New York Times bestselling author Dale Brown pits a group of seasoned military veterans and young techies against a consortium of international terrorists, determined to destabilize the global economy through a series of attacks on oil refineries around the world. “The best military adventure writer in the country today.” - Clive Cussler “This absorbing techno-thriller follows the author’s established pattern of fast action in the air and on the ground, its hard-driving protagonists equipped with an arsenal of futuristic hardware. . . . Brown fans will declare this a page-turning delight.” - Publishers Weekly From the corridors of power in Washington to the frontlines of the war on terror, Dale Brown takes you to the heart of the action and introduces his most exhilarating character to date In Act of War , Dale Brown goes beyond anything he's done before, taking readers deep into the new world of intelligence-focused warfare, and introducing a cutting-edge new hero: thirty-two-year-old Army Major Jason Richter, designer of a whole array of futuristic infantry weapons and devices created to hunt down a new breed of enemy with unmatched speed and lethality. With all the thrilling battle scenes and expert military maneuvers that have become the hallmark of this New York Times bestselling author, this is an intense, action-packed spectacle that combines geopolitics, terrorism, and warfare. Near Houston, Texas, an oil refinery belonging to one of the world's largest multinational energy companies is destroyed by a "backpack" nuclear device. This is just one of many attacks being perpetrated against the company around the world by a group whose mission is to stop global corporations and government organizations from plundering the world's natural resources in the name of profit. Before this group strikes again, Jason Richter is called in with his top-secret high-tech military unit, code-named Task Force TALON, a special joint military and FBI unit set up by the national security advisor to track down and defeat terrorists around the world. Richter believes there is only one strategy in which to snare his opponents -- find, pursue, engage, and kill. And the only way to do this is to play them at their own game: Be unconventional and swift, hit-and-run and brutal enough to strike fear into the heart of the most dedicated terrorist. Richter must also lead the way through a series of unexpected turns that eventually uncovers a mole high up within the government who is in pursuit of his own personal revenge. If Richter fails, it won't be just the lives of his team that are lost, but America itself. Dale Brown is the  New York Times  bestselling author of numerous books, from  Flight of the Old Dog  (1987) to, most recently,  Eagle Station  (2020). A former U.S. Air Force captain, he can often be found flying his own plane in the skies of the United States. He lives near Lake Tahoe, Nevada. Act of War A Novel By Dale Brown HarperCollins Publishers, Inc. Copyright ©2005 Dale Brown All right reserved. ISBN: 0060752998 Chapter One The White House, Washington, D.C. That same time The President's National Security Adviser, Robert Hall Chamberlain,strode into the White House Situation Room ahead of a wall of military officers, civilian advisers and analysts, and Secret Service agents. They had to scramble to stay out of Chamberlain's way as he quickly entered the room and took his seat, not at the center of the oblong table but just to the right of the seat apparently reserved for the President of the United States. A former oil executive with TransGlobal Energy, an expert and adviser in foreign affairs and commerce, a wealthy political supporter and friend of the President and many other world leaders, Chamberlain had been described as having the geopolitical savvy of Henry Kissinger, the military affairs expertise of Condoleezza Rice, the wealth of Bill Gates, the charisma of Colin Powell ... and the ruthlessness of Saddam Hussein. "All right, let's get started," Chamberlain said brusquely. He was of average height and size, but he made up for his lack of physical stature by his high degree of energy -- it always seemed as if he had someplace else he had to be; and in this current emergency situation, he was moving twice as fast. "Just to bring you all up to speed: the President, Vice President, most of the Cabinet, and the congressional leadership have been evacuated. The President, his chief of staff, SECDEF, SECSTATE, CJCS, and the congressionalleadership went aboard Air Force One ; the VP, Attorney General, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, and a few other senior Cabinet officials went aboard a C-37B, the Vice President's transport; the congressional leadership are in alternate secure locations throughout the East Coast. All are safely away and secure, and it is our opinion that the continuity of government has been assured to the best of our ability. As you all know, the President