Forged in Smoke (A Red-Hot SEALs Novel Book 3) Read Online Free Page A

approach, if we had an approach to follow.”
    Coulson flexed his shoulders restively. “We force the bastards into the open. Mackenzie has an ex-wife; Simcosky, a mother; Winters, parents and brothers. We use them to bring those bastards to heel.”
    “And prove to the world that Mackenzie wasn’t mouthing excuses when he screamed conspiracy?” Eric steepled his fingers and held Coulson’s flat gaze. “Going after their families will bring notice. We can’t afford notice, not yet. They’re discredited, wanted by the police. We can afford patience.”
    “Manheim’s right,” James Link said, a note of finality in his quiet voice. “If we were further along, we could chance questions and deeper looks. But we haven’t reached that point yet. It behooves us to exercise caution.”
    Eric relaxed slightly—time to shift the focus. “What of your newest acquisitions? Are they settling in?”
    A slow smile, shadowed by cruelty, kicked up the edges of Coulson’s thick lips. “It took some initial persuading, but things are moving along nicely now.”
    No doubt the convincing had been brutal and bloody—just as Coulson preferred it. Their American associate had the soul of a sociopathic thug. Eric found it unlikely that the man had joined their cause out of concern for the planet, or the survival of the human race. It was more likely he’d accepted the council’s mandates in order to shoehorn his own agenda.
    But then, it didn’t matter why Coulson had joined them, because his methods were exceptionally effective when it came to getting the job done.
    “If we’d moved on the lab earlier, right after the plane fuckup, we’d be a hell of a lot further along,” Coulson pointed out.
    “We agreed it would be a mistake to take the lab while Mackenzie and his crew were being hailed as heroes.” Link responded in his habitually quiet voice. “They knew the hijacking was a ruse to grab the seven scientists from first class. If we’d targeted Benton’s lab while Mackenzie’s cries of conspiracy were the lead story across the States, we’d have bolstered his credibility and collusion allegations.”
    “ You agreed to wait,” Coulson snapped back. “I called bullshit.”
    Eric shrugged. “It’s done. No sense in reopening that discussion. How long before Benton can produce another new energy generator?”
    “A couple of weeks,” Coulson offered readily enough, although from his scowl it was obvious he didn’t appreciate the change in subject.
    “That soon?” Eric dipped his head in surprise. Maybe they wouldn’t have to adjust their time line after all. “It will be ready—tested and refined—by phase two?”
    “Absolutely.” Coulson smiled, cold detachment in his gaze. “Benton has impetus to produce rapidly and well.”
    “Is the design as easy to weaponize as reported?” Link asked.
    Which was the trillion-dollar question. For phase two to succeed, they needed the device fully operational and capable of specific energy discharges.
    “Indeed.” Coulson offered an honest-to-god sincere smile. “With a bit of rewiring and a component swap”—he spread his hands—“boom. Through the sonic distribution we’ll be able to clear millions of acres with negligible effect to soil, water, and vegetation.”
    Silence ringed the table.
    An equally stunned silence had struck the room the previous year when Link had filled them in on Leonard Embray’s pet project, along with the potential alternative use for the device.
    Benton and Embray’s original intention for the prototype would have proved catastrophic for the entire world. With cheap renewable energy available to everyone— absolutely everyone —the human population would explode. Famine and disease would vanish, at least at first. Wars over oil or other natural resources would disappear. There would be far more people being born into the world than leaving it.
    Benton and Embray, the ideological fools, hadn’t looked past the initial