good reason to succeed. You’ll need more training and plenty of briefings from Winter.
You’ll have to pass some tough tests. But then you can go out there and catch him.”
“Him?”
“I mean him or her. Or them. It could have been a group action.”
Jordan realized that Ben Smith had spent too long sitting and learning in school, and not enough time doing things that made an impact. That was because Ben thought he had plenty of time. But
Jordan knew that life could be snatched away in a moment. To make the most of his extra time, he had to live fast. He imagined a Unit Red agent would never be short of action. But the most
important thing was the desire for truth and justice.
5 GUN
The teams of officers that had worked on the case of the Thames Estuary explosion were not even sure what they’d been investigating. It could have been the work of a
crook. It could have been terrorism. It could have been something else, but it probably wasn’t an accident. A year after the Richard Montgomery blew up, their investigation had
stalled. Needing a fresh approach, it was handed over to a boy who died in the massacre and who was reborn as Jordan Stryker.
The novice agent sat quietly in the white Audi as Winter drove at speed towards Medway. No one in Lower Stoke would recognize Jordan when they got there. The passing of a year and the effects of
medical reconstruction would take care of that. Jordan hardly recognized himself. He imagined walking up to Amy Goss and watching her face. Zilch. Completely blank. Not a tiny spark of recognition.
Besides, she’d believe that he’d died. She might even have gone to his funeral.
Everyone in the affected areas of Kent and Essex had been placed in one of four categories: Unhurt , Injured , Deceased , or Missing . Unlike Ben Smith, Amy wasn’t
listed among the dead. When Jordan had checked, he’d found her name under Unhurt . But would he dare to go up to her? Angel had made him promise that he wouldn’t get in touch with
anyone who knew Ben Smith. Even so, he longed to see Amy and make friends all over again as Jordan Stryker. But he wasn’t convinced that he was a good enough actor to pretend he didn’t
know her. Maybe there would be a giveaway spark of recognition on his face. Anyway, she would have moved on. She would have new friends. Maybe a boyfriend.
Angel had called Jordan special, but he longed to be normal. It wasn’t possible. Jordan would never be normal again. He had agreed to become a Unit Red agent and a guinea pig for modern
medical technology. His body would be upgraded whenever there were other useful enhancements. And he would use his advanced body and brain to tackle tricky cases and untouchable villains. Starting
with the Thames Estuary bomber.
Jordan was determined to unearth the culprit. He wanted to come face-to-face with the person responsible and ask one simple question. Why? He needed to know what was worth so much loss of
life and his own pain. Then...Jordan wasn’t sure. Would handing the bomber over to the police satisfy him? Would he want to go further? In his right arm he had the power to snuff out a life.
But could he kill someone he hated? Was his thirst for revenge as strong as his thirst for survival? He didn’t know himself well enough. Ben Smith wasn’t built like that, but Jordan
Stryker was still a mystery. Really, he was a blank slate, waiting for life in Unit Red to define him.
He was sure about one thing, though. He wished that the bomber could go through the same pain and suffering as he had. That appealed to his sense of natural justice.
On cue, Winter said, “I suggest we give the bomber – or bombers – a name. It’ll make it easier to talk about him or her...or them.” She paused while she thought.
“Red Devil. The Red being short for river estuary destroyer. Okay?”
Jordan shrugged. “Okay. Red Devil.”
“I won’t always be available to drive you around, you know. I’m busy on other
Learning to Kill: Stories