Jihad by Stephen Coonts Read Free Book Online Page A

They’re just sitting there.”
    “Tommy, how close are you to Red Lion?” asked Marie Telach.
    “Quarter of a mile, little more. Right?”
    “We’re worried that we’re not hearing anything. It’s possible something is interfering with the signal.”
    “Yeah, I was thinking that myself. I’ll take a walk with one of the boosters and see if that helps.”
    He pulled the car forward, leaving just enough space for someone else to get by. Then he grabbed his backpack and got out, pulling on a baseball cap and a pair of sunglasses. He’d just reached the highway when Rockman warned him that the cars were moving again. It was too late to turn around without seeming suspicious, so Karr continued walking, thumb curled in the backpack’s strap.
    “Bug’s working,” said Rockman. “They’re just following some sort of prearranged plan.”
    “Great” said Karr. “Then you’ll hear them shoot me.”
    Neither of the SUVs slowed down as they passed. Karr continued past the spot where they had stopped, figuring the second car might have dropped off someone to watch for a trail.
    “Coming your way, Charlie,” he said. “I’ll catch up in a bit.”
     
    TRAFFIC WAS LIGHT, and Dean had no trouble pulling out about a half a mile ahead of the SUVs, protected from sight by a bend in the road. He drove slowly enough that they passed him within a few minutes. Dean waited until they were nearly out of sight to pick up his pace. A dulmus —a minivan used as a local bus—pulled onto the road between them and Dean had to slow down again. He was just thinking he might pass the bus when one of the SUVs turned off the highway, once more heading toward the city.
    “Tommy, you in your car?”
    “About five minutes away. I thought they might have dropped someone off but I can’t see him.”
    “They split up. Asad’s in the truck that got off the highway. I’m going to stick with him.”
    “Gotcha.”
    Dean followed the SUV into a residential area. A few minutes later, he passed the vehicle, which had parked in front of a three-story house. The bottom of the house was made of narrow gray bricks, which gave way about the middle of the second story to dark black clapboard.
    “You got him,” said Rockman. “The buggee’s inside.” He chortled a bit, in love with his earlier joke about the buggee getting buggered. “Looks like the other SUV is circling around and headed in your direction. He’s at least ten minutes away. Tommy’s on his tail.”
    “Great,” said Dean, continuing down the street so he could find a place to park.
     
    “BEST PLACE TO put the receiving unit is this tree behind the house,” said Karr, jabbing his finger at the picture in the screen of the PDA.
    “Too close,” said Dean. “You can see it from the top floor of the house.”
    They were three blocks away, sitting beneath the pink umbrella of a small cafe. Small was the operative word—there was only one table, and they were the only customers. Karr had launched the Crow, allowing them to view the neighborhood.
    “I could land the Crow in the tree and we could get it,” said Karr. “Claim it’s a kite.”
    Dean took the PDA and looked at the image from the small, unmanned aircraft. The robot plane flew a random pattern, and looked so much like a real bird that Dean had mistaken a real one for the robot soon after Karr launched it.
    “This house here is above them,” said Dean, pointing to a smooth white building two doors away. Even though it appeared to be only two stories, its roof was higher and flat. “We could climb up the vine at the back and stick the unit in the gutter. No one’ll find it.”
    “That vine will never hold me. We need Lia.”
    “Lia’s not around,” said Dean. “Stay here.”
     
    THE VINE GAVE way as soon as Dean pulled at it. He threw it to the ground and stepped back, looking for another way up. A large metal garbage can nearby would give him a decent boost if he dragged it over; he could push it over