Cobra Clearance Read Online Free Page A

Nursery Road and Elkridge Landing, where a vintage M-51 75mm Skysweeper AA gun and a 50’s-era radar unit sat in front of a red brick building. A plaque identified the building as an electronic warfare museum, but locals commented that there never seemed to be any tourists. A sign straight ahead read
FANX
, and the low dun-colored buildings beyond it were surrounded by a high chain link fence topped with razor wire. Tucker drove toward a barrier-protected vehicle entrance manned by armed DoD police. After he and Levi identified themselves, the officers passed them through. He parked in front of the largest building and they stepped inside into an anteroom, where a guard had them place their palms on a biometric reader. Once they were approved, he issued “Fully-Cleared Contractor” badges. Each badge posted its bearer’s photo in the center of a green field that signified unfettered access to the facility.
    They went through a security door, then walked down a colorless hallway lined with posters warning workers not to discuss work beyond the top secret environs. They passed a cafeteria where an electronic message board warned, “
Don’t Spill the Beans. No Classified Talk!
” Two men leaving the eatery wore the blue badges of permanent staff, and they overtly examined Levi and Tucker as if to memorize the new faces.
    Finally, they arrived at a door with the number “
3
” on it. A nearby poster bore a tree and a hangman’s noose with the caption, “
For Repeated Security Violations
.” Tucker scoffed and opened the door to a conference room. It was richly appointed—dark wood paneling, high-back leather chairs at an elliptical table, and coffee in a steaming service tucked against a far wall. Four men and a woman sat waiting.
    One of the men shot up from his chair and went to Levi. Michael Bailey was long, lean and lanky, with thick blond hair and an unlined face. He said, “Hey, little brother. About time you showed.” He gripped Levi’s outstretched hand.
    Levi smiled. “Good to see you, Michael. How’re Nadia and the boys?”
    â€œNadia sends her love, and the boys sure do miss you. Levi’s doing great in school. Nicholas? Still a sports nut.” He clasped Levi’s shoulders. “You look better every time I see you. Been what, almost three years since…”
    â€œSince then.” Levi’s face turned somber. “I’d rather not…you know.”
    Michael blinked and said, “Sure.”
    Levi nudged Michael’s ribs with his elbow, then greeted his other teammates. Offering a smile to Monica Mastronardi, he embraced her and kissed her cheek. She had been a Hollywood F/X expert and was a lovely, skillfully sculpted, richly evocative woman of thirty—and Levi hoped never to be on the receiving end of her power punches. After releasing her, he shook hands with William “Wild Bill” Dentz, Albert “Tom” Sawyer and Quenton “Hacksaw” Jones. Angela, the eighth Dragon, had recently accepted a Senate staff position and her slot remained unfilled.
    Bill Dentz was a large man. His black hair was flecked with gray and he wore a luxurious mustache. Levi thought he resembled the actor Sam Elliott in appearance as well as attitude. He had been Tucker’s boss on SEAL Team Four until he retired, and he now served as Dragon Team’s training officer.
    The tall, solid forty-six-year-old Tom Sawyer hailed from the Bahamian island of Andros. He had emigrated to the U.S. when he was eighteen, got hired by Metro-Dade police, and retired as a detective with a fearsome reputation earned by working Miami’s meanest streets. He still spoke with a pronounced accent, and wasdoing his last two years on the Joint Terrorism Task Force when he came to Levi’s attention.
    Hacksaw Jones was a tiny man of Congolese descent, and retired from the NCIS after twenty years as a top investigator. His