Christine Feehan: Conspiracy Game

The fourth book in the GhostWalker series, 2006

Be sure to write to Christine at Christine@christinefeehan.com to get a FREE exclusive screen saver and join the PRIVATE e-mail list to receive an announcement when Christine’s books are released.

I want to thank Domini Stottsberry for her help in the tremendous amount of research necessary to make this book possible. Brian Feehan and Morey Sparks deserve much gratitude for sitting up nights discussing military tactics, and I’d be remiss in not mentioning my husband, Richard, who must sit with endless patience as I describe action scenes and insist on his input! As always, Cheryl, you are incredible!

The GhostWalker Symbol Details

SIGNIFIESshadow

SIGNIFIESprotection against evil forces

SIGNIFIESthe Greek letter psi, which is used by parapsychology researchers to signify ESP or other psychic abilities

SIGNIFIESqualities of a knight-loyalty, generosity, courage, and honor

SIGNIFIESshadow knights who protect against evil forces using psychic powers, courage, and honor

Nightfell fast in the jungle. Sitting in the middle of the enemy camp, surrounded by rebels, Jack Norton kept his head down, eyes closed, listening to the sounds coming out of the rain forest as he took stock of his situation. With his enhanced senses he could smell the enemy close to him, and even farther away, hidden in the dense, lush vegetation. He was fairly certain this was a satellite camp, one of many deep in the jungles of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, somewhere west of Kinshasa.

He opened his eyes to narrow slits to look around him, to plan out each step of his escape, but even that tiny movement sent pain shooting through his skull. The agony from the last beating was nearly shattering, but he didn’t dare lose consciousness. They would kill him next time, and next time was coming much quicker than he had anticipated. If he didn’t find a way out soon, all the physical and psychic enhancements in the world wouldn’t save him.

The rebels had every right to be angry with him. Jack’s twin brother, Ken, and his paramilitary GhostWalker team had successfully extracted the rebels’ first truly valuable American political prisoners. A United States senator had been captured while traveling with a scientist and his aides. The GhostWalkers had come in with deadly precision, rescued the senator, the scientist, and his two aides along with the pilot, and left the camp in shambles. Ken had been captured and the rebels had had a field day torturing him. Jack had no choice but to go in after his brother.

The rebels weren’t any happier with Jack for depriving them of their prisoner then they had been with Ken. Jack had laid down the covering fire as the GhostWalkers were extracting Ken and had taken a hit. The wound wasn’t critical-he’d been testing his leg and it wasn’t broken-but the bullet had driven his leg out from under him on impact. He’d waved his team off and resigned himself to the same torture his brother had endured-one more thing they shared as they had in their younger days.

The first beating hadn’t been so bad-before Major Biyoya showed up. They’d kicked and punched him, stomping on his wounded leg a couple of times, but for the most part, they’d refrained from torturing him, waiting to find out what General Ekabela had in mind. The general had sent Biyoya.

The majority of the rebels were military trained, and many had at one time been of high rank in the government or military, until one of the many coups, and now they were growing marijuana and wreaking havoc, raiding smaller towns and killing everyone who dared to oppose them or had the farms or land the rebels wanted. No one dared cross into their territory without permission. They were skilled with weapons and in guerrilla warfare-and they liked to torture and kill. They had a taste for it now, and the power drove them to continue. Even the UN avoided the area-if they did try to bring medicine and supplies to the villages, the rebels robbed them.

Jack opened his eyes enough to look down at his bare chest where Major Keon Biyoya had carved his name. Blood dripped, and flies and other biting insects congregated for the feast. It wasn’t the worst of the tortures by any means, or the most humiliating. He had endured it stoically, removing himself from the pain as he had all of his life, but the fire of retribution burned in his belly.

Rage ran cold and deep, like a turbulent river hidden beneath the calm surface of his expressionless face. The dangerous emotion poured through his body and flooded his veins, building his adrenaline and strength. He deliberately fed it, recounting every detail of the last interrogation session with Biyoya. The cigarette burns, small circles marring his chest and shoulders. The whip marks that had peeled the skin from his back. Biyoya had taken his time carving his name deep, and when Jack made no sound, he’d hooked up battery cables to shock him-and that had been only the beginning of several hours at the hands of a twisted madman. The precise, almost surgical, two-inch cuts covering nearly every inch of his body were identical to what this man had done to his brother-and with each slice, Jack felt his brother’s pain, when he could push away his own.