Read Online Written in Fire (The Brilliance Trilogy Book 3) by Marcus Sakey - Free Book Online Page A

. . .
    “Hands on your head! Do it, do it now!”
    Very deliberately, he raised his hands and knit the fingers.
    “On your knees! Down, down, down!”
    He complied, thinking, That delivery truck was running, and the driver in it was too fit and too alert.
    Thinking, A squad of Faceless. The most elite tactical units of the DAR. I wonder if they killed Abe?
    Thinking, I wonder if you’re next?
    The commanding officer wore the same gear, but carried a sidearm, rather than an assault rifle. He stepped in front of Cooper and stared down, his visor reflecting the room. “Surprise.”
    Even modulated by the helmet’s speaker system, the voice was familiar. Cooper shook his head, said, “Hey, partner.”
    Lifting one hand to his ear, Bobby Quinn pressed a button that retracted the shield, revealing a wolfish grin. “Hiya, Coop. Still trying to save the world?”
    “Same as always.”
    “How’s it going?”
    “Same as always.”
    Quinn glanced at a kneeling and very pale Ethan Park, then turned to his squad. “They’re friendlies. Secure the area.”
    The Faceless shifted into action smoothly, each commando moving to a task. Cooper took Bobby’s hand and let the other man pull him up. “How are the nuts feeling?”
    “Cracked.” Quinn took in the fight scene. “You do this?”
    “Huh-uh. How we found it. How long have you been watching the place?”
    “We haven’t.”
    “So then how . . .” He paused, caught Quinn’s cat-with-a-canary grin. “Oh, you shit. You’ve been tracking us.”
    “Just since this morning. Didn’t know you were in town before then. But when I saw you take off after Couzen, I thought to myself, ‘Well, Bobby old son, you can run around chasing ghosts, or you can lie here clutching your yarbles and let Coop do the work for you.’ PLR, baby. PLR.”
    “Path of least resistance,” Cooper said automatically. “It’s good to see you.”
    “You too. Doesn’t mean I’m not going to kick your ass, though. Dr. Park, you can stand up now.”
    Ethan rose, walked over hesitantly. “Agent Quinn.”
    “Your ass I’m definitely going to kick.”
    “I’m sorry about running. I was protecting my family.”
    “Stow it. Where’s your boss?”
    Ethan shrugged.
    One of the Faceless approached, said, “The building and surrounding areas are clear, sir. No sign of target.”
    Quinn nodded. “Close the door and clear the street. If Couzen comes back, let’s not spook him. Meanwhile, secure and confiscate. Pack it all, every terminal, every piece of equipment, every cocktail napkin.”
    “Wait, you can’t do that—”
    “Dr. Park, you are really going to want to watch that tone.”
    Ethan took a breath, held his palms up and out. “Sorry. I just meant, you don’t want to move the equipment yet. Some of it will lose settings if you power it down, and we need to know what they were.”
    Quinn sucked air through his teeth. “Okay. You’ve just been deputized. Help the team secure everything.”
    Ethan looked at Cooper. He nodded. The scientist hurried off, saying, “Wait, don’t touch that, please . . .”
    Quinn removed his helmet and tucked it under one arm. “How’s Todd?”
    “Awake. The doctors say no permanent damage.”
    “Man, that is great news. Where are they?”
    “In Tesla.”
    Quinn’s face darkened. “They’re in the Holdfast? What are you doing here, then?”
    “No choice. Couzen’s work is the best hope to stop a war.”
    “Sir.” The soldier who interrupted had his visor up, and Cooper was reminded just how young most of them were. “Everything’s been cleared out. The server drives are gone, machine settings wiped out.”
    “What about physical notes?”
    “No, sir. But we were able to access the security system.” The man hesitated. “I don’t think the target will be coming back.”
    Quinn paused at that, then turned and walked to the man’s terminal. Cooper followed.
    In the security footage, the lab was neat, the bench still standing,