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    Joe Ledger: Special Ops
    Joe Ledger: Special Ops
    Joe Ledger: Special Ops
    Ebook369 pages5 hours

    Joe Ledger: Special Ops

    By Jonathan Maberry

    4/5

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    About this ebook

    Captain Joe Ledger. Former cop. Former Army Ranger. Currently the top-kick of Echo Team, an elite squad of first-class shooters who roll out to face down the world’s most dangerous terrorists. Not fanatics with explosive vests or political hostage takers. Joe and his team square off against terrorists who have the most advanced and exotic weapons of mass destruction. Designer bioweapons. Cutting edge transgenics. Real mad scientist stuff. If they have to call Joe Ledger – it’s already hit the fan. JOE LEDGER: SPECIAL OPS collects several of the Ledger short stories and presents two brand new tales exclusive to this volume. Bonus features include character profiles and a never-before-published glimpse behind the scenes of the Department of Military Sciences. Join the Hunt!
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherJournalStone
    Release dateApr 25, 2014
    ISBN9781940161402
    Joe Ledger: Special Ops
    Author

    Jonathan Maberry

    Jonathan Maberry is a New York Times bestselling and five-time Bram Stoker Award–winning author, anthology editor, comic book writer, executive producer, and writing teacher. He is the creator of V Wars (Netflix) and Rot & Ruin (Alcon Entertainment). His books have been sold to more than two dozen countries. To learn more about Jonathan, visit him online at jonathanmaberry.

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    Reviews for Joe Ledger

    4/5

    90 ratings24 reviews

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    • 4/5
      When I realized this were stories related to another book called Patient Zero, I thought it was a mistake that I requested it, so I kind of postpone the reading. But once I started reading, I just couldn't stop! The plot has mystery, drama, great descriptions, action... I wanted to get up the sit and grab one of those rifles, guns or whatever they had a just jump into the book. A great cop/military novel with just the right amount of blood and shooting. And the biomedical facilities story gives a new -and disgusting- twist to genetic experiments.
    • 4/5
      I was excited to learn that I was going to have the opportunity to read an author that I was not familiar with. From the moment I started, I knew I was hooked. His style of writing takes the reader right to the action. You feel that you are there observing because of the technique he uses to describe in detail what is taking place.I loved the fast pace of each short story. I have found a new author that i will continue to follow. Thanks for your characters that are strong, fierce and have pride for their country. I cannot wait for more from this author. If you like action, powerful chaacters and a book that you can not put down till you have finished the last word, run and get your copy quickly!
    • 3/5
      I'm a big fan of Maberry's "Rot & Ruin" series. This book has me interested in other books by this author, such as "Patient Zero". I love this short story style book. Some stories are prequels/sequels/add-ons to other books by Maberry. Some books warn of spoilers if readers are interested in reading the book that was published before this short story. Special Ops lives up to its name, and I imagine teen males reading this book quickly and happily. Good addition to any library, school or public. The best part is that each story has the central main character and his two military buddies, but the plot and scene is different. So, if you aren't a big fan of mermen, no problem. Not feeling the zombie story, no worries. Not into realistic special ops situations with a twist? This book offers something for everyone. I'm happy to have read it, and it's not even my preferred genre.
    • 5/5
      Jonathan Maberry is such a good writer. I really enjoyed this story, and all the little subplots and background. Obviously I love the action and adventure, but just as important is the writer's ability to make me feel the different emotions and feelings of the characters.I was an instant fan of the joe Ledger series!
    • 4/5
      This one took me by surprise. I started reading this after finishing another LT Early Reviewer title that I found ultimately to be disappointing, so I wasn’t expecting these Joe Ledger stories to grab me by the throat and not let me go, which is what they did.Sometimes, amongst all the more serious SF/F that makes up the bulk of my reading, I just want to be entertained by a story that rolls along and has enough explodey goodness along the way to keep me awake and engaged. This collection by Jonathan Maberry hit the spot nicely and I devoured it in the same way I would a new thriller from John Birmingham or Andy McNab.It reminded me in a way of the Cold War spy thrillers by Anthony Price, primarily through the ensemble cast of characters – characters that were believable (for the most part) and easy to engage with.I think I’ll be tagging along with Joe Ledger again, and sooner rather than later.
    • 5/5
      I always enjoy reading books by Jonathan Maberry, been a huge fan for some time. I especially love the Joe Ledger series. SPECIAL OPS is a superb addition. It's all of the novellas in between each book, filling in extra information or just telling an extra story of Joe and his Echo Team. Excellent action and story, some sadness. Jonathan writes all emotions so well, I feel them with the characters. I often find myself removed from the story as a casual observer when I read other authors. Not so with Jonathan Maberry. Even if you haven't read the series, this will thrill you. And make you want to read the rest of the books. Highly recommended.
    • 4/5
      I am reviewing this for the Early Reviewers Giveaway. I read this book on holiday and for that it was exactly right. The book isn't partivularly deep, and it doesn't require you to think much. It is a book that is almost purely action, but the action is well-written and engaging. The characters are fairly simplistic, but well enough developed that the reader can form an attachment to them. They are also differentiated between so there is no difficulty distinguishing them. All of the stories are fairly repetitive. The bad guys are always a sort of "zombie", created through various vaguely explained scientific means. This means that they can be killed by our protagonist without remorse. The action sequences are thrillling enough to make up for this. This book is good for what it is: A fun, mindless holiday read.
    • 4/5
      Joe Ledger: Special Ops by Jonathan Maberry is a series of short stories set as prequels or sequels to several of his novels. The stories are about Joe Ledger, an operative of a secret government agency called DMS (Department of Military Sciences). Joe is a clean up man for the government when evil-doers develop some bad disease or mutants that threaten the US or the world. The stories are mostly about the combat to destroy the mutants and capture the bad guys. Since they are short stories, there is not a lot of plot build up and character development. The stories are well told, but at times like most of this genre, a little unbelievable about what they accomplish.Overall, if you like this genre, the short stories will be an entertaining read when you have a little downtime.
    • 5/5
      just like his other joe ledger works well wrote leaving you wanting it to never end and when it dose it makes you unable to wait till the next Ledger comes out which never seems to come out soon enough
    • 3/5
      This is a series of short vignettes that highlights Joe Ledger and team's special talents in Black Operations. It is a recurring series of examples of quick thinking, accurate shooting and team action that usually eliminates the target without losing any personnel. Features the latest in weaponry and tactics that make the bad guys seem really poorly trained. It is a good series of stories if you like fast action and lots of explosions and expending shells! My only complaint is there isn't any overall story line that ties these snapshots together. Seemed more like extractions from stories or scenes that were written for a story then was not used so, why waste a good written scene, cobble it together with a bunch of other unused scenes and publish it as a "Work". I was worn out before I finished the writings, too much of the same thing over and over for me.
    • 5/5
      I received this book as a member of the early reviewers group. I enjoyed Joe !edger: Special Ops and will read future editions released by the author. I didn't have any problem following the storyline even though I haven't read prior editions. Very interesting biotech military novel with interesting characters, dialog and plotline. I would recommend purchasing this series.
    • 5/5
      I was given the opportunity to read this for free in exchange for an honest review from librarything.com.Ok, confession. I am a HUGE Jonathan Maberry Fan. I have most of the Joe Ledger books, and all of the Rot and Ruin. I would read probably anything that he wrote. Loved the shorts in this book, it gives more meat in between each of the books.My problem was the editing, which I know Mr. Maberry really has nothing to do with. This ARC I have was published by a different company than what usually publishes his book. It was more than simply a word being misspelled. Punctuation was left out, letters were left off of the end of words, even found a sentence or two that dropped off without being finished. It was very distracting. I hope that these errors will be fixed, since I have never had that problem with a Maberry story before.I would recommend this to anyone who is a fan of the Joe Ledger series.
    • 4/5
      This review was written for LibraryThing Early Reviewers This is the first Jonathan Maberry book I’ve read, this collection of short stories seems to be a taste of what to expect from his full length novels, Joe Ledger on his own, or with Echo Team backup, go up against Super soldiers, weather enhanced or cross breed DNA, Zombies or super natural, in hard hitting fire fights with the most modern weapons and top class intelligence, sending them back to the hell they came from.I am always pleased to find a new (to me) author and series that I can follow, if you like fast moving action packed reading with just enough science to keep it plausible but not bog you down, with a bit of horror and super natural, you will enjoy Jonathan Maberry.
    • 5/5
      I enjoy this book, but as a fan of both Jonathan Maberry and the Joe Ledger series, this was a no brainer.This is a book that if you are just starting to read the Joe Ledger Series I highly recommend picking up first and referring back to it as you complete books through the series. I believe that reading the stories in a more chronological order will make this book more enjoyable to read, not that it isn't already. It made me go back and reread a few of them just because of the deeper understanding it provided to the future story lines..
    • 4/5
      A collection of short stories about saving the world from supernatural evil, usually unleashed (or about to be unleashed) by evil humans. The stories are given context in terms of which novels they take place between, but stand on their own. It gets a bit gun-porn-y, but there's some emotional grown and lots of tension as Joe and his team race the clock to save the world. I liked it when he worked with new people (usually dangerous females), and when really inexplicable things happened. It's a good combo of sci fi, horror and military story telling, I enjoyed it.
    • 4/5
      I received this book from Library thing in exchange for a review. Joe Ledger: Special Ops is a collection of short stories about the character Joe Ledger and the Department of Militarily Science (DMS) This book has a great blend of action and dialogue. There are many elements of horror as well as mad-scientist elements. There are some spoilers in the book if you are new to the Joe Ledger series. I found this book to be a page turner. I found these short stories to be action packed and suspenseful. I could not wait for the next story to find out what Joe Ledger and the DMS would get into next.
    • 5/5
      Nicly combined short stories. Suspence all trough and a good read.
    • 4/5
      I ended up liking the book better than I thought I would. The small time slips were annoying until I got used to them. Joe is the everyman of spies. No flash like Bond, but he gets the job done no matter what. Interesting side characters who feel like they have a lot of history behind them. Darn, now another series I have to look at getting.....
    • 2/5
      Don't read this book ... unless you have already read and enjoyed other books in the Joe Ledger series. This volume is a set of short stories that fill in more detail related to characters in the main books. The stories did not stand too well on their own in my view. If you are a Jonathan Maberry / Joe Ledger fan already then this book is for you. If, like me, you are not then this book is worth avoiding.
    • 2/5
      More or less one and the same plot in nine different clothes - read one and you know all. After the third short story with the hero and his team I really was getting bored. Always the same: Some genetic modified 'super soldiers' to fight and a human 'super soldier' (that's our hero) who will certainly win the fight. Well, my appetite for 'saving the world' (the ambition of Joe Ledger in his fight against worldwide terrorism) is saturated for a while.
    • 5/5
      I received this book free from the author through LibraryThing Early Reviewers in exchange for an honest review. I don’t usually read books with paranormal occurrences. I found that the main emphasis of this book wasn’t on the paranormal. This book is a series of short stories about Joe Ledger and his team kicking ass in several shadowy operations to combat bioterrorism. The workings of Joe Ledger’s mind are intriguing and unique. This book made me think. The happenings in this book really aren’t so far fetched in this day and age with all of our technical and scientific advances in cloning and genomics. I did enjoy reading this book and I plan on reading more about Joe Ledger.
    • 5/5
      loved it. I just tore through it in less than a day. This makes me want to go and buy all of the books. As a newbie to Joe ledger it was done in a way that I understood the stories easily. Highly recommended.
    • 4/5
      I won this ebook arc through LibraryThing. I'm marking it read now, but I actually skipped two of the stories because of spoilers. This book is great for Joe Ledger fans, but it does have clear warnings at the beginning of each story that might spoil one of the books in the series.I hope some of the typos are fixed before the final version is released. I was surprised how bad some of them were. DMS is Department of Military Science. The series is mostly horror and very near future science fiction. Countdown - too short and not necessary if you've read Patient ZeroZero Tolerance - Like this one. Deep Dark - Very good. Material Witness - This one has made me interested in the Pine Deep books.Changeling - good.Mad Science - skipped for spoilers.Artifact - very interesting ending. The Handyman Gets Out - This is more action adventure than horror or science fiction. Borrowed Power - skipped for spoilers.
    • 3/5
      This collection of short stories take part during, after and before Patient Zero. As well as two new short stories. Some fell dread for me while other held my interest. The Countdown a teaser for Patient Zero an action pack raid. Zero Tolerance a few weeks after. After the bite you choose. This.....or paradise? Artifact one of the new stories. Everyone looking for the same package with an excellent fight scene at the end. Those stories held my interest v the other were not as good. But still have Patient Zero on my to-read list

    Book preview

    Joe Ledger - Jonathan Maberry

    Joe Ledger:

    Special Ops

    By

    Jonathan Maberry

    JournalStone

    San Francisco

    Copyright © 2014 by Jonathan Maberry

    All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

    Countdown - Originally published as an eBook by St. Martin's Griffin; August 10, 2009; © 2009 Jonathan Maberry

    Zero Tolerance - Originally published in THE LIVING DEAD 2, edited by John Joseph Adams; Night Shade Books; September 1, 2010. © 2009 Jonathan Maberry

    Deep Dark - Originally published as an eBook by St. Martin's Griffin, November 21, 2009; © 2009 Jonathan Maberry

    Changeling - Originally published in Midnight Echo Magazine issue #9 (Australia), May 2013. © 2013 Jonathan Maberry

    Material Witness - Originally published as an eBook by St. Martin's Griffin, July 12, 2011; © 2011 Jonathan Maberry

    Mad Science - Originally published in LIAR LIAR; Blackstone Audio, April 2, 2013; © 2013 Jonathan Maberry

    Borrowed Power - Originally published as an eBook by St. Martin's Griffin, April 30, 2013; © 2013 Jonathan Maberry

    Artifact - First publication; © 2014 Jonathan Maberry

    The Handyman Gets Out - First publication; © 2014 Jonathan Maberry

    Inside the DMS - First publication; © 2014 Jonathan Maberry

    Interview with Ray Porter - First publication; © 2014 Jonathan Maberry

    This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, names, incidents, organizations, and dialogue in this novel are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

    JournalStone books may be ordered through booksellers or by contacting:

    JournalStone

    www.journalstone.com

    The views expressed in this work are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

    ISBN:   978-1-940161-39-6 (sc)

    ISBN:  978-1-940161-40-2 (ebook)

    ISBN:  978-1-940161-41-9 (hc)

    ISBN:  978-1-940161-42-6 (hc – limited edition – leather binding)

    JournalStone rev. date:  April 25, 2014

    Library of Congress Control Number:  2014930041

    Printed in the United States of America

    Cover Design: Rob Grom

    Cover Photograph © Shutterstock.com

    Edited by:  Dr. Michael R. Collings

    This book is dedicated to Michael Homler, editor and friend. Thanks for always being there.

    And, as always, for Sara Jo.

    Endorsements

    Brilliant, shocking, horrifying, it puts the terror back in terrorist.—James Rollins, New York Times Bestselling author of The Last Oracle

    Jonathan Maberry is the king of the fictional occult and his Joe Ledger is a one-man wrecking crew for zombies and bioterrorists. These action-packed tales read fast and hard. Pick up this book and you won’t put it down.—Gregg Hurwitz, New York Times Bestselling author of Tell No Lies

    The hard-shelled hero, Baltimore shamus Joe Ledger, deserves to stand alongside F. Paul Wilson’s Repairman Jack in the pantheon of genre icons. Highest recommendation!—Jay Bonansinga, New York Times Bestselling author of The Walking Dead: Fall of the Governor

    "Wow! Maberry’s Patient Zero made me pleasantly nervous for one long afternoon, when I consumed it. It’s a fast-paced, creepy thriller that’s as prickly as a hospital needle and sounds a little too convincing. This guy is good."—Joe R. Lansdale

    Jonathan Maberry has found a delightful voice for this adventure of Joe Ledger and his crew: while the action is heated, violent, and furious, the writing remains cool, steady, and low-key, framing all the wildness and exuberance in a calm rationality.—Peter Straub, New York Times Bestselling author and horror master

    Joe Ledger and the DMS have my vote as the team to beat when combating terrorist threats on a grand scale. Jonathan Maberry has struck upon gold, a perfect blend of military thriller and science-based horror.—David Morrell, New York Times Bestselling author of First Blood and Creepers

    Maberry’s prose sears, his dialog cuts like a knife, and his characters crackle with life. Joe Ledger rules.—Douglas Preston, co-author of The Wheel of Darkness and The Book of the Dead

    Hooray for Jonathan Maberry. Please give us more Joe Ledger right now!—Victor Gischler, author of Shotgun Opera and Go-Go Girls of the Apocalypse

    Jonathan Maberry has created a new genre. Mixing technology, thrills, chills, and procedural noir, Maberry shows why he is one of the freshest voices in fiction. Every reader will want to ride shotgun on Joe Ledger’s adventures.—Scott Nicholson, author of The Skull Ring

    [Maberry] weaves science, police procedure, and modern anti-terror techniques into a unique blend, and tops it off with a larger than life character who is utterly believable. I couldn't put it down.—Jerry Pournelle, New York Times Bestselling co-author of Footfall and Lucifer’s Hammer

    Smart, scary, and relentless!—Jon McGoran, author of Drift 

    Table of Contents

    Countdown

    Zero Tolerance

    Deep Dark

    Material Witness

    Changeling

    Mad Science

    Artifact

    The Handyman Gets Out

    Borrowed Power

    Inside the DMS (character profiles)

    Joe Ledger Reading Chronology

    Interview with Ray Porter

    About the Author

    Countdown

    NOTE: This story was written as a teaser for the impending release of Patient Zero.

    The storyline here picks up in that novel.

    Chap. 1

    I didn’t plan to kill anyone.

    I wasn’t totally against the idea, either.

    Sometimes things just fall that way, and either you roll with it or it rolls over you. Letting the bad guys win isn’t how I roll.

    Chap. 2

    When I woke up this morning it was going to be another day on the job. I’ve been Baltimore PD for eight years now. I did four in the Army before rotating back to my life with a Rangers patch but no ribbons for doing anything of note because nothing of note was happening at the time. I got out right before 9/11.

    It was different on the cops. Baltimore’s been a war zone ever since crack hit the streets during the 80s. Families fell apart, kids took to the street in packs, and every corner belonged to one of the drug gangs. Down there, murder is so common a word it doesn’t even give people pause. I wore the blue and knocked a few heads, made some busts, climbed the ladder. Couple of times it got Old West on me and there was gunplay. They taught me well in the Rangers, and the other older beat cops taught me even better. It’s never been about who draws fast or draws first—it’s only ever been about who hits what he aims at. I’m good at that. And if the scuffle is hands or knives or broken broom handles, well, I’m okay there, too. Baltimore isn’t the richest city in the world, and it definitely has its issues, but it doesn’t breed weaklings. The streets taught me a lot I didn’t learn from the Army or in a dojo.

    In the years since the planes hit the towers, every police department in the country grew an umbilical cord attached to the bureaucratic monster that is Homeland Security. Shortly after I got my shield I got volunteered to be part of a joint task force that was cobbled together by lend-lease cops from Baltimore, Philly, and D.C., all of us on Homeland’s leash. We profiled suspects, invaded a lot of personal privacy, listened to thousands of hours of wiretaps, and tried to build cases—mostly against people whose closest ties to Middle Eastern terrorists was a collection of Sinbad movies at home. Every once in a while we’d get a minnow, but we never even caught a whiff of a shark.

    Until we did.

    I was sitting wiretap on a warehouse down by the docks. Our big break started as a fragment of info here and another fragment there—sketchy stuff, but we started seeing some movement patterns that looked covert. Conversations over the tapped phones started sounding like code, people talking about importing agricultural products when the warehouse was licensed to a shoe business. Stuff like that. Then somewhere in the middle of the night I caught a brief conversation on a cell phone line that was hardly ever used. Just a little bit of back-and-forth in which one of the players dropped the name "El Mujahid." The immediate response from the other party was to hang the hell up.

    El Mujahid.

    The name was so frigging big that I had about three seconds of thinking it was a joke, like everyday Schmoes might drop the name Bin Laden into the middle of a conversation or as the punch line to a joke. We all do it. But this didn’t have that feel.

    The transcript of the line I’d heard was this: . . . that will all change when El Mujahid—

    At which point the other guy curses in Farsi and hangs up. Farsi’s one of the languages I know. Actually, I know a lot of languages—that stuff’s always been easy for me.

    I called my lieutenant and he called the major who woke up the colonel who woke up the Homeland supervisor. Suddenly I was the golden boy, and when a full-team hit was planned on the warehouse, I got to play. Perks of ringing the bell.

    El Mujahid was the right name to hear on the wire. It means the fighter of the way of Allah. That son of a bitch was only a short step down from Bin Laden. If U.S. soldiers roll their Bradley over a landmine, chances are this asshole is responsible. If there was even the slightest chance to get a lead to him we had to move and move fast.

    Chap. 3

    There were thirty of us the next morning, everyone in black BDUs, helmet-cams and full SWAT gear. Each unit was split into four-man teams: two guys with MP-5s, a point man with a Glock .40 and a ballistic shield, and one guy with a Remington 870 pump. I was the shotgunner on our team. The task force hit the warehouse hard and fast, coming in every door and window in the place. Flashbangs, snipers on the surrounding buildings, multiple entry points, and a whole lot of yelling. Domestic shock and awe, the idea being to startle and overpower so that everyone inside is too dazed and confused to offer violent resistance. Last thing anyone wanted was an O.K. Corral.

    My team had the back door, the one that led out to a small boat dock. There was a tidy little Cigarette boat there, and while we waited for the go/no-go, the guy next to me—my buddy Jerry Spencer from DCPD—kept looking at the boat with the calculating lust of a cop nearing early retirement. I bent close and hummed the Miami Vice theme, and he grinned. He had a few weeks before getting out, and that boat must have looked like a ticket to paradise for him.

    The go came down and everything suddenly got loud and fast.

    I had a Shok-Lok round chambered in the shotgun, and I blew the steel deadbolt to powder. We went in yelling for everyone to freeze, to lay down their weapons. Even if the bad guys don’t speak English there’s no one alive who doesn’t get the gist when SWAT waves guns, yells, and points at the floor. I’ve been on maybe fifteen, eighteen of these things in my time with Baltimore PD, and only twice was anyone stupid enough to draw a gun on us. Cops don’t hotdog it and generally neither do the bad guys, ’cause it’s not about who has the biggest balls—it’s about overwhelming force so that no shots are ever fired. I remember when I went through the tac team training, the commander had a quote from the movie Silverado made into a plaque and hung up in the training hall: I don’t want to kill you and you don’t want to be dead. That’s pretty much the motto.

    So, the bad guys usually stand around looking freaked out and everyone bleats about how innocent they are, yada yada.

    This wasn’t one of those times.

    Jerry, who was the oldest man on the task force, was point man for our team, and I was right behind him with two guys at my back. We hustled down a short corridor and then broke left into a big conference room. Eight Middle Eastern guys around a big oak table. Just inside the door was a big blue phone booth-sized container standing against the wall. Freeze! I yelled in three different languages. Put your hands above your heads and—

    That was as far as I got because the eight guys threw themselves out of their chairs and pulled guns. O.K. Corral, no doubt about it.

    When IAD asked me later to recollect how many shots I fired and who exactly I fired them at, I laughed. Twelve guys in a room and everyone’s shooting. If they’re not dressed like your buddies—and you can, to a reasonable degree of certainty, determine that they’re not civilian bystanders—you shoot and duck for cover.

    I shot the first guy to draw on us, taking him with two to the body. It spun him against the wall even as he opened up with a Tech-9, and as he spun he poured half a mag into one of his buddies. A ricochet burned the air three inches from my face. The only lucky part of a free-for-all shootout is that everyone is so caught up in not getting shot that they don’t have time to aim. That’s a little less true for SWAT, and the ratio of aim-to-hit improves once the shock of the moment wears off.

    The unlucky part—and this is a real bitch—is that no matter how much you prepare for a shootout, you never really expect one. Most people have this moment—it feels like an hour but it’s really a splintered part of a second—where they don’t think or move or do anything the way that they should. It’s not called fatal hesitation for nothing, and in that fragment of a second I saw two of our guys take hits. One was aimed and well placed and the other was a wild shot from the melee, and it could have as easily been friendly fire as a bullet from a bad guy.

    I wasn’t caught in that moment. For whatever reason—martial arts, Ranger training, years or the street, or maybe I’m wired different—I don’t hesitate. As soon as the game started I was in my groove. I pivoted toward the guy who’d just shot one of mine and I took him off at the knees with two rounds from the shotgun. Take this message home: don’t shoot at cops.

    I spun out of the way of some return fire and ducked behind the big blue case. I fired the Remington dry and then dropped it so I could pull my Glock. I know the .40 is standard but I’ve always found the .45 to be more persuasive.

    A bad guy rose up behind a stack of file boxes and pointed a SIG Sauer at me in a very professional two-handed grip. I gave him a double-tap—one to the sternum to make him stand at attention and the next through the brain pan.

    After that it was duck, scream, shoot, reload. Everyone doing the same damn dance. Jerry Spencer was near me, and we covered each other during reloads. The report says I dropped four hostiles in that initial firefight. One of them was the thirteenth man.

    Yeah, I know I said that there were eight of them and four of us, but during the firefight I caught movement to my immediate right and saw the door to the big blue case hanging loose, its lock ripped up by gunfire. The door swung open and a man staggered out. He wasn’t armed so I didn’t fire on him; instead I concentrated on the guy behind him who was tearing up the room with a QBZ-95 Chinese assault rifle, something I’d only ever seen in magazines. Why he had it and where the hell he found ammunition for it I never did find out, but those rounds punched a line of holes right through Jerry’s shield, and he went down.

    Son of a bitch! I yelled and put two in the shooter’s chest.

    Then this other guy, the thirteenth guy, comes crashing right into me. He was pale and sweaty, stank like raw sewage, and had a glazed bug-eyed stare. I thought, drug addict. He wasn’t armed, so I gave him a flat kick in the upper leg to drive him off. That usually takes a man down with a knot of screaming cramps in the dense meat of the thigh, but all it did to him was knock him against the edge of the conference table. He rebounded and lunged at one of my guys—a tough little monkey named McGoran—and I swear to God the dope fiend tried to bite him. McGoran butt-stroked him with his rifle stock and the pale guy went down.

    I turned to offer cover fire while McGoran dragged Jerry to cover, but I caught movement to my left and there he was again: the fruitcake with the bug eyes. He snarled at me, his lips peeling back from green and grimy teeth. I don’t know what kind of drugs this guy was taking, but he was having a really freaky high. I stepped back to avoid his lunge, but my back slammed hard into a file cabinet and the sweaty guy clamped his teeth on the forearm I put up to ward him off. He tried to tear a chunk out, but he had a mouthful of sleeve and Kevlar. All I could feel was a bad pinch, and in the madness of the moment part of my mind lingered to marvel at how determined he was to chow down on my arm.

    Get off! I screamed and gave him an overhand left that should have dropped him, but only shook him loose. He dropped to a crouch and scuttled away like a cockroach, pushing past me to make for the back door. The firefight was still hot so I couldn’t give chase even though I figured he was making for that sweet Cigarette outside—Jerry’s boat—so I leaned out into the hall and parked two in his back, quick and easy. He hit the deck and skidded five feet before he stopped, then he simply sagged against the floor and stopped moving. I spun back into the room and now McGoran provided cover fire so I could pull Jerry behind the table.

    A second team crowded into the room and now we had the numbers to turn the place into a shooting gallery.

    I heard gunfire coming from a different part of the warehouse so I peeled off from the pack to see what was happening and immediately spotted a trio of hostiles in a nice shooting-blind laying down a lot of fire at one of the other teams. The team under fire had a wooden crate for cover, and the automatic fire was chopping it to kindling. The hostiles knew their business, too: they fired in sequence so that there was always a continuous barrage while the others reloaded.

    Screw this, I thought as I raced forward. I ran as fast as silence would allow, well out of their line of sight. I had my pistol out, but to open fire from that distance would have been suicide. I might get one or two but the other would turn and chop me up. There was no cover at all between me and the hostiles, but I hugged the wall, running on cat feet, making no noise that could have been heard above the din of the gunfire.

    When I was ten feet out I opened fire. My first shot caught one of the hostiles in the back of the neck, and the impact slammed him into the crates. As the other two turned I closed to zero distance and fired one more shot, which hurled the second hostile backward, but then the slide on my gun locked open. There was no time to change magazines. The third shooter instantly lunged at me, swinging his rifle barrel to bear. I parried it one-handed with my gun arm, and while I was still in full stride I used the empty pistol to check the swing of his rifle while simultaneously jabbing forward with my left hand, fingers folded in half and stiffened so that the secondary line of knuckles drove into the attacker’s windpipe. A Leopard Paw punch, nasty but useful. As this was happening I made a quick change midstep so that my left foot went from a regular running step into a longer lunge and the tip of my combat boot crunched into the cartilage under the hostile’s kneecap. I brought my gun hand up and jabbed the exposed barrel of the pistol into the hostile’s left eye socket.

    The attacker flew backward as if he’d been hit by a shotgun blast.

    As I completed my step I reached to my belt for a fresh magazine.

    But this alley fight was over and all the dogs were down. The main warehouse doors blew open and a second wave of SWAT came in like a swarm of pissed-off scorpions and anyone dumb enough to be still holding a gun went to meet Jesus—or whoever—in nothing flat.

    Chap. 4

    In the end, eleven alleged terrorists were shot, six fatally, including the cowboy with the Chinese assault rifle and the biter I nailed in the back—who according to his false ID was named Javad Mustapha. A terrorist with ties to El Mujahid. Turned out that none of our team was killed, though eight of them needed treatment, mostly for broken ribs. We were all rattled, but in the end it was a damn good day’s work.

    I checked on Jerry. Kevlar stops bullets but it can’t stop foot-pounds of impact. Jerry had a cracked sternum and was one hurting pup.

    How you feeling, ya old fart? I asked, squatting next to the gurney to which the EMTs had strapped him.

    Steal me that Cigarette boat and I’ll feel right as rain. He ticked his chin toward my arm. Hey, how’s your arm? EMT said you got bit.

    Didn’t even break the skin. Weird sumbitch though, wasn’t he?

    Looked to me like he came out of that blue box. The lock blew off and he stepped out, batshit crazy and looking at us like we’re Sunday dinner. McGoran said you popped him.

    Seemed like the thing to do at the time.

    Jerry nodded, then gave me a faint smile. Everybody’s talking about you, Joe. You saved some fellow officers today. I been hearing the ‘H’ word floating around. When I looked puzzled he explained, ’Hero,’ son. That’s what they’re calling you.

    Oh, please. I’m just one of the crowd, doing my job.

    He gave me a funny look, but it might have been the painkillers.

    The EMTs took him away, and I watched as a bunch of federal agents in unmarked black BDUs came in to take over the crime scene.

    Far as I was concerned it was all over.

    Funny how wrong you can be about some things.

    Chap. 5

    Nobody who worked for him or with him knew his real name. The President called him Mr. Church, and that would do for now. He sat in a temporary office in a disused records storage warehouse in Easton, Maryland. He had a laptop on his desk, a glass of water, and a plate of cookies. Nothing else.

    Mr. Church selected a vanilla wafer and munched it thoughtfully as he watched the replay of the video feeds from the raid in Baltimore. He punched the pause button and turned the laptop around toward the three big federal agents who sat across from him. A man’s face filled the screen.

    His name is Detective Joe Ledger, said Mr. Church. His eyes were almost invisible behind the tinted lenses of his glasses, and his face wore no expression. Baltimore PD, attached to a Homeland task force. This footage was taken two days ago. This is the one I want. Bring him in.

    The agents exchanged looks, but they left without comment. Questioning Mr. Church was never fruitful.

    When they were gone, Mr. Church restarted the video and watched it again.

    And again.

    ~The End~

    Zero Tolerance

    NOTE: This story takes place a few weeks after the events of Patient Zero.

    Chap. 1

    Battalion Aide Station

    Near Helmand River Valley, Afghanistan

    One Hour Ago

    I never thought that anyone that beautiful could scare the shit out of me.

    Tell me about her, Sergeant, I said.

    He looked away so quickly that I knew he’d been waiting for that request. He tried to keep a poker face, but he was a couple of tics off his game. Sleep deprivation, pain, and the certain knowledge that his ass was in a sling can do that. Even to a tough son of a bitch like Sergeant Harper. As he turned I saw the way guilt and shame twisted his mouth, but his eyes had a different expression. One I couldn’t quite nail down.

    Tell you what? That I can’t bear to close my eyes ’cause when I do I see her! That I’ve had the shivering shits ever since we found her out there in the sand! I don’t mind admitting it, said the sergeant. He started to say more, then closed his mouth and shook his head.

    The sergeant’s uninjured hand was freckled with powder burns and skin was missing from two knuckles. He ran his trembling fingers through his sandy hair as he spoke. He did it two or three times each minute. His other hand lay in his lap, cocooned in gauze wrappings.

    I waited. I had more time.

    After a full minute, though, I said, Where did she come from?

    Harper sighed. She was a refugee. We found her staggering in the foothills.

    A refugee from what?

    From the big meltdown out in the desert.

    In the Helmand River Valley?

    Yes. He didn’t tack on sir. He was fucking with me, and I was okay with that for now. He didn’t know me, didn’t really know how much shit he was in, or how deep a hole he’d dug for himself. All he knew was that his career in the Marines had hit a guard rail at seventy miles an hour, and now he was sitting across a small table from a guy wearing captain’s bars and no other military insignia. No medals or unit patch. No name tag. Harper had to be measuring that against the deferential way the colonel treated me. Like I outranked him, which I don’t. I’m not even in the military anymore. But in this particular matter I was able to throw more weight than the base commander.

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