Wired (32 page)

Graham looked in the side view mirror. Pemrose was clearly making his move. He was almost even with Adah Honi and would quickly
pass her. Graham only had moments to do something. But what?

Graham looked frantically around the car a second time. Nothing.

Pemrose was picking up speed. In seconds he would be within easy shooting distance.

Graham felt his stomach churn with a nauseous sensation. The unnerving awareness that his life was about to end chewed on
him. Death had always been a frightening specter and had grown worse since his mother's shooting. After he prayed with Matt
in his dormitory, his own demise no longer seemed such a foreboding possibility, but he still wasn't ready to go. He didn't
want to jeopardize the family. Yet, there wasn't anything he could do to save them.

Pemrose was moving up fast. The hood of his car remained only feet from Peck's bumper.

Nothing!
Nothing in the car would save him. Graham gripped the wheel fiercely. Maybe he should wake up the family. On the other hand,
maybe they would be better off asleep and unaware. Everyone had their seats belts tightened.

Pemrose was inching forward. The nose of his car was close to the back door of the Peck's car. Graham couldn't drive any faster
because Matt was in front of him.

“What do you want me to do, Dad?” Matt's voice echoed in his ear. “Should I pull over in his lane?”

“He's not after you, son. It's me Pemrose wants. You need to stay out of his way. Speed up and I'll try to get away from him,
but I'm sure his car can outrun us.”

Matt's hydro-coupe jumped forward and Graham hit the gas pedal, pulling ahead slightly, but he knew Pemrose would only speed
up. At that moment, he remembered the security protection piece Sarah Cates discovered in Pemrose's office and had given him.
Graham crammed his hand in his pocket and pulled out the golden circular device. He stared at it. A red button and a green
button stood out on the face of the strange instrument. But what difference did the buttons make anyway?

Pemrose's car was getting closer. Time was running out.

Graham glanced at the buttons without any idea of which one to push… or whether either one would do anything. His only conclusion
was that red meant danger more often than green did. Red might be a better gamble. No matter which one he pushed, it was throwing
the dice.

Pemrose's car steadily moved up. Obviously the man was about to attack. Graham glanced quickly and saw Jake with a gun in
his hand. In a second he'd be in position to fire. He couldn't miss.

Graham pushed the red button.

Jake's car pulled alongside. Pemrose leered at Graham and mouthed words that were muted behind the glass. His lips seemed
to say, “you're dead.” The side window slowly began rolling down. Pemrose started to raise his gun. At that moment Jake hesitated.
In the glow of Matthew's taillights, his face became completely visible. Pemrose's eyes abruptly widened in a strange stare.

Graham watched Pemrose's sarcastic grin turn into an unexpected shocked stare. The man's face twisted as if surprised by some
unexpected pain. His lips opened slightly and he grimaced. Suddenly his mouth dropped and Jake gagged.

Graham gripped the wheel frantically, trying to stay in his lane, but the look on Jake's face was so strange he had to look
again. Pemrose hadn't moved; he seemed frozen behind the wheel. A tiny trail of blood started running down his nose and over
his lip. Red blotches broke out on his cheeks. Pemrose's eyes again widened in terror.

Graham clutched the strange security device and looked back once more while he kept frantically punching the red button. Jake
slumped forward, his body covering the steering wheel. At that moment, Matt followed the curve in the road, turning slightly
to the right. Pemrose's car went straight ahead, flying over the culvert and crashing into a field filled with trees. A brilliant
orange explosion declared that Jake Pemrose had smashed into one of the large pines.

“Dad!” Matt shouted. “He's crashed!”

Graham took a deep breath. “He's gone, Matt. Mr. Big Time is dead.”

“Thank God! We're safe!”

“Safe?” Graham smiled. “Yes, I think that's a good word. The world may be falling apart, but God is going to take us through.
Keep rolling, son.”

Jackie abruptly pulled on Graham's arm. “What was that noise? Sounded like an explosion.” She rubbed her eyes. “Something's
wrong?”

“No!” Graham relaxed for the first time. “
Nothing
at all. Just a slight interruption, Jackie. You can go back to sleep. We're going to be fine.”

ONE FAMILY’S DESPERATE FIGHT FOR SURVIAL IN A TERRIFYING NEW WORLD

Millions disappear in an instant. Terrorist attacks, random killings, and unbridled lawlessness soon follow … while a ruthless police state maintains order through nanotechnology and constant electronic surveillance. In this time of crisis, Graham and Jackie Peck struggle to hold their family together—no easy task with their oldest son away, their skeptical teenage daughter doubting everything they tell her, and their two school-age boys oblivious to the dangers threatening them night and day.

When the government develops nanorobots capable of seeking out individuals it deems “subversive,” a radical group called the New Believers welcomes the Pecks into their midst. But are they the pious and loving friends they appear to be or a dangerous cult bent on furthering their own agenda in a world gone mad? Graham and Jackie must discover the truth, knowing that the fate of their family—and everyone on Earth—hangs in the balance.

And time is running out.

Once again, Robert L. Wise delivers a riveting read based on the issues and technology to today—and he events that could happen tomorrow…

WIRED

“WIRED is beautifully written … Robert Wise has been my favorite novelist for more than a decade, and I highly recommend this book.”—Paul Meier, M.D., founder of the nationwide chain of Meier clinics and author of seventy books