Stop At Nothing by J.T. Brannan

Author:J.T. Brannan [Brannan, J.T.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: BA
Publisher: Grey Arrow
Published: 2015-11-02T00:00:00+00:00

The problem, Hansard remembered, was that at the time, Kowalski was something of an adrenaline junkie. The commendations, awards and medals – including a Bronze Star, Purple Heart with cluster, and the Navy Cross, a line-up that made him one of the most decorated men serving in the military at the time – that had looked so impressive in his personnel file, were merely the result of Kowalski’s impetuous desire to be in the thick of the action. Some people called it ‘courage under fire’, and Hansard did indeed find the man’s achievements impressive, but the new head of the SRG had decided, in the end, that such a man would be a liability in the field.

It was a further sad fact that Kowalski had almost been demoted after breaking the jaw of a four-stripe Navy Captain, almost losing his hard-won commission only months after his graduation as an officer.

Kowalski’s unit had been leaving a ‘hot’ beach in Libya, chased by Gaddafi’s Revolutionary Guard, and the submarine they had been expecting to extract them one kilometer off-shore had pulled back two further kilometers due to the Captain’s concerns over the safety of his ship. The extra distance had caused two of the team’s wounded men to die, and Kowalski had to drag the lifeless body of one of them almost a mile through the powerful current of the Red Sea.

Once aboard the sub, he had lost no time in finding the Captain and punching him straight on the jaw. He would have done more, Hansard heard, had he not been restrained by his team-mates.

It wasn’t that Hansard blamed the man per se; Heaven only knew, the Captain deserved it for his cowardice. But it showed a streak of impetuousness that would be dangerous for an SRG operator. Indeed, Kowalski might have been thrown out of the Navy altogether had it not been for his incredible service record.

Hansard had kept a close eye on Mark Kowalski, however, watching as he made Lieutenant – presumably his previous transgression against the submarine commander had been forgiven – and then as he passed selection for the SEAL’s own elite DEVGRU unit, known more famously as SEAL Team Six, and started the arduous training program for that specialist group. According to Hansard’s sources, Kowalski had exceeded all expectations in training, and was deemed by his instructors to be a natural counter-terrorism soldier. One of his greatest attributes, reputedly, was his patience. Hansard remembered being surprised to hear this particular comment, and made a note to monitor Kowalski’s first few jobs for the DEVGRU in order to see just how far the lad had come on. Although the SRG was a small group – and still a well-kept secret – there was always room for the right sort of person. And Hansard was finally coming round to the decision that Kowalski was the right sort of person.

It wasn’t long after training that Kowalski was once again tested in the field, as his Team Six was sent

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.