Dan Decker Books

Dark Spectrum - Episode 8

This week’s episode features a chapter from Dark Spectrum, Jake Ramsey Book #2, the first book Black Brick is available as a free ebook from most ebook vendors. Here is an excerpt from the show:
“SIR,” SAM SAID, HIS back straight and his eyes wary, “we cannot work with this man.” His face was red. He still held the knife with the blade pointed at me.
“He’s not the terrorist he’s made out to be,” Reed said. “You’re making me regret I brought you tonight.” 
“If word gets out—”
“And how would that happen?” Reed’s voice was cold. He clasped his hands in front of him, staring straight at Sam. While Sam was bulkier, Reed was a head taller. “Would you be the leak? No one from my leadership team will say a word. I’ve tried each of them. They won’t go against me.”
Sam looked away and muttered something I didn’t catch. I was surprised Reed let his men speak so openly.
I assumed he meant the DataRader leadership team but perhaps he was referring to something else. It was becoming apparent Reed ran a criminal organization of some sort. It was a safe bet to assume those who had been here tonight worked for both.
The argument had distracted me from attacking Sam. I wasn’t going to leave the man unbloodied if I could help it. An eye for an eye. Wasn’t that what the Bible taught? I thought of Sister Bautista and imagined her frowning.
She had condemned the idea of an eye for an eye.
Her lofty principles might have worked for her. They may have even worked for me if I hadn’t been brought up by a criminal and set on a pathway of wanton destruction. 
 “This won’t work—”
“Quiet, Sam. I’ve had enough of your insubordination.”
Sam clapped his mouth shut. His free hand rested on his pistol but he made no move to pull it out. 

Dark Spectrum - Episode 7

This week’s episode features a chapter from Dark Spectrum, Jake Ramsey Book #2, the first book Black Brick is available as a free ebook from most ebook vendors. Here is an excerpt from the show:
THE BODYGUARDS TENSED when they saw Reed’s snub-nosed pistol. Judging by their surprise, they hadn’t known he carried a gun. As I processed the moment, a single bead of sweat trickled down my face and into my mouth. It tasted like blood, which turned my stomach. Always had, always would. I didn’t enjoy rare steak or even sushi.
Reed appeared to be enjoying himself, he smirked when he noticed his guard’s faces. Bulbous Nose frowned and opened his mouth but didn’t get out a word because Reed spoke first.
“I now have your attention, Mr. Ramsey.” He motioned with his pistol and I saw it was a Smith & Wesson. “I’m not planning to hurt you but I’m not afraid to do so.” He paused for emphasis and smiled without emotion. “I’ll shoot you myself. If you stop acting foolishly, I’ll put this away so we can continue our pleasant conversation.”
Bulbous Nose sneered at me with teeth that were in desperate need of flossing. The guard I’d headbutted had his hand to his nose, trying to stop the flow of blood. The fingers I’d bit were wrapped around the butt of his pistol. His eyes were slits and his face was a scowl. The other guard made a placating gesture he just shrugged off.
Judging by the way the injured guard looked at me, he’d killed before and would do so again. Unless I found a way to free myself, I wasn’t getting out of here alive.
I twisted my hand but there wasn’t any more slack than what had been there before. I put the fingers of both hands together and pushed, trying to spread apart my wrists. For a moment, it felt as if I was making progress and might free a hand, but then it was gone and my wrists would move no further.

Dark Spectrum - Episode 6

This week’s episode features a chapter from Dark Spectrum, Jake Ramsey Book #2, the first book Black Brick is available as a free ebook from most ebook vendors. Here is an excerpt from the show:
I GROWLED UNDER MY breath and clenched my hands. The smug look of satisfaction on Bulbous Nose’s face made me want to break his nose. 
Call a man a terrorist enough, and you made him want to become one. Perhaps that was what this was all about. They were hoping to provoke me into doing something rash.
Was this Peck, after all, playing a game to trick me into doing his bidding? Was he trying to make me angry and then planning set me loose to see what damage I would do? 
A mixture of water and makeup dripped onto my shirt. Gasps of realization came from those in the crowd. Some nodded their heads as they took me in. Others looked on in fear. Somebody said they should give me to the police, I didn’t see who.
I couldn’t get past the fear on most of their faces. Apparently, Bulbous Nose was one of the few who hadn’t bought into the reputation Peck had crafted for me.
Twisting my hand again, I tried to free it from the loosened rope but was unable to make any headway. And even if I did free a hand, my arms were still bound to the wooden chair. My feet and legs were free but I could do nothing with so many people watching my every move.
I continued to work at my bonds, hoping the ugly doll was the only thing that they could see it. The rope chafed my skin but I persisted. I moved the other hand as well, hoping that loosening one would loosen the other but I had no such luck. Whoever had tied the rope had done a thorough job.   

Dark Spectrum - Episode 5

This week’s episode features a chapter from Dark Spectrum, Jake Ramsey Book #2, the first book Black Brick is available as a free ebook from most ebook vendors. Here is an excerpt from the show: 
WHEN I CAME TO, I wondered if there was something to my last thought of slipping away to the other side. I couldn’t see and my body wasn’t responding.
The thought left as my grogginess faded. I became aware I had something covering my head. My hands and arms were bound behind my back to what felt like the back of a chair.
The coarse rope chafed my wrists. I fidgeted in my bonds, testing for slack. There was none. I continued to move but kept my movements small so they would go unnoticed. If I worked at it enough, I might loosen something. 
My nose itched and I could do nothing about it.
Judging by all the fibers sticking into my face, I figured I had a burlap sack over my head. I was either in a dark room or something else had been put over the top to keep light from shining through the rough fabric. Sweat trickled into my eyes and when I inhaled, the air was warm and moist.
I wanted nothing more than to rub my nose but I had no way of reaching it. I twisted my head, hoping to find a less itchy position, but the sack came in closer and I itched all the more.
Growling so only I could hear, I pushed out my lower lip and blew, hoping to move the fabric. It didn’t do any good.
Voices came from nearby. The sack muffled the sound such that I was unable to make out what they were saying.
It had to be Peck and my former Black Brick teammates. Who else could have tracked me?

Dark Spectrum - Episode 4

This week’s episode features a chapter from Dark Spectrum, Jake Ramsey Book #2, the first book Black Brick is available as a free ebook from most ebook vendors. Here is an excerpt from the show:
I WORKED MY WAY through the crowd, spotting a woman as she helped a man sit on the building steps. Neither seemed to care they were right below where the bomb had gone off or that large chunks of debris had fallen on all sides of where they sat. The woman had kicked away a broken brick so the man could sit.
Cursing, I closed the distance.
A twisted piece of metal jutted out of the man’s side. His hands were wrapped around it, trying to keep it from doing any further damage. It was gnarled and I doubted he could just pull it out. Blood trickled down his side and onto the step.
“Help!” cried the woman. It was the same voice I’d heard before. Even as she spoke, I was already closing in on them.
“You need to move,” I said gruffly, conscious of the risk I was taking by speaking aloud. I gritted my teeth. I wouldn’t leave until they were safe, whatever Peck did to me.
The woman looked up. “What did you say?”
I pointed at the roaring flames ten stories above us.
“Move!” It was hard to distort my voice as I yelled at the top of my lungs to be heard over the crowd.
They likely both had phones in their pockets. I shook my head in frustration, the hair on the back of my neck was beginning to stand on end. The drone was still overhead. Was it just my imagination or was it lower?
I refused to look up.

Dark Spectrum - Episode 3

This week’s episode features a chapter from Dark Spectrum, Jake Ramsey Book #2, the first book Black Brick is available as a free ebook from most ebook vendors. Here is an excerpt from the show: 
I GRIPPED THE BUTT of my pistol but didn’t pull it out. I tried to not think about the man’s family and those who would mourn his death. Fear seeped into my bones as I approached the van. Using my elbow, I pushed the half-open door until it was fully ajar and examined the cab but found nothing of use.
An empty candy bar wrapper was on the floor, along with some dirt. Perhaps the police could use it to determine something about who’d done this, but that didn’t help me. 
The back of the van looked empty but I still went around to the rear. Using the top of my hand to avoid fingerprints, I opened the back door. The van didn’t have any seats other than up front. The back was indeed empty. I’d expected to find a bomb.   
What was going on?
It might have been a terrorist attack for just the purpose of stoking fear but I was having a hard time believing it.
No, this was about something else.
Why had they blocked the pedestrian traffic? Now that everybody was free, did they not care any longer? If their goal had just been to stoke fear by creating death and mayhem, they’d had a rich target pool when everybody had been jammed in together. Their moment of opportunity had passed.
As I studied the scene, I noticed another van had been abandoned in the middle of a crosswalk on the other side from where the explosion had happened. It hadn’t blocked traffic as thoroughly as had the first, but it had created an obstacle.
It had all been a trap, but I didn’t see anybody who looked like they were planning to do any more harm.

Dark Spectrum - Episode 2

 
This week’s episode features a chapter from Dark Spectrum, Jake Ramsey Book #2, the first book Black Brick is available as a free ebook from most ebook vendors. Here is an excerpt from the show:
I OPENED MY MOUTH to yell a warning but the words died on my lips. I flinched as the truck driver slammed the brakes and honked the horn, his reactions coming a second or two after he’d hit the man. The poor man had been shoved into his car door, ripping it off. Both went flying as the truck came to a stop.
I wasn’t quick enough, I thought, averting my eyes from the carnage. From what I’d seen of the man’s landing, I doubted he’d live. The turmoil around me covered up almost every sound associated with the accident but I was still able to hear bones crunch as he landed on the asphalt.   
Guilt welled up in my chest, but I didn’t allow it to take hold. I hoped I hadn’t spoken because there hadn’t been enough time. If it was my subconscious trying to keep me out of trouble…
I pushed away the thought. I’d spoken no fewer than three times in the last minute, each time without regard for the consequences. It was impossible to keep quiet in a situation like this. Human dignity required I speak up to help people.
If Spectrum picked up my words and Diggon sent their response teams after me, so be it.
I wasn’t going to let Peck and Diggon control how I responded, not when people were in danger. I fixed the thought in mind as I decided what to do next. In the space of five seconds, two men had been hit. The images of both accidents hung in my mind like the aftereffect of a bright light.
I looked back at the van, still expecting something more to come from it. A bomb, armed men, something. Nothing did.

Dark Spectrum - Episode 1

 
This week’s episode features a chapter from Dark Spectrum, Jake Ramsey Book #2, the first book Black Brick is available as a free ebook from most ebook vendors. Here is the book description:
Jake Ramsey has lost everything. His job. His life. His sense of self. He can’t go outside unless he wears a disguise and even if he does all that, he is afraid to speak, fearing his location will be detected.
When Jake finds himself engulfed in the middle of a terrorist attack, it isn’t long before he suspects it is connected to him.
Somebody knows Jake is in the area and is setting him up to take the fall.
As Jake digs deeper, he becomes concerned that children have been kidnapped by the man behind the terrorist attack. The way becomes harder as he gets closer to the truth, facing decisions of life and death. If you enjoy thrillers with twists and turns, this book is for you. Pick up your copy today!
 
Here is an excerpt from the show:
THE WOMAN’S SMILE CAUGHT me off guard, and my heart froze in my chest, distracting me from the buzzing sound I’d heard overhead. Her blonde hair reminded me of Shannon; even though I couldn’t remember the last time I’d seen Shannon smile like that.
“Hey,” I said before I could stop myself. Her grin widened, but she moved past without stopping as my feet came to a standstill of their own accord.
Foolish! I thought, wishing I’d just kept my mouth shut. How many nearby smartphones had picked it up? I turned to see if she’d stopped too, but she’d continued right on past. A man grumbled as he darted around me but I ignored him.
My heart pounded in my chest. I wanted to chase down the woman, but knew I couldn’t. I was wearing a disguise. Even if I was looking to meet somebody that was no way to do it.
She disappeared into the crowd. I lingered for a moment but didn’t spot her again.
A van lurched up onto the sidewalk, mowing over people and sending them flying. A man was pushed into the wall of a building, securing him between the vehicle and the bricks.
I darted forward, my hand in my messenger bag, searching for my pistol. I didn’t make it far.
An explosion shook the ground and almost knocked me off my feet. I grabbed a nearby light pole to steady myself as I looked behind me. Flames came out the side of the upper part of an office building. Shrapnel and glass fell towards us.
Screams came next as people rushed back from the building, which was a difficult thing to do considering all the foot traffic and cars on the road. Panic surged as they couldn’t get out of the way of the falling debris.
People rushed towards me, looking to fight their way past. Several made it around me before the gaps closed and there was no place for them to go.
The world seemed to slow as I took in the scene. Trying to process it. Trying to figure out what this had to do with me. I looked back at the van but couldn’t see it from my crouched position by the light pole. I straightened, straining for a view of what was happening with the van but couldn’t make anything out.
My hand wrapped around the butt of my pistol but I didn’t pull it out. I didn’t need somebody to see me with it and assume I was responsible for what was happening.
I’d take it out if I had a target, not before.
Peck is setting me up again, I thought as I pulled out my burner phone and dialed 911.