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  To Julie Clow: Words cannot describe how much I love you, my little sister. To have another human being share so much of your DNA and mirror your thought patterns, assumptions, drive, and personality is a rare gift and one that I don’t take for granted. I’m so proud of all you have accomplished. I admire your intellect and incredible determination. Thank you for mentoring me through the seven long years it took to bring the book to fruition. You were the cheerleader I needed to keep moving forward despite numerous setbacks. From the trailer park to Google, Chanel, and the CIA—we’ve come a long way, baby!

  I will be forever grateful for the love and sacrifice of my parents: Judy Morris and Art and Crystal Rigby. Mom, you raised me to love learning and to be a winner. I am who I am because of you; thank you for pushing me to dream bigger and shoot higher. Thank you for providing the financial means and emotional support for my first overseas trips to Egypt, Russia, and Ukraine. I know it was scary letting me go, but thank you for enabling me to follow the call.

  Dad and Crystal, you have been supportive of every assignment, international move, and major change in our lives. I can’t begin to list the many ways you managed our affairs when Joseph and I were abroad. You made it possible for us to keep our heads above water. Thank you for holding us up in prayer and talking us through the moments when we thought we could not endure “one more day” in a war zone. Your daily intercessions for strength and physical protection are what we have valued above all else.

  To my beautiful mother- and father-in-law in heaven, we miss you so much. Your faithfulness to God serves as an inspiration for all that Joseph and I do. Your legacy continues to ripple through time and impact thousands of lives—all the people whom you selflessly served. Thank you for the sweet compliments on my writing and entreaties for me to do more. I think this book would make you smile, which gives me great joy.

  Thank you to my beautiful sisters-in-law for being such a critical support to us through these years. No matter how far apart we are, you are always on our minds and in our hearts.

  Thank you to family and friends who told me I had an important story to tell, even when I didn’t believe them: Dad and Crystal, my late mother-in-law, my late grandma Gayle, aunt Jane, aunt Mary, cousins Jenna and Nerina, grandma Nerina, niece Danielle Clow, Phil and Jennifer D., godparents Burney and Karen, and my best friend, Stephanie. You were long-suffering and prayerful for us throughout our CIA tenure as well as the development of this manuscript.

  There is no way I would have gotten through ten years at the CIA without the camaraderie of my colleagues. To “the ladies in Baghdad”: I couldn’t have endured the insanity of that year without the benefit of your humor and wit. I can’t imagine working that hard ever again: running from rockets, jumping into bunkers, waking up in the middle of the night to deal with threat reporting, and drinking from a fire hose of emergencies every hour of the day. You will always hold a special place in my heart.

  To the last two groups with whom I served, you were some of the most operationally proficient and emotionally intelligent officers with whom I’ve ever collaborated. Thank you for teaching me how to honor my intuition and use it to deconstruct the toughest cases. I wish more people could know about your work. You are superstars.

  Thanks to “David” for taking a chance on Joseph and me and enabling our transition to the civilian world. Without your generosity, I’m not sure where we would be right now. Your strategic thinking continues to inspire us to find unique ways to solve thorny problems.

  I am so grateful for the early supporters of this book: media guru Adam Ciralsky, editor extraordinaire Miriam Shaviv, Julie Anderson, and Marla Carlton. Thank you for believing in me and helping me find ways to push this message forward.

  Thank you to Mark Burnett and Roma Downey, without whom there would have been no evacuation. It was your vision that set the evacuation on course. Aron Shaviv and Adam Ciralsky, your assistance to the Iraq evacuation effort was invaluable. Thank you for helping us at such a critical (and stressful) time. You were godsends.

  Maria Ribas, you were the first one in the industry to catch the vision for this book. Your advocacy for the earlier version of the manuscript meant so much to me. Julie Clow, Jenny Blake, and Graham Segroves, thank you for supporting me when I heard the calling to write the book but couldn’t wrap my head around it. Your coaching enabled me to move forward as I strove to conceptualize the next critical steps of my life.

  A special thanks goes out to several people who have been longtime friends and incredible supporters of the book as well as our careers: Bill and Pam Fleming, Dr. John Calhoun, and our alma mater, Palm Beach Atlantic University.

  There would be no book without the vision of Esther Fedorkevich, founder and CEO of The Fedd Agency. Esther, you recognized that what I lacked in a platform I made up for in substance and experience. When I was about to relinquish my publishing dream, you agreed to take me on. A special thanks goes out to the entire Fedd team who believed in this project from the beginning: Whitney Gossett, Misty Williams, Christian Rea, and Lisa Schmidt, you each brought your special touches to this project.

  Tyndale Momentum, I can’t thank you enough for investing in this message of hope and inspiration. I prayed that the manuscript would come to rest with the perfect team, the kind of people who aren’t scared to “get off the ‘X.’” Sarah Atkinson, I am grateful that you gave this book a chance. Your enthusiasm for this project was such a gift. Thank you for shepherding the manuscript from start to finish, ensuring it received the care and attention it needed at every step. Carol Traver and Kim Miller, your excitement for this book made the editorial process so much easier as you used your incredible skills to transform a rough stone into a shiny pearl . . . in record time, I might add. Dean Renninger, you took a difficult charge and delivered an extraordinary book cover. It is beyond words! Big hugs also go to Sharon Leavitt, Katie Dodillet, Cassidy Gage, and Jillian Schlossberg.

  At the beginning and the end of the day, the book is about you, the readers. If my experiences provide the spark and the courage you need to pursue opportunities that seem beyond reach, then all the effort that went into the book will be worth it. Get off the “X” and go get ’em!

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Michele Rigby Assad began her career in the government relations department of an international relief and development organization in Washington, DC, in 1995. She joined the CIA in January 2002 to work as an intelligence officer in the Directorate of Operations, the covert arm of the agency. Specializing in counterterrorism and counterintelligence issues, Michele worked in several hot spots, including Iraq during the height of the war. To date, Michele has lived in six countries in the Near East region and traveled to more than forty others.

  After a decade of government service, Michele left the undercover life to serve as a public speaker, trainer, and international security consultant focused on the Middle East, Europe, North Africa, and Asia. She and her husband, Joseph, live in Florida.

  Michele holds a master’s degree in contemporary Arab studies from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service and a political science degree from Palm Beach Atlantic University.

  Michele credits student-led mission trips to Egypt, Russia, and Ukraine and a study abroad program in Egypt, Israel, and the West Bank as being the catalysts to her passion for foreign cultures and international travel. The year she spent studying in the Middle East changed the course of her life, taking her from rural central Florida to the front lines of the war on terror. Michele is motivated to use her unique platform to educate and inspire, showing how critical courage is to living a life of impact and purpose.

  Michele writes about her many passions at www.michelerigbyassad.com, where she features articles on counterterrorism, personal security, the Middle East, faith, and inspiration. Connect with her there, as well as on Facebook (Michele Rigby Assad) and Twitter @MicheleRigAssad.

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