I Want Sam

I WANT SAM

A Novel by

Kenny Yao

Smashwords Edition

Also available in Print Edition

on your favorite online stores

Published by

Klyflyhigh

License Notes

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or locales is purely coincidental.

This work is a copyrighted property of the author, and may not be reproduced, copied and distributed in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, for commercial or non-commercial purposes.

ISBN: 9781310981982

Copyright © 2014 by Kenny Yao

All rights reserved

Acknowledgements

Above all, thank you God, again, for this wonderful blessing. I would like to thank and give credits to Keanu, my son, who gave me the idea to write this novel. To Achie Roxanne, who went through and edited my first draft. To my sons, for their unwavering support and love, to my Mom, Uncle Jerry, and my sister Lizanne for always being there for me. As usual, the mistakes are all mine. Thank you.

This novel goes to Keanu, my third son who will be a great chef in the very near future, for giving me the story and the inspiration to write this book. Thank you.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

one | GET SAM

two | MEET SAM

three | THE FOX

four | GO, SAM, GO

five | HOT WARD

six | WE WANT SAM

seven | ONE ON ONE

eight | SAVING SAM

nine | WELCOME JOHNNY TWO KNIVES

ten | RUN, SAM, RUN

eleven | DEFENDING SAM

twelve | THE SECRET OF HOT WARD

thirteen | I WANT SAM

fourteen | MEETING MR. GOLD

fifteen | THE WRATH OF THE DON

sixteen | TWO ON TWO

seventeen | DEAD MAN WALKING

OTHER TITLES BY KENNY YAO

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

1 | GET SAM

‘Alert! Hackers inside the State department files!’ Address is an unknown building number 88 Sixth Street, San Francisco, California. Proceed and arrest. Bring the hacker to the federal building in downtown San Francisco headquarters. ‘Red Alert!’ ‘Red Alert!’

White, did you hear that? Mr. Gold said over the phone.

Yes Sir, we’re on our way. We’re just two blocks away. White puffed as he ran and reported on the cellphone.

Mr. White stopped in his tracks and waited as the sirens and cars disappeared in every direction. Sir, looks like the Feds, cops and all the law enforcement agencies are here to party.

Hurry up, you fool! You need to get there first. Remember, you’re not even supposed to be there, much more take the kid. Go! Go! Mr. Gold ordered.

Sam stood up at once as soon as he saw D hit the ‘Enter’ key. Let’s go, D. Time to move.

Wait! Let me finish this. I can see the files already.

Leave it D. No time for that now. We need to go.

Shoot! She slammed her fist on the table. Okay, I just need to get some things we might need.

D dashed across the room and punched a painting hanging on the wall. The wall cracked and caved in, revealing a secret vault well hidden inside. Sam moved alongside her and watched with his mouth wide open. D took out 2 Glock 17s, a shoulder length Mafia-style double barreled sawed off shotgun, and a.22 long caliber Dillinger gun. She holstered the Glocks, swung the shotgun across her shoulder, and inserted the small Dillinger gun inside her underwear. Let’s go! She said as she picked up her Smartphone and her tablet PC.

2 | MEET SAM

Hi Dad, I’m home. Samson Ward announced, opening the door to their house as he got off his skateboard. Sam, as called by his friends at school, was like any normal teenage kid who loved computers, x-box, smart phones, and every gadget that has electronics in it.

 He opened the door slowly so as not to disturb his dad who works in the afternoons in his study at home. Dad?

Daaad! Sam yelled as he ran towards his father who was face down on the floor, blood oozing from the bullet wound on his back.

Hey, Dad! Talk to me! Sam cried as he turned his father on his back. Sirens wailed in the background as police cars approached their house.

Put your hands up! ordered the police officer who came crashing through the door.

≕≔

So you’re seventeen and a junior at National High? Detective Smith confirmed.

That’s right, Officer.

Where is your mother?, the police officer asked.

My Ma passed away two years ago with the …you know, cancer. Sam said pointing to his chest.

So you and just your dad lived together in this house?

Yes, Officer.

Any enemy or enemies you know of?

No. Dad was always the friendly type.

No enemy you can think of?

Nope! Not that I’m aware of cuz I’m always at school when Dad comes home in the afternoon.

Okay, the Coroner will take your dad to the morgue for an autopsy. Be sure to be ready whenever I need you. Understand?

Yes, Sir!

I’m leaving now; be sure to stay out of trouble. We’ll be helping you arrange for your dad’s funeral and burial, okay? Talk to you soon.

Detective Smith picked his coat up from the couch where he was seated in the living room of the Ward residence as he headed towards the door.

≕≔

Still in shock, Sam with no emotions stared at the detective leaving their house. Now left all alone, tears flowed down his cheeks as reality hit him. He let go. He released everything that was bottled inside him as he looked at the blood-stained carpet where his father was found dead. He let go of the pain, the misery, the loneliness, the fond memories, and of course the fear - the fear of being alone.

His eyes shifted to the laptop in the study where his father was always working. He stood up and with sad reality, Sam knew what to do. He went to the open study room where the police and the crime scene investigators were as they dusted for prints, looked for clues or other evidences. He approached the big oak desk and headed straight to the unlocked laptop. He then pressed the enter button. After a few seconds, the light on the screen turned on. He surmised that his father was using this before his death. And lo and behold! On the screen was something that he was not supposed to see! In that instant, he inserted a flash drive into the slot on the computer. Then he thought of his pretty nineteen-year-old girlfriend working at his high school as a Teacher Assistant, Delilah, a teacher by day and a world-class hacker whenever she sees fit. Finished, he took out the flash drive and put it inside his pants pocket. He dusted off his fingerprints with his handkerchief, left the laptop the way he found it, and headed out towards the door, leaving in a hurry.

Outside, he was met and stopped by a man who came up to him and asked for the flash drive. Sam, in a jam, wondered how did he discover it? Was there a CCTV inside the study room? His room? The whole house? While he thought of a way to get out of the situation, he said Wait. As he stooped down to pick up his skateboard and without thinking twice, he whacked the man on the face with the skateboard as he rode away.

3 | THE FOX

Delilah Fox, also known as D-fox in the underground world of electronic hacking, was a nineteen year old high school graduate from National High. This ‘fox or foxy chick’ as she learned was her monicker at school, never went to college in spite of the invitations she got from the top ten universities in the US. With an IQ of 175, she finished high school at sixteen. Aside from her academic accomplishments, she also excelled in sports. She was in the girls’ basketball team which won four straight championships in the state division with her twenty two points per game average. She was Rookie of the Year and Most Valuable Player as a freshman. She was also in the track and field team, in particular the triathlon, which garnered her four gold medals. Her best and most favorite sport, however, was the three-gun competition. She started her interest in guns by joining the annual US competition which rivaled her with the most badass guys in the tourney. She won the championship trophy in her first year of entering the competition. She took the three divisions - rifle, shotgun, and handgun - all in one competition. In her junior year, she became part of the US Olympic shooting team and came home with two gold and two silver medals. Her future was so bright until she met Sam, a freshman, who always looked like he would never get anything done right.

It was love at first sight for Sam who was watching way up high in the rafters of the Golden Gate stadium in downtown Oakland. The game was between the Nationals and the South San Francisco All-Stars. The score was 55-55, all tied with two minutes remaining in the game. D, the star player, her face in terrible pain, was lying on the floor and clutching her ankle. Everyone was silent, holding their breaths as the coach and the referees stood around D. Cheers and loud boos echoed through the whole stadium as the coach helped D off the floor.

D-fox, wearing jersey number twenty, had now delivered twenty points and would be shooting her three free throws. The first shot…was in. There were loud cheers! The second and third…all in! The score was now 55-58 in favor of the Nationals. Worried, Sam wanted and tried very hard to get close to D. So he huffed and puffed his way down. Almost there, Sam reached the aisle behind the Nationals team bench. At the same time, D gestured at the coach for a breather. As she walked towards the bench, Sam with all smile said. Hey D, are you all right?

Hey yeah! D-fox said as she approached the bench. Confusion mapped across her face.

I’m Sam.

Sure. Gotta get back. She said as she hurried back onto the hard court.

D and the Nationals won the game. 60-68.

The team was jumping with joy and cheering on the court, when all of a sudden, a six-foot-three burly guy carried D and threw her in the air.

Hey, what the heck are you doing? Her hair covered her face as she landed on her feet.

Just cheering with you. the burly guy said.

Look, I need to go shower and get dressed. The girls and I are going out.

No. You’ll go out with me. he countered.

Out of the blue, a right-handed punch hit him in the face and the burly guy was stunned as he fell on his back.

Sam stood tall over him as he baby-held his knuckles in pain.

Sam? You little quirk, let’s go! D pulled him away from the burly guy on the floor.

Together they held hands while laughing and running as they left the stadium.

≕≔

The skateboard had become Sam’s favorite mode of transportation. The unparalleled streets of South San Francisco, with its hilly up and down roads, made it easy for Sam to get away from the man he whacked with his skateboard. Wonder how he knew about the flash drive. He thought to himself as he navigated his way through El Camino Real towards Spruce Street, where National High school was, and where D-fox was working.

Sam, in tears as he entered the faculty room, ran up to D and said. Hey D, you won’t believe this. Dad’s dead.

What? D was in shock and looked at Sam in disbelief.

He was murdered, shot in the back. D, I don’t know what to do. I’m lost. His voice cracked as tears welled up in his throat.

I’m here. Sorry, tell me what happened? Her voice began to crack too.

I found this in his computer. I think this has something to do with his death. Sam handed D the flash drive.

D took the flash drive from his hand and hugged Sam as they poured their hearts out.

Later inside the computer room, the two clicked away as the screen on the monitor turned from color to color until they stopped. In confusion, they looked at one another in shock. At first glance, it looked familiar. In disbelief, D hacked away at the keyboard into the depths of the government’s inner electronic sub-circuit core until at last, D was able to hack into one of the agencies. They both stopped clicking at the keyboards. Their eyes opened wide as the screen color changed and out popped the logo. The logo was genuine, the agency’s name blinked with authority. It read, Central Intelligence Agency, United States of America.

Don’t go there, that’s a federal crime. Sam said.

Only if we get caught. D sneered as she hit the enter button.

No! Wait!

Do you know if your dad worked for the CIA? D asked.

Not that I know of. He always seemed boring.

Well, let’s see. D clacked away at the keyboard. Looks like your Dad is a contractor, or a button – if pushed or ordered, that’s when his work began.

Let me see that. Sam turned the monitor towards him.

≕≔

As soon as D hit the enter button, a red flag warning called the attention of Mr. White, the head of the CIA in San Francisco. He immediately picked up the phone on his desk and dialed a speed number.

Looks like your boy found out about Anthony Ward. Let me see his location. GPS had been marked at the Spruce Street area, South San Francisco.

Anyone with him? the voice said.

Not sure, but one thing is certain. He’s one heck of a hacker. Sure knows what he’s doing.

Find and get him! ordered the voice.

Yes, Sir.

≕≔

Ten minutes further into exploring the unfamiliar site of the CIA, D went about her unorthodox means of hacking the system. Just when they were about to open a file code-named Hot Ward, D received a text from the school guard, warning her of unwanted visitors.

Time to go! D said, as she closed all the open windows in the computer’s browser.

What? Why? Sam argued as he stood up, confused.

Let’s go! D pulled Sam out of the computer room and ran towards the exit.

Sam, his hands wet and trembling, followed suit.

Outside the parking lot, several suited-burly men went about examining the parked cars and seeing this, the two teenagers ran as they had never run before.

On foot, it was a lot easier to navigate their way away from those suspicious men. They went through the back exit heading out the alleyway and came out on Grand Avenue. Fully aware that they were being sought, they went inside a pharmacy and