David H Brandin

REUBEN ....I'd driven to Santa Ana from South Laguna to tell John Blackburn, a reporter from the Santa Ana Register, about two future forecasts I'd recently completed. I'd had a particularly intense dream and tried a rebuilt simplified set of equations without the earth tides that still eluded me. But I'd gotten two results that were very persuasive. It was February 5, 1971. Blackburn, smiled. "Reuben, you've got quite an impressive history here, Eighty-seven percent accuracy in '35, you said?" "I looked up the July 11, 1935 New York Times article," he added. "The writer, Lawrence, was pretty complimentary." I appreciated he did his homework, but I had mixed feelings about his comment. I feared he might have seen the August 1, 1935 Times Science Editor article, which was the opposite of complimentary.... "This is good work, Reuben," John said, "But these predictions are history. What about the future earthquakes you mentioned on the phone? That's what our readers want to know." I smiled. I had a hot one for him in Southern California, Magnitude 6.6 at 6:03 AM, in just four days, and a less imminent forecast, for January 1973 in San Francisco. That was the one that excited me, even though some of the computational results needed double-checking. It could be an accurate prediction of the "Big One." But boy, did I hit a home run on February 9, 1971-the Southern California Sylmar earthquake struck at 6:01 AM with Magnitude 6.7-it was only two minutes early ...

REUBEN ....I'd driven to Santa Ana from South Laguna to tell John Blackburn, a reporter from the Santa Ana Register, about two future forecasts I'd recently completed. I'd had a particularly intense dream and tried a rebuilt simplified set of equations without the earth tides that still eluded me. But I'd gotten two results that were very persuasive. It was February 5, 1971. Blackburn, smiled. "Reuben, you've got quite an impressive history here, Eighty-seven percent accuracy in '35, you said?" "I looked up the July 11, 1935 New York Times article," he added. "The writer, Lawrence, was pretty complimentary." I appreciated he did his homework, but I had mixed feelings about his comment. I feared he might have seen the August 1, 1935 Times Science Editor article, which was the opposite of complimentary.... "This is good work, Reuben," John said, "But these predictions are history. What about the future earthquakes you mentioned on the phone? That's what our readers want to know." I smiled. I had a hot one for him in Southern California, Magnitude 6.6 at 6:03 AM, in just four days, and a less imminent forecast, for January 1973 in San Francisco. That was the one that excited me, even though some of the computational results needed double-checking. It could be an accurate prediction of the "Big One." But boy, did I hit a home run on February 9, 1971-the Southern California Sylmar earthquake struck at 6:01 AM with Magnitude 6.7-it was only two minutes early ...

Ghislaine Girabaldi slammed her classified copy of an NSA briefing paper on her desk in front of Alicia Clooney. "What's this?" demanded the speaker. "Have you been to church lately?" Alicia Clooney picked up the document. The paper was an intelligence agency brief, classified Top Secret and NOFORN, which meant No Foreign access, with the subject line: "Islamic Jihad meetings in Damascus over the Stony Island Gang." "Is there something in here that matters to me?" asked Alicia. "I don't know anyone in Syria. And why, if it's Top Secret, are you showing it to me?" The speaker pursed her lips. "Don't bullshit me. You've seen a lot more than this, Alicia. God only knows how much Intel John gave you. But this involves your estranged husband, terrorists, and a priest." "Okay, what did John do now?" "He offered a bribe to the head of Islamic Jihad." Alicia gasped. "To do what? How much? Why?" "He wants Islamic Jihad to kill that old Jew, David Green," said Girabaldi.

Ghislaine Girabaldi slammed her classified copy of an NSA briefing paper on her desk in front of Alicia Clooney. "What's this?" demanded the speaker. "Have you been to church lately?" Alicia Clooney picked up the document. The paper was an intelligence agency brief, classified Top Secret and NOFORN, which meant No Foreign access, with the subject line: "Islamic Jihad meetings in Damascus over the Stony Island Gang." "Is there something in here that matters to me?" asked Alicia. "I don't know anyone in Syria. And why, if it's Top Secret, are you showing it to me?" The speaker pursed her lips. "Don't bullshit me. You've seen a lot more than this, Alicia. God only knows how much Intel John gave you. But this involves your estranged husband, terrorists, and a priest." "Okay, what did John do now?" "He offered a bribe to the head of Islamic Jihad." Alicia gasped. "To do what? How much? Why?" "He wants Islamic Jihad to kill that old Jew, David Green," said Girabaldi.

In 1986, it takes LAPD Officer Donald Henderson just ninety seconds, while in foot pursuit of suspected car thieves in South Central Los Angeles, to plant the crosshairs of future government civil rights charges on his back. After he is absolved repeatedly of excessive force charges, Henderson falls afoul of the public fury over the 1991 beating of Rodney King and simultaneously loses his badge and his freedom. Some thirty years later, Officer Henderson's prosecutor, Keisha Howard, is now a senior official in the Justice Department and on the short list to become the next attorney general. Known for targeting law enforcement for civil rights violations that include the Henderson case, Keisha acknowledges she has a chip on her shoulder and that an AG appointment will lock it in its rightful place forever. But just as she is preparing to secure the nomination, LAPD officers chase and beat up a teenage Hispanic suspect, bringing the Henderson case into the public eye once again. Now with her dreams for power in jeopardy, Keisha searches for answers within her memories of the trial. But what she does not know is that the past is about to rise up and change everything. Willful Intent shares the gripping tale of an ambitious assistant US attorney's journey as she embarks on a quest to achieve her professional dream and impede the repercussions from a past prosecution.

In 1986, it takes LAPD Officer Donald Henderson just ninety seconds, while in foot pursuit of suspected car thieves in South Central Los Angeles, to plant the crosshairs of future government civil rights charges on his back. After he is absolved repeatedly of excessive force charges, Henderson falls afoul of the public fury over the 1991 beating of Rodney King and simultaneously loses his badge and his freedom. Some thirty years later, Officer Henderson's prosecutor, Keisha Howard, is now a senior official in the Justice Department and on the short list to become the next attorney general. Known for targeting law enforcement for civil rights violations that include the Henderson case, Keisha acknowledges she has a chip on her shoulder and that an AG appointment will lock it in its rightful place forever. But just as she is preparing to secure the nomination, LAPD officers chase and beat up a teenage Hispanic suspect, bringing the Henderson case into the public eye once again. Now with her dreams for power in jeopardy, Keisha searches for answers within her memories of the trial. But what she does not know is that the past is about to rise up and change everything. Willful Intent shares the gripping tale of an ambitious assistant US attorney's journey as she embarks on a quest to achieve her professional dream and impede the repercussions from a past prosecution.