Violence of Action, page 39
She looked up at him and saw that his lower lip quivered. She felt her heart soften for him, reached out a hand, and squeezed his arm. He smiled at her tightly. She picked up the pencil again.
What about Hamza?
This question prompted his gaze to go distant and a sad smile to curl his lips.
I am Hamza now, he wrote.
She took the pad. I don’t understand. What does that mean, Qasim?
He breathed a heavy exhale and replied: Hamza is dead. I will shoulder his legacy and continue his work.
She grabbed the pencil to write her response, but he ripped the top sheet off the pad and walked over to the stove. He lit one of the gas burners, lit the corner of the page on fire, and tossed it into an empty skillet where he watched it burn to ash. When he turned back to her, they locked eyes.
She bowed her head to him—understanding, assent, and subservience all rolled into one simple gesture. He nodded his acceptance and extended his hand to her. When she took it, he led her to their bedroom. As he stripped her of her clothes, her mind went to the nascent life that had just taken root inside her.
I’m carrying the child of a terrorist, she thought. What kind of mother will that make me?
And as he lay her down on their marriage bed and kissed her breasts, she began an inventory of what she would pack in the backpack he’d instructed her to prepare. For she now understood that she would be leaving this flat in great haste, with great urgency, and under circumstances in which her life, and the life of her unborn child, would most certainly depend on it.
But whether she would leave with Qasim clutching her hand or chasing her tail . . .
Only fate knew the answer to that question.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
There is no one in publishing more committed, more passionate, and more imaginative than our team at Blackstone. You helped bring this book to fruition—for your insights, hard work, and creativity we thank you from the bottom of our hearts! A special thanks goes out to Rick Bleiweiss, who patiently and thoughtfully cares for our work. And to Josh Stanton, who welcomed us into the Blackstone family of authors, and for his tireless genius which helped make him The Strand Magazine’s 2021 Publisher of theYear!
Thank you to our wonderful families who never stop loving and supporting us on this crazy adventure.
Thank you to you, our loyal readers who give us the gift of embracing all our series and empowering us to write new adventures with the characters we love.
And thank you to those still out there—working and serving at the pointy tip of the spear, who inspire all that we do—and their loving families who wait anxiously for them back home.
—Brian Andrews & Jeff Wilson
GLOSSARY
AAI Ansar al-Islam
AMR Anti-Material Rifle
AQ al-Qaeda
BDU Battle Dress Uniform
BUD/S Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL training
CASEVAC Casualty Evacuation
CENTCOM United States Central Command
CIA Central Intelligence Agency
CO Commanding Officer
CONUS Continental United States
CSO Chief Staff Officer
CT Counterintelligence
DIA Defense Intelligence Agency
DNI Director of National Intelligence
DoD Department of Defense
DWTC Dubai World Trade Center
Eighteen Delta Special Operations Medic
EOD Explosion Ordnance Disposal
Exfil Exfiltrate
FARP Forward Area Refueling Point; a forward staging area
FOB Forward Operating Base
GCHQ Government Communications Headquarters (United Kingdom’s Signals Intelligence organization)
GID General Intelligence Directorate (Jordanian Intelligence)
GRS Global Response Staff
GSW Gunshot wound
HALO high-altitude, low opening
HRT Hostage Rescue Team
HUMINT Human Intelligence
HVT High-Value Target
IC Intelligence Community
Infil Infiltrate
IR Infrared
ISAF International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan
ISR Intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance
JO Junior Officer
JSOC Joint Special Operations Command
JSOTF Joint Special Operations Task Force
KBR A government support contractor
KIA Killed in Action
LCPO Leading Chief Petty Officer
MARSOC Marine Corps Special Operations Command
MEDEVAC Medical Evacuation
MI5 British Domestic Intelligence (FBI analog)
MI6 British Foreign Intelligence (CIA analog)
NCTC National Counterterrorism Center
NCO Noncommissioned Officer
NOC Nonofficial Cover
NSA National Security Agency
NSW Naval Special Warefare
NVGs Night-vision goggles
ODNI Office of the Director of National Intelligence
OGA Other Government Agency, frequently refers to CIA or other clandestine organizations
OIC Officer in Charge
ONI Office of Naval Intelligence
OPSEC Operational Security
PJ Parajumpers; Pararesucmen of the Air Force Special Operations Command
PsyOps Psychological Operations
PTT Push to Talk; a setting on a radio requiring a button to be pushed to transmit
QRF Quick Reaction Force
RPG Rocket-Propelled Grenade
RTS Relay Tracking Station
SAPI Small Arms Protective Insert
SAS Special Air Service; British Special Operations fForces equivalent to Green Berets
SCIF Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility
SDV SEAL Delivery Vehicle
SEAL Sea, Air, and Land Teams; Naval Special Warfare
SecDef Secretary of Defense
SF Special Forces; refers specifically to the Army Special Operations Green Berets
SIGINT Signals Intelligence
SITREP Situation Report
SOAR Special Operations Aviation Regiment
SOCOM Special Operations Command
SOF Special Operations Forces
SOPMOD Special Operations Modification
SPACECOM United States Space Command
SQT SEAL Qualification Training
SWCC Special Warfare Combatant-craft Crewman; Boat teams supporting SEAL operations
TAD Temporary Additional Duty
TS/SCI Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information; The highest level security clearance
TOC Tactical Operations Center
UAE United Arab Emirates
UCAV Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle
UAV Unmanned Aerial Vehicle
USN United States Navy
VOX Military jargon for Voice Acutuation, allowing radio transmission hands free
WARCOM United States Special Warfare Command
PARTNER PAGES
Andrews & Wilson actively promote and partner with veteran-owned small businesses that demonstrate a mission of giving. The organizations featured here donate to and support the health and well-being of US service members as well as their families. We encourage you to learn about and support our partners and to spread the word about the important and uplifting work that they do.
A premium, small-batch coffee roastery and vineyard, owned and operated by veterans, located in the Pacific Northwest.
After serving twenty-five years in the Navy, former SEAL Tim Cruickshank created Bonefrog Coffee and Cellars as a tribute to the brotherhood of US Navy SEALs, the Naval Special Warfare community, and to all Americans who bravely served, or who are currently serving, in our United States Armed Forces. Each label they create tells a story to remind us of battles fought and great American heroes who answered the call, and proceeds from every sale support the men and families of those who served in the Naval Special Warfare community.
www.bonefrog-coffee.com
www.bonefrogcellars.com
Founded by Army veteran and retired Delta Force Tier One operator Tom Satterly and award-winning filmmaker Jen Satterly, the All Secure Foundation provides resources, education, post-traumatic stress injury resiliency training for active duty units, warrior couples workshop retreats, and family counseling for Special Operations warriors and their warrior families. They believe that every family member deserves tools to heal from war trauma and that no one is left behind on the battlefield on the home front.
Web: AllSecureFoundation.org
Contact: information@allsecurefoundation.org
Founded by US Army veteran Dan Berei, Combat Flags began as an idea to connect veterans and give back in a meaningful way. Combat Flags is dedicated to helping Stop Soldier Suicide and Dan’s personal mission to leave the world a better place than we found it.
In addition to the store, Dan interviews veterans and talks leadership, life lessons, and service on the Combat Flags Podcast.
www.combatflags.com
About the Authors
Brian Andrews is a US Navy veteran, Park Leadership Fellow, and former submarine officer with a psychology degree from Vanderbilt and a master’s in business from Cornell University. He is the author of three critically acclaimed high-tech thrillers: Reset, The Infiltration Game, and The Calypso Directive.
Jeffrey Wilson has worked as an actor, firefighter, paramedic, jet pilot, and diving instructor, as well as a vascular and trauma surgeon. He served in the US Navy for fourteen years and made multiple deployments as a combat surgeon. Wilson is the author of three award-winning supernatural thrillers: The Traiteur’s Ring, The Donors, and Fade to Black. He and his wife live in Southwest Florida with their four children.
Brian Andrews, Violence of Action
