Read Online Hold On! - Season 1 by Peter Darley - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Peter Darley
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to a reporter through Brandon’s sat-scrambler phone, the conversation becoming increasingly heated. “The Colton Ranch Plant is going to fall under attack tonight at eleven, you have to believe me . . . No, I can’t prove it. All I can tell you is that this is related to the attacks on Everidge in Dallas, and Carringby in Denver.”
Brandon took the phone from her and switched it off.
“Are you sure the call wasn’t traced?” she said.
“They can’t trace a call from this phone. It’s a one-of-a-kind sat-scrambler.”
“What’s that? Does it have some kind of jamming technology?”
“Not exactly. It has divertive capabilities. The NSA may try to trace the call, but their surveillance technology will pinpoint the location to a place far from here.” A sly, knowing grin crept from the corner of his mouth. “Very, very far from here.” He closed his eyes and exhaled, hoping intensely that they’d done the right thing.
Belinda lightly caressed his arms. “Everything’s going to be fine. I can feel it.”
“I sure hope you’re right.”
“Either way, it’s over. It’s not your responsibility anymore.” She gestured to the sofa. “Let’s chill out and, if you feel ready, you can tell me all about what’s been happening.”
He looked at her with extreme uncertainty. Ultimately, he knew he couldn’t keep the truth from her any longer. “All right,” he said. “But it’s a long story.”
Eleven
First Time
“OK,” Brandon said. “I’d been assigned to the Mach Industries facility in Arlington after I was injured on the field. It was after about a year when I was doing some research. I discovered . . .”
“What?” Belinda said.
“The attacks are not the work of terrorists.”
“They’re not?”
He hesitated again, but eventually resumed. “It’s the CIA, Belinda. Or, a rogue faction of it, at least. They’re initiating false terrorist attacks to create excuses for wars against foreign nations.”
She gasped. “Now I understand what you meant in the van on that first night.”
“What’s that?”
“You said ‘Those killers were the authorities’. Now it makes sense. But it still doesn’t explain why.”
“Two months ago, I found out what they were doing and I saved the codes for the plans to a flash drive. It was a deleted file I’d stumbled across in the mainframe. Nobody could have found it even if they’d gone looking, which is why I don’t think they know what I have.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure of that,” she said.
“Well, yeah, I guess. They know I have a hell of a lot of their tech. I had to get out of there, so I loaded up the Turbo Swan and escaped in it.”
“What did Carringby have to do with any of this?”
“It was on the plans, along with the dates and times. With Carringby, it was all about the XD-47.”
“What is that, exactly?” she said.
“What’s what?”
“Those letters and numbers. XD-47. I saw them all the time, but didn’t take any notice. What do they mean?”
“It’s a serial number for a component in a missile.”
Belinda’s jaw dropped. “Carringby was manufacturing a missile?”
“Parts for one, but those thugs didn’t really want it. The army already had the XD-47. They’ve had it for almost a year.”
“So why attack Carringby?”
“They wanted to make it look like somebody else wanted it. It’s an excuse for a war.”
“Why would anybody want to start a war?”
“For profit. There’s phenomenal money involved. I decoded the plans from the flash drive. That’s how I knew they were going to attack Carringby, and I tried to stop it.”
“What did you hope to accomplish?”
“I-I had to do at least something,” he stammered. “I couldn’t just ignore it and hope it would all go away.”
“Many people died, my colleagues included,” she said bitterly. “I’m not saying I was close to them. But I had regard for them. Are you saying they died just for some kind of theatrical
Brandon took the phone from her and switched it off.
“Are you sure the call wasn’t traced?” she said.
“They can’t trace a call from this phone. It’s a one-of-a-kind sat-scrambler.”
“What’s that? Does it have some kind of jamming technology?”
“Not exactly. It has divertive capabilities. The NSA may try to trace the call, but their surveillance technology will pinpoint the location to a place far from here.” A sly, knowing grin crept from the corner of his mouth. “Very, very far from here.” He closed his eyes and exhaled, hoping intensely that they’d done the right thing.
Belinda lightly caressed his arms. “Everything’s going to be fine. I can feel it.”
“I sure hope you’re right.”
“Either way, it’s over. It’s not your responsibility anymore.” She gestured to the sofa. “Let’s chill out and, if you feel ready, you can tell me all about what’s been happening.”
He looked at her with extreme uncertainty. Ultimately, he knew he couldn’t keep the truth from her any longer. “All right,” he said. “But it’s a long story.”
Eleven
First Time
“OK,” Brandon said. “I’d been assigned to the Mach Industries facility in Arlington after I was injured on the field. It was after about a year when I was doing some research. I discovered . . .”
“What?” Belinda said.
“The attacks are not the work of terrorists.”
“They’re not?”
He hesitated again, but eventually resumed. “It’s the CIA, Belinda. Or, a rogue faction of it, at least. They’re initiating false terrorist attacks to create excuses for wars against foreign nations.”
She gasped. “Now I understand what you meant in the van on that first night.”
“What’s that?”
“You said ‘Those killers were the authorities’. Now it makes sense. But it still doesn’t explain why.”
“Two months ago, I found out what they were doing and I saved the codes for the plans to a flash drive. It was a deleted file I’d stumbled across in the mainframe. Nobody could have found it even if they’d gone looking, which is why I don’t think they know what I have.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure of that,” she said.
“Well, yeah, I guess. They know I have a hell of a lot of their tech. I had to get out of there, so I loaded up the Turbo Swan and escaped in it.”
“What did Carringby have to do with any of this?”
“It was on the plans, along with the dates and times. With Carringby, it was all about the XD-47.”
“What is that, exactly?” she said.
“What’s what?”
“Those letters and numbers. XD-47. I saw them all the time, but didn’t take any notice. What do they mean?”
“It’s a serial number for a component in a missile.”
Belinda’s jaw dropped. “Carringby was manufacturing a missile?”
“Parts for one, but those thugs didn’t really want it. The army already had the XD-47. They’ve had it for almost a year.”
“So why attack Carringby?”
“They wanted to make it look like somebody else wanted it. It’s an excuse for a war.”
“Why would anybody want to start a war?”
“For profit. There’s phenomenal money involved. I decoded the plans from the flash drive. That’s how I knew they were going to attack Carringby, and I tried to stop it.”
“What did you hope to accomplish?”
“I-I had to do at least something,” he stammered. “I couldn’t just ignore it and hope it would all go away.”
“Many people died, my colleagues included,” she said bitterly. “I’m not saying I was close to them. But I had regard for them. Are you saying they died just for some kind of theatrical
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