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. 

This Thriller Novel will be released shortly

NEVER MISS A POST ON THIS BLOG

Subscribe to Paul's WRITERS DIG 7 by Email to receive:

FREE Sample Chapters from the FORTHCOMING Thriller
ON TARGET by Paul Rodricks.

***



I invite your comments and review.  Thank you.

Paul Rodricks, Author.

Paul's WRITERS DIG 7

Email: paulrodericks@gmail.com

Blog: www.paulswritersdig7.blogspot.com

Preview of PROLOGUE (continued)

ON TARGET 

Book #3

of TERROR BLOODLINE Series

Genre: #Mystery #Terror #Suspense #Thriller 

#Adventure  #Crime

ON TARGET 

Book #3

TERROR BLOODLINE 

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 Prologue (Continued)

Prologue

MOGADISHU - SOMALIA

     Looking unmoved and fearless, the man apparently a hardened terrorist, stared defiantly at the Americans camouflaged as they were in Somali outfits with faces blackened.

    The firing outside had stopped.   

    Bradley ordered the third commando, “Go, check on the other teams and ask Mike to report to me.” 

    The wounded terrorist was still standing, leaning against the wall, and bleeding heavily under his dirty, the long full shirt and loose pajama, their fighting uniform, as blood was seen collecting near his feet.

    Jonathan assumed that his slug had severed the man’s femoral artery.  He would bleed to death if not medically treated soon.

    Keeping his eyes on the bearded man, apparently their leader, he said, You. Do you speak English?”

    “Yes, I speak English,” replied the man tersely, but fluently.

    “Move aside,” Jon motioned him menacingly with the barrel of his HK46, Assault rifle with the suppressor,  “towards the left.”

   The man obliged reluctantly.

    “Three more steps…” demanded Jon, and saw that the man was  less rigid in obeying him this time.

    Then, nodding towards the wounded terrorist, “Commando, do a body check of that man for any hidden weapons. And, then tourniquet his wound using the first-aid kit.”

    The wounded militant must have understood because he was raising the leg of his pajama, as the commando stepped towards him.

    There came the sound of boots stepping on the ground and some movement behind as Mike entered with two commandos.

    “Mr. Bradley, we have secured the place and all resistance removed.”  As he said this, his eyes met Bradley’s.  There were no survivors.

    Now with the arrival of reinforcement, Mike’s commandos quickly dealt with searching the militants and the premises, and collected their cellphones and a radio phone,  and a small haul of papers,  sketches and rough notes – all in Arabic.  No. IDs or passports.  Not an important hideout or storage point. Just a temporary transit shelter.  Jon surmised.

    Both the militants were handcuffed and placed under guard.  Meanwhile, the other commando teams were gathering outside the mud-stone structure.

    “Sir, I have called for a CHINOOK from our base in Mogadishu.  It should be here within five minutes.”

    “Mike, this place is not safe any longer.  The time is close to their first call to prayers. It will soon be crawling with terrorists when they get no response to their calls from any of these guys here. It’s best we move away from here and coordinate with the chopper to pick up further down.”

    From Jon’s understanding of the mid-eastern terrorists’ traits, the forbidding  demeanor of the militant, now being led away  by the American commandos, led him to believe that this man was probably a hardened Hezbollah extremist, a leader of the Shiite sect. 

    The Lebanese looked educated, and probably came from an elite background before being radicalized.

    Jon stepped a foot closer to the man,and asked quietly, “Where’s the "Surq"?”

    The captured militant looked briefly into Bradley’s eyes and mocked, “He’s like a ghost.  Someone, you will never get your hands on.”

    “You mean, he was here…?”

    “That’s right.  He left a whole day earlier. He was supposed to be elsewhere on Friday evening. Your informant lied to you.

    “But he lied to us also. That you Americans had cancelled the plan to attack this place as the “Surq" had fled. 

    “I personally killed the Yemeni traitor with these bare hands and justifiably so.  He is today responsible for the death of my brethren here and my capture, if that means anything to you, Infidel.”

    He spat out the last word at Bradley and in the same instance, headed-butted the chest of the nearest commando catching the latter unaware to lose his footing. 

    Jonathan reacted swiftly and rammed the butt of his assault rifle on the back of the terrorist’s neck, the blow causing the militant to fall face down on the ground.

    The other commandos rushed to subdue the sinewy prisoner.  The man appeared relatively strong to have withstood the blow to his neck.  He was no more than merely dazed.  This time they bound his hands to his body and led him by the rope. 

    A short while later, they heard the noise of the chopper and Mike radioed their position as they came out of the long grass trail and showed themselves out in the open  area of the Somali plain. It was a CH-147 Chinook, heavily armed, and more than spacious enough to transport all the commandos, including the two wounded and the dead, and the two prisoners, back  to their secret base in Mogadishu.

    The closely guarded prisoners were taken to the CIA’s  Underground Prison located inside the presidential palace compound, in the Halane Training Facility, close to the Mogadishu International Airport, where torture was not uncommon.

    If not their main objective, the CIA had successfully scored two other equally important targets through this operation.

    First one was that they had managed  to nab one of the most wanted Somali terrorist leaders, Salel Ali – who turned out to be none other than the wounded prisoner.  He lost his wounded leg during the period of his intense interrogation. 

    His information revealed the presence of al Qaeda training camps in Ras Kamboni along the border of Kenya.  Moreover, he divulged the name of a Pakistani, Mustaque Ahmed, who managed the distribution of funds, weapons supply and communications systems to al Shabaab outfits of al Qaeda.  Mustaque was also the “Suqr’s” intermediary.

     When drained dry of intelligence information, he was let out of solitary confinement.  He, however,  lasted only a few hours as he was found dead, stabbed in the eyes and disemboweled, in the common bathing area of the underground prison.

    The Lebanese Hezbollah militant leader whose identity the extant  intelligence reports established as Abdel Salaam, had a more colorful history, beginning with his inception into Palestinian Hamas after the Sabra and Shatila refugee camp massacres in 1983 by the Sa'ad Haddad's Lebanese Christian Phalangist militia.  Later he fought in Afghanistan with al Qaeda against the allied forces, and in due course

was plotting terror attacks in Thailand, Indonesia and Philippines.   

    The terrorist gave his name as Irfan Mahdi. But he didn’t have any ID on him to prove that.  The papers and cellphones seized in the raid, mentioned no such name or matched his features or particulars.

   When the man refused to answer any questions, the CIA interrogation team, including Jonathan Bradley decided to break down the terrorist in the underground prison.

    To disorient the man and make him realize the reality of his situation, the prisoner was  locked up for 3 days in a solitary-confinement  cell.  It was a small, narrow room, without a bed or mattress  or toilet, and floodlit by bright electric lamps that kept switching on and off, between the intervals of light and total darkness. There were no windows and so  no ventilation.  Periodically in the night, the room space was blasted with high decibel recorded sounds of screeching tires, and shots being fired amidst screams of men and women.

    For the first two days no water or food was provided. Only a metal bowl of clear liquid oats on the afternoon of the third day. 

    The tiny high powered camera installed above the upper end of the heavy iron grill gate, monitored the prisoner’s every move, who was dressed in only a flimsy orange jumpsuit with no underwear and barefoot

    On the early morning of the fourth day, he was abruptly woken and brought into the sinister-looking, special interrogation designed to intimidate the already disoriented prisoner. 

    Two prison guards prodded him inside, shackled with chains at the ankles and hands, and firmly set him down on the sturdy upright wooden chair that stood in the middle of the room, and they left closing the heavy metal door behind them.

   Only Jon Bradley was present, the other two CIA agents from his team, witnessed the interrogation through the one-way mirror with a hidden camera recorder.    

    Despite suffering  the three-day ordeal of solitary confinement and the disorientation torments, Abdel Salaam, the seasoned al Qaeda veteran,  sat up straight in the chair and stared defiantly at the interrogating officer who faced him. 

    His body language, Jon noticed, appeared to throw up a challenge at him,  with a display of contempt in his eyes, which set a wicked twist to his lips.

    Jonathan Bradley realized that the interrogation of Abdel Salaam, Irfan Mahdi, was in  for a long haul.

    “Who and where is the “Suqr” – the falcon?” began the intrepid CIA professional.

 ***

I invite your comments and review.  Thank you.

Paul Rodricks, Author.

Paul's WRITERS DIG 7

Email: paulrodericks@gmail.com
Blog: www.paulswritersdig7.blogspot.com

ON TARGET Book 3 - Terror Bloodline Series

ON TARGET 

Book #3

of TERROR BLOODLINE Series

Genre: #Mystery #Terror #Suspense #Thriller 

#Adventure  #Crime

ON TARGET 

Book #3

TERROR BLOODLINE 

Ex-CIA Jon Bradley 3-Series Thriller 

Forthcoming Release

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 Prologue here:

PROLGUE

Revenge is an act of passion; vengeance of justice. 

Injuries are revenged; crimes are avenged.

                                                           - Samuel Johnson

MOGADISHU - SOMALIA

    

     A period of hectic intelligence work of listening and intercepting communications had begun in response to the spurt of coded conversations and messages transmitting to and fro amongst suspected transnational terrorism groups and militant organizations.

    
    Decoded fragmentary transcriptions at the listening posts pointed towards the probability of one or several eminent attacks on the American interests.  The primary source was al-Shabaab, the militant outfit controlling the south of Somalia, later to affiliate with al-Qaeda.

    The name most frequently heard mentioned in the clandestine Arabic transmissions was “Suqr”’ – the hunting Falcon.

    Jonathan Bradley, a former active covert Middle-East CIA operative, who had been recently reinstated, after his previous aborted mission in Beirut, Lebanon, was now reassigned to hunt down and eliminate the elusive Hezbollah terrorist mastermind and illegal arms and drugs trafficker.

    Going through the intercepted messages at the CIA’s local office in the New York City, Jonathan was alerted to the mention of the name, “Suqr”.  That was one of the several aliases the Lebanese mastermind went by.

    Was the terrorist now in Somalia, interacting with the al-Shabaab outfit?  The CIA had a strong presence in Somalia, in addition to the Pentagon’s Joint Special Operations Command, and was actively engaging with the groups of extremists and militants of that region.

    A week later, Jonathan had landed at the Mogadishu airport.  He was led to the CIA’s secret underground base there.  
   

    Intelligence received, including from local paid informants, indicated that a high level meeting of important radical leaders, one of them being the man with the alias of “Suqr”, was scheduled to take place in one of their safe bases in Somalia.

    Before leaving for Somalia, Jonathan Bradley had undergone a 15-day crash course in rigorous desert-style commando training.

    The terrorist base was pinpointed in the vicinity of the Somalia-Kenya border.  A 12-men team of elite commandos from CIA’s Special Forces set out on the covert mission, first in a military truck and then on foot.  A three-man reconnaissance squad surveying the area ahead.

    Mike Gardner, a former marine and now a CIA operative in Somalia, was the second in command after Jonathan.  He was familiar with the territory of the region.

    “Mr. Bradley, let us spread out in a three-prong attack formation.  The terrorists will certainly be scouting around and guards providing a security ring for their leaders.

   “If any of our team is detected, the other closest team can provide the backup while the third can proceed less hindered directly onto the target area.”

   “Affirmative.  You lead the first group followed by the next, and I will proceed directly to the hideout taking out whatever resistance encountered on the way.  We improvise as the situation unfolds.”

   They traversed along the terrain which was mostly sand or gravel mixed with some shrub vegetation - tall grass, Juniper and Acacia trees, providing them cover, and the hours before the dawn were slightly cold and windy. 

    The day happened to be a Friday, generally a day of prayers and rest for most Muslims.  It was also a day of increased sectarian violence when blood was spilt even inside the holy Mosques.

    Before the first “Azaan” call at dawn, the elite commandos reached the tented secret base area of the insurgents and regrouped without any incident.

    It’d appear the militants were rather convinced of their safe location, as they normally shifted from place to place to prevent detection and aerial bombardment.

    Ahead of them, obscured by tall 3-meters high shrub vegetation and the scattered Acacia trees, the night-vision showed the shape of a small two -window ground structure of mud and dung with a thatched roof, standing in total blackout.  Nearby were seen two dirt and twigs camouflaged tents, and the infrared vision lit up several human shapes asleep outside the tents.

    One of the shapes seen before the others, probably the sentry, moved its position and resettled itself. 

    The door to the house was unseen, apparently facing the west.  A decision was made, and Jon’s team proceeded towards the west flank whilst Mike and the other group continued towards the tents in the front and the east directions.

    One of Mike’s commandos activated the special mobile phone blocker to jam all communication signals within the radius of the area.

    
    For a time, everything appeared normal in its natural 
environment.  Then, the sudden flash and the sound of an explosion filled the night.  One of the scouts had stepped on a hidden mine that somehow had gone undetected earlier.

    The result was one killed and two wounded out on the field.

    Meantime, Jonathan and his two men had raced around the house and found its door.  He was on the verge of kicking in the door when the field-min explosion shattered the surroundings.   Seconds later, he heard voices calling out both from inside and outside the house, soon to followed by the silenced and non-silenced machine gun chatter in the darkness.

    Before anyone could appear from indoors, Jonathan was on his feet and inside the house followed by two commandos. 

    They saw three figures emerge from the next room in a momentarily dazed state of abrupt awakening.  However, the trained militants quickly realized the situation and two of them turned and ran back for their AK-47. 

    Following them quickly and firing almost simultaneously, Bradley and the commando next to him took them out.   He saw no one else in the second room, just the empty mattresses on the dirt-paved floor.

    But Jon had placed his shot low hitting the militant in the thigh and ready to shoot again when the man cried out and stopped reaching for his weapon leaning against the wall. His companion was lying dead near him, shot by the commando.

    The third militant who stood still in the first room, surrounded by three other commandos, was witness to the scene unfold before him.

    He was a man of medium stature, thickset and robust, with a light complexion, aggressive brown eyes and heavily bearded. Definitely not a Somali.  A Lebanese is my first guess, thought Jon.

To be continued...

I invite your comments and review.  Thank you.

Paul Rodricks, Author.
Email: paulrodericks@gmail.com
Blog: www.paulswritersdig7.blogspot.com