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«The Rule of Nine», Steve Martini

The Rule of Nine Steve Martini

I dedicate this book to my loyal assistant, Marianne Dargitz,

without whose help my work would not be possible

Contents

One

Jimmie Snyder was twenty-three, tall and lanky. He had beenвЂ¦

Two

ItвЂ™s tricky to know how good a job the governmentвЂ¦

Three

It takes several minutes for the stenographer and Olson toвЂ¦

Four

Josh Root was a man who could always make timeвЂ¦

Five

Life has turned upside down in the eight months sinceвЂ¦

Six

Bart Snyder sat staring at the half-packed cardboard transfer boxвЂ¦

Seven

He had used so many names over the years thatвЂ¦

Eight

The United States Senate was without question the most exclusiveвЂ¦

Nine

My daily calendar sheet says her name is Joselyn Cole.

Ten

Dad, what is your problem? IвЂ™m just going out withвЂ¦

Eleven

The house had a dangling For Sale sign planted inвЂ¦

Twelve

It was nine oвЂ™clock. Thorn was packing his bags, gettingвЂ¦

Thirteen

ItвЂ™s not quite noon. IвЂ™m in a booth at theвЂ¦

Fourteen

Zeb Thorpe stormed into the small conference room at FBIвЂ¦

Fifteen

SnyderвЂ¦?вЂќ

Sixteen

HeвЂ™s older, and he looks heavier in the photograph, butвЂ¦

Seventeen

Josh Root sat at the committee rostrum, gavel at hand,вЂ¦

Eighteen

ItвЂ™s like a nightmare. I want to wake up, butвЂ¦

Nineteen

Snyder slept fitfully on the red-eye flight from L.A. backвЂ¦

Twenty

I have been chasing Zeb Thorpe at FBI headquarters inвЂ¦

Twenty-One

The old tarmac seemed to have more cracks than solidвЂ¦

Twenty-Two

So then I take it weвЂ™re all agreed?вЂќ The fourвЂ¦

Twenty-Three

Carrying the heavy pistol strapped to the hip pouch onвЂ¦

Twenty-Four

The phone rang in his study and Bart Snyder pickedвЂ¦

Twenty-Five

IвЂ™m getting a little hungry. Would you mind if weвЂ¦

Twenty-Six

IвЂ™m sorry to hear about your daughterвЂ™s friend. I donвЂ™tвЂ¦

Twenty-Seven

Nine oвЂ™clock at night and Liquida was angry. He hadвЂ¦

Twenty-Eight

Mid-September, the clock was running, and for once everything seemedвЂ¦

Twenty-Nine

Liquida was smiling from ear to ear as he lookedвЂ¦

Thirty

By the time he arrived home in Chicago, it wasвЂ¦

Thirty-One

They were now in the home stretch, and like aвЂ¦

Thirty-Two

It was one thing to wait until we had confirmationвЂ¦

Thirty-Three

The second he got off the phone with Madriani, ThorpeвЂ¦

Thirty-Four

The flight time from Miami to San Juan, Puerto Rico,вЂ¦

Thirty-Five

Joselyn, Herman, and I checked into the Hotel Melia inвЂ¦

Thirty-Six

After a short but silent ride, Herman dropped me backвЂ¦

Thirty-Seven

What they say about hell and good intentions is true.

Thirty-Eight

The taxi driver finds the dirt road and a fewвЂ¦

Thirty-Nine

ThereвЂ™s a map in the glove compartment,вЂќ says Herman.

Forty

By the time the cops show up and we getвЂ¦

Forty-One

The Belgica is one of those cozy boutique hotels youвЂ¦

Forty-Two

Liquida found himself bundled onto the last evening flight outвЂ¦

Forty-Three

It was five A.M. and Flannery and SonвЂ™s cement contractorsвЂ¦

Forty-Four

It is sometime Monday morning when I hear the familiarвЂ¦

Forty-Five

Zeb Thorpe had been in the command center at FBIвЂ¦

Forty-Six

Two hours after the fiery wreckage splashed into the Atlantic,вЂ¦

Forty-Seven

My contact is Senator Joshua Root,вЂќ says Joselyn. вЂњI amвЂ¦

Forty-Eight

He sat in the small, dark room watching a tinyвЂ¦

Forty-Nine

Ahmed was back in the rear of the 727, huddledвЂ¦

Fifty

The opening day of the Supreme CourtвЂ™s new session, theвЂ¦

Fifty-One

The minute Joselyn and I are able to slip awayвЂ¦

Acknowledgments

About the Author

Other Books by Steve Martini

Credits

About the Publisher

ONE

Jimmie Snyder was twenty-three, tall and lanky. He had been in his current job less than two months and he was scared. He knew he had screwed up. He lay awake at nights worrying about it, as if under Chinese water torture, waiting for the next drip to hit him on the forehead. It was all about expectations, mostly his fatherвЂ™s.

SnyderвЂ™s dad was the managing partner in a large law firm in Chicago. Jimmie had graduated pre-law from Stanford a year earlier and his father wanted him to go to law school. But Jimmie wanted to go into film production. His father would have none of it. As far as the old man was concerned, Jimmie needed credentials to round out his law school application and beef up his less-than-stellar undergraduate grades and middling LSAT score.

Toward that end, his father pulled every string within reach to land the boy a job in Washington. The best he could do on short notice was a temporary position as a part-time guide. The job was a holding pattern until his dad could yank more levers and land something better.