-fiction stuff… the likes of which you can’t even imagine.”

  Tommy opened the file folder and hovered the cursor over the file that read CHANNELER.

  “I’m warning you, man,” Billy said. “Don’t open it. Leave well enough alone. You hacked into DLS. Congratulations. You hit the big time. You’re officially a fucking black hat legend. Now take my advice and fry that thing.”

  “I can’t do that,” Tommy said.

  “Why the hell not?”

  “I need to know what it is.”

  “What what is?”

  “Project Channeler.”

  “I’m telling you, you’re playing with fire. Open that file and you’re dead.”

  “You worry too much, you know that?” Tommy said. He clicked on the file.

  The computer display turned black. The words DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE, EYES ONLY suddenly appeared on screen.

  Billy grabbed his knapsack from the floor beside his chair. “That’s it,” he said. “I don’t want to have anything to do with this.”

  “You never did,” Tommy said. “This was my hack, not yours.”

  “You know what I mean,” Billy snapped. “You have no idea how much shit you’re in now, Tommy. This isn’t a backdoor hack to get paid a few bucks for adjusting exam marks or wiping out somebody’s credit card balance. This is a breach of national security. When DARPA figures out it’s been compromised, which they will ‘cause they’re fucking DARPA, they’re going to come after you with everything they’ve got. Your life as you know it will be over. We’re talking lock-the-door-and-throw-away-the-key jail time, man.” Billy pulled on his baseball cap and slung his backpack over his shoulder. “Good luck, Tommy,” he said. “You’re gonna need it. I’m outa here.”

  “Wimp,” Tommy replied.

  “Absolutely!” Billy said. “But at least I’ll be a free wimp. Enjoy your time in prison, asshole.”

  “Whatever,” Tommy replied. He paid no attention to his friend as he left his bedroom. He was completely mesmerized by the information on the screen. What was Project Channeler, and what made it so important as to have been given EYES ONLY security classification?

  Tommy scrolled through the file which had been authored by Dr. Jason Merrick, the Director of the facility. The case notes were exhaustive and detailed the projects advancements. Tommy paged to the end of the file to the section that read CONCLUSIONS. He read the summation:

  ‘Clinical trial and critical evaluation process an unprecedented success. Test subject, Commander Ben Egan, fully integrated. Neural download, DNA and biometric enhancement, sympathetic nervous system, metabolic, physical, psychic, extra-sensory and telekinetic capabilities have surpassed project expectations. Recommendation: Field trial continuance, covert assignment. If successful, candidate will be advanced to phase two, Life Extending Epidermal Defensive Augmentation, aka. LEEDA’.

  Tommy’s mouth dropped as he read the report.

  Billy was right. He was in way over his head.

  Terrified at the possibility of who or what might soon come looking for him, Tommy unplugged the laptop, ran downstairs, threw open the back door and hurried outside to his father’s toolshed. He grabbed a can of gasoline from the corner, doused the computer in the noxious liquid, set it ablaze, then stepped back and watched the machine hiss, pop, crackle and burn.

  After several minutes he extinguished the fire. The device had been destroyed.

  Tommy knew his attempt to destroy the machine had done nothing to eliminate the trail of electronic breadcrumbs which might have been left by his hack.

  With any luck, he had gotten in and out, sight unseen.

  ARLINGTON, VIRGINIA

  U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE,

  DEFENSE ADVANCED RESEARCH PROJECTS AGENCY (DARPA)

  OFFICE OF COLONEL QUENTIN HALLIER

  Colonel Hallier reviewed the report of the incident which had occurred at Dynamic Life Sci
ences, DARPA’s clandestine medical and military advancement laboratory. The detonation of an electromagnetic pulse bomb had utterly destroyed its data center less than forty-eight hours ago. According to the electronic file, the contents of which was being updated hourly, Dr. Jason Merrick had been responsible for the murder of several of his colleagues, after which he had set out with Commander Ben Egan, his field test subject for Project Channeler, on a spree of death and destruction which had culminated in the near destruction of the California State University at Long Beach and the taking of many civilian, police and military lives. He had taken the hit from his superiors for the mind-numbing catastrophic consequences of the attack, and rightly so. If there had been warning signs, he’d never seen them. Now Merrick was dead, and Egan’s disappearance from the scene was classified, TOP SECRET. Hallier had reason to believe the commander might still be alive, although his whereabouts were unknown. Projects Channeler and LEEDA had gone off the rails, the technology stolen by Merrick and used to exact a matter of personal revenge. The hundreds of millions of dollars in research invested to create the world’s foremost super soldier had also disappeared in the person of Commander Ben Egan. GENESIS had been terminated. Hallier was thankful he hadn’t been terminated with it.

  Alan Rober, the colonel’s personal aide, knocked on his door.

  “Enter,” Hallier called out.

  Rober waved a sheet of paper in his hand as he entered the office. “Sir, you need to see this,” he said.

  “See what?”

  “The computer login report from Dynamic Life Sciences.”

  “What report? We lost everything in the breach, including the servers. We had no backups.”

  “That’s correct, sir. But we still have the external access report.”

  “What are you talking about?” Hallier asked.

  “The EMP destroyed the facility and all the computer files and equipment within it. But our security firewalls continued to log each and every keystroke and IP address leading up to the attack. Less than a minute before it destroyed the lab, we encountered a level three cyberattack.”

  “Meaning?”

  “In layman’s terms, we were hacked.”

  Hallier sat back in his chair. “How in God’s name…”

  Rober shook his head. “I don’t know, sir. How they could get into the DLS network is beyond me, but they did.”

  “How bad was it?”

  “As far as we can tell, two files were downloaded before the system went dark: Projects Channeler and LEEDA.”

  Hallier stood, snapped up the paper from his desk. “Are you telling me that someone out there has those files?”

  Rober nodded. “That’s the way it appears, sir.”

  “Do we know where to find them?”

  “Possibly,” the aide answered. “The hack was sophisticated, but we think it originated here in the States.”

  “Where?”

  “A residential address. Sarasota, Florida.”

  Hallier picked up his phone and placed a call.

  “Field Operations, Commander Leighton.”

  “Commander, this is Hallier. I need a high value target recovery team on the tarmac and ready to roll within the hour. The mission is top secret. I’ll provide you with the details when I arrive.”

  “Copy that, sir. We’ll be waiting for you.”

  Hallier hung up. “How much do we know about the threat?”

  “Nothing, sir,” Rober said. “Just a location based on a registered IP address.”

  Hallier opened his desk drawer, removed his sidearm, holstered the weapon and walked out of his office. “Get me to Field Ops,” he said.

  Rober followed closely behind. “Copy that, sir.”

  CHAPTER 1

  SPECIAL AGENT CHRIS HANOVER pressed the intercom button and waited outside the gated entrance to the Quest family mansion.

  To his left, the light on the security camera stand blinked from red to green. Chris looked into the lens and smiled. “Hey, Marissa,” he said. “It’s me. Is Jordan available?”

  The housekeeper’s pleasant voice replied. “Good morning, Agent Hanover. Yes, of course. Please drive in.”

  “Thanks,” Chris replied.

  The heavy gates slowly parted. Chris drove up the winding driveway and parked under the portico outside the front entrance. The front door opened as he walked up the steps. Emma and Aiden, Jordan’s children, raced outside to meet him with Lucy, the children’s Golden Retriever pup and newest addition to their family, hot on their heels. The dog barked playfully as the children rushed into his arms.

  “Chris!” Aiden yelled.

  Emma locked her arms around Chris’ neck and gave him a giant hug.

  “Hey, monsters,” Chris said as he returned their affection. “Have you two been good for Marissa while your mom was away?”

  “Always!” Aiden said.

  “Always?” Chris joked. “I find that hard to believe.”

  Lucy joined in on the action. The pup gnawed and pulled on the agents pant leg, then rolled onto her back, having successfully negotiated her way into a vigorous belly rub.

  Chris picked the children up in his arms as Lucy raced back inside. “How’s Lucy doing?” he asked. “Is she settling in okay?”

  Rescued by Jordan from the scene of a recent murder in Beverly Hills, the pup had been adopted just days before. Judging by her exuberant behavior and bond with the children, the decision had been a good one. Lucy appeared to be thriving in her new home.

  “She sleeps on my pillow with her butt in my face,” Aiden said.

  “Gross!” Emma exclaimed.

  “I’d rather have her butt in my face than your butt in my face,” Aiden replied.

  Marissa joined them in the vestibule. Chris put down the children and gave her a hug. “How are you, Marissa?” he asked.

  “I’m well, Agent Hanover,” Marissa replied. “Thank you for asking.”

  “Where’s the lady of the house?” Chris asked, referring to Jordan.

  “On the shooting range in the west wing. Shall I call her for you?”

  “That’s all right,” Chris replied. “Mind if I wander through and find her?”

  Marissa smiled. “Not at all. You know the way.”

  “Thanks, Marissa.” To the twins he said, “Okay, you two. Hustle your buns inside. I need to talk to your mom. Cop stuff.”

  “Can we play later?” Aiden asked.

  Chris smiled. “I think I can manage that,” he said.

  “Cool!” Aiden yelled.

  Chris walked through the massive mansion until he reached the door to the Training Room. Inside, gunshots reverberated off the walls of the indoor firing range as Jordan discharged the weapon. He pressed the call buzzer on the wall. The firing suddenly stopped. Seconds later Jordan opened the door.

  “Taking out your frustrations on poor defenseless targets?” Chris joked as he walked into the room.

  Jordan smiled. “Just trying to stay sharp.”

  “That’s never been your problem,” Chris said. “I hope you don’t mind me stopping by. I wanted to check up on the kids, see how they were doing.”

  “That was sweet of you,” Jordan replied.

  “Of course, it was. I’m the sweetest guy you’ll ever know.”

  “Modest, too”

  “Don’t forget devilishly handsome.”

  “How could I? You’re always reminding me.”

  “True.” Chris said. He walked to the firing lane, pointed to the paper target hanging down range on its metal clip. “Mind if I take a look?” he asked.

  “Go ahead.”

  Chris pressed the target recovery button on the wall of the lane. With a whir the target advanced along its pulley line, flapping back and forth as it traveled up to the front of the shooting stall. Chris unclipped the paper target and examined the holes. The target was torn in the middle. An irregular-shaped hole an inch in diameter occupied the center. Little of the innermost black circle remained. “Nice
grouping,” he said. “How many shots?”

  “Eight.”

  “From what distance?”

  “Law enforcement standard,” Jordan replied. “One-hundred and fifty feet.”

  “I’m impressed,” Chris said. He smiled as he looked at the target. “Remind me to never piss you off.”

  “I’ll only shoot at the bad guys. I promise.”

  He set down the target. “There’s something I’ve been meaning to ask you, Jordan.”

  “What’s that?”

  “How are Aiden and Emma coping these days?” Chris asked. “You know, after what happened here?”

  Jordan thought of the home invasion and the fight for her life that had occurred within the walls of the estate several years ago. With Chris’ help she had been forced to defend her home. Evil had tried to take her family, failed in the attempt, even died here. The incident had made them stronger, closer, their bond unbreakable. “They’re fine now” she answered.

  “I’m glad,” Chris said. “And you?”

  “I have my moments,” Jordan replied. “Losing my parents and my husband the way I did was hard. I don’t think I’ll ever fully recover from that.”

  “One day you will,” Chris said. “Time has a tendency to heal even the deepest wounds.”

  “I suppose so.”

  “You know I’m here for you and the kids whenever you need me.”

  “I do.”

  “Good.” He pointed to the ream of paper targets hanging beside the shooting stall. “Mind if I give it a go?”

  “Not at all,” Jordan said. “Fifty bucks says you don’t beat my grouping,” she teased.

  “Eight rounds?” Chris asked.

  “Eight rounds.”

  “You’re on,” Chris answered. “Set it up.”

  Jordan clipped a fresh paper target to the overhead track, pushed the ADVANCE button and sent the target down range.

  “You really sure you want to lose fifty bucks?” Chris joked. “I wouldn’t want to put you in a position of financial hardship.”

  “I think I can handle it,” Jordan replied.

  “I mean, if you’re game, we could make it a little more interesting.”