Defender (Paperback)

How far would you go to defend your own? What would you do to fulfill your oaths? Staff Sergeant James Cole is not a Navy SEAL, Green Beret or other legendary superman, but merely an ordinary Air Force cop. Yet extraordinary circumstances create extraordinary people. A regular deployment twists out of control as he leads his team into the mountains of Afghanistan to protect U.S. intelligence agents while they meet with the locals. When things go south, one of his airmen is captured and Cole must rely on his training and teammates to mount a rescue. Murphy's Law reigns supreme in the Hundu-Kush, and Cole's abilities as a leader and a warrior are stretched to the limit. Shaped by his combat experiences in Afghanistan, Cole returns home only to realize that his work is not yet done. His troops still need him and he is confronted with the horrors of abortion and the rise of domestic terrorism in the form of Antifa. Though battling demons of his own, he must decide how far he will go to protect the innocent and fulfill his oath to defend the Constitution against all enemies, both foreign and domestic. Set in the 2020's Defender, tells the tale of a modern-day John Brown. Premised on the social and political similarities between today's anti-abortion movement and the abolitionists of the past, Defender explores the question of what someone would look like who was not merely a one-dimensional religious radical, but a realistic, nuanced human being. In the process of telling a thrilling adventure, Defender struggles with moral questions regarding the appropriate use of force, the role of warriors in our society and when, or if, it is right to break society's laws in order to pursue a higher calling. Defender will appeal to readers who enjoy the political style of Ben Shapiro's True Allegiance and who enjoy intimate, realistic portrayals of life in uniform and the trials of combat, such as Jeff Shaara's efforts to describe the experiences of the common soldier. Veterans will find details accurate while civilians will not be left out, as acronyms and other military quirks, tactics and techniques are clarified and the military world is brought to life as only an insider can tell. While the story is imagined, the emotions, including joy and heartbreak, guilt and redemption, terror and courage, are real. C. P. E. Stevenson is a decorated Air Force Security Forces veteran. He deployed five times in support of Operations Iraqi and Enduring Freedom. He maintains close ties to the military community, both professionally and personally, though his days of carrying an M-series rifle are over.