SANCTION: A Thriller Read Online Free PDF

The President took it from her and nodded. He took a seat on a gold striped couch and began to read it.
    “Thank you Yvonne, but I would scrap this section here,” he said as he washed over a paragraph with his finger.
    “And here, I want to add that while we are deeply concerned for the well-being of these students and we will be strongly encouraging neighboring governments to act in favor of finding the perpetrators of this heinous crime, we are not going to retaliate with force whether direct or indirect etcetera, etcetera.” With that the President smiled and handed her back the copy. The aide left the room in a hurry, anxious to get the revisions finished and approved before her boss addressed the Nation in less than an hour.
    “With all due respect, Mr. President…,” Bailey started as he unbuttoned the top of his suit jacket and sat on the sofa, opposite the Commander in Chief.
    “I always find Edmond, that whenever someone begins a sentence with, ‘with all due respect’ they mean to prepare me for a disrespectful comment.” Vanderbilt stood, walked back to his desk and picked up the telephone receiver. He turned to wait for Bailey’s reply.
    Bailey was stunned. The President had made a snap decision that would probably cost the lives of nearly two dozen people. He knew this President, there was no changing his mind. Anything else he said would be a waste of breath.
    “Never mind, Mr. President, if you’ll excuse me, I have to get back to my office,” he said through a tight throat. The President gave him his best campaign winning smile and placed the receiver to his ear.
    As Edmond Bailey exited the West Wing in front of the south lawn, his heart sank low in his chest. He pictured the American college students at the mercy of the terrorists. He could see their faces, hear their screams. Their young eyes cried out to him. It made him sick.
    He looked down at a list of the captured students in his hand as he walked to his parked government sedan. He still drove himself, though the secret service insisted that he be accompanied by a detail and that he drove one of their approved vehicles.
    Next to the names of the hostages was a larger list of their known next of kin.
    All but one of the names were useless to him. With a red pen in hand Bailey traced circles around the name that stood out in the bunch. He was certain that he’d met him before. Reaching into his pocket he pulled out his cell phone and dialed the number to his secretary.
    “Hi Deidra, I need you to do me a favor,” Bailey said after three rings. Deidra McCormick had worked for the National Security Advisor long before that had become his title.
    “Yes sir I’m just making dinner for the family,” Deidra said with a giggle.
    “You mean your cat? You need to get out Deidra, a cat is a sorry substitute for a family. I need you to locate an address for DIA agent Brad Ward. I will also need a plane ticket to the closest airport to him. Deidra, I need it yesterday please.”
    “Yes sir, was that Ward sir?”
    “Yeah, do you know him?” Bailey asked.
    “No just making sure I had it right.”
    Bailey was turning onto his street by the time his Blackberry began to chime. He glanced down at the illuminated display; it was Deidra.
    “Sir, I have the address of Brad Ward for you but you won’t be needing a plane ticket. He lives in Maryland about an hour outside of D.C. In a town called Eldersburg. Should I put you on a flight out of Andrews Air Force Base anyway? I checked, there’s a helicopter still available tonight.”
    “That won’t be necessary.” Bailey wrote down the address and thanked his secretary.

Quneitra, Syria
    Everywhere Saleem’s eyes landed, he saw the remnants of havoc and devastation. The old city was gone, replaced by dilapidated buildings and rusted structural beams that reached out of mangled wreckage to point in every direction. Black streaks marred cinderblock and stone structures, where rockets and tank