Search and Destroy by JT Sawyer (top non fiction books of all time .TXT) 📗

and I’ve been in touch with the FBI agent in charge of the investigation there, but with Shepard in the wind after their botched arrest effort, I don’t have much more to go on yet.”

“And what about whoever leaked all this classified intel about Shepard being with SAD? That had to come from within Langley.”

“One of my chief analysts indicated that it has all the markings of a dark-web hacker. Apparently, they mailed pre-programmed tablets to the newsrooms of the major media outlets, which insinuated themselves onto the Wi-Fi servers and uploaded the malicious articles about Shepard.”

“But you don’t have anyone in custody? Do you even have a solid lead on any suspects?”

“We’re working on that, and I have a designated task force focused on that effort.”

“Neil, I don’t have to tell you what this does to discredit the agency and my work overseeing all of our intel agencies, not to mention what a blunder of this scale does to a person’s career, even a person with a stellar record like yours.”

Patterson’s eyes narrowed. He knew where this was headed, and he wasn’t about to lower his head and offer his resignation. He also knew Begley had little backbone for dealing with any agency staff who were former operators. It was beneath him, and his utter disdain for the old-school warriors like Patterson was well known within the clandestine-ops community. He wondered how many times the man had to rehearse this well-delivered speech in front of a mirror to bolster his confidence so he wouldn’t piss himself.

“Do you think that Shepard was on the take? Maybe there was some truth to the story I read about him wanting to get Burke and his top people out of the picture so he’d have exclusivity on selling off Perseus to the highest bidder. That would make sense, especially given how all of the proprietary software at Burke’s company was stolen within hours of the catastrophe at the estate.”

“Not a chance. I’ve known the man for over fifteen years—fought beside him. This whole thing is a setup by someone or some group with a lot of funds and muscle.”

“Yeah, well, people change too…especially when a bag of cash is thrown in their lap. Maybe you didn’t know him as well as you thought.”

Patterson shook his head again, folding his arms. “I’ll get to the bottom of this, trust me.”

Begley interlaced his fingers, leaning back. “Don’t get me wrong; this isn’t personal. And next week, when Shepard turns up drunk on some beach in Thailand or goes down in a shootout with the Feds if he’s stupid enough to stay in the U.S., the news stations will have a field day and move on, but shit like losing a multi-million-dollar program like Perseus doesn’t just get quietly filed away. I have to answer to an oversight committee, who will want to know where the money they signed off on went…and why we don’t have a fucking thing to show for it now.” He flung his hands in the air. “And then there’s this thing about the technology being out there on the streets in the hands of someone who could use it for their own ends.”

Patterson wondered if this was the real issue, since Begley was a master of explaining away misallocated funds that he trickled into compartmentalized black-ops programs known only to him.

Patterson’s back was aching, and he stood, moving towards the window, staring out at a low row of clouds along the cityscape. “You were never really interested in using Perseus on an international scope, were you? That was just how you sold it to your pals on the Hill. You’ve been one of the key supporters of the national anti-terrorism task force for years. That was your end game for Perseus, wasn’t it? To monitor and target homegrown organizations who meet your personal criteria for being a threat to national security?”

Begley rocked his head from side to side. “You think you and your SAD guys are the only ones fighting the war on terror, Neil?” He waved his hand in a broad sweeping motion. “Remember, while you were halfway around the world kicking in doors for most of your career, I was back here watching the country degenerate into political and militant factions right under my own eyes. Do you know how many well-armed extremists are dug in deep in this country? The new threat facing this nation’s security isn’t just in some fucking Al Qaeda encampment in Africa or Yemen anymore. It’s right on our doorstep, and Perseus will provide the means for locating those groups and individuals.”

“I’ll be the first to agree that we have threats within our borders that merit attention, but using something like Perseus to paint bullseyes on the American public’s back isn’t the answer. We’re already at that precipice because of the Patriot Act, for Christ’s sake.”

“And where has that gotten us? Our intelligence agencies are all hamstrung when it comes to widespread monitoring of our citizens.” He shook his head. “You’re still living twenty years in the past, Neil. This country has become a battlefield with hidden pockets of resistance, and those people need to be rounded up or we will become rudderless, torn apart by too many extremist views. We don’t plan to sit by and let them turn this into another Latin America.”

Patterson flared an eyebrow. “We? Are you running a new outfit or advisory board in the shadows now?” His eyes darted along the ceiling. “Of course you are…that’s where the funding for Perseus came from and why you greenlighted the project so quickly.”

“Perseus and programs like it are the future of warfare, old-timer. If you can’t accept that reality, then maybe you should step aside. And democracy…that’ll be gone in another decade or so. But before that happens, we need to have the means of controlling the masses on a scale far greater than what we’ve been doing.”

He took a step forward, resting his balled fists on the desk, causing