Read Veil of Civility: A Black Shuck Thriller (Declan McIver Series) for Free Online

C.O.?"
    Terry nodded. "Yeah, that'll do."
    "Thank you, sir," Declan said, as he stood and shook hands with the inspector again. "Let me give you one of my cards. My cell number is on there if you run into anymore issues."
    Terry took the card and withdrew one of his own from his pocket. "I'll be by for a final inspection when you're done remodeling," he said, handing his card over.
    Declan nodded and followed the building inspector up the basement steps. As the man left the house and closed the front door behind him, Declan turned and looked into the kitchen. Constance sat uncomfortably on an upturned five gallon bucket, with Regan and Dex standing nearby, Regan grinning ear to ear as he attempted to position himself at just the right angle to get a view down her shirt. Declan grinned as she flashed Regan an annoyed look and pulled her jacket closed.
    "You about ready, then?" Declan asked.
    Constance jumped to her feet and said, “Yes, very much so."
    "Dex, good work man," Declan said, as he opened the door for his wife. "I'll be round Monday to help you secure the back deck. Regan, try not to bring the entire city council down on us in the meantime, will you?"
    Regan grumbled a response as Declan closed the door.
    "You're fired," Constance mouthed inaudibly from outside the house.
    Declan flashed a smile. "He works cheap," he said, as he put his arm around her and led her back to the car. "Let's get to the hotel and get checked in."

 
     

Chapter Five
     
     
    6:02 p.m. Eastern Time – Friday
    C.H. Barton Center – Liberty University
    Lynchburg, Virginia
     
    By six o'clock a light rain had begun to fall. Arriving at the campus, Declan followed the directions of the orange-vested parking attendants and pulled into a spot just big enough for his wife's sports car. They'd chosen to drive her car rather than his truck for that exact reason. College campuses weren't known for spacious parking and the crowd expected for the night's event would exacerbate the problem.
    Opening the door and exiting the vehicle, he looked south along Candler's Mountain Road. He could tell security was tight, just as he had expected it would be. White SUVs with flashing LED lights blocked entrances and men in navy blue security uniforms stood at the edges of every sidewalk, .40 caliber Glock sidearms visible on their hips. Opening the door for his wife, he waited as she stepped out of the car.
    In the distance the indignant shouts of a group of protestors could be heard from a sidewalk just beyond the Campus limits, but in full view of the arriving guests. Some things haven't changed, thought Declan. Like many others who vocally supported America and Israel from their platforms as authors and speakers, Abaddon Kafni was a target of constant protests. Signs reading Free Palestine and Occupation Is A Crime were waved defiantly in the air as chants of “Stop Israeli aggression!” were shouted loudly at anyone who came within fifty yards of the group. The people taking part in the protest were likely the same ones who would protest the appearance of war veterans, members of a Republican administration and conservative personalities, all of whom frequently appeared at the university's many venues.
    "Does Kafni always travel with this much security?" Constance asked, as they wormed their way between parked cars towards the path leading to the front entrance.
    "No, I don't think so," Declan answered. "At least he never used to. There are a lot of other guests tonight in addition to Kafni; senators, congressmen, probably some ambassadors as well. No one wants to miss a photo-op."
    "Always the pessimist," she said, rolling her big green eyes towards him and grabbing his hand.
    "I prefer the term 'realist' when it comes to politicians," he said, pulling her closer as they walked.
    Ahead of them the newly constructed C.H. Barton Center for International Relations and Politics stood separated from the main campus by the four lanes of Route 460. Nestled