Paul's Writers Dig 7: PREVIEW of CHAPTER ONE

TERROR BLOODLINE Series

ON TARGET Book #3

Genre: #Mystery #Terror #Suspense #Thriller

#Adventure #Crime

ON TARGET

Book #3

TERROR BLOODLINE Series

Ex-CIA Jon Bradley 3-Series Thriller

TERROR BLOODLINE

Ex-CIA Jon Bradley 3-Series Thriller

TERROR BLOODLINE Series abounds with terror-cell plots, personal conflicts, rape, vengeance, child-abuse, betrayals, murders and illegal arms & drug trafficking, mingled with deceit and dangerous interplay by the FBI, CIA, Mossad and MI6.

Culminating in a mad race to hunt down and eliminate the fugitive Lebanese Hezbollah Terror Mastermind from carrying out the deadliest suicide-bombing act in modern history.

Fields of Action: Beirut, Lebanon - New York City – Iran - Somalia - London - Jerusalem.

Meantime, read the Preview of the CHAPTER ONE of the FORTHCOMING International Thriller - ON TARGET

Books #3 continues with the action oriented plot of dangerous and intriguing, multi-dimensional characters revolving around a family sharing a terrorist bloodline, including their agenda of personal vendetta.

CAST OF MAIN CHARACTERS

JONATHAN BRADLEY

CIA Undercover Agent

MOHAMMED AL-ABBASI

alias “Surq” – The Falcon, Hezbollah Terror Mastermind

YOUSSEF HARIRI

Islamic Jihadi – Suicide Bomber

SAMANTHA CLARKE

Attorney in the NYC D.A.’s Office, Lady friend of Jonathan Bradley

JAMES WAINSFORD

NBA Celebrity & Rape Suspect

JOANNE ROSS

Abandoned and abused as a child, Tracking down her biological parents.

KHALEED AL-ABBASI
Alias Pierre al-Khoury, illegitimate son of the fugitive Hezbollah Mastermind.

CLAIRE O’NEAL

Femme fatale MI6 field agent, Jon’s one-time lover.

SAMPLING

CHAPTER ONE

OCTOBER - 2006

Siege & Hostage Crisis

South East Bronx Synagogue, NYC

Saturday : Mid-Morning

There was the air of dread and uncertainty all around the Synagogue complex. Adding to this menacing environment was the inclement weather.

The sunny hours of the morning were slowly giving way to an overcast sky, the dark hovering clouds threatening to let down a flood of rain showers any time before the onset of the afternoon.

However, the climate phenomenon was the least of Jonathan Bradley’s concerns.

Since arriving at the scene, his mind was totally preoccupied trying to cope up with the magnitude of the life-threatening spectacle, if it were allowed to unfold, should he and the law enforcement agencies fail to contain the tragedy in taking place. Hundreds would lose their lives; men, women and children, whose only fault was to participate in the joyous centenary celebrations of the Bronx Synagogue built by their ancestors being the first Jewish settlers in this part of the great city.

Excepting a few initial suspicions, neither Jon nor any of his FBI personnel knew for certain what had happened, and the extent of the real situation behind the closed doors of the Bronx Synagogue.

Half-an-hour earlier, the public had reported an explosion outside the complex building. The NYPD and the FBI from Jonathan’s Counter-terrorism Unit had responded to the dispatcher’s call. They were now waiting for the NYPD Mobile Squad and the Bomb Squad to arrive.

As his underlying concerns grew with every minute, Jonathan was in reality, scouting the Synagogue complex from the two exterior courtyards, accompanied by his SSA - Senior Special Agent, Allan Banks. William King, his other immediate colleague, SA - Special Agent, was around talking to the uniform police officers, who had first arrived at the scene and would then go about canvassing for possible witnesses.

Outside the wrought-iron gate and the fencing along the front of the complex property, the news vans, journalists and reporters jostled with the growing spectators on the adjoining pavement.

Ironically, the day happened to his last working day with the FBI before being re-assigned to the CIA, his former employers.

Jonathan was video-filming on his cellphone the exteriors of the complex when he noticed at least two hidden CCTV cameras on either side of the Synagogue main structure.

The over hundred years old Synagogue building had been just given an extensive make-over, while retaining its original blueprint. It was a large one-story sprawling complex of two adjoining buildings, the main Synagogue separated by an open space from the one behind it.

It appeared that everyone concerned with the management of the Synagogue complex was now inside the assembly hall attending the centenary services. There was no one available who they could talk to.

His eyes lingered on the main entrance that ran the length of the front façade; its huge wooden arch door and the two narrow side doors, their arches and sides separated with plaques of Jewish art rose stained-glass. At both the far-ends were two long recessed windows with a portico each and fronted with stain-glass.

Jonathan visualized that behind the main entrance; there’d be a porch and another door opening directly into the main aisle of the assembly hall.

He and Allan stood at some distance from the main entrance trying to determine the situation inside. They could see nor hear anything. But, he guessed that those inside would have noticed the ongoing activity outside through the CCTV cameras.

Someone was controlling the crowd inside the Synagogue very efficiently. To have done that, he would have succeeded in creating fear and terror among the hostages. How many of them were involved in high jacking the Bronx Synagogue? How were they armed?

With hundreds of people held hostage, they wouldn’t manage to control them indefinitely. Children, elderly and ailing men and women would be difficult to keep down. People react after a time. Was there no security or even off-duty military or law enforcement personnel among the hostages? They would have reacted unless the threat was greater than they could handle. Perhaps, they were biding their time.

And what could mean a greater threat than suicide bombers, for whom death was holy martyrdom and the more people they killed, greater their afterlife reward.