Sabel Origins #2 Featuring Pia Sabel and Introducing Jacob Stearne
Pia Sabel expected a little recognition after she liberated a pedophile resort in Sri Lanka, not a State Department inquisition. Forced to play the deadliest game of her life, she finds children molested and murdered under a new version of “enhanced interrogation tactics”. Putting herself in danger to save the innocent, her overconfidence leads to agonizing torment.
Sabel Agent Jacob Stearne and his team of decorated veterans have lived through warzone horrors but nothing could have prepared them for the ugly reality they uncover. Fending off accusations of treason and terrorism, Jacob unravels a network of ambitious appointees and black-budget contractors to discover who is responsible for some of the most horrific crimes against humanity.
Widely praised by readers as the hottest new thriller series, Sabel Security Thrillers cover jaw-dropping stories featuring former soccer star Pia Sabel, and war veteran Jacob Stearne. Bring It propels Sabel Security’s greatest challenge to its astonishing finish, proving why readers say, “I felt every ounce of rage and desperation.”
What Are People Saying?
A fine thriller with intriguing locations, intricate plot twists and a complex heroine. – Kirkus Reviews
I loved the character of Pia Sabel – there’s a girl Charlie Fox would team up with any day! — Zoe Sharp, author of the Charlie Fox novels
Seeley James has created a protagonist that is strong and yet conflicted. — PJReviewofBooks.com
Seeley James is definitely an author to watch in the future as he writes more featuring the undaunting Pia Sabel. — Mysteries Galore
Passage – Jacob leads the rescue team:
I went over my plan with them. It was pretty basic: get on shore and wing it.
I went below and put on camouflage utilities and body armor. A minute later, I opened the watertight door marked ‘Toys Bay’ on the lower deck. It was the bay where they launched rich people’s toys like jet skis and Zodiacs. Chamberlain and his crew had two of the small boats with outboard motors facing the rear bulkhead. My agents were crowding around them, waiting for my signal. The hydraulic system screeched and clanked and the entire back wall tilted outward.
It was solid darkness outside, but the storm roared in with savage fury.
I pulled on my fearless-leader face, and everyone turned to me a split second later. I radiated confidence. We were there to bring back Ms. Sabel—hurricanes be damned.
I left the captain with a Sabel Security satellite phone. Dhanpal took the helm of his boat, with Tania and Miguel riding along. Tony and Carmen went with me. We pulled life preservers over our gear, knowing they could do little to float the weight of our body armor, let alone the hardware we carried. But it was only a hundred yards.
We gave each other a thumbs-up. We were ready, determined, and focused.
The crew waited for the right part of the wave and pushed Dhanpal out first. He went right and disappeared immediately.
They pushed my boat off the deck and into the roiling sea. My boat went left—no matter what I did.
~~~
Leaving a 150-foot yacht in a hurricane was the worst idea I’d had since I tried to simultaneously date the McDougal sisters. I couldn’t see anything. Not the yacht, not Tania, not the coast, not even Tony at the bow. My bravado evaporated. I felt the doubts I’d repressed for the last hour whipping into absolute terror.
The waves were shocking. Even in complete darkness, their sheer mass was overwhelming. They loomed over us like monster-mountains intending to pile drive us to the ocean floor. The captain’s warnings about taking a small boat out in a big storm began to make sense.
I cranked the throttle and powered up the backside of a wave, crested it, and we instantly shot downhill as if we’d skied off Mount Everest. Before we hit the trough, the sea rose up underneath us and hurled us into the air. Every joint in my body felt like it was being hit with a sledgehammer.
The wind howled in my ears as if undersea phantoms were screaming to claim our lives. We bounced off another wave. I fell forward and slammed into Carmen. In the next instant, I saw a palm tree just as we rammed it. Our little boat flipped over, centrifugal force pinning us in our seats. It landed right-side up and spun like a top until another wave hit us broadside. We flipped over too many times to count, all three of us flying in different directions.
I landed in sand on all fours, as the outboard motor bounced off my back and disappeared. The wave receded and I sprang to my feet before the pain of broken ribs shot through me, doubling me over. Forcing myself upright, I ran up the beach. Another wave chased me, carrying the empty boat, the motor still running and the propeller slicing everything in its path. It smashed into a wooden structure and popped like bubble wrap under a boot.
Carmen grabbed my arm and pulled me sideways to a wall as another wave crashed on the beach. When the wave went out, we backpedaled uphill until we were out of the surf.
She yelled above the shrieking wind. “Where the hell is Tony?”