Besieged

by A. J Tata

On the quiet beach he finally had time to wonder about the things normal people wondered about. Would his heart ever find balance, the way Casey seemed to be able to tame the violence of a wave with artistic beauty? He wondered if life was a little like that. The wave crushed some people, and every time they thought they were in the clear and came up for air, there was another wave there to push them under. And some people, like Casey, seemed to stay out in front of that wave and enjoy the opportunity.

  The Iranian and Cefiro affair had been a wave of huge proportions. They had managed to survive its impact. Savage had briefed him that the National Guard and Delta Force had secured the Port of Wilmington. His former peers were gathering reams of intelligence from the computers on the sunken ships and from the Iranian soldiers who had lived, and from the 180 Cefiro cars Misha had disabled by overwriting the code. But looking at General Savage, Mahegan knew that his job here was done and that he would end up somewhere else, waiting for his next mission.

  Still, he countered, “It would be nice to stay in one place for a bit.”

  “You think for a minute I’m going to let you break Promise White’s heart?” Savage snarled. He sported a gray high and tight buzz cut. Mahegan could see in his weathered face and stony eyes every combat mission, every soldier lost, and every enemy killed.

  “Never said I’d do that, General. But let’s go, while we can.”

  “Roger that,” Savage said.

  They walked over the dunes, and Mahegan cast a glance over his shoulder at Casey, now standing in knee-deep water, holding her board as Misha climbed on. Casey nudged the board as a small wave re-formed on the inside, and Misha popped up with an athletic skill that surprised him. She rode the wave about twenty yards, until the fins caught in the sand. Promise, Casey, and Roger were on her, laughing and clapping, and he thought that maybe she would get a normal childhood, after all.

  As Roger lifted her and hugged her, Misha looked at him, her eyes as wide as her smile. She waved. Mahegan waved back. For once, it was all joy and happiness.

  Then he turned and walked away.

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  As always, thanks to the great team at Kensington Books, most notably my fantastic editor, Gary Goldstein and publicist, Karen Auerbach. The entire editorial team again did a fabulous job in making Besieged the best book it could possibly be. Special thanks also to Robin Cook, Rosemary Silva, Vida Engstrand, and Alexandra Nicolajsen for their extraordinary work.

  My agent, Scott Miller, continues to prove that he is the best in the business and I thank him and the entire team at Trident Media Group who continues to rock it, especially Emily Ross and Brianna Weber. Thanks also to Scott Manning and Abigail Wel-house of Scott Manning and Associates public relations.

  As usual, my first reader and coach, Kaitlin Murphy, did another fantastic job of keeping me on task and on target. Thanks, Kaitlin, for your constant support and hard work.

  I am deeply grateful to Rick French and his firm, French West Vaughn, a national powerhouse in the public relations business. Likewise, Sally Webb and her Special Events Company have been instrumental in the fun book release parties we have been doing in conjunction with the North Carolina Heroes Fund. I’m deeply grateful to Andi Curtis, David Hayden, and Heather Whillier of the NC Heroes Fund, who all freely contribute of their time to help service men and women in need.

  A special thanks to Steve McCarthy and Paul Patterson, who donated generously to the NC Heroes Fund to have their names as characters in Besieged. They not only helped service members in need, in Besieged they help save the day. I also want to thank Cindy Anfindsen, who donated to the JDRF diabetes fund and chose her father, Bill Price, to be named in Besieged.

  I am also deeply grateful to Tracey Sheriff, the CEO of the Autism Society of North Carolina, and Leslie Welch, leader of the Wake County Autism Society, both of whom read an early draft of Besieged and gave me insight on Misha’s character. They continue to do extraordinary work on behalf of North Carolina children on the autism spectrum.

  Research continues to be one of my favorites parts of writing and like all of my stories Besieged presented its own challenges ranging from autonomous vehicles to the autism spectrum. Any mistakes, of course, are my own.

  I hope you enjoyed the story and I look forward to delivering to you the next story in the Jake Mahegan series.