Real-life scorpions

This is the Washington Post story that inspired the book's title.

Avery was always going to be an independent contractor working under the CIA's Global Response Staff (GRS), but after learning that the elite of the CIA's real-life contractors are referred to as scorpions (information I also confirmed elsewhere), I knew I had the title for the book.

GRS contractors provide security for CIA officers and facilities in high risk environments like Libya, Iraq, or Mexico. But they've also been used to collect intelligence, too, in dangerous places.

The 2012 attacks on the Benghazi consulate and CIA base brought public attention to the GRS.