Particle Z (Book 1) Read Online Free PDF Page A

center of the riots. I want to know why they’re here.”
    “I’ll Google the name and see what I find; at least try to get a company profile,” Ashley volunteered, immediately starting a search.
    “Looks like there is an unmarked black helicopter headed our way from the cruise ship, Mike. Reid caught a glimpse of a helicopter lifting off the cruise ship when the news helicopter restarted its live stream again a few minutes ago,” Eric said, bringing Mike up to speed.
    “Back up?” Mike asked
    “The live stream went dark for a few minutes on your way over. Odd, don’t you think?” Reid said in a questioning tone. 
    “Mike, Marlee doesn’t seem to be on the upper deck anymore. The news helicopter’s cameraman was panning the camera back and forth searching for her. Maybe she went down to a lower deck,” Eric said, looking for something positive in this new development.
    Mike sat down on one of the rickety chairs and cupped his head in his hands. He didn’t know what a helicopter would be doing at the ship, and the lost news feed seemed a bit too convenient. Maybe Marlee had gone in search of a safer location like Eric suggested. Mike had to keep positive because the alternative wasn’t something he wanted to consider.
    “Mike, if we’re successful in getting Marlee back ourselves, we need to consider if she’s been exposed to something harmful,” Eric pointed out.
    Mike rocked back on his chair as he tried to process Eric’s concern. He had considered this possibility, but his need to have Marlee back in his arms had overridden his common sense. Eric was right; saving Marlee could expose everyone on his team to whatever made all those people go crazy. Mike sighed sadly as he considered the possibility that he would never see Marlee again.
    “You’re right, of course. She may be sick and I’ll have to take precautions if I can get her off that ship. You can all bug out. I don’t know how long this will take,” Mike told them. His team stared at Mike as the fluorescent light flickered overhead. No one made a move for the door.
    “We stay with you, Mike,” Eric answered for the group.
    “I’m the only one with a family, and my husband and son are in Seattle visiting my mother-in-law. I’ve got nowhere better to be,” Ashley added.
    Reid stood up. “I wouldn’t miss this for the world, boss. We’d be a shitty team if we didn’t help you.”
    The muffled sound of a helicopter filtered through the walls of the room. Eric jumped up and looked out the window. “Hey guys, does that helicopter look familiar to you?”
    “Yes, that’s the one from the live stream!” Ashley confirmed.
    “Hey, look at this!” Reid exclaimed as he glanced at the security cameras. “What the hell are they doing?”
    The others rushed over to see what had Reid so worked up. A group of people from Terra Corp could be seen escorting a team of people wearing full hazmat suits past the maintenance bay they were concealed in. They had missed the group enter the garage as they’d been so engrossed in Mike’s personal crisis and the approach of the helicopter.
    “Looks like they’re headed toward the stairs to the top deck,” Reid surmised.
    With the sound of the helicopter now directly above, it became apparent that the mercenaries were getting ready to unload whatever the helicopter had retrieved from the ship. By the look of the precautions, something serious had happened to the passengers aboard the Sunset Rose .
    Mike glanced at the TV for a moment. “Look at that, they’re towing the cruise ship now,” he said, startled. “None of this makes any sense. First people go crazy, then we’ve got mercenaries in hazmat suits getting something from a helicopter that had to land out of the public eye, and now they’re towing the cruise ship back into port?”
    “I think the government is under heavy pressure from the families who have people on the ship. They are clamoring for news about their family,” Eric