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And the trailer they brought on such trips didn’t have room for a third kid, Patrick thought. “Yes, I think I’ll be home by then, and you guys can take off. Let me speak with…”

“He’s running to catch the bus. He’s always drawing or doodling or writing in his notebook and I have to tell him a dozen times to get moving or he’ll miss the bus. Everything okay?”

“Yes, I’m okay, but there was a little incident lately, and I wanted to tell Bradley and you about it before—”

“Good. There’s so much stuff on the news about Iraq and Turkey lately, and we think of you every night when we watch the news.”

“I think of you guys all the time. But early this morning—”

“That’s nice. I gotta run, Patrick. I’m interviewing some pharmacy techs this morning. Steve and the kids send their love. Bye bye.” And the connection was broken.

That’s how most of their phone conversations went, he thought as he hung up his phone: a very brief conversation with his son, a complaint and request from his sister or brother-in-law—usually a request for family time that didn’t involve Bradley—followed by a harried good-bye. Well, what did he expect? He had a young teenage son who had been either dragged around the country or left with relatives most of his life; he didn’t get to see his dad too much, only read about him in newspapers or on TV, usually involving harsh criticism about some questionable involvement in some near-catastrophic global calamity. His relatives certainly cared about Bradley, but they had their own lives to live and they frequently saw Patrick’s escapades as a means of running away from mundane family life back home.

He made some calls to Scion’s headquarters back in Las Vegas about his paycheck; they assured him the “check was in the mail” even though it was always transferred electronically. Then he was patched through to Kevin Martindale, former president of the United States and silent owner of Scion Aviation International.

“Hello, Patrick. Heard you had a tough day.”

“Rough as sandpaper, sir,” Patrick said. One of the code words that employees of Scion Aviation International were taught to use was sandpaper—if used in any conversation or correspondence, it meant they were under duress or being bugged.

“Got it. Sorry about the contract being canceled. I’ll try to work things from here, but it doesn’t look good.”

“Do you know if I’m going to be arrested?”

“Sometime tomorrow or the next day. I haven’t seen the warrant, but I expect it’ll be served soon.”

“The Turks were jamming the hell out of us. We had to shut down the plane.”

“Don’t worry about it, just do what they tell you to do and keep silent. You should send your freighter aircraft elsewhere. It won’t be safe in Iraq.”

“We’ll need it to start packing up.”

“It’s risky. The Turks will want it. They may try to grab it when it flies through their airspace.”

“I know.”

“It’s your call. Anything else for me?”

“Some snafu with the paycheck. A deposit that was made days ago was yanked out.”

“No snafu,” Martindale said. “Our accounts have been frozen solid. I’m working that, too, but now we’ve got multiple departments and the White House in on this, so it’ll take longer. Try not to worry about it.”

“Yes, sir.” And the call abruptly terminated. Well, sleep was going to be impossible now, Patrick thought, so he powered up his laptop. Just as he started to surf the Internet and read the news from the outside world, he picked up a call. “McLanahan here.”

Patrick? I just heard! Thank God you’re okay.”

It sounded like his sister Mary calling him back, but he wasn’t sure. “Mary?”

“This is Gia Cazzotto, you ninny—I mean, ninny sir,” the voice of Lieutenant Colonel Cazzotto, the commander of the Seventh Air Expeditionary Squadron, said, laughing. “Who’s Mary? Some young engineer in a lab coat and big glasses who transforms herself into Marilyn Monroe when she pulls a pin out of her hair?”

Patrick’s laugh was a lot more strained and high-pitched than he wanted. “No, no, no,” he said, confused that his mouth had suddenly turned so dry. “Mary is my sister. Lives in Sacramento. I just spoke with her. Thought it was her calling back.”

“Sure, sure, sure, I’ve heard that one before,” Gia said. “Listen, Patrick, I just heard about the attack on Nahla, and I wanted to make sure you were okay.”

“Jon and I got our bells rung, but we’re okay, thanks.”

“I’m in Dubai right now, but I got permission to come over as soon as they’re letting personnel come up north,” she said. “I want to see you and find out what happened.”

“That would be great, Boxer, really great,” Patrick said, “but I might be shipping out soon.”

“Shipping out?”

“Back to Washington. Long story.”

“I’ve got plenty of time, Patrick. Lay it on me.”

“Not ‘long’ as in time, but ‘long’ as in…a lot of stuff I can’t talk about.”

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Все книги серии Patrick McLanahan

Strike Force
Strike Force

The Battle For Control Of Iran… Begins In Space "When a disgraced former Iranian military chief of staff engineers an insurgency that threatens to destroy the theocratic regime in Iran, a new era appears to be dawning in the Middle East. But one must be wary of old enemies…"On the run from the Pasdaran, the theocrat's terror army, and unable to count on support from his friends in the regular army, Iranian rebel leader General Hesarak al-Kan Buzhazi desperately turns to his old nemesis, U.S. Air Force Lieutenant-General Patrick McLanahan, for help. Unwilling to commit American forces in an Iranian civil war, and with time running out, the U.S. president authorizes McLanahan to utilize a new, top-secret fleet of globe-crossing spaceplanes, the XR-A9 Black Stallions, led by test pilot and astronaut Captain Hunter Noble. Within hours, McLanahan's Air Battle Force turns the tide, possibly changing the course of history in the Middle East for generations.The advent of almost instantaneous global reach, along with the reactivation of America's first military space station, Silver Tower, has rekindled fears of a space arms race, and the growing insurgency in Iran is threatening to erupt into a worldwide jihad. But McLanahan finds himself embroiled in even more bitter battles at the White House, between those who support his space-based military initiative and those who are working secretly to undermine it. When McLanahan is forced to concentrate on his political and personal battles back at home, it's left to Hunter Noble and his team of young American space engineers to keep the fires of freedom in the Middle East from exploding completely out of control.Filled with the latest cutting-edge weaponry, geopolitical intrigue, high-flying suspense, and a colorful cast of characters, "Strike Force" is "New York Times" bestselling master Dale Brown at his best.

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Rogue Forces
Rogue Forces

The clash of civilizations will be won ... by thte highest bidderWhat happens when America's most lethal military contractor becomes uncontrollably powerful?His election promised a new day for America ... but dangerous storm clouds are on the horizon. The newly inaugurated president, Joseph Gardner, pledged to start pulling U.S. forces out of Iraq on his first day in office--no questions asked. Meanwhile, former president Kevin Martindale and retired Air Force lieutenant-general Patrick McLanahan have left government behind for the lucrative world of military contracting. Their private firm, Scion Aviation International, has been hired by the Pentagon to take over aerial patrols in northern Iraq as the U.S. military begins to downsize its presence there.Yet Iraq quickly reemerges as a hot zone: Kurdish nationalist attacks have led the Republic of Turkey to invade northern Iraq. The new American presi dent needs to regain control of the situation--immediately--but he's reluctant to send U.S. forces back into harm's way, leaving Scion the only credible force in the region capable of blunting the Turks' advances.But when Patrick McLanahan makes the decision to take the fight to the Turks, can the president rein him in? And just where does McLanahan's loyalty ultimately lie: with his country, his commander in chief, his fellow warriors ... or with his company's shareholders?In Rogue Forces, Dale Brown, the New York Times bestselling master of thrilling action, explores the frightening possibility that the corporations we now rely on to fight our battles are becoming too powerful for America's good.

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Executive Intent
Executive Intent

The United States has just launched the most powerful weapon in history – a missilelaunching satellite called "Thor's Hammer" that can strike anywhere on the planet in seconds. The world's other major superpowers, Russia and China, are rocked by America 's development, and they scramble to respond by gaining control of the seas.But when terrorists hijack Pakistani missiles and fire them at Indian cities, U.S. President Joseph Gardner has only one option – to use the untested Thor's Hammer. But when something goes awry, Pakistan decides to give China naval strategic advantage by granting access to Middle Eastern ports.To make matters worse, Somali pirates board a Chinese freighter and slaughter the crew. China responds by brutally attacking and then occupying Somalia, quickly setting up missile pads that can target U.S. Naval ships. Now the U.S. high command is on red alert and the country's security is in total jeopardy…Another flash point quickly emerges – in Earth's orbit. When Chinese and Russian spacecraft surround an American space station, the threat is clear: negotiate and compromise, or China and Russia will cripple the U.S. Navy with ballistic missiles. Will the world's superpowers be plunged into a full-scale war?With Executive Intent, the New York Times bestselling master thriller-writer Dale Brown crafts an action-packed tale of intrigue and technological weaponry that pits the world's superpowers in a contest for Earth's oceans and ultimate high ground – space.

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A Time for Patriots
A Time for Patriots

Welcome to Battlefield AmericaWhen murderous bands of militiamen begin roaming the western United States and attacking government agencies, it will take a dedicated group of the nation's finest and toughest civilian airmen to put an end to the homegrown insurgency. U.S. Air Force Lieutenant-General Patrick McLanahan vows to take to the skies to join the fight, but when his son, Bradley, also signs up, they find themselves caught in a deadly game against a shadowy opponent.When the stock markets crash and the U.S. economy falls into a crippling recession, everything changes for newly elected president Kenneth Phoenix. Politically exhausted from a bruising and divisive election, Phoenix must order a series of massive tax cuts and wipe out entire cabinet-level departments to reduce government spending. With reductions in education and transportation, an incapacitated National Guard, and the loss of public safety budgets, entire communities of armed citizens band together for survival and mutual protection. Against this dismal backdrop, a SWAT team is ambushed and radioactive materials are stolen by a group calling themselves the Knights of the True Republic. Is the battle against the government about to be taken to a new and deadlier level?In this time of crisis, a citizen organization rises to the task of protecting their fellow countrymen: the Civil Air Patrol (CAP), the U.S. Air Force auxiliary. The Nevada Wing — led by retired Air Force Lieutenant-General Patrick McLanahan, his son, Bradley, and other volunteers — uses their military skills in the sky and on the ground to hunt down violent terrorists. But how will Patrick respond when extremists launch a catastrophic dirty bomb attack in Reno, spreading radiological fallout for miles? And when Bradley is caught in a deadly double-cross that jeopardizes the CAP, Patrick will have to fight to find out where his friends' loyalties lie: Are they with him and the CAP or with the terrorists?With A Time for Patriots, the New York Times bestselling master of the modern thriller Dale Brown brings the battle home to explore a terrifying possibility — the collapse of the American Republic.

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