Any Means Necessary (a Luke Stone Thriller-Book #1)

Chapter Fifty Six

7:15 a.m.

Municipal DetentionCenter - Washington, DC

"How did you sleep?"

"Like a baby. I was in the lockup with about six other men. Nice guys. I never knew how many innocent people there were in jail."

Luke stepped into the sunlight outside the detention center. It was bright out. His hands were still cuffed. He was led along by Don Morris. He, Don, and two agents Luke didn't recognize walked down the steps and headed toward a late-model black sedan parked up the street.

"That was quite a trick you pulled. They had to use dental records to figure out it wasn't Susan Hopkins in the car with you. And that was barely an hour ago. They still don't know who it is."

"Oh?" Luke said. "I could have sworn it was Susan."

Don stopped walking. He looked at Luke. "Cut the shit, Stone. I'm not in a funny mood today, and I didn't think you would be, either. You're going to talk, and you're going to tell us where Susan is. You realize that, don't you? Oh, I know. Luke Stone is unbreakable. It'll take days to get the information from him. Personally, I don't think so. I think you're going to talk very fast. We've got some leverage on you, in case you've forgotten."

"You said you would never hurt my family."

Don smiled. "I won't. Your family is alive and doing fine. You need to know that. But we need to know where Susan Hopkins is."

"Don, Susan is the President of the United States."

He shook his head. "You don't decide that, Stone."

"No. The Constitution does."

Don made a sound. It was something like a harrumph. He looked at the two agents with them. "Can you men give Agent Stone and me some time alone?"

The two men walked perhaps thirty yards away. They stood near a parked car and stared at Luke and Don. They didn't pretend to do anything but watch. Luke supposed they must know that he could kill Don with his arms and his legs tied.

Don leaned back against the black sedan. "Son, what are you doing?"

Luke stared at him. He had known Don a long time, and yet, had never really known him at all. "What are you doing, Don? What are you doing? I'm not the one who just helped engineer a coup."

Don shook his head. "Luke, whatever you prefer to call it, it's already over. Things are moving forward, not backwards. Bill Ryan is President of the United States, whether you like it or not. Your family is in jeopardy, but they're not dead, and they haven't been hurt. You can get them returned to you. You just need to play ball here a little. I can't even believe your reluctance. You're not holding any cards."

"What's in this for you, Don? Surely you didn't do this just because Bill Ryan is your old college buddy."

Don nodded. "Okay. Fair question. If it helps you do the right thing, I'll answer it. I'm tired of America being weak. I'm tired of America being hesitant. That kind of thing was never in my training as a military man, and frankly, it isn't in my DNA. I can't stand it. And I'm tired of begging for resources to keep the Special Response Team afloat year after year. We were doing great work, you saw it, you were part of it, and the whole thing was going down the tubes."

Luke was beginning to see. "So Bill Ryan is going to give you the budget you want for SRT?"

Don shook his head. "No. Bill Ryan is a figurehead, as I'm sure you're aware. There are other powers at work here. And they would like to see America restored to greatness, just as I would, and you would. So this afternoon, Bill's going to announce that I'm his nominee for Secretary of Defense."

Luke stared at him. He thought back to the night before, David Delliger taking a bullet at the 50-yard line inside the Naval Academy football stadium.

"You sure you want that job? I was with your predecessor last night. His tenure ended pretty abruptly."

Don smiled. "Dave wasn't a good pick for that job. He was a military man, but he wasn't a warrior. These times call for a warrior. I'm sure you of all people can understand that."

"Don, if we go to war with Iran, the Russians..."

Don raised a hand. "Luke, don't lecture me about the Russians. I was killing Russians when you were shitting in your diapers. I know what the Russians are going to do. Nothing, that's what. They're going to stand by and watch. Now tell me where Susan is. Please."

Luke didn't say anything.

"Rebecca and Gunner are going to die today, Luke. That's what is going to happen. And you won't have anyone to blame but yourself."

Luke turned his head away. "You're a traitor, Don."

Up the street, in the direction Luke was looking, something strange was happening. The two agents were walking quickly back this way. Behind them, a group of men in suits and wearing sunglasses followed them along on the sidewalk. Luke counted seven men. He turned and looked in the other direction. Maybe they were all headed somewhere else.

No. Another half a dozen were coming up the sidewalk the other way. Luke glanced back at the agents who were with Don. Suddenly, they bolted. One darted into the street. He ran halfway across before a car hit him. The car screeched to a halt. The agent rolled over the hood and fell to the street. Three men ran toward him, guns drawn.

The other agent ran across a lawn toward a parking lot. Five men chased him.

Three men approached Don and Luke from one side, two from the other side. They drew their weapons. A man held up a badge.

"Secret Service," he said.

They put Don on the ground, face first. They took his guns and cuffed him.

"What are the charges?" Don said.

"Where to even begin?" the man said. "Treason. Domestic terrorism. Murder. Kidnapping. Conspiracy. Those will do for a start."

They cut Luke's wrists free. He massaged his wrists, getting the feeling back in them. "Some of those sound like death penalty offenses."

The Secret Service man nodded. "They are."

"My wife and son have been kidnapped. This man knows where they are."

Luke stared down at Don.

"If I were you," he said, "I'd start talking, and fast."