The arsenal, p.1
The Arsenal, page 1
THE ARSENAL
A DYLAN KANE THRILLER
J. ROBERT KENNEDY
About the Dylan Kane Thrillers
"Dylan Kane leaves James Bond in his dust!"
Though this book is part of the Dylan Kane Thrillers series, it is written as a standalone novel and can be enjoyed without reading the other installments.
What readers are saying about the Dylan Kane Thrillers Series:
“The action sequences are particularly well-written and exciting, without being overblown.”
“I love how the author explains what's needed but doesn't just ramble on in narrative.”
“Don’t mess with Kane, he takes no prisoners, especially when you target his friends.”
“Fast paced international spy thriller with good old American values among its main characters. I'd like to think we really do have agents like Kane.”
BOOKS BY J. ROBERT KENNEDY
Please click here for the intended reading order.
* Also available in audio
The Templar Detective Thrillers
The Templar Detective
The Templar Detective and the Parisian Adulteress
The Templar Detective and the Sergeant's Secret
The Templar Detective and the Unholy Exorcist
The Templar Detective and the Code Breaker
The Templar Detective and the Black Scourge
The Templar Detective and the Lost Children
The Templar Detective and the Satanic Whisper
The Just Jack Thrillers
You Don't Know Jack
The James Acton Thrillers
The Protocol *
Brass Monkey *
Broken Dove
The Templar’s Relic
Flags of Sin
The Arab Fall
The Circle of Eight
The Venice Code
Pompeii’s Ghosts
Amazon Burning
The Riddle
Blood Relics
Sins of the Titanic
Saint Peter’s Soldiers
The Thirteenth Legion
Raging Sun
Wages of Sin
Wrath of the Gods
The Templar’s Revenge
The Nazi’s Engineer
Atlantis Lost
The Cylon Curse
The Viking Deception
Keepers of the Lost Ark
The Tomb of Genghis Khan
The Manila Deception
The Fourth Bible
Embassy of the Empire
Armageddon
No Good Deed
The Last Soviet
Lake of Bones
Fatal Reunion
The Resurrection Tablet
The Antarctica Incident
The Ghosts of Paris
No More Secrets
The Dylan Kane Thrillers
Rogue Operator *
Containment Failure *
Cold Warriors *
Death to America
Black Widow
The Agenda
Retribution
State Sanctioned
Extraordinary Rendition
Red Eagle
The Messenger
The Defector
The Mole
The Arsenal
The Delta Force Unleashed Thrillers
Payback
Infidels
The Lazarus Moment
Kill Chain
Forgotten
The Cuban Incident
Rampage
Inside the Wire
Charlie Foxtrot
The Detective Shakespeare Mysteries
Depraved Difference
Tick Tock
The Redeemer
The Kriminalinspektor Wolfgang Vogel Mysteries
The Colonel’s Wife
Sins of the Child
Zander Varga, Vampire Detective Series
The Turned
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Table of Contents
The Novel
Preface
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
Chapter 46
Chapter 47
Chapter 48
Chapter 49
Chapter 50
Chapter 51
Chapter 52
Chapter 53
Chapter 54
Chapter 55
Chapter 56
Chapter 57
Chapter 58
Chapter 59
Chapter 60
Chapter 61
Chapter 62
Chapter 63
Chapter 64
Chapter 65
Chapter 66
Chapter 67
Chapter 68
Chapter 69
Chapter 70
Chapter 71
Chapter 72
Chapter 73
Chapter 74
Chapter 75
Chapter 76
Chapter 77
Chapter 78
Chapter 79
Chapter 80
Chapter 81
Acknowledgments
Don't Miss Out!
Thank You!
About the Author
Also by the Author
For Tymofiy Mykolayovych Shadura, a Ukrainian prisoner of war murdered in cold blood by Russian invaders. May you rest in peace, and those responsible be brought to justice, in this life and the next.
“…in terms of production capacity, China, in many aspects, especially if we talk about ground-forces weapons, might be stronger than Russia and the whole of NATO combined.”
Vasily Kashin Director of the Center for Comprehensive European and International Studies at Moscow’s Higher School of Economics
“With respect to sanctions and aid to Russia, we have made clear that providing material support to Russia or assistance with any type of systemic sanctions evasion would be a very serious concern to us.”
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen
PREFACE
After the Russian invasion of Ukraine, most of the democratic world reacted by imposing severe sanctions on this authoritarian state in an effort to starve it of the funding necessary to conduct the war.
They failed.
Partially.
It is estimated Russia, at the time of this writing, is losing over $175 million per day in fossil fuel exports, however far too many rogue states continue to purchase Russian oil and gas.
Rogue states like China.
NATO member Turkey.
And India.
India, in particular, has been eager to sop up blood oil, with less than 2% of their imports from Russia before the war, now taking in almost 1.6 million barrels per day, each barrel meaning more bullets, more guns, and more bombs, available to kill innocent civilians.
There is no hope for China, however, eventually, one would hope democracies like India and Turkey will see the error of their ways and boycott Russian oil and natural gas as well. These imports, especially India’s, where there was no dependence on Russian oil before, are purely greed motivated, and can be stopped by rechecking one’s moral compass.
And when that day comes, Russia will truly be brought to its knees.
Then the question becomes, what will the Russian Bear do to protect itself?
K
1 |
Russia Five Days From Now
CIA Operations Officer Sherrie White cocked an ear toward the heavy gunfire to her left. She recognized the distinctive rattle of AK-74 assault rifles and the crisp report of a Makarov pistol over the clapping of helicopter rotors. The Russians had obviously caught up to her colleague, and she said a silent prayer for him.
There was no way he could survive.
Not against those odds.
Her partner in this, her friend, and her country, were losing the best of what America had to offer the world. He was the quintessential hero and he was dying, sacrificing himself to give her a chance to survive.
And the guilt that knowledge filled her with was overwhelming.
She had to survive, she had to escape, she had to live on so that the gift of life he had given her at the expense of his own wasn’t wasted.
Then the gunfire stopped.
The chopper continued to pound at the air and she closed her eyes, saying goodbye to her fallen friend.
K
2 |
Minsk, Belarus Five Days Earlier
CIA Operations Officer Dylan Kane peered around the corner and spotted his target standing one block away. Ansary Firouz leaned on the hood of his idling car, puffing on what was likely a Cuban cigar. The vermin was an Iranian businessman, an arms broker who not only sold weapons to the highest bidder, but also served as an intermediary between Iran and other foreign powers. He had been on the Agency’s watch list for years. Kane had wanted to take him out since the first time he had heard of him, but had been overruled. Because the man was so overconfident, so arrogant, he went to little effort to hide his activities, and Langley felt that could be advantageous at some point.
And perhaps they had been right.
Rumors were flying that Beijing might provide weaponry to Russia, and if they did, it could change the tide of the war and the balance of power. In fact, it could change the entire future of Western Europe. If Russia won in Ukraine, it was only a matter of time before it pushed into additional bordering territories like Moldova, Belarus, Georgia, and other former Soviet republics, and the West would stand by as a rearmed, resupplied Russia would be too expensive to fight.
His question had always been, where was Russia getting the money? As the sanctions continued to bite, their revenues were dropping, though not by as much as the West had hoped, because countries like India and China and others were happy to buy their oil at a discount, despite the innocent blood it represented. Every barrel of oil that a country like India or China bought from the Russians meant the authoritarian regime in Moscow could buy more bullets, more guns, more bombs, to kill the innocent. It disgusted him, and he personally felt it was time for sanctions to be levied against any country that continued to buy Russian resources.
But none of that mattered right now. Right now, he had been assigned to figure out just what the hell Firouz was doing. He had been spotted in Beijing two days ago then in Baghdad yesterday, entering the House of Leadership where the Iranian Ayatollah resided. And today he was in Minsk, the capital of Belarus, Moscow’s puppets in their Ukraine offensive. China was well aware that if they did directly sell weapons to Russia, the West might finally grow a backbone and bring in crippling sanctions, so they would likely use an intermediary. Sell the weapons to Iran then Iran sells them to Moscow. But if he could prove the connection before the deal was made, Washington would be able to warn off Beijing.
An SUV pulled up and Firouz pushed off the hood, stubbing out his cigar on the windshield.
Kane activated his comms. “Control, Wild One. We’ve got activity, over.”
His best friend’s voice replied in his earpiece. “Copy that, Wild One. We’re trying to get an angle on the new arrival. We’re repositioning the drone now. Can you get audio?”
“Stand by.” Kane reached into his pocket and retrieved a collapsible mic. He fanned out the cone as he activated it, the device automatically pairing with his phone. He aimed it toward the two men as he ducked back behind the corner, staring at the screen, a small red dot indicating where the device was centered.
All he heard was static.
He adjusted slightly as the two men shook hands, and their pleasantries came through loud and clear.
“The new arrival is Dimitri Peskov. He’s the Russian president’s chief of staff,” reported CIA Analyst Supervisor Chris Leroux.
Kane whistled. “In other words, he’s the type of person who shouldn’t be out alone in this part of town, at this time of night, in this country.”
“Agreed.”
“Stand by,” said Kane as the business side of the conversation began.
“I assume you were successful?”
Firouz nodded. “Extremely. They’ve agreed to supply everything that you’ve requested. It’ll be hidden through their regular weapons sales to various countries including Iran, and then redirected to you. The payments will follow the same route. There’ll be no direct communication or paper trail between Moscow and Beijing.”
“Excellent. And the personal message from the president?”
“Delivered, however, I didn’t receive a response before I left.”
“So you have nothing for me on that?”
“Only that my contact in Beijing said your president could expect a personal response in the next forty-eight hours, and that was yesterday, so I suspect you’ll be hearing something tomorrow.”
“Very well.”
Firouz stepped closer. “Just what was this personal message?”
“That’s none of your concern.”
“It is if it involves money. I deserve my commission.”
“You’re being paid very handsomely. Now’s not the time to get greedy.”
Firouz chuckled. “Greed is expecting more than what was promised. I merely expect what I agreed to and nothing more. Ten percent for the first six months. If you have some side deal going, all I want is the same.”
Peskov regarded the man. “Ten percent of the deal that’s currently being negotiated will be enough money to buy your damn country. What could you possibly need more money for?”
“It’s not about the money. It’s the principle. If I can’t trust you, then I can’t work with you. And I have a feeling you’re going to need my help to make sure the Chinese don’t take advantage of you.”
Peskov grunted. “Trust me, if they do accept the president’s offer, the Chinese won’t be a problem.”
“So then, there is a deal?”
“You ask too many questions. You know what the Americans say about curiosity.”
Firouz stared. “What?”
“It killed the cat.” Peskov raised a finger over his right shoulder. A moment later a shot rang out and Firouz collapsed.
Kane pressed against the wall, his eyes immediately surveying the rooftops, searching for the sniper. “Control, any idea where that shot came from? I’m a sitting duck out here.”
“Stand by, Wild One. We’re reviewing the footage.”
Kane folded up the directional microphone, shoving it back in his pocket as he slowly retreated, his back pressed against the building as cover. He reached a doorway and stepped into it, hopefully reducing any angle a sniper might have on him. “Come on, guys. What’s the story?”
“Wild One, we’ve reviewed the footage. He was hit from behind. That sniper should have no angle on you, but that assumes there’s only one.”
“What’s Peskov doing?”
“Looks like he’s searching the body and taking Firouz’s wallet and other personal items, probably to make it harder to identify him. Okay, he’s returning to his SUV. He’s heading in your direction.” Leroux cursed. “He’s turning left. He’s going to be crossing right in front of you.”
Kane dropped, yanking his jacket up over his head and pulling it over his face as he curled into a ball, huddling in the corner of the door frame, attempting to appear homeless. The SUV passed, the engine fading into the night, and his heart settled.
Slightly.
“You’re clear,” reported Leroux.
“Am I? What about that sniper?”
“We just spotted another vehicle leaving about half a klick away. We’re tracing back where its occupant came from, but he’d be in the right position for the shot that was taken. Stand by.”
Kane maintained his homeless pretense, playing out the scenario for himself. If he were Peskov, what size team would he bring? It would be Russian, it would be government. A deal like this couldn’t risk outside contractors, no matter how much in bed they were with the regime. Probably Spetsnaz. They typically worked in teams of at least four. The fact that Peskov had come alone without a driver or bodyguard meant he didn’t even trust his security team to be exposed to what could be going on.
If it were a CIA op, he would position his team to cover him from all angles, which on this road, bordered on either side by four or five-story buildings, meant two snipers positioned north and south to cover the entire area. Two more would be on the ground so they could rush in should something go wrong that required a more hands-on response. He couldn’t see them with less than four, but more risked containment.
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