Hard Target

Book 0: Alex Morgan Thriller

by Leo J. Maloney

Genres: Political Thrillers; Terrorism & Assassination Thrillers

Synopsis

In this fast-paced, super-charged thriller series from real-life Black Ops veteran Leo J. Maloney, Alex Morgan, daughter of legendary operative Dan Morgan, comes into her own as an agent to be reckoned with . . .



HARD TARGET



With reports of an imminent terrorist attack in Chicago during a speech by the Vice President, Zeta Division is on high alert. Working with the FBI and the Secret Service, headquarters sends Alex Morgan to lead a tactical team. But when they barely escape the explosion of a large bomb, the danger only amps up, along with the death toll. Now a primary suspect, Alex gets a simple message from Zeta: RUN.



It's just the beginning of a harrowing cross country journey in which Alex will race to stop an attack on the largest uranium storage facility in the US, even as she's chased by both police and terrorists. While Zeta and Dan Morgan himself work frantically to gather reinforcements, Alex finds help from unlikely sources—one much closer home and with far more complex, and personal motives than she can imagine. But only one thing is clear: this is a fight Alex can't win alone.

Release date: May 25, 2021

Publisher: Lyrical Press

Print pages: 96

Sample

Highest Praise for Leo J. Maloney and his thrillers

For Duty and Honor

“Leo Maloney has a real winner with For Duty and Honor—Gritty and intense, it draws you immediately into the action and doesn’t let go.”

—Marc Cameron

Arch Enemy

“Utterly compelling! This novel will grab you from the beginning and simply not let go. And Dan Morgan is one of the best heroes to come along in ages.”

—Jeffery Deaver

Twelve Hours

“Fine writing and real insider knowledge make this a must.”

—Lee Child

Black Skies

“Smart, savvy, and told with the pace and nuance that only a former spook could bring to the page, Black Skies is a tour de force novel of twenty-first-century espionage and a great geopolitical thriller. Maloney is the new master of the modern spy game, and this is first-rate storytelling.”

—Mark Sullivan

“Black Skies is rough, tough, and entertaining. Leo J. Maloney has written a ripping story.”

—Meg Gardiner

Silent Assassin

“Leo Maloney has done it again. Real life often overshadows fiction and Silent Assassin is both: a terrifyingly thrilling story of a man on a clandestine mission to save us all from a madman hell bent on murder, written by a man who knows that world all too well.”

—Michele McPhee

“From the bloody, ripped-from-the-headlines opening sequence, Silent Assassin grabs you and doesn’t let go. Silent Assassin has everything a thriller reader wants—nasty villains, twists and turns, and a hero—Cobra—who just plain kicks ass.”

—Ben Coes

“Dan Morgan, a former black-ops agent, is called out of retirement and back into a secretive world of politics and deceit to stop a madman.”

—The Stoneham Independent

Termination Orders

“Leo J. Maloney is the new voice to be reckoned with. Termination Orders rings with the authenticity that can only come from an insider. This is one outstanding thriller!”

—John Gilstrap

“Taut, tense, and terrifying! You’ll cross your fingers it’s fiction—in this high-powered, action-packed thriller, Leo Maloney proves he clearly knows his stuff.”

—Hank Phillippi Ryan

“A new must-read action thriller that features a double-crossing CIA and Congress, vengeful foreign agents, a corporate drug ring, the Taliban, and narco-terrorists… a you-are-there account of torture, assassination, and double-agents, where ‘nothing is as it seems.’”

—Jon Renaud

“Leo J. Maloney is a real-life Jason Bourne.”

—Josh Zwylen, Wicked Local Stoneham

“A masterly blend of Black Ops intrigue, cleverly interwoven with imaginative sequences of fiction. The reader must guess which accounts are real and which are merely storytelling.”

—Chris Treece, The Chris Treece Show

“A deep-ops story presented in an epic style that takes fact mixed with a bit of fiction to create a spy thriller that takes the reader deep into secret spy missions.”

—Cy Hilterman, Best Sellers World

“For fans of spy thrillers seeking a bit of realism mixed into their novels, Termination Orders will prove to be an excellent and recommended pick.”

—Midwest Book Reviews

Chapter 1

“You and your team will be there in a backup capacity only,” Diana Bloch said.

“Backing up what, exactly? I presume there will be plenty of Secret Service, FBI, and local PD,” Alex said. She wasn’t pushing back—at least, not exactly—but there was something about this mission that didn’t feel right.

“I understand your concerns. You don’t even have to list them. This is coming from our contact at the NSA. They are in the middle of some kind of turf war with the FBI and don’t think the Feds are taking the threat seriously enough.”

“Has our system identified a threat?” Alex asked. The Zeta threat assessment system was proprietary, and in the past it had been extremely effective—almost spookily so. It had identified threats that no one else had seen and had saved countless lives.

“No,” Bloch said, clearly frustrated. “As you know, we’ve gotten quite a few false positives lately, but on this we get nothing. The NSA is worried, however. And the Feds and the locals can take care of traditional threats.”

“So then what will we be there for?”

“Everything else,” Bloch said. “As you know, that is what we do at Zeta. You’ll have temporary NSA IDs, but you’ll really be floaters. Your job will be on-the-ground real-time assessment and security. You and your tactical team will have full discretion to take whatever action you deem necessary.”

“Floaters?” Alex asked. “It sounds like we’ll be more like assets.”

“Somewhere in between, I suspect,” Bloch said with the hint of humor in her voice. “Spartan is assembling the TACH team. I’d like you to take a look at the file and brief them this afternoon. Then I’ll need you all on-site in five days.”

That time frame suited Alex just fine. Whatever her doubts about the mission, she had very clear thoughts about how to spend the next few days.

* * * *

Alex had not been disappointed in the trip.

Three days on the road, two great lakes, and over eight hundred miles later, she could see Chicago looming ahead of her. In Boston, U.S. Route 20 followed the path of the old Boston Post Road that was used to carry mail from Boston to New York as far back as the seventeenth century. The historic highway then continued through the Finger Lakes and on to Lake Erie, Lake Michigan, and then Chicago.

It was the perfect ride for Alex’s Ducati, and the motorcycle had performed flawlessly. As she approached the city, traffic forced her to slow down. The pleasure part of the trip was over. It was time to get to work.

After she’d checked herself and her bike into the hotel, she contacted Spartan by phone and went right to the location. Federal Plaza was an open space, the size of a city block and surrounded by office buildings on three sides.

On the ground, the only remarkable feature was a large, curved modern sculpture. Made of steel and standing on four “legs.” It was called Flamingo but to Alex, it looked ominous—vaguely like a scorpion.

Alex thought the plaza was a reasonably nice, if generic, urban space. She was much more interested in visiting the spot that marked the beginning of Route 66, which was just a few blocks to the east. She made a note to do that when the speech was over.

Because the plaza was a large, open space and surrounded by various federal buildings, it was a favored spot for speeches and big public events. Of course, from a security standpoint it was a nightmare. Too many windows on all sides where a sniper would have a clear shot at almost anyone down below.

And since the open plaza was essentially a box defined by buildings and busy streets, any sort of attack could mean a lot of casualties. Certainly, a bomb would be a disaster, and even a small-scale shooting or knife attack could lead to a devastating stampede.

Alex called Diana Bloch and said, “I just don’t like it. It has all of the problems of an enclosed indoor space with the easy access for bad actors that you get with outdoor events.”

“Noted,” Bloch said. “But we’re leaving the final threat assessment to the Feds. We have to trust that they know what they are doing.”

“Director…” Alex began.

“You’re right, and I know how that sounds, but in this case you’re just there to help out.”

“Or pick up the pieces,” Alex said before she hung up.

Spartan approached from across the plaza. Like Alex, she was dressed in nondescript black trousers and a black jacket. Alex could see her frown from twenty paces away.

“I don’t like it. It has all the vulnerabilities you get with an indoor arena, plus the uncontrolled access you get with a major outdoor venue,” she said.

“On that we agree,” Alex replied. “I’ve already voiced my concerns to Bloch, but it looks like we’re stuck with it.”

Spartan shook her head and grunted. She was probably the best TACH team leader and agent at Zeta. Alex knew that Spartan and Dan Morgan had a lot of mutual respect—though Alex wasn’t sure they liked each other very much.

Her father seemed to have a lot of those relationships.

Almost exactly twenty-four hours later, Alex stood in the plaza, with thousands of people around her. She wore the Zeta uniform of the day: black blazer and slacks—with an NSA ID around her neck.

About two thirds of the people attending were supporters of the vice president and about a third were protestors who were screaming and waving angry signs.

That wasn’t a surprise; Alex knew the vice president was there to announce a new civilian nuclear power initiative. That was bound to stir some people up.

As she circulated through the crowd, she saw Spartan and the other three Zeta TACH people doing the same.

All things considered, the security was as good as could be expected. There were plenty of uniformed officers as well as police and sharpshooters in key positions in the buildings around them. She also saw a number of local PD and federal agents in plainclothes.

There was a rustle of excitement and then the vice president took the podium, followed by applause and hoots, along with a number of angry shouts. The crowd settled down after a few minutes and he began his speech.

“As you know, I’m from the great state of Illinois, but that is not the only reason I am here today. It was about eighty years ago, on December second, 1942 that the University of Chicago operated the first atomic reactor in the history of the world. Today, I’m here to announce the next major step the United States is going to take in clean energy—”

Alex stopped listening when her ear comm buzzed. She tapped it and Lincoln Shepard’s voice was in her head.

“Alex, I may have something here,” he said, sounding unsure.

“Something odd?” Alex replied.

“More like something too normal. The federal buildings and the post office around the square have standard alarms and security, including motion and sound sensors. However, I’m getting a reading from one of the underground walkways that doesn’t seem right. There’s a tunnel that connects the Kluczynski Building with the Dirksen Federal Courthouse. It was used by IRS employees to get to the court until nine-eleven, and then it was closed off. It still appears on th. . .