Blitzer was walking across the sound stage when he grabbed his right ear and said,
“Wait, there’s more. I’ve just gotten word that the body of Farouk Mahmood, a widely sought-after terror suspect, was found lying in the driveway of his home in Queens. He was decapitated, and his head and a bloody axe were found next to his body.”
Blitzer then began to wrap up the reports and put them in perspective. He continued to hold his right ear, as if he was expecting more reports from his producer.
“From a criminal investigation perspective, it’s been a shocking 48 hours,” Blitzer said. “Since the poisoning of a dozen men two nights ago to today’s body count, the authorities, including the NYPD, the FBI, and even the CIA have been trying to get a handle on what’s going on. Twenty men have been killed, and every one of them was on the Terror Watch List of the Department of Homeland Security. As FBI agent Rick Bellamy told us two days ago, ‘Whoever did this was angry—very angry.’ ”
Chapter Fifty
Imagine yourself at a happy social function. People are talking, laughing, and dancing. The band is playing your favorite songs. It’s loud as hell, but a wonderful, happy kind of loudness. You have a sense that everything in the world is doing just fine. Then the music stops, as does the talking, laughing, and dancing. A door swings open and a freezing cold breeze wafts in. Then there’s silence.
I want to stop having that nightmare, but what I want doesn’t seem to be happening. Mike was the biggest part of my life. He’s the happy part of my recurring dream, the part that makes the world seem bright. Now he’s dead.
Until two days ago, I was the most law abiding person you could meet. I never even strayed more than five miles over the speed limit when I drove. I believe in order, and that means obeying the law first and foremost. That was me. Forty-eight hours ago.
Chapter Fifty One
“I have a word completion quiz.” Bennie Weinberg said. “The enemy of my enemy is…”
“My friend,” both Buster and Rick Bellamy answered.
“After the events of the past few days,” Bennie said,” it seems like the government’s case files on ISIS in the United States has gotten a lot smaller. The people we were tracking and planning to arrest are dead, all within 48 hours. You said it best when you were interviewed on TV, Rick. You said, and I remember it clearly, ‘Whoever did this was angry—very angry.’ ”
“So where does this leave us,” Buster said. “Somebody saved us a lot of trouble. So what? We’re neither judges nor jurors, we’re law enforcement people. We’ve got to find out who the murderer is.”
“And what do we do when we find him?” Bennie asked. “Give him a medal? He, whoever he is, killed a bunch of mass murderers, people who targeted children. Somebody killed the enemy. That makes him our friend as far as I’m concerned.”
“And I think you know who it is, Ben,” Buster said.
***
“Rick, Jenny Bateman is here. She said you were expecting her.” The receptionist said
When I walked in, all three men stood.
Bellamy, who likes to get right to the heart of the matter, spoke first.
“Jenny,” said Bellamy. “We’d like to know if you have any thoughts to share about the recent deaths of the radicals.”
“I plan on going to church this afternoon to light a candle for the poor dears. I just hope they didn’t suffer too much.”
“Anything you’d like to say, Jenny?” Buster said.
“What is there to say?” I asked. “Twenty fucking savage animals are dead. That makes your jobs easier, freeing up your time to concentrate on other files. It also makes my job of running Robot Depot easier, because my products won’t be used to slaughter innocent people.”
None of them spoke. They sat in silence as if they were waiting for a meeting to begin.
“If you guys think that I committed those murders, good fucking luck,” I said. “First you’ll need to find the evidence, then you’ll need to find 12 jurors who would convict me. That’s right, you need to find 12 people who will hear all about the butchers, including the scumbag who decapitated my husband. I’m sure they’d love to find me guilty, not that I had anything to do with it, of course. Unless you guys have something more important to talk to me about, I have a meeting on Wall Street in a few minutes.”
I walked out of Rick’s office and closed the door behind me. I heard it open again, turned around, and saw Bennie Weinberg walking toward me.
“Jen, a minute of your time, please,” Bennie said.
I’d gotten to think of Bennie like a brother, and no way in hell would I turn down a request from him to talk to me.
“Jenny, you know who did it. I know who did it,” Bennie said. “Remember, I’m ‘Bennie-the- Bullshit-Detector?’ So I just have one suggestion. Please keep your mouth shut. Rick and Buster are duty bound to arrest anyone they reasonably suspect to be the killer.”
“Bennie, you were there at Yankee Stadium with me and Mike,” I said. “You saw what those savages did to a crowd of innocent people. The same kind of drone attack happened to a bunch of children at a sailing regatta out on Long Island. Children, Bennie, children. I’m not saying I had anything to do with it, of course, but what would you do if you had to opportunity to administer some justice?”
“You pose a tough question, Jen,” Bennie said, “but please do as I ask and keep your mouth shut.”
“Ben,” I said, “You didn’t answer my question. Remember that cute little girl at Yankee Stadium who had her arm blown off? She bled to death on your lap. So I ask you, as one combat veteran to another, what would you have done to the enemy if you had the opportunity?”
“Jenny, I’m a doctor and a detective, I…”
“I didn’t ask you for a fucking resume, Bennie, I asked you what you would have done to the scumbags if you had the chance.”
“I would have killed every last one of them,” Bennie said, letting go of a deep sob and wiping tears from his eyes.
“Case closed, doctor, as far as I’m concerned. Be well, my friend.”
I walked to the elevator as Bennie went back to Rick’s office. I turned and saw him wiping tears from his eyes again and blowing his nose as he reached for the door handle. I should feel nervous but I’m not. I don’t give a shit what they think. Mike’s dead, and the only thing that keeps me from completely cracking up is that his killers are dead too. Not that I had anything to do with it.
“So what have we got,” Rick Bellamy said after Bennie returned to the room. “Do you think Jen Bateman is the enemy of our enemy?”
“And what if she is?” Bennie asked, his voice raised. “What would that mean?”
“Yeah, yeah, I know,” Bellamy said, rubbing his hands against his face in frustration. “It means that she’s our friend.”
Characters – Robot Depot
Angus – Android robot
Bateman, Jenny – College Professor and Mike’s wife
Bateman, Mike – CEO, Robot Depot
Beekman, John – Dissatisfied robot owner
Bellamy, Rick – FBI Agent
Bliedner, Dennis – TV Reporter
Brody, James – John Beekman’s first attorney
Buono, Walter – Terrorist bomber
Buster — CIA agent
Carly — A self-driving car
Cavuto, Neil – TV Commentator, himself
Clayton, George – Police Commissioner, New York City
Dick – Greeter at Robot Depot headquarters
Dusty — A floor cleaning robot
Flager, Jim –Terrorist bomber
Fleming, Nancy – Assistant to Chuck Walsh at the Jameston Building
Francine – Robot receptionist
Fuller, Brian – Medical Director of Columbia Presbyterian Hospital
Gentile, Bob – Defense lawyer
Jackson, Billy – Chief scientist, Robot Depot
Knight, Dianne – Receptionist
Livingston, George – Qu
ality control engineer
Mahmood, Farouk – ISIS leader
Mujahedeen, Ali – Assistant to Farouk Mahmood
Omelet — A cooking robot
Stroud, Matt – Host, TV Show, The Book
Townsend, Phil – Robot Depot legal counsel
Walsh, Chuck – Manager of the Jameston Building
Weill, Nigel – Pseudonym for famous author
Weinberg, Bennie - Detective and psychiatrist
Whiteacre, Blanche – Public Relations Executive
Winston, Jack – Quality control engineer
Yaeger, Wally – Personal Injury lawyer
The Books of Russ Moran
All books are available on Amazon.com, and also as ebooks on The Kindle.
The Gray Ship – Book One of The Time Magnet Series
http://amzn.to/16GPumH
“This provocative, intensely powerful novel is a must-read for sci-fi fans and Civil War aficionados, though mainstream fiction readers will find it heart-rending and inspiring as well. A rare read that’s not only wildly entertaining, but also profoundly moving.” — Kirkus Reviews
The Thanksgiving Gang – Book Two of The Time Magnet Series http://amzn.to/1NzBs7N
"I had never read a book before written in an efficient, minimalistic prose... Instead of writing what most readers want to read, he gives voice to life-like characters, with their flaws and prejudices. They are not infallible superheroes. It’s always nice to find a new voice in fiction and to enjoy creativity at its best.” — C. Ludewig. “Breakneck pacing and virtually nonstop action” – Kirkus Reviews
A Time of Fear – Book Three of The Time Magnet Series
http://amzn.to/1zdjaG9
“His story is fascinating, and adds even more depth to this already cavernously deep novel. Amazingly unique, chilling and well written, Moran weaves a future that is both desperate and hopeful. Blending modern fears with science fiction results in a tale that will keep you reading long into the night.” Five stars!” —Heather
The Skies of Time – Book Four of The Time Magnet Series
http://amzn.to/1CCC3jg
In The Skies of Time, you will recognize the two main characters, Ashley Patterson, now an admiral, and her husband, Jack Thurber. They met and fell in love in The Gray Ship, and now they’re in for the adventure of their lives in The Skies of Time. Ashley and Jack have been such prominent characters in all four books of The Time Magnet Series that I feel like they’re old friends. You will also recognize some of the other characters. But if I told you who they are, it would ruin the fun.
“I’m big fan of this series and this one may be the best. I hope there is another book to this series since it keeps getting better. There are a few questions I have about certain events that makes the next one even more suspenseful. These are great books to binge read one after the other.” — Time Travel Fan
The Shadows of Terror – Book One of the Patterns Series
http://amzn.to/1IDQzJS
A novel that explodes off the front page of your newspaper.
Terrorism now has a new face, a face that’s obscured in the shadows. The radical forces of destruction have learned to make themselves invisible to the West, and preventing a terrorist attack has become almost impossible.
A new war has begun, World War III.
Rick Bellamy, an FBI agent who specializes in counterterrorism, is engaged in his own war, a war with no end.
Bellamy’s wife, Ellen, a prominent architect, discovers that she’s in the middle of the greatest terror plot to date.
To defeat the enemy, Bellamy first has to uncover the clues, to shine a light on the shadows. He has to find patterns – before it’s too late.
“Move over James Patterson and Mary Higgins Clark. There’s a new guy in town. Russ Moran’s new book – The Shadows of Terror.” — Frank from Lynbrook
The Scent of Revenge, - Book Two in the Patterns Series.
http://amzn.to/1UvDRmw
The world is at war – World War III. FBI Agent Rick Bellamy and his wife, Ellen, find themselves in the middle of a sinister terror plot.
Someone is attacking young prominent women, inflicting a horrible disease.
Nobody knows its origin, nobody knows how to stop it, nobody knows how to cure it.
Rick Bellamy and a team of scientists want to go on offense. But how?
Will the lives of the women be changed forever? When will the attacks stop?
“Heart pounding, can’t put down thriller that will force you to look at terrorism in different light. Life in America will never be the same.” —Cold Coffee Cafe
Sideswiped - Book One in the Matt Blake series of legal thrillers.
http://amzn.to/1MkxX35
Trial lawyer Matt Blake took on a perfect case.
It involved a sideswipe collision in which his client’s husband, an investigative reporter, was killed. The evidence of negligence was overwhelming. Eyewitnesses testified that defendant was talking on his cell phone when he hit the other car.
But was it negligence? Was it an accident?
Or was it murder?
Matt uncovers evidence that the act may have been intentional. Somebody wanted the man silenced. Somebody wanted the man dead.
.
Somebody had a lot to hide.
The signs started to point to the highest levels of government.
An open-and-shut personal injury case suddenly became a vast conspiracy of terror.
“This book hooks you in from the first line. Sideswiped draws you into the world of Matt Blake and you become emotionally attached to him and his journey. The story itself is so well-written and moves quickly so there is never a dull moment.” —Sarah Elle
“Moran demonstrates the depth of his writing talent by developing a new genre with Sideswiped, a legal thriller. Branching out from his previous novels dealing with time travel, Moran goes in a whole new direction with Book One in the Matt Blake series. He creates a wild but totally believable story of modern day intrigue and suspense. Moran also deftly weaves into this book some of my favorite characters from his prior novels. I am looking forward to starting Book #2 - The Reformers — Frank from Lynbrook on August 16, 2016
The Reformers - Book Two of the Matt Blake series of legal thrillers, is the sequel to Sideswiped.
http://amzn.to/2m8uMdu
The forces of radical Islam are on the run.
Their leadership has been decimated, their ranks thinned, their power disappearing by the week.
Their recruiting efforts have been cut off, the radical websites shut down, and the attraction of jihad is losing its appeal among the young.
With targeted assassinations, military strikes, as well as the loss of oil fields and gold mines, radical Islam is fast losing power.
But who is responsible?
It isn’t the United States Government. It’s a new force the world has never seen before.
Lawyer Matt Blake and his wife Diana find themselves in the middle of the most gigantic plot the world has ever seen, a conspiracy that’s only begun to grow.
“I’ve been a fan of the author, Russell Moran, since reading Sideswiped a few months ago, so I admittedly went into this book with quite high expectations. That being said, I had no idea that “The Reformers” was going to play out in the way that it does and I can see myself giving this book a re-read in the future. In fact, I am even more impressed by the storyline of this read than the last and it has left me excited to see more.” Lucidity.
The Keepers of Time – Book Five of the Time Magnet Series
http://amzn.to/2wjVSTt
Admiral Ashley Patterson and her husband Jack have done it again. They’ve traveled through time, 200 years into the future—aboard a nuclear aircraft carrier, Ashley’s flagship.
They discover a new world, a strange new world—a post-nuclear war world—one that is both a beacon of hope, and a cry of despair.
They meet a group of people who call themselves The Keepers o
f Time, an organization dedicated to preserving history and culture.
But the world around them has harkened back to a primitive and savage past, one that includes human sacrifice.
Ashley knows they have to have to get back to the present to warn the government of the unspeakable horrors that await.
But finding the way back to the present is their greatest challenge, an almost insurmountable one.
“A wild time travel yarn that starts fast and doesn’t slow down until the end.”
A Reunion in Time
http://amzn.to/2tneIsg
What if a 37-year-old adult travels back 20 years in time and finds himself in high school, followed by his 36-year-old wife? They’re now teenagers, 17 and 16.
Adults in teenage bodies, they struggle to convince the people from their past that they are real, not apparitions. With the benefit of hindsight, they know the history of the past 20 years, and it isn’t pretty.
Rick and Ellen are married, and now have to adjust to married life as teenagers in 2001. Rick is a senior FBI official and Ellen is a famous architect.
But everybody sees them as kids. Nobody believes that they’re married, and nobody believes their stories—until Rick and Ellen predict 9/11.
How do they find their way back to the year they came from? How do they warn the authorities of the cataclysm that will occur in the future? The answer is to find the time portal—the wormhole—that brought them to 2001. But the site has changed. It’s no longer the place where they crossed the wormhole. Will they live out the balance of their lives beginning as teenagers? “We've all wish we could go back to earlier times with the mind we have now. This Russell Moran book takes you there and it is a fun creative Romp well worth reading. A Reunion in Time is highly recommend!” Kindle Customer.
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