Declaration of Surrender

By Jim Burkett

In 1945, the U.S. Congress created a document protecting its own interest against Germany or Japan, leaving its citizens to fend for themselves. The document is lost for 65 years until now when its location is believed found.

As the document will give sole ownership of all US properties to whomever finds it, it is a race for DHS to retrieve it first before a foreign country reigns over the US.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Inknbeans Press
• Release date: Jun 10, 2010
• ISBN: 9781452357157

Jim Burkett

Jim Burkett was born in a small coal mining town of West Virginia while his father was serving in Korea. Once his father returned, the family was transferred to Hawaii were they spent the next five years stationed at Hickum Air Force Base. While stationed in Hawaii, Jim spent as much time touring the submarines while they were in port as he was allowed.Their next tour took them to MacDill Air Force Base in Florida. For six years, he spent his weekends going with his father to the different base facilities, often allowed permission to spend time with the airmen and officers listening to and watching as they went about their assignments, working on the planes and transports mechanics. At the age of 13, he lost his father who by this time was serving overseas once again.Years later, while pursuing a Computer Science degree, he met his future wife Cathy and they were married a year and a half later. Still married after 35 years, they have two sons and have been blessed with two grandchildren.In addition to his current Senior Systems Analyst position, he also serves as a senior staff photographer for a local magazine in the Tampa Bay area. Previously, he wrote a column for the SouthWinds Sailing magazine and worked on several projects including spending a week photographing the Canadian Olympic Team prior to the Beijing Olympics and the “Earthrace” boat which would later set a world speed record circumnavigating the globe. In 2006, he received the “Volunteer of the Year” award for his work with the Pediatric Cancer Foundation.Through his photography and writing, he feels privileged to have met and spent time with such men as General Tommy Franks, George Steinbrenner, Pete Bethune and Steve Yerrid to name only a few. One of his closest friends is a retired Secret Service agent who once served on Presidential detail under six presidents.Holding close to his military roots, he has continued to study military history and high-tech science and blends these into his first book Declaration of Surrender. Holding close to his two grandchildren, he has also developed a series of picture books for pre-readers and early readers called the Read With Me, Pops series.

Book preview

Declaration of Surrender

Believing either Germany or Japan are about to win the war against the United States in early 1945, several members of Congress conspire to protect their own wealth by secretly creating a document that would give the rights of ownership of all U.S. properties and land over to the leading country before the end of the war is actually declared.

Signed by the President, the document is passed along underground to the Germans but is eventually confiscated back by U.S. Treasury agents along with account ledgers worth millions of dollars sitting in hidden Swiss bank accounts. Days later the agents are found murdered and the documents gone.

DHS agent Nick West is thrust into the world of government assassins and sought after for treason by his own country when he discovers the location of the missing sixty-five year old document but refuses to disclose its whereabouts in order to protect his own men.

When a leading government systems analyst is found tortured and beaten to death and Nick’s wife is taken hostage, he must form an alliance with an injured enemy Russian assassin in order to find and protect the document from ‘what’s coming’ before time runs out for them and his country.

Declaration of Surrender is an edge of your seat thriller from beginning to end.

This book is dedicated to the brave men and women of the Department of Homeland Security and the United States Armed Forces, prepared to give the ultimate sacrifice in defending our great country against all threats in the fight against terrorism worldwide.

Declaration of Surrender

Jim Burkett

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, organizations, businesses or incidents portrayed in this novel are the product of the author’s imagination, used fictitiously or with permission given to the author for use.

All Rights Reserved

Copyright © Jim Burkett

Published by Inknbeans Press

Cover Photo and Design by Dan Garcia

2010

Smashwords Edition

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person with whom you share it. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then you should return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

To my wife Cathy, who makes my life more wonderful and full of purpose every day. Her love and support are immeasurable.

To my sons Brien and Michael - no father could be more proud of the men you have become.

And last to Eric, a good friend and the inspiration behind my story.

We need the courage to start and continue what we should do, and the courage to stop what we shouldn’t do.

- Richard L. Evans

Chapter 1

Nick West down shifted the 911 into third gear, eased off the clutch and accelerated through a hard right turn. In the distance the sun was setting behind a row of thunderclouds, flashes of lightning illuminating the hillside. After the events of that morning, he had been ordered to vacate the Department of Homeland Security premises, cool off, but above all else keep a low profile until the facts of the assault could be reviewed. The road ahead straightened and he red lined the Porsche through its gears.

There had been a last minute override made on his already approved transfer, which would now send him to a different location other than where he had requested with no explanation as to why. Having been guaranteed placement to wherever he wanted to go after this assignment was up, he had put in for Atlanta to be with his wife. He had heard that the Agency had no qualms about keeping families apart if the job called for it, but his current assignment was almost over and he had anticipated a smooth exit.

Over the last few years, he had uprooted Laura and her veterinary practice twice before, he didn’t want to do it again. They had been apart for six months and with what little time he could get away, he always drove the five or six hours it took to get to her. As he drove now, he was thinking of that morning and the possibility of submitting his resignation. He loved his job but nothing was more important to him than family.

Having just taken his first sip of coffee after sitting down to begin personnel reviews, he was called into his boss’s office and given the news he was to report to Washington in one week. The new transfer would mean he would be even further away from her and the only way to get to her now would be to fly.

After a lengthy dispute, the conversation escalated into a shouting match. Finally, he was told, You put in for a transfer, you got it, now get the hell out! Paul Brewster and Nick had always had a good relationship, but for now he just wanted out of the old man’s sight.

By the time he made it back to his office, his anger had subsided some and his only thoughts were of how to break the news. The IA (Internal Affairs) agent was sitting in his desk chair as he entered. Jack Peterson was hated by almost everyone in the agency, not for his position but rather his arrogance. Once he decided he didn’t like you, he was relentless in either getting that person reassigned, fired or his favorite, beating down an agent with a constant assortment of unnecessary paperwork or depositions until they quit entirely. As a result, the department had suffered a six percent turnover rate in the past year.

Nick stopped short of his desk, standing with his arms folded, letting Peterson enjoy the moment. You’re in my chair, mind getting up?

Not yours for long, I hear, heading to DC where the big boys shit. I was just checking to see if I liked yours better than mine. When Peterson didn’t get the reaction he was hoping for, he continued on.

I know you wanted to go elsewhere, be with your wife and all, almost got it too, but I thought we needed you more in DC. You know, with your brains and your skills, well, let’s just say they‘re very hard to come by, Nick. I really hated making those phone calls to get the necessary people involved to change your transfer, but I felt it was more important to have you where it would do the most good for everyone in the department.

Nick knew Peterson was connected or had the ‘juice’, as it was called in the department, but not enough to pull strings that would get an agent reassigned to wherever ‘he’ wanted them to go. Messing with him would only make the current situation worse.

Tell you what. If you like the chair, take it, take whatever you like, I’ll even sign all the release forms for you.

Does that include the picture of this little honey? Nick’s eyes followed Peterson’s finger and saw he was pointing at Laura. When Nick took a step toward the desk, Peterson mistook his intent, jumped to his feet, catching one foot under the chair rollers. At the same time, he curled a fist and threw all of his weight into a punch hoping to catch Nick as square as possible. Off balance, he missed but the momentum carried him forward and down. Not able to bring his hands up in time, he slammed face first into the edge of the desk.

As if in slow motion, Nick saw the wood splinter on impact as it crushed the bone right above Jack’s upper lip. The front row of teeth cracked at their roots and blood shot out, covering his desk. Several splatters caught across Nick’s palm and fingers as he tried to reach out and grab Jack before he went all the way down.

Nick ran around to the back yelling for someone to get a doctor. The injuries were worse than he first thought. Grabbing the back of Peterson’s head, he turned it slowly sideways, allowing the blood to pool onto the carpet so he would not choke as it continued to flow. He also worried about a possible neck injury. As he reached across to grab his gym bag for a towel, he also noted the right nasal cavity had been ripped open, exposing the cartilage.

Nick’s boss appeared in the doorway, saw Peterson down and ran over to assist. What the hell happened here, Nick? For a moment Brewster wasn’t sure he really wanted to help, seeing who was laid out on the floor.

He threw a punch at me and missed, fell against the desk on his way down.

Bull thit! They both looked down as Jack was becoming semi-conscious. I was trying to con-da-chu-ate the thon-of-a-bitch and all of the thudden out of nowhere, he slams me into the dethsk! With his front teeth missing, Jack was unable to pronounce his words properly. Nick couldn’t believe what he was hearing, realizing he had no proof to dispute what was being said.

You need to leave so we can get this straightened out. Did anyone else see this happen? Nick shook his head. By this time the medical staff had arrived and Brewster pulled him aside.

Look, I believe what you’re saying, but of all the people for you tangle with, this is the last guy you or we need crawling around in our business. They don’t have a full understanding of what we do here. Brewster was trying to gather his thoughts, then said, I’ll tell them I had to send you on special assignment unexpectedly, but you need to go now before the rest of IA shows up. Stay out of town for a couple of days or a week if you need. I’ll delay the transfer. If you need anything, call Baker, he’ll get through to me. Go!

Just then Brewster had a second thought. No wait, follow me. Nick picked up his gym bag and trailed him back to his office. Reaching into a top drawer, Brewster pulled out a small white tab and handed it to Nick. He already knew what it was, but waited for an explanation from Brewster.

That’s a CS (continuous scan) SIM card. Take out your phone and replace your SIM with this one when you get a chance. Every 5 seconds the number will change on your phone, but it’s synched to our database so we always know what the number is, always. Once that number is locked and dialed, you have to answer by the second ring, preferably right after the first one before it rings a second time. Two seconds after the second ring, the phone will go dead and we have to clear and recycle a new number which takes about seven seconds. That’s how we will call you if we need to get in touch. Under no circumstances do you call anyone using this phone once you have changed cards, and I mean none.

Why is it so important that I don’t use it for myself?

Because when we call from our side, it falsifies your GPS coordinates when the connection is made. Where it says you are, you aren’t. You dial and it will transmit your true location, makes it real easy for someone to find you, which we don’t want anyone doing right now. I don’t know how serious this is going to get, so for the time being, let’s keep you hidden until we can get some answers. Now get going.

Grabbing both his gym and an instructor bag, Nick stripped off his BDU top (black dress uniform) throwing it into an open compartment and headed for the elevators and out of town.

Up ahead he could see the black sheets of rain crossing to his left, getting closer. Flipping on the built-in GPS, he selected ‘Points of Interest’, then punched in a request for hotels. After a few seconds the display flickered, showing a list of seven in the area, the closest twenty-nine miles away. Without warning, the right front tire struck a small rock and lost traction. Gripping the road again, the back end jerked to the left and he cursed himself for taking so long looking at the screen. He turned into the spin and hit the gas pedal, the car realigned and he continued on.

Within half a mile, the steering wheel began to vibrate and he knew he had punctured the tire, at this rate of pressure loss, a small leak. Seeing the rain a short distance away, he calculated he had 10 minutes at most to stop, get out and change the tire before being engulfed in the storm. He would need to find a safe place to pull off, something that would provide a bit of shelter. Turning his head from side to side as he drove, he spotted a flat open patch of ground and pulled the car onto it. He needed to hurry.

After maneuvering the car onto a level spot, he reached down inside and popped the hood latch. Walking to the front of the car, he placed his hand against the metal and began fingering underneath. Just as he found the release lever there was a flash of light. Standing upright, he looked around but it was gone and he dismissed it as lightning. Bending, he felt around once more, found it, pulled and raised the hood. The light appeared again, but this time stayed on. Pushing the hood partially down, he peered over the top, blinking his eyes to keep the rain out, trying to focus in the dark. In the distance was the silhouette of a small farmhouse three hundred yards away.

By the time he bounded past the front gate, the rain had already formed large pools of mud in the yard. He tried stepping around as many as he could, but gave up after sinking to his ankles with each step. Reaching the front porch, he sat down under the cover and began pulling off his shoes and socks, rolling his pant legs up in case he needed to leave if he found himself not welcomed.

He had just laid the back of his head against the wall when a woman appeared in front of him, having come around the side porch. She placed one foot on the first step and stopped. Can I help you, are you lost, hurt? Nick guessed the woman to be no more than an inch short of six feet, with squared shoulders which the parka did not hide. She had high cheekbones and dark eyes. The shotgun was held firmly to her side. You really need to answer me now.

I’m sorry, I was just catching my breath. I’m fine, but I had a flat and needed to get under some shelter. He pointed toward his car, but the woman never took her eyes off of him. If I could just sit here until the rain stops, I’ll change the flat and be on my way.

Where were you headed? asked the woman.

Atlanta. My wife has a practice there and I’ve got a couple days off from work, it looks like. Our different professions separate us for months at a time and right now I would just like to get there as quickly as possible and spend alone time with her.

After a short few moments, the woman stepped forward onto the porch, repositioned the shotgun for the ready and invited him in. She pushed the front door open and stood back for him to go through first. He hadn’t realized how cold he had become and the fire in the back center wall of the moderate sized living room felt great. As he passed through the door, the woman said, My name’s Manny.

Hello Manny, I’m Nick. Thanks for letting me come in. It was genuine and Manny gave him a smile.

I’ve got some old clothes that might fit you while we dry yours. You go over by the fire and I’ll be back in a minute. The storm’s going to last all night, if you’re comfortable doing so, you’re welcome to stay. There’s a bedroom in the back, you take that and I’ll make do here.

He started to protest, but Manny cut him off. There’s a board in the floor just off the kitchen that squeaks real loud. I hear you step on it in the middle of the night and you’ll be looking down the wrong end of Betsy. She motioned towards the shotgun two feet away.

With that, Manny left the room but returned shortly afterwards with a