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Book details
  • Genre:FICTION
  • SubGenre:Thrillers / Espionage
  • Language:English
  • Pages:300
  • eBook ISBN:9781623092504

Operation Independence Day

by Barry I. Gold

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Overview
Operation Independence Day is a story of what happens if an average guy begins dating the leader of a terrorist cell and then he meets an Israeli Mossad agent. The terrorist cell is harnessing the power of biological science to use it against the United States. The Mossad is working with the FBI to chase down the terrorists before the unthinkable happens.
Description
Charlie Morrow is a N.Y. businessman who’s also a veteran of the first Gulf War, an ex-marine sniper who keeps his rifle in his closet. He meets an exotic Palestinian woman, Leila Khan. They begin dating, but unknown to him, FBI Agent Bob Borland and his collaborator Becky Feldman are watching Leila too. They have evidence that Leila heads a terrorist cell and she’s funding a secret biotechnology factory built to engineer a lethal virus. Borland has one month to find that factory. Becky’s an American-educated Israeli Mossad agent who went to college with Borland years before. She offers to get closer to Charlie so they can learn where Leila gets her money, where she’s building the factory and more importantly, if Charlie’s implicated in the plot. Charlie meets Becky on one of his frequent business trips to Germany. He’s attracted to her short skirt and long legs. He thinks she’s there by coincidence. Unknown to him, Becky had volunteered to get closer to Charlie. He tells her that he’s leaving Germany to travel on to the U.K. on business and she fabricates a reason to follow him there from Germany. At breakfast in London the next morning, she introduces him to Borland, who traveled there specifically to meet Charlie. She explains that she’s been following him because he’s been dating Leila. Together they ask Charlie for his help. His ego is hurt but he consents to let them know the next time Leila’s out of her apartment for a few hours. That’s all he has to do. A week or so later, while Charlie and Leila are dining out, Becky’s operatives enter Leila’s apartment and plant listening devices. They also bug Leila’s computer so it downloads information in the middle of the night. Charlie and Leila become lovers. Leila gets up to go the bathroom in the middle of the night and she sees her computer working when she knows she had shut it down. It doesn’t take her long to suspect Charlie has tampered with it because he had explained to her that he’s a computer expert at work. Supposedly no one else has been in her apartment. Charlie and Becky begin dating in spite of the original reason they had met. They become lovers too and Becky warns him that they suspect Leila is a terrorist. He doesn’t know whom to believe but he’s elated by his sudden change in luck with women. Borland’s Task Force develops enough evidence, including some volunteered by Charlie, to conclude that the factory is in Springfield, Illinois and they plan a raid. Unknown to them, Charlie finds it too because his company sells products to biotechnology companies and he turns up the location by combing his company’s database. Charlie plans to visit the factory just to confirm his own suspicions and he plans a trip. He convinces his old buddy Aristotle Constantine, whom he calls Greco to accompany him. Aristotle and Charlie were the two halves of a sniper team when they served together in Kuwait and they’ve stayed in touch. They plan a trip to Springfield to begin their own surveillance. They establish a camouflaged perch across the street from to the suspected factory so Charlie can confirm his suspicions. Just as he was trained to do, Charlie has brought his sniper rifle although he tells Aristotle that he doesn’t plan to do any shooting. He just wants to watch. Suddenly they see Leila from their hideout and Charlie is suddenly convinced that she’s evil. Aristotle is surprised Charlie knows her. They’re still watching when Borland’s task force begins its raid and they watch the entire thing.
About the author
Barry was trained as a pharmacologist and he spent 25 years discovering or developing new drugs. He's been a faculty member at a medical school and an executive at a pharmaceutical company. He has two adult children from a previous marriage. Barry and his wife live in New York's Hudson Valley where they are raising their 3-year-old. Barry is an avid cook and baker. He raises the family's vegetables and bakes all their bread, makes their maple syrup and builds some of their furniture. He's begun taking banjo lessons which he practices every day after writing.