Bryson McGann sets off in a life and death race against time through the Caribbean basin, Central America, and finally on to Singapore in attempt to save his friend's abducted sister, Roni Canton. For Roni, death would be a welcomed relief in this fast paced thriller.
Sara Jennings, a young Miami attorney, has booked passage aboard the Imperial Star, sailing on a luxury cruise around the Caribbean. She hopes the trip will help bury painful memories of the recent past. Nearing the end of the cruise, a chance meet with Todd Merritt leaves her unexpectedly attracted and involved. In the early morning hours, Sara and Todd are awakened by a knock upon her stateroom door. A ship’s steward insists they follow him, at the urgent behest of the Imperial Star’s captain. For the young lovers, things go terribly wrong. Todd Merritt is murdered. Sara Jennings is thrown overboard into the black waters of the Gulf of Mexico, Struggling valiantly, Sara Jennings battles to save her life. What started out as a cruise to help her forget, ends up in a voyage with shattering consequences.
NESSA’s Bryson McGann, Director Randall Sumner, and Mote Marine Research Scientist, Jesse Perkins, are plying the southern waters of the Gulf of Mexico, They have embarked on a research project - a joint venture with the Florida based marine laboratory - in hopes of drawing attention to problems facing island nations in the Caribbean basin. After their first dive at Pulley Ridge, McGann notices something in a digital photograph that leaves him questioning the unusual image. A second dive on the deepwater reef brings him face to face with a gruesome discovery. Trapped inside the wheelhouse of a sunken vessel is a carbon copy of Roni Canton. McGann is unable to shake the image of the astounding resemblance to the sister of lifelong friend, Joe “T.C.” Canton. The circumstances surrounding the woman’s grim death opens the door on a global network - its unspeakable acts hidden from the eyes of the world.
Roni Canton, and fiancé, Dan Jameson, are on holiday in Trinidad. Their plans of picking up her brother at Piarco Airport never materialize. Canton’s concerns push him to enlist the aid of the hotel’s investigator who seemingly can find no trace of Roni’s whereabouts. Through twisted ties, McGann and Canton meet international businessman, Argan Vance. The man leaves both men unsettled, and wary of his supposed intentions.
As they begin to untangle the complex threads woven into the mysterious disappearance, their journey carries them at break-neck speed across the Caribbean and into Central America. A reluctant CIA agent from McGann’s past, Reece Weber, and a Special-Ops team, come to assist in the quest to track down the missing woman. McGann and the others find themselves caught up in a raging gun battle, as a howling gale rips across the deck of the Sunya Maru, When morning breaks, the survivors learn the terrible reality of Roni’s fate.
Together McGann and Canton rush headlong in a last ditch effort to Singapore, hoping to save Roni from a destiny worse than death. But for Joe Canton’s sister, it may already be too late. A riveting ride awaits within the pages of the third Bryson McGann novel. CARIBBEAN AGENDA’s fast-paced action will leave the reader’s heart pounding with precisely what William Beck aficionados have come to expect.
Excerpt
A haunting loneliness pervaded the confines of the bridge’s interior. Pieces of equipment were strewn about the deck. A small grouper swam idly through the beam of his light, taking little notice of the intruder.
Out of the corner of his eye, something caught McGann’s attention. Turning, he let the powerful beam sweep the interior. The shock plowed into him, etching itself onto his face. His pulse galloped inside his chest. The effects of his own adrenaline’s burning tingle coursed through him. McGann was completely startled by the unexpected ghostly apparition. Reactively, he pushed away. Finally his breathing slowed, and he calmed himself. McGann was no stranger to death, but the sight was completely unexpected.
The corpse of a young woman floated in the water before him. Lifeless eyes stood wide apart, defiant of the bright light shining in her face. Her mouth was open as if silently calling for help. Whoever this was had been a pretty girl. McGann panned the light across her body. Dark hair. Skin pallid. And wrinkled from extended submersion. A couple of expensive rings sat on her fingers. Neither gave an indication that she was engaged or married. A Rolex was clasped on her left wrist. The only clothing she wore were a pair of navy blue gym shorts and a white T shirt. The material sported a Charlie’s logo. Cozumel.
McGann eyed her curiously, noting every detail. The similarity to the sister of life long friend, Joe Canton, was striking. This girl could have easily passed as her twin. Not until he conducted a closer inspection could he discern the minor differences.
McGann continued the scrutiny, passing the beam down her legs. No shoes. Her right ankle was wrapped tightly in an electrical cord. It had obviously prevented her from escaping the doomed vessel when it sank.
McGann moved away from the dead woman. Fortunately, there was no evidence of feeding by underwater inhabitants. They had not found her yet. He guessed she died somewhere in the last twenty-four hours. He searched the bridge for any indications of a struggle.
He came up empty on that thought.
There were no other clues to indicate why she had been aboard, and more importantly, why she died. Perhaps it was better. If she had survived, her chances of rescue in open water would have been odds not favored by the house.
The unexplained death of an attractive young woman at the bottom of Pulley Ridge held more than its share of mystery. The tragic consequences of how and why she died were a complicated riddle, something for the authorities to piece together. McGann brought the camera up, focusing on the body and snapped several pictures which he would present to the investigators.
McGann had seen enough of life to know that many times there were no simple solutions to perplexing problems. The whys and wherefores seldom gave up their hidden meanings easily. It was not her death that bothered him so much, but something in her distant stare. A foreboding coiled itself through his insides. Bryson McGann was afraid it would not let him go for a very long time.
Professional Reviews
Caribbean Agenda - Sun, Sand and Slavery?
By Dellani Oakes "Dellani Oakes" (USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Caribbean Agenda (The Bryson McGann Series) (Kindle Edition)
Bryson McGann is at it again in William Beck's third novel, "Caribbean Agenda". The NESSA Assistant Projects Director can't seem to stay out of trouble. But as always, McGann finds a way to defeat it.
A routine dive for an NESSA project in the Caribbean reveals a grisly secret--a dead woman who bears an uncanny resemblance to Roni Canton, younger sister of Bryson's best friend, Joe. When Roni suddenly disappears from her Trinidad hotel, Bryson knows something is terribly wrong. He and Joe travel to the island to find Roni and bring her home, little knowing where fate will lead them.
Argan Vance is a businessman, a very successful one. Rich and powerful, he maintains a patina of respectability. His real business is as vile as they come--human flesh--slavery. Vance traffics in the misfortunes of some to feed the perversions of others.
One of his best customers is Asian magnate, Liam Chen. Pock marked by acne, Chen is not a handsome man. He also has a medical condition which causes him to sweat profusely. In other words, not the kind of man girls fall for. Vance provides him with entertainment at a price, a profitable arrangement for both men.
Roni's trail leads them from Trinidad to Honduras, into Nicaragua and eventually to Singapore. Will their worldwide search prove successful? Or is Roni Canton another casualty of Vance's flesh mongering empire?
Bryson McGann and Joe Canton follow Roni's trail, leading then to Vance and Chen. What follows is mayhem as only the two NESSA men can serve it--hot and heavy with a side order of bullets. "Caribbean Agenda" is truly Beck at his best. I am, and remain, a Bryson McGann fan.
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