Shooter in the Hot Seat

Shooter is a huge rhinoceros of a man. When he walks into a room you know he’s there. It’s not really his size or a menacing look that give him this aura of power. It’s the way he carries himself, the way he stands. It’s not something that can be learned, it’s something innate. Shooter is confident, humble, strong, caring, skilled, and trustworthy. His favorite quote is, “Integrity is doing that thing which is right, when no one is looking,” by Col. Colin Lampard, USMC. Shooter is the embodiment of that quote.

Me: Shooter, thanks for sitting down with me today.

Shooter: No problem. You know I always have time for you.

Me: You are so much easier to talk to than Kat.  

Shooter: *A smile spreads across his face* A lot of people misjudge my Kitten. It’s not that she doesn’t like talking to you. She just has more important things to do.

A rarely seen picture of the inside
of an actual Can-O-Whoopass

Me: Great, thanks for making me feel important.

Shooter: Right now, you are the most important person to me.

Me: Shooter, you are a charmer. So, what made you fall for Kat in the first place?

Shooter: The first thing? She was not happy when five Marines showed up at the airport with her brother. But she still welcomed us into her home. Some of my men don’t have families to go home to after a deployment. Kat gave them that family. She took care of my men. Kat’s a good person, even when she’s trying to convince you otherwise.

 

Me: It wasn’t when you saw her in action?

Shooter: No, don’t get me wrong, she’s sexy as hell when she’s fighting, but the first thing that I loved about her was her compassion.

Me: Not many people would use the word compassion when describing Hell Kat.

Shooter: Well they don’t know her like I do.

Me: True. Alright, changing topic. You are a Marine Force Recon sniper. What made you want to become a sniper?

Shooter: I didn’t want to be a sniper. I was a really good shot and I got volun-told to be a sniper.

Me: Where did you learn to shoot?

What do you feel when you shoot a terrorist?
A slight recoil.

Shooter: Boy Scouts.

Me: You’ve got to be kidding me?

Shooter: Nope. And my uncle is Carlos Hathcock.

Me: Who’s Carlos Hathcock?

Shooter: Have you heard that story about the USMC sniper in Vietnam who was being stalked by a NVA sniper. The USMC sniper saw a flash and took the shot shooting the enemy sniper in the eye through his scope. That’s my uncle.

Me: OK then. That explains a lot. How many confirmed kills do you have?

Shooter:  I could lie and say I don’t know, but every sniper, or assassin in Kat’s case, knows their record. It’s not something you forget.  It is also not something I publicize.

Me: So, you’re not going to tell me.

Shooter: Nope.

Me: Of course not. What is your most memorable mission?

Shooter: My favorite missions were when we were sent in to make friends with people in the community. We’d always have stuff to give to them. Food, clothing, radios, school supplies and treats for the kids. I like reminding kids in the middle of a war zone that they are still kids.

Me: What was your worst mission?

 

Shooter: I don’t talk about that. Only the Rat Bastards know that story, and while you are an honorary Rat Bastard, your readers aren’t.

Me: Uh, Shoot, I think I know what you’re talking about and I kind of put that mission in the book.

Shooter:  *Shooter grins at me* That doesn’t surprise me. It’s alright. I know you’ll write it the right way.

Me: You are so different than Kat. I’m really glad you hold her leash.

Shooter: Between you, me and your readers, I am too.

Do you have something you’d like to ask Shooter? Leave your questions in the comments and he’ll answer.