Meltdown: Covert World, #2

By Thom Tate

A relaxing holiday with his family on the beaches of Bali was just what Dimitri Evanko was looking forward to. Being thrown into the terroristic world of the Jemaah Islamiyah was the furthest from his mind.
After awakening from a drug induced torpidity, Dimitri, nuclear physicist from Ukraine, finds himself face-to-face with Indra Gunardi, the man in charge of the infamous Islamic terrorist group in Southeast Asia. With his family held captive and the threat of death to them, Dimitri saw no way out but to cooperate and build the dirty bombs they demanded.
Nearly three months after Dimitri's reported disappearance, special agent Blake MacKay has been called in to investigate after the lost physicist turned up in Jakarta. With the help of Detachment 88, the Indonesian counter-terrorism group, Blake discovers the conation of Gunardi and his vile organization.
When a plan to rescue Evanko's family backfires, Gunardi fast forwards his destructive plan of terror. In the shadows of an impending disaster, Blake finds himself and Dimitri in a race against time with the lives of thousands on the line.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Thom Tate
• Release date: Aug 25, 2012
• ISBN: 9781476322186

Thom Tate

I am an emerging writer in the Spy Thriller space. All my stories revolve around my main character, Blake MacKay. He has been described by reviewers as a cross between James Bond and Jason Bourne. Young, intelligent, and very deadly. Blake works for the Office of Clandestine Affairs at the CIA. My series, "Covert World" is currently made up of five ebook novellas and one full-length novel that can be purchased as a paperback or downloaded as an ebook. I am currently working on my second novel, Deep Rising and hope to have it finished this year (2023) If you like Vince Flynn, Brad Thor, and the like, then I think you'll enjoy these. The books, in order, are; "CzechMate", "Meltdown", "The 4th Strike", "Intercept" and "Red Storm" (avail. now on Amazon). "Intercept" and "Red Storm" are my personal favorites. My full novel called is "Spear Garden", and gives you a full experience into the world of clandestine operations. I am currently an independent author and do my own marketing by using Facebook, Twitter, and independent author sites. Any help that I can get is sincerely appreciated. If you've read any of my books and you enjoyed them, please write a review on the site that you've purchased them from. This helps me in more ways than you can imagine. Look for "Deep Rising", coming late 2023 Thank you for your support.

Book preview

MELTDOWN

By

Thom Tate

Published by Thom Tate on Smashwords. Copyright 2012 Thom Tate. Edited by Michael McIrvin.

Follow Blake on his missions on Twitter @bmackay40

Chapter 1

Bali, Indonesia

December 17th

16:20 Local time (09:20 GMT)

Come on children, it’s time to go, Anna Evanko called to her two children.

Vicktor, 11, and Natasha, 9, playfully splashed their way up to the beach. Dimitri, her husband, relaxed in his lounge chair, soaking up the final few minutes of sun before they headed back to the hotel to prepare for an elegant dinner at a fine establishment on the shore that had been recommended to them. They were staying at the Four Seasons Bali Resort in Jimbaran, which is on the north end of the south section of Bali, but feeling adventurous, they decided on a more secluded beach on the far south end of the island. The beach was backed by high cliffs that added to their seclusion.

Dimitri Evanko was a nuclear physicist at the South Ukraine Nuclear Plant, 350 kilometers south of Kiev. Dimitri’s father had been a nuclear physicist at the Chernobyl nuclear plant in 1986 when the disaster struck. He survived the initial catastrophe but eventually succumbed to the radiation a few months following. Dimitri, now 38, was only 12 but vowed to follow in his father’s footsteps. He had made it his life’s mission to ensure that something like the Chernobyl disaster would never happen again.

Vicktor had stored a piece of seaweed that he’d gathered while in the water in the side pocket of his bathing suit for just this moment. He chased his sister holding it toward her as if it were something venomous. Natasha screamed and ran for the car as Anna and Dimitri gathered up their things. After the long walk from the beach to their car, Anna helped Dimitri place the chairs, cooler, and towels into the trunk of the car. They were too busy to notice the white van slowly approaching from the rear.

Dimitri looked up just as the van halted directly behind the car with its side door already open, facing the rear of the car. Four masked men spilled out and rushed Dimitri and Anna while two others chased down the children. Black hoods were pulled over Dimitri and Anna’s heads and then they were injected with 3cc’s of Versed, which rendered them unconscious almost immediately. The children proved to be more difficult.

Natasha! Run! screamed Vicktor when he saw the men take his parents, then saw the other men headed toward him and his sister.

Natasha circled the car, keeping it between her and her would-be captor. One of the men who had dumped Anna’s limp body into the van snuck up from the other direction. Natasha felt the grip of strong hands from behind her. Her anxiety rose as light was replaced with darkness from the hood slipped over her head. A small prick and then her consciousness faded.

Another man in the van threw out a shotgun and pointed toward Vicktor. Go! He’s running back down to the beach!

The assailant snatched the weapon in mid-flight and ran after Vicktor. By the time he got near, Vicktor was on his way down the trail to the beach. The man drew up the shotgun and pulled the trigger.

Vicktor was breathing heavily, more out of fear than exhaustion, when he heard the blast. An instant later he felt the impact of two heavy bean bags slamming into the middle of his back. The force sent him tumbling forward to the ground.

Stop it! No!

Vicktor flailed his arms, hopelessly trying to stop his attacker. Get away from me!

The man in the black mask shot him in the neck with the sedative. When Vicktor was out, his assailant picked him up over his shoulder like a large duffle and carried him to the van.

#

Dimitri awoke to a fog. A white haze seemed to permeate his vision as he started to overcome the effects of the drugs he’d been given. Only when he realized that his hands were bound behind his back did he snap back to the here and now. He looked up at a man sitting behind an antique white and gilded desk. His muscles flinched as he shouted, Where am I, and who the hell are you? Where is my family?

Calm down, Mr. Evanko. Your family is safe, at least currently. But whether they stay that way is entirely up to you. They are in a location not far from here, sleeping peacefully, if the drugs haven’t worn off already.

Dimitri scanned the room, which was opulently decorated and had marble floors and a high ceiling. Dark stained bamboo accentuated the roofline and its architecture. Leather chairs sat upon beautiful Oriental rugs; and plants were situated about the room in large decorative pots.

"I must apologize. My name is Indra Gunardi. You