The Chimera Sequence

“Elliott Garber’s debut thriller
The Chimera Sequence
has everything I love in a novel: great characters, a thrill ride of an adventure, and a looming global menace. But best of all, the story hooked me from the first intriguing page to the last illuminating line. Read Garber’s first book, a thriller destined for bestsellerdom. I can’t wait to see what this guy writes next!”

—James Rollins,
New York Times
bestseller of
The Sixth Extinction

“Elliott Garber has delivered a high-stakes thriller that will earn your attention with clean, clear prose and a solid grasp of global geopolitics.
The Chimera Sequence
is terrifyingly realistic, chock-full of research that rings as true as today’s headlines.”

—Bob Mayer, Former Green Beret and
New York Times
bestselling author

“I couldn’t put down Garber’s engaging, rapid-paced, action-packed thriller. His riveting first novel benefits greatly from his experience as an Army veterinarian who has worked with a variety of unlikely animals around the world. The book even features important appearances from a military dog, a Secret Service dog, and a tracker bloodhound. What’s not to love?”

—Maria Goodavage,
New York Times
bestselling author of
Top Dog
and
Soldier Dogs

“Animal lovers rejoice! Not since
Jurassic Park
has a science thriller of this magnitude been written just for us. While the story is filled with human characters you’ll hate to love and love to hate, the real heroes (in my humble opinion) of
The Chimera Sequence
are an appealing supporting cast of mountain gorillas, working dogs, and other creatures great and small. One word of warning: don’t pick up my fellow veterinarian Elliott Garber’s book unless you’re ready for an adventure. You won’t be able to put it down until you reach the very last page!”

—Dr. Marty Becker, “America’s Veterinarian” and
New York Times
bestselling author

“In his outstanding debut, Elliott Garber has masterfully crafted a sizzling bio-tech thriller with
The Chimera Sequence
. Garber draws upon his own broad experience serving with the U.S. Army throughout the Middle East and Africa, but it his skilled writing that sucks the reader into the story with such vivid realism. Strap in and enjoy the ride. I know I did.”

—Richard Phillips, bestselling author of
The Rho Agenda
trilogy

“As a Gorilla Doctor worried about viruses being transmitted from humans to gorillas and vice versa, I found
The Chimera Sequence
totally fascinating and accurate from a scientific standpoint. The setting genuinely captures the essence of fieldwork in the Virunga massif. Elliott Garber walks us through a scarily plausible plot as bioterrorism threats become more sophisticated and political tensions rise in the present day world. His detailed but easy-to-read style offers a thriller that will be compelling for fellow scientists and laymen alike.”

—Dr. Mike Cranfield, wildlife veterinarian and Co-Director of the Gorilla Doctors

“A bird’s eye picture of the real nature conservation challenges in the sub-Saharan and Great Lakes region of Africa.”

—Dr. Fred Nizeyimana, Gorilla Doctors Field Veterinarian, Uganda

For Becca, who made this story possible.

"

Madam Chairman, Mr. Vice Chairman, Members of the Committee, I am honored to come before you today to present the requested report detailing classified events surrounding this year’s Independence Day.

As a military officer and veterinarian specializing in infectious disease, I am personally acquainted with several of the key players involved in this incident. The history of these relationships is such that I have complete confidence in the information shared with me, and the accuracy of the final text has been verified by multiple parties.

We cannot choose to ignore the difficult lessons here. Similar threats lurk even now, as a faceless enemy watches and waits, wondering if we have learned anything from our past. And this is why you, representatives of our most prominent body of elected officials, must absorb this report with an uncommon attention to detail and a unique willingness to act upon your convictions.

I was there on the Fourth. The President’s team had been promoting his Celebration of America for months, and over 400,000 spectators packed themselves in between the Capitol and the Lincoln Memorial, ready to be dazzled. We might have chosen differently had we known what was really going on that day.

I present you now with the terrifying true account of the most dangerous threat our nation has ever faced.

This is how it happened.

Dominic Odhiambo was curiously content for a man who would be dead within the hour. He felt a weight lift from his shoulders as he turned off the highway and approached an imposing steel gate. They had finally arrived.

It was still dusk over the rugged Red Sea coastline, but the glaring fluorescent security lighting of Sudan’s largest shipping port already illuminated the entire city with a sickly artificial glow.

Odhiambo punched the numbers he had carefully memorized into an old Nokia mobile phone.

A man’s quiet voice answered, “Salaam.”

“Yes, the product has arrived.” Odhiambo repeated the words he was given with the telephone number earlier that day.

He watched as the gate slid open and returned a nod from the security officer sitting inside an air-conditioned booth.
If only things were always this easy
. The ancient Land Rover pulled forward with a groan. A quick glance in the rearview mirror confirmed that the truck was still right behind him.

It was a warm night, but not warm enough to explain the beads of sweat Odhiambo felt forming on his glistening forehead. Almost there. He carefully steered through the sprawling container terminus, all the way up to the main loading dock. The skeletal shapes of three cranes leaned out over the water like supersized praying mantises frozen mid-hunt.

“This is it, right?” he asked the man in the passenger seat beside him. Two others in the back leaned forward to hear.

“Looks like it, MV
Panagia
.” Vincent Lukwiya was like a brother to Odhiambo. They had worked side by side for almost twenty years and together were given this most important task by their leader. Now, six weeks and over three thousand miles later, the end was in sight.

Odhiambo eased off the gas and let the Land Rover drift to a stop, idling the engine as he peered into the maze of massive shipping containers to his left. They were stacked five—even six—high, like toy blocks for the children of giants. He imagined the lengthy journeys that each of these faded orange, red, and blue boxes would make in the months and years ahead. First by ship, like the monstrosity looming in the water to his right, then onto trains and finally trucks, ending up in every far-flung corner of the world that he would never get to see. Odhiambo had dreams that were so much bigger than his little corner of war-torn central Africa, but a nagging feeling told him it was too late to escape.

He unconsciously felt for a crumpled piece of paper in his pocket. It had been his constant companion ever since it fell from the sky—along with thousands more just like it—several months earlier. Odhiambo wasn’t stupid. He knew who it was from: another bunch of white men thinking they knew what was best for Africa. But it promised a way out of this prison that was his life and a path forward.

It was all he had.

The creak and then bang of a large metal door broke the silence. Odhiambo wiped a sweaty hand on his jeans and felt for the distinct solid form at his left hip. They said no weapons, but who did they think they were dealing with?

“Look,” Lukwiya whispered, nodding at several dark human shapes emerging from the shadowy stacks ahead of them. “Must be them.”

“What are we waiting for?” Odhiambo reached for the door handle. “Let’s go.”

All four men eased out of the vehicle. Odhiambo looked back to see another two jump down from the passenger side of the dust-covered Volvo truck.

“Do you have what we were promised?” A tall man strode purposefully toward Odhiambo and his men. No greeting or thanks for making the long trek. Only business. The man’s charcoal suit looked expensive. Too nice for the occasion. But then, Odhiambo’s boss had never thought it necessary to tell him who they were doing business with.

“Of course,” Odhiambo said. “My men will unload it now.”

“Get on with it then.” The tall man turned and said something soft and guttural to one of the others. Odhiambo was expecting to hear the Arabic they had been listening to on the radio while driving across Sudan over the last few days. But there was something unfamiliar about these sounds. The other two men, similarly olive-skinned and dark-haired, led the way to the back of the truck. Odhiambo looked carefully for any signs that they were breaking their own prohibition. Maybe that left side of the stocky one’s jacket hung just a little too low? But it was tough to tell in this light.