THE WAVE: A John Decker Thriller

Praise for
THE WAVE
–
A John Decker Thriller

Kirkus
said,
“
Sandom’s strength lies in the verve of his story, with writing that has both muscle . . . (and) brains . . . Races from improbable to crazywild, all in good fun, with Sandom always one step ahead . . . A story with enough manic energy to be worthy of a nuclear explosion.”

Praise for
The God Machine

Caroline Thompson (author of
Edward Scissorhands
) said, “Move over, Dan Brown . . . All hail J.G. Sandom . . . (
The God Machine
) is a thrilling and breathless, rapturously-written and mind-blowing read. It’ll keep you up all night, turning pages as fast as your little fingers can manage.”
BookPage
said, “Sandom has a knack for combining legendary gospels, ancient secrets, star-crossed lovers and Masonic puzzles to create a simmering stew of conspiracy, intrigue and danger that keeps the plot pot boiling until the very end.” And the
Historical Novels Review
said, “History galore, violence, and intrigue fill the pages of this tightly plotted, twisting and turning adventure story . . . A very impressive historical thriller!”

Praise for
Gospel Truths

Library Journal
said, “By turns contemplative, descriptive, and emotive, this mixture of mystery and intrigue reveals intense preparation and fine writing.”
Booklist
called
Gospel Truths
, “A splendid, tautly woven thriller . . . (and) an intelligent mystery of tremendous spiritual and literary depth.” And
Mostly Murder
called it, “A fascinating mystery . . . captivating and engrossing.”

Praise for
The Hunting Club

Scott Turow (author of
Presumed Innocent
and
Ordinary Heroes
) called
The Hunting Club
, “A gripping story, well told . . . Not only a tale of murder and betrayal, but an intelligent exploration of issues of male identity.”
Kirkus
termed it, “Slickly entertaining, right down to the last, inevitable twist.” And
Booklist
said, “Sandom writes with stunning elegance and nearly poetic beauty . . . A sure hit with any suspense reader.”

Written under Pen Name T.K. Welsh

Praise for
Resurrection Men

Previously named a Junior Library Guild selection,
Publishers Weekly
called
Resurrection Men
, “A haunting tour of London's underclass during the 1830s . . . Teens will likely be both captivated by Victor's harrowing story as well as his ability to prevail in the face of harsh injustices.”
VOYA
said, “Teen readers will thoroughly enjoy the hair-raising suspense in this historical thriller.”
KLIATT
said, “Like M.T. Anderson's
The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing
, this look at sinister events in history makes the era come alive and lingers in the memory." And
School Library Journal
said, “Part historical fiction and part adventure story, the novel brings excitement to Victorian England . . . Readers will be on the edge of their seats.”

Praise for
The Unresolved

Ranked one of the Top Ten Children's Books by the
Washington Post
,
THE UNRESOLVED
was named an Association of Jewish Libraries
Notable Book for Teens
by the Sydney Taylor Book Award Committee, nominated for a Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA)
Teen's Top Ten
, a
Cybils
literary award, and one of only a handful of books selected as a
Best Books for Young Adults
(BBYA), by the American Library Association (ALA).  Most recently, the novel was added to
Horn Book
's
list of Recommended American Historical Fiction.
The Washington Post
said, “Welsh writes with a precision and delicacy unusual for YA fiction . . . a subtle gem (of a book).” In its starred review,
School Library Journal
said, “
The Unresolved
tells a remarkable story in a remarkable way."
Horn Book Magazine
called
The Unresolved
, “A decidedly unconventional ghost story . . . (and) a tightly wound novel.”
Midwest Book Review
called the novel, “a wonderfully different kind of ghost story.” And Bookslut.com said, “
The Unresolved
scores on several levels, most notably as a drama that blows apart all preconceived notions of how history can be retold.”

Also by J.G. Sandom:

T
he Seed of Icarus
(under pen name T.K. Welsh)

T
he Blue Men

Gospel Truths

The Hunting Club

The Publicist

The Unresolved
(under pen name T.K. Welsh)

Resurrection Men
(under pen name T.K. Welsh)

THE WAVE -- A J
ohn Decker Thriller

The God Machine

THE WAVE

A John Decker Thriller

J.G. Sandom

All of the characters in this book are fictitious, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

Copyright © 2007, 2010 by J. G. Sandom

All Rights Reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, or the facilitation thereof, including information storage and retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the author, except by a reviewer, who may quote brief passages in a review. Any members of educational institutions wishing to photocopy part or all of the work for classroom use, or publishers who would like to obtain permission to include the work in an anthology, should send their inquiries to [email protected].

Published by:

CORNUCOPIA PRESS

Philadelphia

Printed in the United States of America

June 9, 2010

THIRD EDITION

ISBN: 1452839239

EAN-13: 978-1-452-83923-3

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3

Acknowledgements

The following individuals not only provided me with assistance in the creation of this book, but they were – and remain – a great source of inspiration: my readers, Sylvana Joseph and James Wynbrandt; the journalist Juan Antonio Hervada, for his insights on the wars in Lebanon; Mark Douglas Thompson, whose technical expertise concerning computer systems remains unparalleled; Dr. James L. Olds, Director of the Krasnow Institute and fellow Amherst College graduate, for his broad-ranging scientific insights and knowledge of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute; Carl and Vanessa, in whose pool house much of
The Wave
was originally conceived and written; and my daughter, Olivia, for her patience and fortitude. To all these individuals, and to the countless others who have helped me on my way, I am forever grateful.

J. G. Sandom

May 2010

For Olivia,

who sweeps my heart away each day.

The gods visit the sins of the fathers upon the children.

EURIPIDES,
Phrixus
[fragment]

PROLOGUE

November 26 – 11:26 AM

Bimini
, The Bahamas

Dr. James White had brought his wife to the Bahamas as soon as they had learned that she had cancer. Fifty-five yet spry, with short gray hair and sporting a navy one-piece bathing suit, Doris sat in a deck chair on the private beach reading yet another murder mystery. Dr. White watched her out of the corner of his eye and sighed. A great sorrow filled his heart but he only smiled when she turned and asked him, “Why don’t you just get the hell out of here, James? You look bored to death.”

“Not at all,” he lied. He pretended to read the manuscript on his lap. It was a treatise on subduction written by one of his graduate students back at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute in Massachusetts. “I’m having a great time,” he continued. “Want another iced tea?”

Doris scowled. “We’ve been married for twenty-three years, James. Don’t you think I know when you’re miserable? For God’s sake, why don’t you go for a swim? Take a walk. Hunt seashells. Go for a drive in that silly little Moke you rented. Do something! If I hear you sigh like that one more time I’m going to shoot myself before the crab gets me.”

“That isn’t funny, dear,” he said. He dropped the manuscript on his lap.

“It wasn’t meant to be.” She reached out and took him by the hand. “Honestly, James. I’m fine here by myself. And if I need anything, I’ll just ask Harvey.” She glanced over at the muscular black man in a starched white uniform beside the swimming pool bar. “He’s better looking than you ever were.”

Dr. White laughed. Then he stood and stretched, looking at his wife the whole time. She was still beautiful, even after all these years. In a month or two she would be bald. After the chemotherapy. But she’d still be beautiful to him. He tried to smile, chiding himself for all the time he’d spent away from her on field trips, or lecturing at foreign universities and symposia. He’d been in the Canary Islands two months earlier, working on his book, when she had telephoned and told him to come home. They had found a lump under her left armpit. That had been the harbinger. The first sign of impending doom. The omen. “I think I’ll take a drive then, head over into town,” he said. “Do you want me to get you anything?”

She smiled and it occurred to him that it was this that had made him fall in love with her, in graduate school, over twenty-five years earlier. Her smile was devastating. He could still feel his heart throb every time he saw it.

“Another bottle of rum would be nice,” she said. “The dark one we had yesterday.”

She was drinking like a fish, but there was little point in arguing. “Alright,” he answered, as he slipped on his Hawaiian shirt and sandals. “I’ll see you in an hour or so for lunch, back at the hotel. Save some lobster for me.” With that he turned and trudged back up the beach.

It took him only a few minutes to dress in the bedroom of their bungalow overlooking the Atlantic. The hotel was expensive but he didn’t care. Nothing mattered now but his wife’s happiness and comfort. And she had grown up wealthy on Cape Cod. She was used to the finer things in life. He checked himself in the mirror – trying to ignore the distended belly, the balding head, the wrinkles around his eyes – and, with another sigh, dashed through the door.