Russia assassinating government employees on American soil? Why, that’s reason to start a war, and no one wants that.īut John lost everything in that attack the government wants to forget. Sad stuff about John’s wife and daughter and all, but no need to inflame an already tense international environment. Ritter and his higher-ups in the CIA want to close the case. John nearly died himself, but not before three of the four assassins also lost their lives. And John? Four well-trained gunmen invaded his house, killing John’s wife and unborn daughter. Another is gunned down while stuck in traffic. One teammate gets run over by a van while taking out the trash. Three months later, John’s old team is almost obliterated. But a few Russians certainly weren’t going to keep John and his team from getting their bloody jobs done. And given the historic tensions between Russia and the U.S., the operation may shake up the decision-makers in Washington, D.C., a bit. The fact that they were fighting some Russian soldiers? Well, sure, that seemed to surprise everyone but Ritter. Why, he proved it yet again during a mission in Aleppo, Syria, extracting a high-value hostage with his team as CIA operative Robert Ritter supervised. Need someone surgically taken out? Choked into submission? Quietly blown up? John’s your guy. In a community of tough-as-they-come hombres-the Navy SEALs-he’s the toughest of the bunch. You don’t want to get on John Kelly’s bad side.

Without Remorse by Tom Clancy