The Fracture - The Thrilling Post-Apocalyptic Survival Series: No Sanctuary Series - Book 3
Page 12
He passes the desk with a slight nod and another smile to the officer and continues on his way. Outside the airport, waiting near the front doors, a large black SUV pulls up. The back door opens and Omar climbs in, handing his luggage to a waiting assistant who loads it in the back before getting in as well.
Once inside the vehicle Omar’s smile turns to a sneer. He stares out the window at the people walking and driving around, shaking his head as he mulls over all the reason he despises each and every one of them. A slight tap on his arm causes him to turn and look at the assistant seated next to him. The assistant wears a suit and a nervous expression as he holds out a phone for Omar.
“You wanted to call him when you arrived, sir?” The assistant speaks in smooth, accent-less English.
Omar nods approvingly as he takes the phone, speaking with the same elegant, flawless and accent-less English. “Your practice has gone well, I see. Good work.”
The assistant’s body visibly relaxes at the praise from Omar. “Thank you, sir!”
Omar turns back to look out the window. “What’s the status on the material?”
“All shipments have made it through successfully.”
“No problems at all?”
“None, sir. He was able to arrange for technicians to fabricate sensor malfunctions to ensure everything got through. Our men handled the scanning of the shipments and everything was cleared.”
“What about the roaming scans? How are those being handled?”
“We had to change that some, sir.”
Omar raises an eyebrow. “Nothing happened, did it?”
“No sir. He informed us that the roaming scans had an updated route just a few days after the shipments cleared customs. Three of our storage sites would have been compromised by the new routes so we moved them to new ones.”
Omar nods thoughtfully. “You have the details prepared for me to examine at the hotel?”
“Of course, sir. Everything’s ready.”
Omar sighs with satisfaction and sits back in his seat. “Excellent. I’ll call him now, then.”
The phone rings twice before a voice on the other end of the line answers. “Stadwell.”
“Mr. Stadwell. This is Amari. I am calling with questions and thanks. Is this a good time to speak?”
“Perfect. On my way out to get some lunch right now. What can I do you for, Mr. Amari?”
Omar glances at his assistant who leans in to listen in on the conversation and take notes. “I understand that there were some hiccups with the scanning routes that you helped sort out. You have my thanks for that.”
Malcolm Stadwell glances around as he walks down the street, lowering his voice as he increases his pace. He has yet to suspect anyone even being suspicious of his duplicitous nature but caution has allowed him to remain active and he persists in exercising an abundance of it.
“Of course, of course. They change those randomly and it’s been a while since anything was altered so I figured something would be coming down the pipe soon. Just glad I could help out you… and my pocketbook!” Stadwell laughs at his joke but quickly stops once he realizes that the man on the other end of the line is silent.
Omar pinches the bridge of his nose and struggles to keep his voice steady. “Your timely actions are most appreciated. As for my question, do you anticipate any problems related to the scanners? My assistant indicated that the matter was resolved but I want to ensure—”
Omar grits his teeth as Stadwell interrupts him. The American speaks quickly and huffs slightly as he is out of breath from speed walking. “No problem at all there, Mr. Amari. No problem at all. I was able to get your people into position with some legitimate documents and they handled it flawlessly. In a few days I’ll have someone here flush the records of the incident and it will officially have never happened.”
“You have an impressive array of resources at your disposal thanks to the Bureau, Mr. Stadwell.”
Stadwell flashes an arrogant grin that Omar can very nearly hear over the phone. “Absolutely I do, Mr. Amari. Hey, listen, do you need anything else?”
“I believe that’s everything.”
“Fantastic! I’ll be on for our usual call tomorrow. I need to run now. The day job awaits. Talk to you later!”
The line goes dead and Omar slowly lowers the phone from his ear. His nauseated expression betrays what he truly thinks of the man whom he bribed and turned to work for him years prior. He turns to his assistant and looks at the notepad. “What time is the call tomorrow?”
“Around eleven in the evening, sir.”
Omar closes his eyes and lets out a slight groan. “Very well.”
Malcolm Stadwell’s position, like those of other double agents before him, affords him an enormous amount of leverage and power to assist with Omar’s plans. Unfortunately for Omar, however, Stadwell requires an increasing level of attention and massaging to get tasks accomplished. The only reason Omar still puts up with the man is due to Omar’s timetable. The first phase is nearly ready to begin. Once it starts Stadwell will be expendable and can be disposed of. Until that happens, though, Omar must tolerate and endure the man’s attitude.
“Do you need anything, sir?” Omar’s assistant has a concerned expression on his face.
“No, thank you.” Omar resumes his watch out the window, staring off into space as he contemplates what is to come. “I’ll have everything I need soon enough.”
Author’s Notes
August 10, 2017
If you’re reading this then I want to thank you for finishing yet another one of my books. It still amazes me every single day that hundreds of people are discovering and reading my books and I am incredibly grateful and humbled by that fact. Thank you so very much!!
In The Fracture I wanted to do a few things, but the number one priority was rotating out the priority of the main characters. Linda’s been in the lead up until now and for good reason. She’s smart, she was a Marine Raider and she has intimate knowledge about what’s going on. I didn’t intend originally for Linda to be the focal character for the first two books. She just sort of naturally evolved into that type of character while Frank sort of sat back and played a supporting role.
In Book 3, though, you get the first look of Frank having to take charge for once. Linda’s extremely sick, time is running out on the clock for whatever insidious plot Omar has devised and Frank is going to have to figure out what to do before it’s too late. Will working together with Linda’s contact be enough to save the day? I don’t think so. Frank’s going to have to do some legwork of his own and hope that Linda recovers enough to give him and Sarah more information if he has a chance in heck of seeing this all the way through.
The ending of Book 2 (The Precipice) probably left a lot of questions in people’s minds about the overall attack and what’s going on with that. That’s why I spent a fair amount of The Fracture delving into that subject. We now know that Omar’s plans involve weapons-grade nuclear materials that he smuggled into the country with the aid of a high-level traitor. What he plans to do with that material remains to be seen. If you’ve been paying attention, though, I think you can see where the threads are starting to line up. If not, don’t worry. Big reveals are coming fast down the pipe.
The subject of traitors and turncoats—like Malcolm—came to me when I was reminded of the stories of two traitors who were high up in the CIA and FBI. Aldrich Ames and Robert Hanssen (search for them if you haven’t heard of them and look at their Wikipedia entries) were men who betrayed their country and sold secrets and lives for money. It’s sometimes difficult for me to imagine someone working in the upper echelons of agencies like those being turned for an enemy, but if you read their stories you realize that desperation and greed can drive men to do absolutely crazy things.
Malcolm’s motivations are very much rooted in greed, as you may have been able to tell from his arrogant attitude. He’s not only turned his back on his country but he’s reveling in it and irr
itating his new boss in the process. Something tells me his time on this earth might be cut short a bit sooner than he realizes…
I’m really looking forward to exploring Omar some more. On the surface he seems sort of like a stereotypical terrorist but I think you’ve been able to see—over this book and the last—that there’s more to him than meets the eye. He put together a decades-long operation that involved hundreds of people and managed to pull it off without a hitch (so far). That level of planning and execution would take more resources than one man could ever assemble on his own. Perhaps, though, if he had the backing of a country or a kingdom… maybe he could pull it off. But who would help finance him? And why?
We’ll find out soon. :)
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-Mike
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Books from Mike Kraus
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Final Dawn: Arkhangelsk: The Complete Trilogy Box Set
The Arkhangelsk Trilogy is the first follow-up series set in the bestselling Final Dawn universe and delivers more thrills, fun and just a few scares. The crew of the Russian Typhoon submarine Arkhangelsk travel to a foreign shore in search of survivors, but what the find threatens their fragile rebuilding efforts in the post-apocalyptic world.
Surviving the Fall
Surviving the Fall is an episodic post-apocalyptic series that follows Rick and Dianne Waters as they struggle to survive after a devastating and mysterious worldwide attack. Trapped on the opposite side of the country from his family, Rick must fight to get home while his wife and children struggle to survive as danger lurks around every corner.
Prip’Yat: The Beast of Chernobyl
Two teens and two Spetsnaz officers travel to the town of Prip’Yat set just outside the remains of the Chernobyl power plant. The teens are there for a night of exploration. The special forces are there to pursue a creature that shouldn’t exist. This short thriller set around the site of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster will keep your heart racing right through to the very end.
The Fracture
No Sanctuary Series
Book 3
By
Mike Kraus
© 2017 Mike Kraus
www.MikeKrausBooks.com
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Table of Contents
The Fracture
No Sanctuary Series
Table of Contents
Special Thanks
Books from Mike Kraus
Preface
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
Author’s Notes
Books from Mike Kraus
The Fracture
No Sanctuary Series