The Cuban Incident Read online

  THE CUBAN INCIDENT

  A DELTA FORCE UNLEASHED THRILLER

  J. ROBERT KENNEDY

  BOOKS BY J. ROBERT KENNEDY

  * Also available in audio

  The Templar Detective Thrillers

  The Templar Detective

  The Templar Detective and the Parisian Adulteress

  The Templar Detective and the Sergeant's Secret

  The Templar Detective and the Unholy Exorcist

  The Templar Detective and the Code Breaker

  The Templar Detective and the Black Scourge

  The James Acton Thrillers

  The Protocol *

  Brass Monkey *

  Broken Dove

  The Templar’s Relic

  Flags of Sin

  The Arab Fall

  The Circle of Eight

  The Venice Code

  Pompeii’s Ghosts

  Amazon Burning

  The Riddle

  Blood Relics

  Sins of the Titanic

  Saint Peter’s Soldiers

  The Thirteenth Legion

  Raging Sun

  Wages of Sin

  Wrath of the Gods

  The Templar’s Revenge

  The Nazi’s Engineer

  Atlantis Lost

  The Cylon Curse

  The Viking Deception

  Keepers of the Lost Ark

  The Tomb of Genghis Khan

  The Manila Deception

  The Fourth Bible

  Embassy of the Empire

  The Special Agent Dylan Kane Thrillers

  Rogue Operator

  Containment Failure

  Cold Warriors

  Death to America

  Black Widow

  The Agenda

  Retribution

  State Sanctioned

  Extraordinary Rendition

  Red Eagle

  The Delta Force Unleashed Thrillers

  Payback

  Infidels

  The Lazarus Moment

  Kill Chain

  Forgotten

  The Cuban Incident

  The Detective Shakespeare Mysteries

  Depraved Difference

  Tick Tock

  The Redeemer

  The Kriminalinspektor Wolfgang Vogel Mysteries

  The Colonel’s Wife

  Sins of the Child

  Zander Varga, Vampire Detective Series

  The Turned

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  Table of Contents

  The Novel

  Preface

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  Chapter 42

  Chapter 43

  Chapter 44

  Chapter 45

  Chapter 46

  Chapter 47

  Chapter 48

  Chapter 49

  Chapter 50

  Chapter 51

  Chapter 52

  Chapter 53

  Chapter 54

  Chapter 55

  Chapter 56

  Chapter 57

  Chapter 58

  Chapter 59

  Acknowledgments

  Don't Miss Out!

  Thank You!

  About the Author

  Also by the Author

  For the thousands murdered by the Communist Party of Cuba, and the eleven million it continues to oppress.

  “The Soviet Union, the socialist camp, the People’s Republic of China, and North Korea helped us resist, with essential supplies and weapons, the implacable blockade of the United States, the most powerful empire ever to exist.”

  Fidel Castro July 25, 2014

  “The Cuban model doesn’t even work for us anymore.”

  Fidel Castro, as said to The Atlantic journalist Jeffrey Goldberg, August 2010

  PREFACE

  After Fidel Castro ceased power in Cuba, the country quickly became reliant upon Soviet subsidies, totaling over $65 billion from 1960-1990. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, those subsidies dried up, crippling the economy reliant almost exclusively on the sugar industry and the grossly exaggerated prices the Soviet Bloc would pay for this commodity.

  Following the collapse, sugar prices crashed, further crippling the economy. In an attempt to diversify, the Cuban government has encouraged worker cooperatives, self-employment, and in 2019, initiated some modernization of the economy, including private property and free markets. A trade arrangement with Venezuela eventually replaced much of the Soviet contribution, giving a boost to the economy and government coffers.

  But that has since waned with Cuba’s benefactor experiencing its own problems, again crippling their economy, and leaving the treasury desperate for cash. With few countries friendly to their cause, such as China and a resurgent Russia, they have few sources to help them.

  Therefore, if an opportunity arose where something of value fell into Cuban hands, something America’s enemies might pay dearly for, the benefit to the Cuban people could be tremendous.

  And the price for America, unfathomable.

  1 |

  International Waters Off the Northern Coast of Cuba

  Richard “Tosh” Macintosh’s hand darted up and instinctively grabbed the bunk overhead, something having roused him from his sleep. It took a moment for him to recognize the cause. The boat was rocking violently, and shouting from outside his quarters sounded panicked. This was an experienced crew, and rough seas shouldn’t unnerve them.

  Something else was wrong.

  And if it wasn’t related to the current conditions, it had to have something to do with their mission. This was a covert US government vessel, used to evaluate the latest in Communications Interception Technology. When he had gone off duty, they were outside Cuban waters, monitoring the communications of the lone Communist state in the hemisphere. They were in international waters, though that wouldn’t stop some countries from acting if they knew a spy vessel was sitting offshore, stealing their secrets.

  It was part of the thrill of the assignment. Developing the equipment was for eggheads far smarter than him. His job was to test it and make sure it worked in real-world conditions. Too often, something that came out of a lab failed because of unanticipated things. If a piece of equipment was too delicate, then the rocking of a boat, the vibrations of an engine, or the humidity of the seas could cause it to fail. The powers that be designed these shakedown cruises to assess the equipment in the worst of conditions, including on the rough seas created by hurricanes.

  Ones like Hurricane Carlito, now raging north of Cuba.

  Though they weren’t stupid enough to actually be in a hurricane. The last report had them on the edge, with the winds
high enough to have them tossing around, but their powerful engines would have them out of harm’s way should the need arise.

  He rolled his feet out of the bunk and rose, keeping a hand on the bunk overhead, still occupied by Rick Mowery. He gave the man a shake. “Wake up.”

  Mowery groaned. “What? What’s going on?”

  “I don’t know, but it sounds like something’s wrong.”

  The boat listed hard to port, rolling Mowery against the bulkhead as Tosh lost his balance, his iron grip the only thing keeping him off the deck.

  “Holy shit! Is nobody manning the helm?” Mowery hopped down from the upper bunk and helped Tosh regain his feet.

  “I don’t know, but something tells me we’re closer to that hurricane than we should be.” Tosh opened the door and stepped out into the corridor. And frowned. It was usually well-lit, but now only a few emergency lights were on. “This can’t be good,” he said to Mowery as they made their way down the corridor, their hands extended out toward the bulkheads for balance. They climbed the ladder to the main deck. Tosh unlatched the hatch and pushed it open.

  What greeted him was nature’s fury, unlike anything he had experienced before. Yet all that he could make out were horrifying glimpses, revealed each time lightning flared overhead. The waves were high and violent, the wind whipping the rain in all directions, stinging his face and exposed skin. He pulled the hatch closed and latched it.

  “There’s no way we’re going out there.” He reversed direction. “We need to get to the bridge.”

  They made their way to the opposite end of the corridor, then up a ladder and down another corridor. A quick hike up a final ladder had them in the darkened bridge, only two of their crewmates at their posts.

  “Captain, what the hell is going on?”

  The captain, Special Agent Tracy Galitz, spun toward him. “Oh, good, I was just about to send Scott to get you guys.”

  Tosh gripped the doorframe. “What’s going on?”

  “We’ve lost all power.”

  His eyes shot wide. “How the hell did that happen?”

  “We lost propulsion. Something got caught up in our propellers.”

  “How does that take out all power?”

  “Jake opened the engine compartment hatch to see what was wrong. We got hit by a rogue wave. Knocked him out cold. With the hatch opened, seawater got into the compartment for a few minutes before we realized what was wrong. It shorted out everything.”

  Scott Meinke cursed. “Captain, we don’t have any choice.”

  Galitz added her own more colorful profanity.

  “What is it?” asked Tosh.

  Galitz pointed at one of the few glowing objects on the bridge, a cellphone displaying a map. “We’ve been pushed off course. We’re about to cross into Cuban waters.”

  Tosh’s chest tightened. “Have we sent out a mayday?”

  “We can’t. We were in the middle of a dark mode test when everything shorted out. We have no outgoing communications.”

  “Captain, we can’t let this boat fall into enemy hands.”

  She glared at him. “You don’t think I know that?” She drew a calming breath. “Jake and Kathryn are working on the engine. I need you two in the lab. Disable the test so we can send out a distress signal. If you can’t, destroy everything.”

  Tosh’s eyes widened. “It’s that bad?”

  Galitz nodded. “It’s that bad. Destroy everything, then check on Jake and Kathryn, see if you can help them. “

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  Tosh headed back down into the bowels of the vessel, Mowery on his heels, the violent rocking slowing their progress. They reached the door to the lab, the security pad still glowing, the lab’s power source independent. He entered his code and the door hissed. He pushed it open and stepped inside, frowning at what greeted them. The room was nearly pitch black, the systems inside mostly powered down for the test designed to make certain they weren’t emitting any signals whatsoever. Typically, two techs would be in the lab, with two on the bridge attempting to pick up any stray transmissions from the gear at various levels of activity. In this case, it appeared they had been in a full dark mode test when the engines failed. Jake and then Kathryn, who would have been conducting the test, must have gone to see what was wrong.

  Tosh pointed toward one of the workstations. “See if you can disable the test.”

  Mowery dropped into the chair bolted to the deck. “On it.”

  The boat tipped hard to starboard and Tosh cursed as he was tossed violently against the bulkhead, his head smashing against the solid surface as the vessel capsized. He fell onto the ceiling and heard Mowery emit a split-second yelp. He struggled toward him, but his head was spinning, the pain overwhelming, and though he fought it with every ounce of strength he had, the effort proved too much, and he blacked out.

  2 |

  Leif Morrison’s Office, CIA Headquarters Langley, Virginia

  CIA Analyst Supervisor Chris Leroux entered his boss’ office. Leif Morrison, the National Clandestine Service Chief for the CIA, sat behind his desk, appearing ragged and worn. He indicated for Leroux to take a seat. He did, then regarded his boss, a frown creasing his face.

  “You don’t look too good, sir. Maybe you should take a few more days before coming back.”

  Morrison shook his head. “Too much is going on for this section to not have its chief or deputy chief.”

  “Sir, you were shot four times. You need to think about yourself first.”

  Morrison held up two fingers. “Only two made it through the vest.”

  Leroux grunted. “Two were almost enough.”

  “Almost, but I guess someone upstairs has more plans for me on this mortal coil.”

  Leroux chuckled. “Thank God for that.”

  Morrison flashed a grin. “I think I just did. But you’re right. I’m handing this one off to you. I’m too beat.”

  “What’s the situation?”

  “We’ve lost communications with one of our sea-based testing platforms.”

  “How long ago?”

  “Last official contact was just before midnight, and due to the nature of their testing, they were expected to be offline for several hours. Nobody got concerned until about three hours ago.”

  Leroux leaned to the side, resting his elbow on the arm of the chair. “Why has this been assigned to us? Shouldn’t that be like Coast Guard or Navy?”

  “No, this one’s different. This is a testing platform for our latest tech.”

  “Oh. Where was she when she was lost?”

  “In international waters, about fifteen miles off the coast of Cuba.”

  Leroux’s eyes narrowed. “Isn’t there a hurricane in that area?”

  “There is. A category two. They were just on the edge of it.”

  “Shouldn’t they have left the area?”

  “The briefing I received indicated their mission guidelines were to evaluate the equipment in harsh conditions, but not put the crew at risk. I read the file on the captain and she’s good with a lot of experience. I can’t see her intentionally risking her crew, so something must have gone wrong.”

  Leroux pursed his lips. “What do you want me to do?”

  “Have your team start monitoring for any transmissions in the area, any indication that the Cubans have found them. That equipment is state of the art. We can’t risk it falling into Cuban hands because the moment they have it, they’ll be selling it to the Russians or the Chinese.”

  Leroux grunted. “Or both.”

  “You’re right. Or both. We need to find that boat, and if it has fallen into the wrong hands, get a team in there to get our people out and destroy whatever the Cubans might have found. I’ve sent all the intel we have to your secure directory. This is now your team’s number one priority.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  Morrison’s face paled and his arm slipped off his chair, sending him slumping to his side. Leroux leaped up and rushed around the desk, p
roviding a steadying hand. “Sir, are you okay?”

  Morrison groaned and Leroux jabbed the button on the phone for the Chief’s aide.

  It was answered on the first ring. “Yes, sir?”

  “We’ve got a medical emergency in here. Get help for the Chief immediately.”

  “Calling now, sir.”

  The aide hung up as Morrison stirred. Leroux grabbed a bottle of water sitting on the desk then cursed, finding it empty. The door to the office opened and he glanced over his shoulder to see the aide standing there.

  “Help is on the way.”

  “Get me some water.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  She reappeared a moment later with a half-full bottle. “Give him mine. I’ll have somebody get more.”

  Leroux handed her the empty bottle. “Just go refill this in the bathroom.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  She disappeared as Leroux pressed the bottle to Morrison’s lips. He took several sips and came around a little.

  “Drink some more, sir.”

  Morrison didn’t protest, taking several more sips, then gripped the bottle himself and downed the rest of it. Color returned to his cheeks and he straightened himself in his chair. Three quick raps at the door then it burst open, two medics rushing in, followed by the aide. Morrison held up a hand.

  “I’m okay now. You’re not needed.”

  Both of the medics ignored the patient and instead looked at Leroux.

  “He fainted. You’re aware of his recent medical history?”

  “Yes, sir. We’ve been briefed.”

  “Then ignore him and check him over.”

  “I don’t think that’s necessary,” protested Morrison.

  “Sir, you were shot four times.”

  Morrison held up a weak hand with two fingers. “Only two made it through.” But there was no grin this time.

  “Sir, you’re back too soon. Let them check you over, and if you’re okay, go home. At least work from there or cut back your hours. Do something to give yourself a chance to recover. You’ve got a lot of competent people here. Let them run things until you’re ready.”