Centrae VanOps: The Lost Power

1. Auflage 2021
ISBN: 978-1-7349662-6-8
Verlag: Thunder Creek Press
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: 0 - No protection

E-Book, Englisch, Band 1, 308 Seiten

Reihe: VanOps

DA VINCI CODE meets TOMB RAIDER in this award-winning thriller that #1 NYT bestselling author James Rollins called, 'A book that defines 'page-turner.''
Spain 1057: During a thunderous battle, the first King of Aragon wrestles Alexander the Great's priceless Egyptian weapon from the Moors, but finds it holds a terrifying and mysterious power.
Nearly a thousand years later, on a fog-shrouded Napa Valley morning, gunshots and the sound of breaking glass rip through the silence. Maddy Marshall, an app designer with special martial-arts abilities, and her twin brother, Will Argones, quickly run toward the sound. Horrified, they discover a sniper has cut down two members of their family.
Before the pool of blood on the living room floor is dry, their father sends the twins on a dangerous quest to recover Alexander's ancient weapon. Joined by a broad-shouldered friend who harbors a secret alliance with VanOps, an ultra-black covert agency, they soon discover the lethal sniper is from Russia.
They follow time-worn clues from a medieval Spanish castle to a lost warren under the streets of Jerusalem, racing to unlock the secrets that will lead them to an arcane power--before a hostile state seizes the power and cripples the United States.
 
To survive, they must go undercover and off-grid. No place is safe, a wrong move means death, and even a simple phone call is off limits. Because now, the sniper has his sights set on them.

 Fans of Dan Brown, Clive Cussler, Steve Berry, and James Rollins will devour the pages of this instant #1 Barnes and Noble Nook bestseller.

The Lost Power took home a genre grand prize blue ribbon at the Chanticleer International Book Awards, an Honorable Mention at the Hollywood Book Festival, and a shiny bronze medal at the Wishing Shelf Book Awards.

'Avanti Centrae's VanOps: The Lost Power opens a tantalizing new series that combines historical mystery and cutting-edge science into a masterwork of international intrigue--with the promise of more to follow. Written with a dynamic, cinematic style and full of action and suspense, here's a book that defines page-turner. Don't miss this riveting debut!'- James Rollins, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Crucible

'...a good ole' fashioned rip-roaring adventure from start to finish. Enjoy the ride.' - Steve Berry, New York Times bestselling author

'VanOps: The LostPower takes readers on afast-paced roller coaster of a ride across the globe in a top-notchthriller with high-stakes and plenty of edge-of-seat action.' -Robin Burcell, NYT bestselling author of The Last Good Place and (co-written with Clive Cussler) The Oracle.

'A high-stakes, daring adventure charged with suspense and mystery!' - Ann Charles, USA TODAY bestselling author of the Deadwood Mystery Series

 'A page-turner that takes its protagonists from a medieval Spanish castle to a secret underground city in Israel -- and beyond.' - Chico Enterprise Record

'This one's a nailbiter for sure!' - Seattle Book Review

'This is one of the best action/thrillers I have ever read and I can't wait for the next novel in the series.'- Midwest Book Review

Autoren/Hrsg.

Centrae, Avanti

Leseproben

CHAPTER 12

12:30 p.m.:

Police questioning over, Maddy tripped and swore as she stepped out the front doorway and onto the porch with Will. In a foul temper after dealing with the interviews, she wanted the truth about what had happened here and was not at all sure when she was going to get it.

The sergeant with the wild eyebrows and bushy mustache had seemed a complete idiot, asking her the same questions two, and sometimes three, times, so she had no faith he was going to be of any help in tracking down the killers. Especially since Will told her he’d been treated like a suspect, which was absurd. She and Will had been released at last and were heading for his blue Mustang.

As the heavy front door shut behind them, Will said something she didn’t quite hear. The rage she felt at the murders, mixed with the angry stew she’d felt toward him since high school, began to boil over. She didn’t want to talk to him, but their dad was dead! Ugh, she was going to have to deal with him. He smelled of tobacco and part of her questioned when he had taken up smoking. It was a disgusting habit and threw her right over the edge.

Maddy turned toward him to express her annoyance. “You stink! When did you start smoking?” He kept walking so she grabbed his arm to get him to stop, a little harder than she intended. “Hey, I asked you a question.”

Will turned and looked at her with long-lashed eyes that held deep pools of sorrow. Her anger evaporated, like mist in the sun, and she reproached herself. She sniffled, once, twice, and then her reserve failed, and she broke into tears, sobbing. Will pulled her close and held her.

After a minute, she pushed him away. “I’m sorry. It’s just you were such an ass in high school, and I’m still mad at you.”

He looked down. “I’m sorry for all that, Maddy.”

She tried a grin. “Let’s just drop it. We have bigger problems right now.”

He pulled out a piece of paper and waved it gamely. “I found the attorney’s address while you were working with Bella to get AJ back to the city.”

“Great, I want some answers. Since we can’t make any funeral arrangements until after the autopsy, let’s go find out what Dad was talking about.” She got in the passenger seat. “His tone was urgent and we can start notifying people of his death on the road.”

“Sounds good. Who do you think those guys were in that black Beemer?” Will asked.

“No clue. And whoever they were, why would they want to kill Dad and Maria?”

Will engaged his seat belt. “You’ve got me. And I don’t trust the police to figure it out.”

“Me neither.”

Will fired up the Mustang and started down the driveway. She noticed the vineyard roll by. The fog had cleared and the sun shone brightly out of a robin’s-egg blue sky. Somehow, it had become a beautiful Napa Valley day. Life went on. A sad line from an old Johnny Cougar song rewound through her head.

“That was nice of Bella to take the dog. And get AJ back home.”

Maddy thought back to her younger sister’s frightened arrival and agreed. “It was. Maybe I shouldn’t have brought AJ. He got lucky. I hope he’ll be okay.”

“You can take him to the roller coasters some other time. I’m sure he’ll be fine.”

The boy did seem resilient. Maddy was reminded of a scene from the dojo the day before: AJ was still trying to figure out how to perfect his backward roll. Some moves just didn’t come as naturally to him, and she’d been assisting the sensei. She showed him how to tuck his head to the side and how to bring his hand up to help distribute the weight across his shoulders. Each time she gave him a slight nod to let him know it was his turn. When he finally figured it out, he’d given her a huge smile and hug.

Was that just yesterday? Today AJ didn’t want to leave her, and she had to bribe him with a promise of an ice-cream cone, before he agreed to get in the car with Bella.

So much had changed in a day. She felt as she imagined World War I soldiers in the trenches might have, shell-shocked and dazed.

Will pulled out of side streets and onto Silverado Trail, a local route that paralleled the main drag through Napa Valley. She sat back in disbelief. Only yesterday, hell, even this morning, she had cried in the shower, sad from the breakup with Vincent. Helping out at the dojo, her aikido training, and part-time gig developing computer apps were all that she had to worry about. She fought against another sobbing attack, thinking about Vincent, Dad, and Maria. A lone tear rolled down her cheek.

After about ten minutes, Will turned on to Highway 128, a shortcut through the coastal range to the Central Valley and Sacramento. Although filled with stunning scenery of woodland oaks, golden rolling hills, and even a picturesque creek along her side of the road, it had more than its share of hairpin turns.

Maddy felt nauseous at the thought of all those curves. “I might get carsick if we take this route. Are you sure you want to go this way instead of taking the freeway?”

“Well, it’s shorter, and we’ll miss traffic on the interstate.”

“True. How about I drive then?”

“Okay, let me find a spot to pull over.” Just having passed the Lake Hennessey Recreation Area, they were already in one of the curvy sections of road. “I remember a turnout up past the lake.”

Maddy rolled down the window to get some air and tried to focus on the thoroughfare ahead, which was probably why she saw the black car before Will did. It was parked where the road from the left met up with the highway.

She pointed at the black BMW. “Will—look there! Don’t stop!”

Will turned his head to the left, then looked back at her with a terrified glance. He swore under his breath and gently accelerated past the BMW. The driver and blond passenger were looking down at something. Perhaps a map.

Maddy turned in her seat and mentally crossed her fingers. “Hope they didn’t notice us.”

“Me, too!”

She reached for her cell phone to dial the police. She glanced at the screen. “No reception!”

Swearing, she shoved the phone into the glove compartment, closing the plastic door with enough force that it bounced open. She slammed it shut again.

Tires squealed behind them. Maddy looked back in time to see a large cloud of dust bloom from behind the BMW. “Punch it!”

Will threw the car’s transmission into “Sport” mode, downshifted, and accelerated through the next corner. Maddy was thrown back in her seat and watched the pursuit using the side mirror instead of craning her head back around. The German sedan seemed to sail around the corners, gaining on them. Maddy held her breath through a series of small S turns.

Coming out of the last curve, a short straightaway ran in front of them, leading to a decrepit one-lane bridge. Will sped toward the crossing. From the opposite direction, a late-model, white Ford truck barreled down the road, also headed for the narrow passage. Will slammed the horn and the truck skidded to a stop on the far side of the bridge. The driver stuck his head out his side window, and Maddy read a questioning look in his eyes.

His confusion didn’t last long. Shots rang out from the BMW and one of them hit the windshield of the truck. Will fishtailed onto the bridge, glancing off one side. They passed the Ford, the driver slumped over the wheel. Blood was plastered on the back window. Poor guy. Maddy touched her heart in shock as they raced by.

Maddy looked ahead and couldn’t see around the next corner, which hung to the left. She jumped as a bullet pinged off the back of the Mustang.

Will downshifted again and braked into the turn. “Hang on!”

The car went into a skid until Will hit the gas. Their tires screeched, and she smelled burned rubber. For an instant, the BMW came into sight, but then her right-side mirror exploded.

Her heart lurched in her chest. We’re going to die! Her shaking hands grabbed the dashboard as she realized she was truly terrified for the first time in her life.

They accelerated down a straight stretch of road toward a U-turn that she recalled from prior trips, the BMW gaining on them in the straightaway. Will took the turn to the left way too fast and braked to avoid the railed drop-off that yawned beyond the road’s gravel edge. Tires squealed as their car slid into a full spin.

Maddy’s pulse hammered in her ears and her stomach did a Tilt-a-Whirl lurch. Pebbles flew.

Will jammed the accelerator and corrected the car. It rocketed forward.

Abruptly, a female deer jumped onto the road and Will jerked the car to avoid it. They brushed past the doe and a heartbeat later, brakes screamed.

Maddy whipped her head around. The black sedan narrowly missed another deer but skidded out of control and hit the guardrail. The railing was no match for the fast-moving feat of German engineering—the car sliced through it and bowled down the canyon. It rolled twice before it burst into flames.

“Will, stop the car. They’ve gone over the edge.” Relief rang clear in her own voice.

Before he pulled over, Will continued on another fifty yards, until the road widened into a turnout. Without speaking, they got out of the car, walked back down the road, and looked into the abyss beyond the violated guardrail. Several hundred feet below, the car at the bottom of the canyon was a crumpled, dirty, smoking mess. Flames flared from the engine. Somehow, the vehicle had landed right-side up in the creek. The horn blared.

The noise stopped, and she could make out...