Excerpt from Primary Target by Joe Weber, plus links to reviews, author biography & more

"Why me?" he quietly asked himself, then allowed a thin smile to crease his face. "Skeeter, the President is waiting. I'm committed, unless you're dead set against it."

Jeffcoat took a deep breath and slowly let it out. "We can hack it, sir." Just concentrate on the mission.

With their pulse rates winding down, the two men remained quiet while the F-14 climbed through 54,400 feet, then accelerated to the "speed of heat" and leveled off at 54,000 feet. High above most of the other air traffic traversing the busy Gulf of Oman, the Mach 2.34 Tomcat was back in its environment. In less than fifteen minutes, they would be photographing the first of two recently constructed missile sites along the coast of Iran. Spacecraft imagery and electronic data indicated the new launch pads were equipped with Shahab-3 and Shahab-4 missiles.

According to dissidents in Tehran, the Shahab-3 could deliver 1650 pounds of explosives over 860 miles, allowing Iran to inflict severe damage to Jerusalem and to U.S. forces at bases in Turkey, Kuwait, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. A few Shahab-3s carrying anthrax could easily kill the majority of American troops in the Gulf region. More powerful, the Shahab-4 had the range to hit cities in Egypt.

With the assistance of Russian, North Korean, and Chinese engineers and technicians, a third generation of Iranian ballistic missiles was being manufactured at Hemat Missile Industries, which contains a production facility 30 feet underground.

The news had caused a mad scramble at the Pentagon, and frayed nerves at the White House and the State Department. Capable of reaching Paris or London, the state-of-the-art missiles were equipped with thermonuclear warheads.

Other Chinese and Russian advisers headquartered at the Shahid Bagheri Industrial Group in Tehran were in the final stages of developing a 6300-mile missile that could strike Washington, D.C., and New York City. The Iranian weapons of choice for the U.S. were terrorists to disperse anthrax, followed days later by missiles with thermonuclear warheads.

Jeffcoat punched the PLAY button on the small portable CD player he had modified to plug into his helmet. A few seconds later, the greatest hits of Hank Williams filtered through his earpads. Jeffcoat adjusted the volume while he listened to "Hey, Good Lookin'," then glanced at the horizon and tilted his head back.

The bluish dome of sky turned dark blue as his gaze traveled higher. Far below the spy plane, the sky was powder blue and filled with fluffy white clouds that resembled puffs of cotton candy randomly scattered about.

After studying the curvature of the earth for a few moments, Jeffcoat turned his attention to his instruments in an attempt to ease his growing anxiety. The increased pressure to accomplish this particular mission was subtle, but it was there. Jeffcoat closed his eyes and sighed. First the AWACS - now the DEF gear. What next? He unconsciously tapped his foot to the beat of the music. We're hangin' it out on this pass.

Mulling over the possibility of being attacked by the Iranians, Jeffcoat finally shrugged off his concern. He keyed his intercom. "What do'ya think, skipper, is the Commander in Chief about ready to teach the big shots in Tehran a lesson?"

"I wouldn't bet against it," Stockwell quietly chuckled. "Giving us a deadline to have out troops out of Sandland wasn't a stroke of diplomatic genius."

"Yeah," Jeffcoat said, "and now they're threatening to close the Strait of Hormuz if we don't get out by the deadline."

"It may come down to a shoot out." Stockwell paused while he glanced at the Persian Gulf and the coast of Iran. "They're sure-as-hell flaunting their muscle, trying to intimidate us."

"Not a smart idea," Jeffcoat declared.

"True, but you have to remember who you're dealing with." Stockwell made a slight heading adjustment. "After watching Bassam Shakhar threaten us on CNN, the President may want to give him and Tehran a demonstration of who really runs the show in the Gulf region."

Copyright Joe Weber 1999. All rights reserved.