Ghost Recon (2008)
Tom Clancy
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
Acknowledgements
Epigraph
ONE
TWO
THREE
FOUR
FIVE
SIX
SEVEN
EIGHT
NINE
TEN
ELEVEN
TWELVE
THIRTEEN
FOURTEEN
FIFTEEN
SIXTEEN
SEVENTEEN
EIGHTEEN
NINETEEN
TWENTY
TWENTY-ONE
TWENTY-TWO
TWENTY-THREE
TWENTY-FOUR
TWENTY-FIVE
TWENTY-SIX
TWENTY-SEVEN
TWENTY-EIGHT
TWENTY-NINE
THIRTY
THIRTY-ONE
THIRTY-TWO
THIRTY-THREE
THIRTY-FOUR
THIRTY-FIVE
THE BESTSELLING NOVELS OF TOM CLANCY
THE TEETH OF THE TIGER
A new generation--Jack Ryan, Jr.--takes over in Tom Clancy's
extraordinary, and extraordinarily prescient, novel.
"INCREDIBLY ADDICTIVE." --Daily Mail (London)
RED RABBIT
Tom Clancy returns to Jack Ryan's early days--
in an engrossing novel of global political drama . . .
"A WILD, SATISFYING RIDE." --New York Daily News
THE BEAR AND THE DRAGON
A clash of world powers. President Jack Ryan's trial by fire.
"HEART-STOPPING ACTION . . . CLANCY STILL REIGNS." --The Washington Post
RAINBOW SIX
John Clark is used to doing the CIA's dirty work.
Now he's taking on the world . . .
"ACTION-PACKED." --The New York Times Book Review
EXECUTIVE ORDERS
A devastating terrorist act leaves Jack Ryan
as President of the United States . . .
"UNDOUBTEDLY CLANCY'S BEST YET."
--The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
DEBT OF HONOR
It begins with the murder of an American woman
in the backstreets of Tokyo. It ends in war . . .
"A SHOCKER." --Entertainment Weekly
WITHOUT REMORSE
His code name is Mr. Clark. And his work for the CIA
is brilliant, cold-blooded, and efficient . . . but who is he really?
"HIGHLY ENTERTAINING." --The Wall Street Journal
THE SUM OF ALL FEARS
The disappearance of an Israeli nuclear weapon threatens the
balance of power in the Middle East--and around the world . . .
"CLANCY AT HIS BEST . . . NOT TO BE MISSED."
--The Dallas Morning News
CLEAR AND PRESENT DANGER
The killing of three U.S. officials in Colombia ignites the
American government's explosive, and top secret, response . . .
"A CRACKLING GOOD YARN." --The Washington Post
THE CARDINAL OF THE KREMLIN
The superpowers race for the ultimate Star Wars
missile defense system . . .
"CARDINAL EXCITES, ILLUMINATES . . . A REAL PAGE-TURNER." --Los Angeles Daily News
PATRIOT GAMES
CIA analyst Jack Ryan stops an assassination--
and incurs the wrath of Irish terrorists . . .
"A HIGH PITCH OF EXCITEMENT."
--The Wall Street Journal
RED STORM RISING
The ultimate scenario for World War III--
the final battle for global control . . .
"THE ULTIMATE WAR GAME . . . BRILLIANT."
--Newsweek
THE HUNT FOR RED OCTOBER
The smash bestseller that launched Clancy's career--
the incredible search for a Soviet defector
and the nuclear submarine he commands . . .
"BREATHLESSLY EXCITING." --The Washington Post
Novels by Tom Clancy
THE HUNT FOR RED OCTOBER
RED STORM RISING
PATRIOT GAMES
THE CARDINAL OF THE KREMLIN
CLEAR AND PRESENT DANGER
THE SUM OF ALL FEARS
WITHOUT REMORSE
DEBT OF HONOR
EXECUTIVE ORDERS
RAINBOW SIX
THE BEAR AND THE DRAGON
RED RABBIT
THE TEETH OF THE TIGER
SSN: STRATEGIES OF SUBMARINE WARFARE
Nonfiction
SUBMARINE: A GUIDED TOUR INSIDE A NUCLEAR WARSHIP
ARMORED CAV: A GUIDED TOUR OF AN ARMORED CAVALRY REGIMENT
FIGHTER WING: A GUIDED TOUR OF AN AIR FORCE COMBAT WING
MARINE: A GUIDED TOUR OF A MARINE EXPEDITIONARY UNIT
AIRBORNE: A GUIDED TOUR OF AN AIRBORNE TASK FORCE
CARRIER: A GUIDED TOUR OF AN AIRCRAFT CARRIER
SPECIAL FORCES: A GUIDED TOUR OF U.S. ARMY SPECIAL FORCES
INTO THE STORM: A STUDY IN COMMAND
(written with General Fred Franks, Jr., Ret., and Tony Koltz)
EVERY MAN A TIGER
(written with General Charles Horner, Ret., and Tony Koltz)
SHADOW WARRIORS: INSIDE THE SPECIAL FORCES
(written with General Carl Stiner, Ret., and Tony Koltz)
BATTLE READY
(written with General Tony Zinni, Ret., and Tony Koltz)
TOM CLANCY'S GHOST RECON
Created by Tom Clancy
TOM CLANCY'S ENDWAR
TOM CLANCY'S SPLINTER CELL
SPLINTER CELL
OPERATION BARRACUDA
CHECK M ATE
FALLOUT
Created by Tom Clancy and Steve Pieczenik
TOM CLANCY'S OP-CENTER
OP-CENTER
MIRROR IMAGE
GAMES OF STATE
ACTS OF WAR
BALANCE OF POWER
STATE OF SIEGE
DIVIDE AND CONQUER
LINE OF CONTROL
MISSION OF HONOR
SEA OF FIRE
CALL TO TREASON
WAR OF EAGLES
TOM CLANCY'S NET FORCE
NET FORCE
HIDDEN AGENDAS
NIGHT MOVES
BREAKING POINT
POINT OF IMPACT
CYBER NATION
STATE OF WAR
CHANGING OF THE GUARD
SPRINGBOARD
THE ARCHIMEDES EFFECT
Created by Tom Clancy and Martin Greenberg
TOM CLANCY'S POWER PLAYS
POLITIKA
RUTHLESS.COM
SHADOW WATCH
BIO-STRIKE
COLD WAR
CUTTING EDGE
ZERO HOUR
WILD CARD
THE BERKLEY PUBLISHING GROUP Published by the Penguin Group Penguin Group (USA) Inc. 375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, USA Penguin Group (Canada), 90 Eglinton Avenue East, Suite 700, Toronto, Ontario M4P 2Y3, Canada (a division of Pearson Penguin Canada Inc.) Penguin Books Ltd., 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England Penguin Group Ireland, 25 St. Stephen's Green, Dublin 2, Ireland (a division of Penguin Books Ltd.) Penguin Group (Australia), 250 Camberwell Road, Camberwell, Victoria 3124, Australia (a division of Pearson Australia Group Pty. Ltd.) Penguin Books India Pvt. Ltd., 11 Community Centre, Panchsheel Park, New Delhi--110 017, India Penguin Group (NZ), 67 Apollo Drive, Rosedale, North Shore 0632, New Zealand (a division of Pearson New Zealand Ltd.) Penguin Books (South Africa) (Pty.) Ltd., 24 Sturdee Avenue, Rosebank, Johannesburg 2196, South Africa
Penguin Books Ltd., Registered Offices: 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
This is a work of fiction. Nam
es, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.
TOM CLANCY'S GHOST RECON
A Berkley Book / published by arrangement with Rubicon, Inc.
PRINTING HISTORY Berkley premium edition / November 2008
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The author would like to thank the following individuals whose technical advice and support made this book possible:
Mr. Tom Clancy
Mr. David Shanks
Mr. Tom Colgan
Mr. Michael Ovitz
Mr. Chris George
Ms. Sandra Harding
Mr. Robert Lang
Mr. James Ide, chief warrant officer, U.S. Navy (Ret.)
Major Mark Aitken, U.S. Army
Mr. Randy McElwee, master sergeant, U.S. Army (Ret.)
Major William R. Reeves, U.S. Army
Major Craig Walker, U.S. Air Force
Mr. Jean-Louis "Dutch" DeGay, Natick Soldier RDEC, U.S. Army
Mrs. Carole McDaniel (carole.mcdanieldesign.com)
William and Belinda Telep
From Blackhawk Products Group:
Mr. Mike Noel, U.S. Navy SEAL (Ret.)
Mr. Tom O'Sullivan, U.S. Army (Ret.)
Mr. Michael Janich, U.S. Army (Ret.)
Mr. Steve Matulewicz, command master chief, U.S. Navy SEAL (Ret.)
Mr. Brent Beshara, Canadian Special Forces (Ret.)
From Ubisoft:
Mr. Yves Guillemot
Mr. Gerard Guillemot
Mr. Serge Hascoet
Mr. Alexis Nolent
Mr. Olivier Henriot
Mr. Richard Dansky
Mr. Oliver Green
Mr. Cedrick Delmas
Mr. Terence Mosca
Mr. Eric Moutardier
Mr. Thomas Leroux-Hugon
Mr. Joshua Meyer
The Ubisoft Legal Department
I had rather have a plain, russet-coated captain that knows what he fights for, and loves what he knows, than that which you call a gentleman and is nothing else.
--Oliver Cromwell
Be extremely subtle, even to the point of formlessness. Be extremely mysterious, even to the point of soundless-ness. Thereby you can be the director of the opponent's fate.
--Sun Tzu
Minimal consumption--use the least amount of combat resources sufficient to accomplish the objective.
--Colonel Qiao Liang and Colonel Wang Xiangsui, Unrestricted Warfare
PERSONNEL LIST
Ghosts
Operation War Wraith
Alpha Team
Captain Scott Mitchell
Master Sergeant Jose "Joe" Ramirez
Sergeant First Class Paul Smith
Sergeant First Class Alex Nolan
Bravo Team
Master Sergeant Matt Beasley
Sergeant First Class Bo Jenkins
Staff Sergeant John Hume
Sergeant Marcus Brown
Charlie Team
Sergeant Alicia Diaz
Ghost Command
Lieutenant Colonel Harold "Buzz" Gordon
Major Susan Grey, D CO. 1st BN. 5th SFG
General Joshua Keating, Commander of USSOCOM
Dr. Gail Gorbatova, Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA)
Spring Tigers
Operation Pouncing Dragon
Major-General Chen Yi (Target Alpha)
Colonel Xu Dingfa (Target Bravo)
Vice Admiral Cai Ming (Target Charlie)
Major-General Wu Hui (Target Delta)
Deputy Director Wang Ya, CMC Political Department
Captain Fang Zhi
USS Montana Control Team
Commanding Officer Captain Kenneth Gummerson
Lieutenant Commander Sands, Executive Officer
Master Chief Suallo, Chief of the Boat
SEAL Chief Tanner
SEAL Chief Phillips
Lieutenant Jeff Moch, Predator Support
Lieutenant Justin Schumaker, Predator Support
ONE
BASILAN ISLAND
SULU ARCHIPELAGO, SOUTHERN PHILIPPINES
AUGUST, 2002
Master Sergeant Scott Mitchell blinked at the sweat in his eyes and pushed on through the rubber plants, their leathery leaves brushing against his boonie hat and cheek. Ahead lay a slight clearing in the otherwise dense, twilit jungle, and Mitchell used his M4A1's barrel to lift a thin branch as he hunkered down at the edge.
Captain Victor Foyte, his detachment commander, moved ahead beside an uneven stretch of wilting palm fronds still dripping from a storm that had rolled in several hours ago. "Ricochet, this is Road Warrior 06," the captain whispered into his radio. "Think I see something. And I hear some buzzing, like flies. Let's check it out, over."
"Right with you, Boss," answered Mitchell.
Although Foyte outranked him, Mitchell was the team sergeant, responsible for fighting all twelve members of Operational Detachment Alpha (ODA) 574. The captain and warrant officer coordinated with the twelve-man Filipino and Taiwanese teams they'd been cross-training with for the past two weeks.
Mitchell started forward as up to his right a snake coiled around an overhanging limb, its tongue fluttering. Special Forces operators ate bad guys for breakfast and snakes for supper; consequently, they weren't unnerved by either. Nevertheless, Mitchell grimaced and got out of there to join the captain.
Barely three steps later, a whoosh of musty air, a rustle of leaves, and the sharp crack of a rope sent lightning bolts through his gut. He looked up and gasped.
The captain had been moving toward a pole stuck in the ground. Atop that pole was a human head with long, brown hair flowing around it.
A twenty-one-year-old American missionary had recently been captured by Abu Sayyaf, the local pseudo-Islamist terrorist group affiliated with al Qaeda. Military and police forces had been combing the island, looking for her and for Abu Sayyaf's stronghold, hidden somewhere deep in the mountainous interior.
It seemed the captain had found the missing woman--and much more. A rope had snapped taut around one of his ankles, and now he was being hurled three meters into the air, screaming, "Ambush!"
Mitchell was about to get on the radio when the captain swung forward, a human pendulum heading straight for a tree impaled by rows of razor-sharp punji stakes now revealed as fronds strung up by more ropes fell away--all part of the carefully designed booby trap.
