Act Of War. Don Pendleton

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       A RADIOACTIVE CLOUD WOULD SWEEP ACROSS THE GLOBE

      Everybody would die. That wouldn’t happen unless the enemy was suicidal, or totally insane. Neither possibility was completely out of the question.

      “Have there been demands from anybody?” Brognola inquired bluntly. “Hamas, Al Qaeda, Iraq, China?”

      Frowning deeply, the President said, “Thankfully not yet, and we can’t make any inquiries. That would only demonstrate that we have no idea who is behind all of this. And as long as the enemy is not sure of exactly what we know, they’ll be cautious. Afraid of our direct military retaliation. Even without nuclear weapons, America has a tremendous military. But if the enemy discovers the truth…”

      The President didn’t finish the sentence. He didn’t have to. The big Fed understood. Then the enemy would be free to do whatever it wanted. The only thing holding the terrorist states in check had always been the threat of nuclear strikes from the U.S. If the news of the covert disarmament was released, an incalculable wave of terrorist strikes would sweep the free world like a plague.

       Other titles in this series:

       #28 BLOOD STAR

       #29 EYE OF THE RUBY

       #30 VIRTUAL PERIL

       #31 NIGHT OF THE JAGUAR

       #32 LAW OF LAST RESORT

       #33 PUNITIVE MEASURES

       #34 REPRISAL

       #35 MESSAGE TO AMERICA

       #36 STRANGLEHOLD

       #37 TRIPLE STRIKE

       #38 ENEMY WITHIN

       #39 BREACH OF TRUST

       #40 BETRAYAL

       #41 SILENT INVADER

       #42 EDGE OF NIGHT

       #43 ZERO HOUR

       #44 THIRST FOR POWER

       #45 STAR VENTURE

       #46 HOSTILE INSTINCT

       #47 COMMAND FORCE

       #48 CONFLICT IMPERATIVE

       #49 DRAGON FIRE

       #50 JUDGMENT IN BLOOD

       #51 DOOMSDAY DIRECTIVE

       #52 TACTICAL RESPONSE

       #53 COUNTDOWN TO TERROR

       #54 VECTOR THREE

       #55 EXTREME MEASURES

       #56 STATE OF AGGRESSION

       #57 SKY KILLERS

       #58 CONDITION HOSTILE

       #59 PRELUDE TO WAR

       #60 DEFENSIVE ACTION

       #61 ROGUE STATE

       #62 DEEP RAMPAGE

       #63 FREEDOM WATCH

       #64 ROOTS OF TERROR

       #65 THE THIRD PROTOCOL

       #66 AXIS OF CONFLICT

       #67 ECHOES OF WAR

       #68 OUTBREAK

       #69 DAY OF DECISION

       #70 RAMROD INTERCEPT

       #71 TERMS OF CONTROL

       #72 ROLLING THUNDER

       #73 COLD OBJECTIVE

       #74 THE CHAMELEON FACTOR

       #75 SILENT ARSENAL

       #76 GATHERING STORM

       #77 FULL BLAST

       #78 MAELSTROM

       #79 PROMISE TO DEFEND

       #80 DOOMSDAY CONQUEST

       #81 SKY HAMMER

       #82 VANISHING POINT

       #83 DOOM PROPHECY

       #84 SENSOR SWEEP

       #85 HELL DAWN

       #86 OCEANS OF FIRE

       #87 EXTREME ARSENAL

       #88 STARFIRE

       #89 NEUTRON FORCE

       #90 RED FROST

       #91 CHINA CRISIS

       #92 CAPITAL OFFENSIVE

       #93 DEADLY PAYLOAD

       DON PENDLETON’S

       STONY MAN^®

       AMERICA’S ULTRA-COVERT INTELLIGENCE AGENCY

       Act of War

       www.mirabooks.co.uk

      Special thanks and acknowledgment

       to Nick Pollotta for his contribution to this work.

ACT OF WAR

      CONTENTS

       PROLOGUE

       CHAPTER ONE

       CHAPTER TWO

       CHAPTER THREE

       CHAPTER FOUR

       CHAPTER FIVE

       CHAPTER SIX

       CHAPTER SEVEN

       CHAPTER EIGHT

       CHAPTER NINE

       CHAPTER TEN

       CHAPTER ELEVEN

       CHAPTER TWELVE

       CHAPTER THIRTEEN

       CHAPTER FOURTEEN

       CHAPTER FIFTEEN

       CHAPTER SIXTEEN

       CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

       CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

       CHAPTER NINETEEN

       CHAPTER TWENTY

       CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

       EPILOGUE

       PROLOGUE

       White Sands, New Mexico

      In a muted rumble, a massive 757 jumbo jetliner streaked across the night sky, the aircraft rendered invisible by the sheer distance. Only a few scattered clouds marred the peaceful heavens, along with a dusting of twinkling stars, a few of them crawling steadily along, the motion betraying the fact they were actually telecommunications satellites.

      On the ground, a warm desert breeze moaned among the tall cactus and scraggly Joshua trees, the gentle wind kicking up tiny dust devils that twirled about madly. Scattered among the low rock formations, crickets softly chirped looking for a mate.

      Sipping at a cup of hot coffee, a bare-chested man wearing khaki shorts and hiking boots listened to the music of the desert night. The reddish light of the dying campfire cast his craggy features into harsh relief, making him appear older and more heavily scarred than usual. Military tattoos were clearly visible on both arms. Numerous shiny patches on his chest were circular scars,