Randall Moore > Randall's Quotes

“The gunfire had brought the attention of the bouncers upstairs. We took position at the bottom of the stairs. I told the girls to stay behind us and ran to the top of the stairs. The door opened and I was looking into the face of one of the Thai bouncers. He looked at my gun and started to turn. I grabbed him by the collar and held him in front of me. He was unarmed, but the others weren’t. They opened fire, killing their compatriot as I returned fire, killing one. Fortunately for me the three other guys on my side, Jim, Miguel and Frank came up behind me and cut the other armed men down in a hail of bullets. There was a commotion in the main room of the brothel as I cracked the door open. Four men with guns were walking toward the door. Miguel joined me as I flung it open. We each had two pistols in our hands. I fired one weapon after the other at the two men to the left while Miguel did the same to the two men on our right. The smoke of cordite was swirling into the room like deadly incense. People were screaming and huddling by the walls. Jim and Frank led the girls into the front room."
from "The Noble Heart”
― Randall Moore

“Like all the great nobles of the period, he rode and fought to perfection. But unlike most of the Grands, his scholastic education hadn’t been overlooked. Porthos pretended to understand the scraps of Latin that Aramis deployed, but Athos just smiled at them. Two or three times, to the great astonishment of his friends, he’d even caught Aramis in some fundamental error and restored a verb to its proper tense or a noun to its case. On top of all this, his integrity was irreproachable, in a century when men of war routinely trampled on the dictates of conscience and religion, lovers behaved without the least delicacy or decorum, and the poor roundly ignored God’s seventh commandment.”
― Alexandre Dumas, The Three Musketeers

“The crowd bowed their heads and listened to the chaplain recite a brief prayer—vague and generic enough to offend no one, which, of course, resulted in offending almost everyone.”
― Brian Andrews, Tier One

“He could breach and clear a room while picking out guitar chords in his head for a new country song, but this simple technique required all his attention.”
― Brian Andrews, Tier One

“Look who’s talking, Mick Jagger.” “Jagger? The dude weighs a hundred pounds and struts around like a peacock. We have absolutely nothing in common.” “Not true. You’re both geriatric and you both have egos big enough to fill a stadium.” They were both genuinely laughing as they entered Les Brassins—filling the role of happy lovers on holiday in Brussels without looking like they were trying.”
― Brian Andrews, War Shadows

“For the millionth time, he watched Mendez get blown to pieces on the video screen inside his mind. Just like Romeo. Just like fucking Romeo. The SEAL inside him knelt and unzipped the black bag. John Dempsey could not bring himself to do anything at the moment, so he let the SEAL do what needed to be done.”
― Brian Andrews, War Shadows

“And when the ritual was finished, the SEAL returned to the bag for something else to inventory or clean, and finding the bag empty the SEAL left, leaving John Dempsey alone—head down, palms flat on the workbench, eyes rimmed with tears. “You okay?” Grimes asked. He didn’t answer.”
― Brian Andrews, War Shadows

“My parents are spies. That’s not something you can simply pretend away.” “Sure you can,” Dempsey said. “My parents were Democrats, but I found a way to manage.”
― Brian Andrews, War Shadows

“The day will come when we’ll both need a friend on the other side. I believe our countries share something much more intimate than defense contracts and Hanukkah.”
― Brian Andrews, Crusader One

“Who is it?” “A Mr. Smith,” she said, her sarcastic tone telling him she suspected otherwise. “Put it through,” he said, and then before she closed the door, “Oh, and Abby?” “Sir?” “Luck or skill?” She gave him a deer-in-the-headlights look at the non sequitur. “If you could only have one, which would you choose—luck or skill?” “Skill,” she said without hesitation. He nodded at her. “Thank you; that will be all.” Skill. He chuckled to himself. When I was her age I would have answered the same. Now, I’m not so sure.”
― Brian Andrews, Crusader One

“Thanks for the vote of confidence,” Jarvis chuckled. “I knew I could count on you to cheer me up.” He heard the flick of a cigarette lighter and pictured Harel lighting up a Noblesse in his glass-walled office for everyone to see in the explicitly smoke-free building. During the pause while Harel took his first drag, Jarvis added, “Anyway, that’s not the real reason I called.” “No?” the Israeli spymaster said, his voice ripe with sarcasm. “What other happy news do you have for me today, Kelso? Let me guess, someone stole your pickup truck, you lost your guitar, and your dog died? Oh, wait, that’s a country music song.”
― Brian Andrews, Red Specter

“We owe no allegiance, we bow to no throne, Our ruler is law and the law is our own; Our leaders themselves are our own fellow-men, Who can handle the sword and the scythe and the pen Hurrah for Vermont! For the land that we till Must have sons to defend her from valley and hill Our vow is recorded—our banner unfurled, In the name of Vermont we defy all the world! Then cheer, cheer, the green mountaineer, then cheer, cheer, the green mountaineer”
― Paula Munier, A Borrowing of Bones