The Shepherds and Tom
Clancy’s Jack Ryan saga. Brian Andrews is a US Navy veteran, Park Leadership Fellow, and
former submarine officer with a psychology degree from Vanderbilt University and a Master’s
degree in business from Cornell University. He is a principal contributor at Career Authors, a
site dedicated to advancing the careers of aspiring and published writers. 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 with an East Coast–based SEAL Team. He and his wife,
Wendy, live in Southwest Florida with their four children.
They applied the Page 69 Test to the fourth installment of their Shepherds Series, Dark Rising, and reported the following:
From page 69:Visit the Andrew and Wilson website.“Anyone else hurt? And you said you’re not hurt, correct?”Page 69 delves into a pivotal moment between Jed Johnson, a seasoned Navy SEAL and leader of the Joshua Bravo team at the Shepherds, and his boss and friend, Ben Morvant. Following a harrowing and unexpected violent encounter with someone he suspects of being part of an evil organization they had believed to be in chaos, Jed finds himself in a precarious situation—sitting a jail cell accused of murder. There’s palpable tension as Jed recounts the dangers he's faced as best he can on the open line. He’s alone in a foreign country where he was supposed to be on vacation, with no back or resources and a possible new threat. Their conversation also reveals deeper stakes-- The Shepherds, an elite team committed to combating spiritual and physical threats, are grappling with the rise of the Dark Ones—a sinister force orchestrating a new Rising after Jed and his team were able to rescue the watchers at St. Georges and defeat Victor, the demon possessed head of the Dark Ones. This scene sets the stage and the stakes—as well as the uncertainty—for the new mission ahead for Jed and his Special Missions Unit from the Shepherds. Jed is sure that innocent children are disappearing, and that it is this new rising evil behind the kidnappings. It’s time to regroup and strategize their next move in the unending battle against evil.
“Yeah, I’m good,” Jed said. “But I’d sure like to get out of here sooner rather than later, if you know what I mean.”
“Yeah, of course,” Ben said. “I’ll reach out to our connections at State and also, you know, other agencies. I’ll get you out as quickly as I can. But it might take a minute, okay? Not a lot going on down there right now that our connections would be involved with, so . . .”
“What about our people?” Jed asked. “Do we have any . . . um . . . business dealings down here?”
Ben chewed his lip. This might not be a Shepherd situation—time would tell—but either way he could certainly get people there to help a brother. The problem was, the Shepherds didn’t have a formal base of operations in the area. Ben knew of assets in DR that he could call—but maybe not the kind of direct-action team Jed was looking for.
It would take time to connect with them. They weren’t “organic” to the organization, but operated more like managed assets and were undercover in an NOC. The Shepherds had never really needed a major presence in the DR.
Or at least not before Jed vacationed there . . .
“Sit tight, Jed,” he said. “We’ll get you out of there as quick as we can, but just be prepared to spend at least a few hours there—maybe even overnight.”
“Oh, lovely . . .”
“I’ll make clear that you’re not a criminal and not to be screwed with, then I’ll get a call in right away. Lay low, get along, and I’ll have you out as soon as I can. Once you’re secure, we can talk more. And I’ll send you contact information on some . . . connections we have in country,” Ben added, already searching for the contact information for the husband-and-wife team who worked as assets for the Shepherds in the DR.
--Marshal Zeringue
Posts
