The Promise Quotes

“Every second we have with these fine animals is a blessing. No creature, human or otherwise, will love you with such devotion, or trust you so fully. Remember this, Officer James. These dogs will lay their precious hearts bare to you, and hold back no part for themselves. Can anyone else in your pathetic excuse for a life say the same? Such trust is a gift from God Almighty above, so best you be worthy.”
― Robert Crais, The Promise

“Patrol dogs and Military Working Dogs were trained to protect their handlers. If the handler was attacked, and unconscious, or fighting for his or her life, the dog had to know what to do without being told. As Leland said, “These animals aren’t robots, goddamnit! They think! You train her up right, this beautiful dog will watch your back better than a squad of goddamned Marines!”
― Robert Crais, The Promise

“Most dogs could hear four times better than a person, but Maggie’s enormous, upright ears evolved to detect quiet predators and distant prey. She could control each ear independently of the other. Eighteen muscles articulated each ear, shaping and sculpting her sail-like pinna to gather and concentrate sounds at frequencies far beyond any a human could hear. This allowed Maggie to hear seven times better than Scott. She could hear the whine of a jet at thirty thousand feet, termites chewing through wood, the crystal in Scott’s watch hum, and thousands of sounds as invisible to Scott as the scents he could not smell. When”
― Robert Crais, The Promise

“The Predators The African lion makes a kill only twice out of every ten hunts. Leopards do better, catching their prey twenty-five percent of the time, and cheetahs do best of all the big cats, with a kill ratio of nearly fifty percent. The deadliest four-legged African predator is not a big cat. It cannot be outrun or outdistanced, its pursuit is relentless, and it captures its prey nine out of every ten hunts. The most dangerous predator in Africa is the wild dog.”
― Robert Crais, The Promise

“This particular phone, the phone Jon used for business, scrambled its signal into garbage only a phone with a similar chip could unscramble. Deep in the black, the people Jon worked for did more than listen. They collected. Phone calls, email, text messages, video feeds, the sum total digital flow of everything pouring through the Internet was collected and stored. Supercomputers built of bubbles and light, running algorithms written by smart nerdy geeks, as deadly in their way as Joe Pike and Jon Stone, analyzed all of it, searching for patterns and keywords.”
― Robert Crais, The Promise

“A BLACK CAT pushed through the cat door. His fine flat head was striped with scars, his eyes were angry yellow coals, and his ears were tattered from too many fights. One ear was cocked sideways from the time someone shot him. He circled Pike’s legs, and flopped on his side. Purring. Pike picked him up and held him, the cat dripping off his arm as limp as liquid fur. Anyone else would lose a hand.”
― Robert Crais, The Promise

“Scott felt uncomfortable, but managed a nod. Most of what Hess told the chief was lies. “Thank you.” “I’ll”
― Robert Crais, The Promise

“Jon started up the steps, and then he was gone. Amy wouldn’t see him at first. She’d be lost in her thoughts, checking off the rational steps that led to her rational death, and each of those steps would make perfect, inevitable sense. Until she saw Jon. Everything would change when she saw him. Jon would offer a different path.”
― Robert Crais, The Promise

“Hess said, “What the fuck?” I said, “Temperamental.” SACs aren’t used to being cut off. I touched her arm. “We”
― Robert Crais, The Promise

“Jon sat in the Range Rover cocoon, listened to Amy sleep, and knew people were beyond the edge of the darkness. Talking and planning, positioning cars at egress points to cover the house, and setting up at the storage facility. No one knew how Amy would react, or which way this would go, so they had to be flexible. Jon resented their intrusion. The”
― Robert Crais, The Promise

“Hess rolled in like she was in charge, and laid out her plan to approach Ms. Breslyn. The ‘first contact’ team would consist of two women and an older, but nonthreatening, man. The team would include herself, another woman, and the man, the other woman being a shrink in her forties, and the man being a U.S. Attorney with a gentle, assuring presence. First contact, like Ms. Breslyn was an alien. Hess was explaining how their ‘first contact’ had to be staged when Jon interrupted. “Forget”
― Robert Crais, The Promise

“Do you know what she’s selling?” “She offered al-Qaeda her expertise, and a quantity of material. I don’t know how much.” “Two hundred kilograms of a plastic explosive. These particular explosives are not marked by taggants.” She rolled her eyes, and maybe looked worried. “Do you know where it is?” “I’ll find out tomorrow, and take it.” “You’re”
― Robert Crais, The Promise

“I’m required to read this admonition. Your silence can be deemed as insubordination and lead to administrative discipline, which could result in your discharge or removal from office. You understand what this means?” “Yes, sir.” Do what we say, or we can fire you. VanMeter placed a printed form and a pen on the table. “This is an acknowledgment you received the admonition. Sign and date here. If you refuse to sign, I’ll mark the space ‘refused,’ and sign as the witnessing supervisor. Up to you.” Scott signed. Ignacio”
― Robert Crais, The Promise

“You’re a strange dude, Cole. Not as strange as Pike, but strange.” Scott slid into his car, and drove away. I looked at Pike. “Are we strange?” Pike went to his Jeep without answering, and brought me back to my car.”
― Robert Crais, The Promise

“A shopping bag from a local hobby store contained kits for making buzzers and doorbells. Jugs of liquid resin and rolls of plastic food wrap sat beside the bag, and a mini-loaf baking pan was wedged between the jugs. Plastic sewing kits were stacked next to X-Acto knives, and so many arts and crafts supplies Amy could open a hobby shop. The”
― Robert Crais, The Promise

“Why did Colinski want the house?” “Who knows? A place to hide, cut dope, stash cash, party. Stupid, I said, how are you going to clean up, being involved with a man like this, but the Great Colinski had spoken.” “Jacobi and Juan were both addicts. Did Juan trade drugs for the house?” “Yes! This was Colinski’s brilliant idea.” “Do”
― Robert Crais, The Promise

“Does the Great Colinski have a first name?” “Royal. Such a name, don’t you think? Royal Colinski from East L.A.” The burner vibrated in my pocket, but I was learning too much to stop. “Why”
― Robert Crais, The Promise

“Okay, listen. The ATF analyzed the bomb from my car. You know what taggants are?” “Detection markers.” Taggants had been required in plastic explosives since the nineties. “The”
― Robert Crais, The Promise

“Cowly took the hand, and offered a perfunctory smile. “Joyce”
― Robert Crais, The Promise

“Maggie jumped to a full alert, her eyes locked on the greasy cube. Scott threw it hard, and Maggie sprinted after it. The chunk bounced and skipped through the grass thirty yards away. Scott didn’t know if she could see it, but canine eyes were far more sensitive to motion than human eyes, and her nose would do the rest. Maggie’s”
― Robert Crais, The Promise

“Scott told himself to be patient, but wondered what Cole knew. Cole’s offer to help was like a worrisome terrier that wouldn’t let go of his ankle. Cole might be one of those people who colored outside the lines, but people who hung it over the edge weren’t always wrong. Cole might be able to use his secret knowledge and shady connections to break the case faster than Carter. Scott”
― Robert Crais, The Promise

“Jon said, “Two hundred kilograms is four hundred forty pounds. That much C-4 takes up about eight cubic feet, which is your basic cardboard box.” Amy”
― Robert Crais, The Promise

“A taupe couch faced matching taupe chairs across a blocky coffee table. Matching end tables that were too large for the space bracketed the couch, and a generic mass-produced painting hung on the wall. The furnishings appeared new, but looked like furnishings found in a discount motel chain. Pike”
― Robert Crais, The Promise

“Jon went back inside, and Googled pictures of Jacob Breslyn. He found a tall young man with a thin face, relaxed smile, and high forehead. Geeky, but growing into himself. An everyday, normal civilian. Jon”
― Robert Crais, The Promise

“Jon had spent most of his career gathering intelligence, providing security, rescuing hostages, and, one way or another, in direct, boots-on-the-ground combat with individuals identified as terrorists by the United Nations, the United States government, and the civilized world. This being Nigeria, Jon knew the people responsible for the bombing would be members of Boko Haram, an Islamist militant group with ties to al-Qaeda, or a Boko Haram splinter group known as Ansaru. Both were big on suicide bombings, and often employed women and children as their designated suicides. Neither group had claimed responsibility, but Jon knew this meant little. So many dipshits with ties to al-Qaeda were running around that part of the world, you couldn’t keep track with a scorecard. The shot caller who ordered the bombing would probably never be known, and was likely already dead. More’s”
― Robert Crais, The Promise

“WHEN COLE CUT HIM FREE, Jon amscrayed back to West Hollywood. He hadn’t been home long enough to heat his pool, but Jon stripped as he walked through his house, and hit the water like a naked lawn dart. The cold water slapped him; lit up his skin with a thousand stingers, but was clear, and clean, and cleansing. Jon loved it. First thing he did when he got home from a job: into the pool, out; it was like being reborn. Jon”
― Robert Crais, The Promise

“WHEN COLE CUT HIM FREE, Jon amscrayed back to West Hollywood. He hadn’t been home long enough to heat his pool, but Jon stripped as he walked through his house, and hit the water like a naked lawn dart. The”
― Robert Crais, The Promise

“second voice spoke, young and uncertain. “This is Ilan. Can you hear me?” Their voices had the hollow, faraway quality that came with being on speaker. “I”
― Robert Crais, The Promise

“She spoke in a fast rush. “Can’t talk. Meet me in forty minutes. Say where.” Forty minutes. Not half an hour or an hour. Forty. Like we were Ukrainian spies. We”
― Robert Crais, The Promise

“Cole’s interest was a tell. He wasn’t expressing casual curiosity. He was all business, and carried himself like a man with a need to know. Scott didn’t like the way Cole’s friends were staring, like a couple of lions waiting to pounce. “I’d rather speak alone.” “We’re good.” Cole”
― Robert Crais, The Promise