Kill Chain by J Robert Kennedy Read Free Book Online Page B

“Insane. Remind me to pass a law when I get home.”
    Red smiled slightly.
“Yes, sir.”
    “We had agents in those
cars, didn’t we?”
    Red nodded. “Yes, sir. Two,
presumed dead.”
    Starling sighed. “I’ll have
to get their names when this is all over. I’ll want to meet with their
families, personally.”
    “Of course, sir.”
    Starling glanced at the
phone on the ambassador’s desk, it now his office for the time being. “Any
demands yet?”
    “Negative. We think
they’re still securing the hostages.”
    Starling closed his eyes,
resting his head against the sumptuous leather, and sighed. “We’re not going to
find her, are we?” He opened his eyes, Red stepping closer to the desk,
lowering his voice slightly.
    “I’ll be honest with you,
sir. The longer we don’t, the harder it will get.” Starling’s chest tightened.
“But harder doesn’t mean impossible. I’ve rescued guys out of the middle of the
desert that had been missing for months. We just need to work the problem.
You’ve got every security force in the modern world working on this. It’s not
just your daughter that’s missing. The Brits, Germans, Canadians,
Aussies—everyone is throwing everything they’ve got at this.”
    Starling nodded slowly.
“I know.” He sighed. “I know as President, I should be concerned with everyone,
but I’ll be honest with you , Sergeant. All I can picture is my
little girl and how terrified she must be.”
    Red pursed his lips, his
head bobbing. “I understand, sir. I have a young son. But I’ll tell you this.
If this ever happened to him, I’d want the exact same people looking for him
that are looking for your daughter.”
    Starling smiled,
realizing the man was right. The best people were on this, doing whatever it
took to find her and bring her home safely. “I appreciate that, Sergeant.” His
chin jutted toward the door. “I won’t hold you up any longer. Keep me posted.”
    “Yes, sir.”
    Red left the room and Starling
rose, stepping over to the door and locking it, images of his wife, dying in his
arms, her face replaced with his precious daughter’s, overwhelming him.
    He dropped to his knees
and clasped his hands together as tears flowed freely, his eyes staring at the
heavens, his soul beseeching All Mighty God to save all he had left in the world.
     
     

17

    Crawford
Residence                
Forest
Hills, Washington, DC
     
    What
should I do?
    Jeff Crawford stared at
his phone, willing Nancy to respond, to no avail. It had been at least half an
hour since her last text message had him bolt upright in bed, and he hadn’t
budged since, repeatedly sending her messages.
    Something’s wrong.
Help us!
    Something was definitely
wrong, and he didn’t know what to do. She was the President’s daughter. Surely,
she had security personnel that could help her, yet she had asked him for help.
    What does that mean?
    Were they dead? And if
they were, what the hell was he supposed to do about it? Wouldn’t people who
knew what to do already know? And even if they didn’t, who was he supposed to
call? Her dad? The White House?
    Hi, I’m Jeff, the President’s
daughter’s secret boyfriend. Is she okay?
    He launched Skype,
calling his buddy, Ronnie.
    “Yo, dude, whassup?”
    “Not sure but I think
something might have happened to Nancy.”
    “Who, Nancy Starling?”
    “Yeah. We were texting
and now I can’t reach her.”
    “So, isn’t she in like
Korea or something? That’s like dark-age type shit over there, isn’t it? People
eatin’ grass and shit?”
    Jeff felt his chest
tighten. “That’s North Korea, you idiot. Try reading something other
than Kim and Khloé’s Twitter feeds.”
    “Hey, when CNN starts
featuring tits and ass, I’ll tune in.”
    “You’re hopeless.”
    “I am what I am.” Ronnie
grinned. “So, why do you think something’s wrong?”
    “It’s her last text.”
    “What did it say?”
    “It says, ‘something’s
wrong,