For our Wounded Warriors

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Many people helped to make the book you’re holding (or viewing or listening to) and I owe them all a sincere thanks. Thanks first to Brendan Deneen for his trust; and to think I almost passed up the email because I thought it was another Bin Laden gag photo. Thanks also to Peter Joseph, Margaret Smith, Nicole Sohl and the rest of the Thomas Dunne/St. Martin’s Press Team, including Tweetmaster Paul. Thanks to Thirdy Lopez for your invaluable Tagalog language help and to Chris Fulbright for the hookup. Thanks to Ma Tai Tai for teaching me Chinese. Some of it stuck. Thanks to Dick Couch and Mir Bahmanyar, whose work I relied on for my initial research, as well as all my friends on the teams. You know who you are, especially Brian and Tommy. My gratitude includes Drew Williams for early reading, Dave Lake for a solid heart, Brian Wallenius for a solid ear, and Eunice and Greg Magill for your invaluable reconnaissance. Thanks of course to my agent, Robert Fleck. Shout-out to the bands Justice, Creed, the Eagles of Death Metal, Guns and Roses, and QOTSA for rocking me through the writing process. And thanks most of all to Yvonne, without whose support, wisdom, and love none of this would be possible.

Prologue

EARLY MORNING. PAKISTAN. MAY 2, 2011.

DON’T TRY THIS AT HOME was stenciled on the side of the first of two Blackhawk helicopters assigned to the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment, aka Night Stalkers. They were en route from Jalalabad Air Base in Afghanistan to the sleepy residential section of Abbottabad, Pakistan, where a million-dollar compound rested a mere eight hundred meters from Kakul military academy, one of Pakistan’s premiere army officer training schools.

SEAL Team 666 rode in the first helicopter. Comprising only five men and a dog, they were different in form and function from all other special-operations units. They wore black camouflage fatigues with dark gray Rhodesian combat vests. On their heads were Protec skate helmets modified for multiband inter/intra team radio (MBITR) headsets and microphones. Atop each helmet was a mount that held a pair of night-vision goggles (NVG). All but one of the SEALs wore gray ballistic face masks. Designed to protect the wearer from 9mm and shotgun hits, the masks produced a likeness similar to a hockey goalie’s.

On board the second helicopter, eleven members of SEAL Team 6 were ready to provide backup if necessary. Dressed similarly to the SEAL team in the first helicopter, none of them wore face masks and they did not have a dog.

“Five minutes,” the pilot announced over the radio system. The crew chief and his gunner prepared the doors and checked the M60 machine guns they could employ if necessary.

SEAL Team 666 heard the announcement through the MBITR and performed a last-minute weapons check. All five SEALs carried SIG Sauer 9mm automatic pistols. In addition to the 9s, two SEALs carried Heckler & Koch (HK) MP5s, two SEALs carried M4 Super 90 semiautomatic 12-gauge shotguns, and the fifth SEAL carried a Stoner SR-25 sniper rifle.

The dog was a Belgian Malinois and lay panting at the feet of the sniper, her mouth open in what could be considered the canine equivalent of an anticipatory grin. She wore a canine tactical assault vest. Spare ammo clips were tucked into compartments, as was a first-aid kit. The word HOOVER was stitched across the back of the vest.

SEALs lowered the NVGs into place, turned them on, and watched the world transform into a realm of phantom green. They postured, ready to deploy through the side doors. The dog stood, prepared to leave last.

The Blackhawk’s doors opened, letting in the cool Pakistani mountain air. The triangular compound came into sight in the SEALs’ green-tinged vision. The Blackhawk was coming in fast, just beginning to flare. But as the helicopter passed over and started to land, the green vision flashed white and all systems blacked out.

“Hold on,” shouted the pilot. “We’re going down.”

“Force field,” grunted one of the SEALs. “Does it every time.”

The SEALs held on to the static bars affixed to the ceiling and ripped their NVGs free, now useless since the force field had fried the electronics.

The pilot managed to autorotate the Blackhawk to a clear piece of ground outside the twelve-foot wall skirting the compound. The other helicopter landed nearby, steering clear of what took down the lead chopper.

One member of SEAL Team 666 vaulted out of the Blackhawk and placed a shape charge on the wall. He stepped aside while a man-sized hole blew through it with a dull whump. Then the two SEALs with the HKs deployed into the breach, weapons sunk deep into their shoulders, barrels leading the way. The SEALs with the shotguns came next, followed by the sniper and the dog.