RW: What’s your story/backstory? Why would someone come up with a story about you?
PP: I retired from the Marines as a Master
Gunnery Sargeant. During my career, I
served as long-range recon and as a sniper. I was a weapons expert and I taught
weapons safety and use courses when I retired. But my real story is my family.
I’m in this story because one of my sons, Brad, is a Navy SEAL who went on the raid that killed Osama bin Laden. Ahmed Khan came
to the US to kill the families of those SEALs. I chose not to be a victim.
RW: Can you tell us about your heroine
PP: Beverly Starnes is a nurse who works in the
Emergency Room of our local hospital. We met accidentally when I went to see a
real estate agent who is Beverly’s twin. She’s the first woman I became serious
with since the death of my wife. Yet, Beverly had serious issues I knew nothing
about.
RW: What problems do you have to face and
overcome in your life?
PP: My wife died two years ago, so I live by
myself. Before she died, she convinced me to give up the weapons training. I
started a photography trail-hiking business where I lead photographers to the flora
and fauna in the Shenandoah Valley and Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. When
the nastiness began, I hoped the authorities would handle it. They didn’t and
that put me where I didn’t want to be ever again—fighting for my life.
RW: Do you expect your heroine to help or is she the problem?
PP: I
do expect her to understand and be supportive. She turns out to be part of the
problem.
RW: Where
do you live?
PP: In
the town of Staleyville, Va. It’s south of Charlottesville near the James
River.
RW: During
what time-period does your story take place?
PP: In the early 2010s.
RW: How
are you coping with the conflict in your life?
PP: If you call coping with my conflict as trying not to be killed by Khan, I spent
the book working on it. I first believed that the police and FBI would pursue
him. As time passed, I became convinced that someone was working against us,
the families, to ensure we were killed. That’s when I decided to take the
offensive. I’m thankful that I got some help from a rogue FBI agent.
RW: If money were not an object, where would you most like to live?
PP: I’ve traveled widely in Europe, South America, the Middle East,
and other places. I wouldn’t live anywhere
but where I do.
RW: What is your secret guilty pleasure?
PP: Bourbon. But I don’t know how secret it is.
RW: If you came with a
warning label, what would it say?
PP: Boiling Point High. When Reached—Beware.
RW: Those
are all the questions I have for you. Thank you for speaking to me.
PP: Thank you for having me. I enjoyed
discussing Khan’s Game.
P Marcus Bernhardt
Bio:
P.
Marcus Bernhardt retired from the U.S. Navy as a Master Chief Petty Officer where
he served in surface ships and submarines. After the Navy, he was a financial analyst, taught college, and served as a
university administrator. Now retired except for writing and golf, he lives in
Virginia Beach with his wife and Scottish Terrier.
Khan’s Game
The Plot:
Members of SEAL Team Six assassinated Osama bin Laden. Al Qaeda has not forgotten. Ahmed Khan leads a hit team to the United States to kill the parents of SEAL Team Six members. Preston Pettigrew, a retired Marine, is a parent of a SEAL Team Six member who went on the operation. That makes him a target. A target who fights back.
Pre-Order at MuseItUpPublishing or
Amazon
An Excerpt:
Ahmed Khan, Federal
prisoner number 497313, a hero of the Jihad, an adviser to Osama bin Laden, and Al Qaeda field commander waited for
his ride out of prison. Dust announced the progress of a Brink’s truck as it
barreled toward the chain link fence gates of Staleyville County Prison. The
steel vehicle smashed through the aluminum outer gate drawing the full
attention of everyone in the exercise yard,
including the lone guard in the lookout tower.
It ripped through the inner gate, slammed on the brakes, turned hard left, and
stopped. The rear door flew open. Khan and fellow inmate, Arthur Wegman, a
jihadist in training, scrambled into the back of the truck. The door slammed
shut as the armored vehicle spun around and left the way it came, leaving
clouds of dust in its wake.
Jeans, plaid shirts, and Nike running shoes
awaited the escaped convicts. As they stripped off orange jumpsuits and changed
into the street clothes, Khan spoke in Arabic to his compatriots who
masterminded and executed the escape. “Good job. Great timing. What do you have
for me?”
The stocky, bearded man in the front seat, Ali,
handed a cell phone to Khan, “The coordinates are programmed. Just follow the
map and you’ll reach the others. It’ll take at least three or four hours to get
there on foot, but, they’ll be waiting. You should be halfway before they get a
search party going.”
“What about him?” Khan said, still speaking
Arabic. His head ticked toward Wegman.
“After we drop you off, we’ll head for the dump
where two cars are stashed. Wegman’s won’t run. We’ll meet you after we lose
the cops.”
“Good. If something goes wrong, kill him.”
Contact P Marcus Bernhardt At:
Website & Blog: pmarcusbernhardt.com
Facebook: Phil
Bernhardt
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Saiilor661
Amazon Author Page: http://amzn.to/2tQNwD2
Book Links:
MuseItUp
Publishing http://bit.ly/2EUQib8
Key
Words/Labels: Al Qaeda, Amazon, Murder, MuseItUp
Publishing Inc., Navy SEALs, Pursuit, Retired Marine, Thriller
