“Vans?”
“Yeah, there’s three of them,” Alex said. “Maybe one full of equipment and two for the men. I can’t really tell.”
“Where are they going?” Hawk asked.
“Hang on. I’m getting there,” Alex said. “Got it.”
She gave Hawk the address, and he punched it into his phone. “That’s not in East Harlem.”
“I know,” Alex said. “But it’s a property owned by Wharton’s real estate company.”
“And it’s just three blocks from Central Park.”
“What time is that concert set to begin?” Big Earv asked.
“Opening act is already on,” Hawk said. “We don’t have any time to waste.”
CHAPTER 44
TAHIR NAZARI BURIED his face in his hands and then took a deep breath. He was nervous about the operation and needed a moment to clear his head. After glancing at his watch, he gathered all of his men together.
“It is time for our Maghrib prayer,” he said as they surrounded him in a large, open room. “Let’s pray.”
The men spread out and fell to their knees to offer up their prayers to Allah. When they were finished, Nazari stood and faced everyone.
“History will be made tonight,” Nazari said as he pumped his fist. “This date will go down in infamy for these Americans. 9/11 will be a mere footnote after the destruction that we will rain down on these infidels in Central Park.”
The men roared, throwing their hands in the air, as if already victorious.
“There is still much work to be done, but I have full confidence in all of you. This is the moment we’ve been waiting for, our chance to avenge my brother’s death and to make the Americans pay for their sins. And may Allah have no mercy on their souls.”
Another shout went up.
Nazari raised his hands to quiet the men. “We’ve done nothing yet. But let’s seize this opportunity that Allah has given us. Don’t let a chance like this slip away. Now, go do your jobs as unto Allah and let Him have all the glory.”
The men cheered again before scattering to their work stations.
Nazari followed one group of men to a room on the top floor where they were preparing the drones. Each one was customized to hold three gallons of the specially formulated sarin gas. When aerosolized, it could have devastating effects, killing humans within ten minutes of inhaling the highly toxic fumes.
Workers put on hazmat suits and filled up the drone’s tanks. More than fifty machines lined the floor and were carefully filled by teams of three men. After they were finished, Nazari smiled as the windows were flung open.
“To borrow an American phrase, it’s showtime,” Nazari said with the wave of his hands.
One by one, the rotors on the machines whirred and lifted off the ground before exiting through the large window at the back of the room.
Energized by the parade of machines zipping out over the street below, Nazari rushed the command center where the men piloting the drones sat with split screens, navigating their machines toward Central Park. He smiled as he looked at the footage from one of the drones capturing the unfolding scene.
This is for you, Karif.
Nazari had struggled with his brother’s loss. Even though they were only half-brothers, Nazari still looked up to Karif. His death stung deep, something that had taken a couple of years to get over. But assuming the reins of Al Fatihin gave Nazari purpose again. Instead of simply grieving, he had an opportunity to strike back at the infidels who had stolen from him someone he loved dearly.
He watched on one television screen the massive crowd singing in unison to some of the Rolling Stones’ greatest hits. Everyone knew the words, smiling as they sang. Nazari shook his head, saddened over the fact that this was the height of culture for many Americans. This was their religion—partying, debauchery, rebellion.
But America would never forget this night, the night when they understood the depth of suffering in ways they’d never imagined as a collective nation. Pearl Harbor, 9/11 … those would be a drop in the bucket compared the destruction Nazari’s men were about to unleash.
And he couldn’t wait to watch.
* * *
BLUNT’S MOUTH GAPED as he listened to the voicemail from Alex. Despite his best efforts to get Wharton to care about doing the right thing for his country, Blunt realized he’d been duped.
Power is an intoxicating drug.
Blunt figured Wharton was due to receive some high-level position for his obedience. Either that, or he’d get to keep his life. No matter what the motivating factor, Blunt found it unconscionable that a sitting U.S. senator would sacrifice thousands, possibly hundreds of thousands, of his constituents for anything. Blunt had witnessed how resisting a blackmail scheme would earn you sympathy points in the court of public opinion if you documented and proved it. All he could assume was that Wharton was more corrupt than imaginably possible.
I swear he’ll never get away with this.
Blunt looked skyward and contemplated how to proceed. Everything was likely to get lost in the aftermath of the deadliest terrorist attack in the world’s history, unless his team could stop it. If they couldn’t pull it off, Blunt knew he needed to think a few steps ahead to prevent Wharton from escaping the consequences of his actions.
Blunt’s phone buzzed again. He peered at the screen, his eyes widening yet again.
CHAPTER 45
New York City
HAWK SHOEHORNED into a parking spot along the street just outside the new location for Tahir Nazari’s headquarters. Two men stood guard outside the white brick building, nodding politely at every passerby who looked at them. Hawk studied the situation for a moment, considering the best way to proceed.
“Any ideas how we’re going to penetrate the facility?” Big Earv asked.
“I could just let you handle it on your own,” Hawk said.
Big Earv smiled. “I’d take great pleasure in cracking the skulls of those two idiots.”
“While that’d be fun, big guy, we need to sneak inside because we don’t want to draw that much attention.”
“I’m on it,” Alex said. “Here’s the layout for the property.”
She spun her laptop around, the screen displaying the schematics for the facility.
“We might be able to use the fire escape on the west side of the building and surprise them that way,” Hawk said. “I doubt they have armed guards just sitting around waiting for someone in there.”
“Are you sure we can get up that fire escape without drawing too much attention?” Big Earv asked. “There are massive windows there, and they don’t look like they can be opened either.”
“If it’s made of glass, we can get inside,” Hawk said. “In fact, you’re better than a wrecking ball if I let you go first.”
A faint humming noise penetrated the SUV’s windows, coming from nearby. Alex leaned forward in her seat and looked up.
“Forget making a plan,” she said, gesturing toward the drones. “You just need to storm the castle and figure out on the fly how to stop it.”
“Already working on it,” Hawk said as he opened the door. “Let’s go, Big Earv.”
Hawk glanced skyward as the bulky drones soared overhead in a uniform motion. Flying in pairs, the machines zipped toward Central Park.
“At the speed they’re moving,” Alex said over the coms, “I’m estimating that we have about ten minutes to neutralize the threat.”
“I want to cut the power,” Hawk said as he and Big Earv crossed the street. “If they can’t pilot the drones, they won’t be able to activate the aerosolizing of the chemical agent.”
“Not a good idea,” Alex said.
“Why not?”
“Because then you’d have drones crashing all over the city with sarin gas in them. That’s not a plan I think we should run with.”
“Okay. What’s the alternative?”
“We need to be able to control those drones, but I can’t do it from here. T
hey’ve created their own little network that won’t be easily hacked from the outside. Do you still have that transmitter device?”
Hawk dug into his pocket. “Yep.”
“Great. I’m gonna need access to one of the actual computers. You’ll have to connect it to one of the USB ports, and I can take it from there.”
“Roger that,” Hawk said. “And you have a way of controlling all those drones?”
“I’ve got a plan. Just get me access.”
Hawk and Big Earv stopped just short of the fire escape, and the two men looked upward.
“Oh, no,” Big Earv said. “You can’t expect me to go up there. You know how much I hate heights.”
“I can’t believe I’m saying this to someone named Big Earv, but man up,” Hawk said. “You can set aside your fear for a few minutes to do this, can’t you?”
Big Earv sighed. “I’ll try.”
“There is no try, only do. Got it? Now give me a boost.”
Big Earv interlocked his fingers, creating a step for Hawk. Then the hulking man lifted Hawk’s foot up so he could reach the fire escape ladder. Once Hawk found firm footing, he lowered the ladder so Big Earv could join him.
After both men were on the escape, Hawk turned to Big Earv. “Whatever you do, don’t look down. We’ll make it through this and take these bastards out.”
Big Earv nodded and glanced down. He sucked in a quick breath through his teeth. “I don’t know about this, Hawk.”
“Just do what I say, and keep your focus upward.”
As they ascended each floor, Hawk peered through the windows in search of a hive of activity. He didn’t see anything of note until the fourth floor. Two armed guards stood outside a pair of double doors leading to another room.
Hawk pulled away from the window. “This is our stop. You ready?”
Big Earv nodded gingerly, his eyes starting to drop. Hawk put his hand under Big Earv’s chin, lifting it up.
“Remember what I said?” Hawk asked.
“Don’t look down.”
“Exactly. Now, are you ready to make a grand entrance?”
“After you,” Big Earv said, gesturing toward the window.
“Oh, no, big fella. You’re going first.”
Hawk fired a shot with his suppressor, spidering the glass. “You’re up.”
Big Earv took a couple of steps backward before crashing into the big plate-glass window. Shards flew in every direction as he penetrated the building. The guards outside the door reached for their weapons in response, but Hawk put both men down in quick succession. Big Earv scrambled to his feet, and Hawk followed him inside.
No more than ten seconds passed before the doors swung open and another guard entered the hallway with guns firing. Hawk and Big Earv had taken cover against the wall next to the opening. The first man went down with just one shot.
Several other guards poured into the corridor, following the first man. They all suffered the same fate. Eventually, they stopped coming.
“Three minutes to go,” Alex said over the coms. “How are you guys doing?”
“I’ll let you know soon enough,” Hawk said before turning to Big Earv. “I have no idea what we’re about to find behind that door, but can you cover me?”
Big Earv nodded.
Hawk didn’t hesitate once he received his answer. He broke into a dead sprint and crashed through the doors, drawing gunfire. Big Earv fired round after round into the room, peppering the handful of men left to defend their operation.
Hawk spied Tahir Nazari, who dashed toward a back exit. Hawk raced after him, while Big Earv unloaded on the room. Nazari didn’t get far before Hawk cornered the terrorist mastermind.
“Don’t kill me,” Nazari said. “I think this is a big misunderstanding.”
“No, this was an overestimation on your part that you wouldn’t suffer the same fate as your brother,” Hawk said.
Then he hit Nazari with two shots, one center mass, the other in the head.
Nazari collapsed to the ground, and Hawk returned to the room where he found about two dozen men typing furiously on their keyboards.
“Your fearless leader Tahir Nazari is dead,” Hawk said. “So, I’m taking over this operation. Is that clear?”
The men ignored him, continuing to type. Hawk growled before jamming the muzzle of his gun into the back of one man’s head.
“I’m gonna need that computer,” Hawk said.
The man threw both his hands in the air before vigorously resuming his tasks. Hawk didn’t wince as he put a bullet in the back of the man’s head. He slumped over, dead. Hawk shoved the man’s body to the floor and inserted the device Alex had given him into a USB port.
“You’re in,” Hawk said.
“Roger that,” Alex replied.
Hawk shoved the chair away with the back of his knees and circled the room. “It’s time for you to all stop what you’re doing.”
The men ignored Hawk and continued working.
I don’t have time for this.
Hawk shot three men in the back of their heads before the others finally relented. “Please get up and go stand against that wall.”
“I’ll call the FBI,” Big Earv said.
Hawk waited a half-minute before saying anything into the coms. “Alex, how are things coming?”
“We’re almost there,” she said. “I’ve got an army of hackers helping me, led by this guy named Gimli. Don’t ask.”
“I won’t.”
Within two minutes, Hawk wondered if his eardrums would suffer permanent damage from Alex’s jubilant yelp over the coms. A searing pain shot through his ear canals.
“Please tell me that means something good,” he said.
“We got all of them,” Alex said. “They’re returning to the roof right now.”
Hawk wandered over to the window and watched the drones return in a line back to the roof.
“How’d you manage that?” he asked.
“It’s the return to home function every drone has,” she said. “Gimli and I figured out a way to override the system that prevented us from controlling the drones. But, as it turns out, we didn’t need to. We just need to send all of them back where they came from.”
Hawk heard sirens howling from the street below. “I think we have company.”
A round of shots echoed off the nearby buildings. Hawk stuck his nose up to the window and saw two black SUVs roll up to the facility, blocking the street. A half-dozen agents poured out of the car and wasted no time in picking off the two guards in the front.
Big Earv glanced at Hawk. “Why don’t you take the fire escape? I’ll handle the feds.”
“You sure?”
“Nobody’s going anywhere,” Big Earv said as he glanced around at the men clustered together in the center of the room, face down with their hands behind their heads.
“They’re certainly not martyrs,” Hawk said. “Or at least they don’t want to be.”
“Go,” Big Earv said, nodding toward the broken window. “And hurry.”
Hawk’s gaze met Big Earv’s. “Thanks. We’ll meet up on the other side.”
“Roger that.”
Hawk darted toward the window and then jumped through it onto the fire escape. He maneuvered his way down to the ground before hustling back to their SUV.
“All good?” Alex asked.
Hawk shook his head. “Not quite yet. There’s still one more thing we need to do.”
After fishing his cell phone out of his pocket, Hawk dialed President Young’s private line.
“Who is this?” Young asked as he answered the phone.
“Your worst nightmare or your best friend,” Hawk said. “It all depends on how you answer.”
“Brady Hawk,” Young said. “You enjoying your last few minutes as a free man?”
Hawk clenched his fist, wishing the conversation was occurring in person. He wanted to hit Young in the mouth and make him swallow his teeth. But Hawk took a deep breath instead
before continuing.
“Sir, it seems like you and I have a similar problem,” Hawk said.
“I don’t think so,” Young said. “After all, I’m the president.”
“If you don’t agree to help me, you might not be for long.”
“So brash and so bold, Agent Hawk.”
“I have no reason to be otherwise,” Hawk said. “The truth is on my side.”
“The truth?” Young said with a chuckle. “That’s as subjective of a commodity as you want to make it these days.”
“Well, I’m here to restore integrity to what it means to be truthful. And you’re going to be a part of that whether you want to or not.”
“This ought to be interesting.”
Hawk sighed. “Here’s the deal I’m willing to make, but I need a public statement from you that clears our names, including J.D. Blunt’s and Christina Shields’s and Titus Black’s as well.”
“In exchange for what?” Young asked.
“To make your big problem go away.”
“And what problem is that?”
Hawk chuckled. “Do I really need to spell it out for you?”
Silence from the other end.
“Okay, fine. If you want to play it that way, I won’t make you guess. It’s Falcon Sinclair. I know that he has bought or has dirt on nearly half of Washington. We both know he stole the First Lady from you, too. What kind of spineless man stands for that?”
“To be honest, I wasn’t really torn up about that. Madeline was, well, she wasn’t a pleasant woman to live with.”
“That’s still no reason to let Sinclair take over not only this country but the rest of the world,” Hawk said. “We’ll all be subject to his whims very soon.”
“Are you sure you can take him out?” Young asked.
“We’ll do more than that,” Hawk said. “We’ll obliterate him, and in the process, you might just get a second term.”
“All right,” Young said. “I’ll make an announcement tomorrow.”
“No,” Hawk said. “Tonight. It needs to be tonight. If you don’t, we’ll miss our opportunity to take down Sinclair.”
“You win,” Young said. “I’ll do it tonight.”
Final Strike (A Brady Hawk Novel Book 21) Page 21