The Dreadful Renegade: A Thrilling Espionage Novel (Techno thriller, Mystery & Suspense) (28 page)

First and foremost I would like to thank you for reading this book. I hope you enjoyed it despite the scientific jargon that I really tried to minimize.

I dearly appreciate your comments, so please send them to:

[email protected]

You may want to read my previous book "
The Dreadful Alchemist
" that was published in May, 2015 on Amazon, and my next book "
The Dreadful Patriot
" due in April, 2016.

This book would not have been possible without the help of Dr. Wikipedia and Professor Google and Magister Google Earth. I also found a wealth of information in scientific articles and books. However, any misinterpretation of the technical and geographical information from those sources is my own responsibility.

It is unnecessary to declare that this book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to real events or people is not to be understood as anything but a coincidence. I apologize in advance in case any person feels offended by the plot.

Finally, I am grateful to Glenda Sacks Jaffe for editing this book and to my family and friends who read the manuscript and enabled me to improve the text thanks to their astute comments. 

You may also want to read the Prologue of my next book,
The Dreadful Patriot
, due in April, 2016, on Amazon.

Charles Z. David

Prologue

Boathouse on Lake Srinagar, Kashmir, India

The slim girl was swimming as fast as she could in an attempt to outpace the muscular man chasing her. She was trying to get to the boathouse that was just 20 meters ahead. He was rapidly closing the distance between them with long powerful strokes. She squealed with joy and excitement as she reached the wooden stairs leading from the tranquil, clear water to the deck of the boathouse and mounted the first step. Less than a second later he also mounted the same step and managed to grab her ankle before she could get to the third step. She fell into his arms and in Hebrew told him that she loved him although he swam like a whale while she could swim like a dolphin. They were too engrossed in each other to notice the two gunmen that were just stepping out of the door that led to the small kitchen of the boathouse. One of the gunmen pointed his AK47 at them and while shouting something in Urdu motioned them to get into the kitchen. The other gunman removed a long curved knife from the folds of his robe and wielded it in an arc that would have severed the girl's head had she not moved away fast enough. The muscular man spoke English and said that they had some money that they would gladly give them if they left them alone. The gunman with the knife pulled the man by his hair and pushed him into a flimsy rattan kitchen chair, pulled four strong nylon cable ties and secured his feet to the legs of the chair and his arms to the armrests. The girl, who at a closer look appeared to be in her mid-twenties got the same treatment, with some unnecessary pawing by the gunman. Her man who was in his late-twenties just grunted and swore under his breath but stopped when the gunman whipped him with the butt of his AK47.

The first gunman looked at the handiwork of his mate and smiled and said in British accented English that they were not after small change when a real prize awaited them. He asked the young man what his name was and when he refused to answer he just smiled again, showing a set of perfect teeth that obviously were not his own, and waved a blue covered Israeli passport and simply read out the name – Zohar (Zorik) Shemesh. He then opened the second passport that belonged to the girl and pronounced her name – Inbal Sabatani. He said that if they behaved well and followed his orders no harm would become them but if they caused problems then he would inflict upon them so much pain that they wished they had not been born.

Zorik looked at Inbal and in English so that their captors could understand that he meant no mischief, told her not to keep quiet and cooperate. They both hoped that the gunmen caught them in a random act against Israelis and were not aware of the fact that Inbal was the granddaughter of the Israeli Prime Minister from his first marriage and that her surname was that of her father who was married to the PM's daughter.