Table of Contents Title Page Copyright Page Dedication Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15 Chapter 16 Chapter 17 Chapter 18 "When the going gets tough, the tough reach for Jack--Jack Reacher."* Praise for WITHOUT FAIL "Lee Child is a pro at evoking a sense of place . If you haven''t read a Reacher story, do yourself an exciting and engrossing favor and pick one up. Grade A." --Rocky Mountain News "Reacher is convincingly tough, clear-headed, and street smart . everything falls into place like a well-assembled time bomb." --The Boston Globe "[The] fast-paced plot winds up to its exciting climax . Child''s novels are relentlessly paced, intricately plotted, and absolutely mesmerizing.
This is no exception." --Milwaukee Journal Sentinel "Jack Reacher is the best LTGG (loner-tough-good-guy) out there . self-sufficient, strong and stimulating to the fairer sex." --*Contra Costa Times "Lee Child has inexorably pulled himself into the upper echelons of thriller writing with a series of tough, lean and perfectly crafted novels featuring ex-US military cop Jack Reacher. Without Fail is the sixth outing for the resourceful Reacher, and far from showing any signs of incipient fatigue, the series just goes from strength to strength as Child hones his abilities." --Yorkshire Post "The sixth time''s a charm for thriller-meister Child, whose latest escapade starring ex-military cop Jack Reacher is handily his most accomplished and most compelling to date . [A] suspense-laden plot . this Child''s play will be a tough act to follow.
" --Publishers Weekly "A satisfying adventure . [a] burner pace . compelling." --St. Petersburg Times "Nail-biting . [with] a hero who''s as tough and rough and cool as they come." --Belfast Telegraph "A stunner, packed with extraordinary detail . the suspense becomes nearly unbearable .
A thriller of un-equaled emotional depth." --Booklist "Child''s Jack Reacher thrillers get better every time, and this is a knockout." --Library Journal "In this sixth Reacher paperback, author Lee Child is as good as he''s ever been--and he''s usually very good." --Waikato Times (New Zealand) "Superior . brilliant . Without Fail is worth a perusal and should satisfy those people who enjoyed Child''s first novels, Killing Floor and Die Trying . But make sure you''ve got time when you sit down to start reading it--you''ll be hooked." --Evening Post (Bristol) "A good, solid thriller that should bring Child more fans.
" --Newcastle Herald (Australia) Praise for Lee Child and his bestselling Jack Reacher novels "The best mystery I have read this year." --The Boston Globe "A story you can sink your teeth into. Lee Child is a master." --The Denver Post "Swift and brutal." --The New York Times "Spectacular . Muscular, energetic prose and pell-mell pacing." --The Seattle Times "Bang-on suspense." --Houston Chronicle "Page for page, there''s probably more fisticuffs in a Lee Child thriller than anywhere else around.
" --Chicago Tribune "Tough, elegant, and thoughtful."--Robert B. Parker "Combines high suspense with almost nonstop action. Reacher is a wonderfully epic hero: tough, taciturn, yet vulnerable. From its jolting opening scene to its fiery final confrontation, Killing Floor is irresistible."-- People "This is such a brilliantly written first novel that [Child] must be channeling Dashiell Hammett . Reacher handles the maze of clues and the criminal unfortunates with a flair that would make Sam Spade proud."-- Playboy Titles by Lee Child WITHOUT FAIL ECHO BURNING RUNNING BLIND TRIPWIRE DIE TRYING KILLING FLOOR If you purchased this book without a cover, you should be aware that this book is stolen property.
It was reported as "unsold and destroyed" to the publisher, and neither the author nor the publisher has received any payment for this "stripped book." This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author''s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. WITHOUT FAIL A Jove Book / published by arrangement with G. P. Putnam''s Sons Copyright © 2002 by Lee Child All rights reserved. This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form without permission. The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or any other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal and punishable by law.
Please purchase only authorized electronic editions, and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the author''s rights is appreciated. For information address: G. P. Putnam''s Sons a division of Penguin Putnam Inc., 375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014. ISBN: 9781101052792 A JOVE BOOK® Jove Books are published by The Berkley Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Putnam Inc., 375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014.
JOVE and the "J" design are trademarks belonging to Penguin Putnam Inc. This one is for my brother Richard in Gloucester, Engl⧠my brother David in Brecon, Wales; my brother Andrew in Sheffield, Engl⧠and my friend Jack Hutcheson in Penicuik, Scotland. 1 They found out about him in July and stayed angry all through August. They tried to kill him in September. It was way too soon. They weren''t ready. The attempt was a failure. It could have been a disaster, but it was actually a miracle.
Because nobody noticed . They used their usual method to get past security and set up a hundred feet from where he was speaking. They used a silencer and missed him by an inch. The bullet must have passed right over his head. Maybe even through his hair , because he immediately raised his hand and patted it back into place as if a gust of wind had disturbed it. They saw it over and over again, afterward, on television. He raised his hand and patted his hair. He did nothing else.
He just kept on with his speech, unaware, because by definition a silenced bullet is too fast to see and too quiet to hear. So it missed him and flew on. It missed everybody standing behind him. It struck no obstacles, hit no buildings. It flew on straight and true until its energy was spent and gravity hauled it to earth in the far distance where there was nothing except empty grassland. There was no response. No reaction. Nobody noticed .
It was like the bullet had never been fired at all. They didn''t fire again. They were too shaken up. So, a failure, but a miracle. And a lesson. They spent October acting like the professionals they were, starting over, calming down, thinking, learning, preparing for their second attempt. It would be a better attempt, carefully planned and properly executed, built around technique and nuance and sophistication, and enhanced by unholy fear. A worthy attempt.
A creative attempt. Above all, an attempt that wouldn''t fail. Then November came, and the rules changed completely. Reacher '' s cup was empty but still warm. He lifted it off the saucer and tilted it and watched the sludge in the bottom flow toward him, slow and brown, like river silt. "When does it need to be done?" he asked. "As soon as possible," she said. He nodded.
Slid out of the booth and stood up. "I''ll call you in ten days," he said. "With a decision?" He shook his head. "To tell you how it went." "I''ll know how it went." "OK, to tell you where to send my money." She closed her eyes and smiled. He glanced down at her.
"You thought I''d refuse?" he said. She opened her eyes. "I thought you might be a little harder to persuade." He shrugged. "Like Joe told you, I''m a sucker for a challenge. Joe was usually right about things like that. He was usually right about a lot of things." "Now I don''t know what to say, except thank you.
" He didn''t reply. Just started to move away, but she stood up right next to him and kept him where he was. There was an awkward pause. They stood for a second face-to-face, trapped by the table. She put out her hand and he shook it. She held on a fraction too long, and then she stretched up tall and kissed him on the ch.