ANA Reborn by Carl Facciponte - HTML preview
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Chapter 13
taff Sergeant Ralph Thornton wondered why S General Lance Coopers wanted to talk to him in person in his Pentagon office. The General always followed the military chain of command when communicating with lower-level personnel.
“Well, no big deal,” Ralph mused as he boarded the Amtrak train at the NYC Penn Station for the three-hour ride to the Pentagon.
“It’s a nice day for a road trip, but it would be more fun if Martha could come with me. It’s just strange for Coopers to call a sergeant into his office. Something’s up,” Ralph mused to his reflection in the train window.
Ralph transferred to the Amtrak Yellow Line at the Washington Metrorail Station for the short ride to the Pentagon.
He checked in with Pentagon Force Protection Agency at the visitor door for a credential and sponsor check.
Sergeant Oliver found Ralph’s name on the Approved for Entry List.
“Very good, Sergeant Thornton,” said Oliver.
“General Coopers is listed as your sponsor and has included orders that you do not require an escort. Please scan your ID. Do you need directions to the General’s office?”
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“No, I’m good,” Ralph replied. The directions say to report to room 2D153A. The second floor, building ring D, corridor 1, room 53A. Right?”
“Right you are, Sergeant,” Oliver said.
Ralph chuckled, “Musta’ been an outside consultant who designed the room numbers.”
Both enlisted men laughed at their impertinence.
A Major with light umber skin in a creased, skirted uniform greeted Ralph in the General’s paneled waiting room. Ralph saluted as he entered. Major Sharise Dunn returned the salute, then held her hand out with a broad, friendly smile and shook Ralph’s hand.
“Welcome, Sergeant Thornton. The General will see you in a moment. Did you have a pleasant trip from New York?”
“Yes, I did. Thank you for asking. Major.”
After a moment, Ralph continued, “I have to confess, though, I’m a bit off-kilter meeting you.
Majors rarely smile and shake hands with enlisted men when they meet.”
“Ralph, may I call you Ralph? We are all in the same Army and the only two here. What happens in public is not always what happens in a General’s office.”
Sergeant Thornton was silent for a moment. I’m not sure if there is any hidden meaning in the Major’s words. “Yes, Major. That’s good to know,” he responded.
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Major Dunn walked to her desk and pressed a button on her intercom. “Sergeant Thornton is here to see you, Sir.” There was no reply.
“He will be with you in a moment, Sergeant,”
she said with another smile.
Ralph stole a glance at her legs as he tried to determine if she was flirting with him or not. Perhaps not, but she sure is nice to look at.
In a few moments, Sharise’s intercom buzzed softly. “Send him in,” said a gruff voice, then silence.
“You may go in now, Sergeant,” Major Dunn said. Ralph could sense a stiffening in her demeanor after hearing Lance’s voice.
Ralph nodded, entered the office, stood at attention at the door, and saluted. His eyes took in the red leather chairs and polished cherry tables.
“At ease, Ralph,” Lance said. “Let’s not stand on ceremony in the office. Please have a seat,” he added, gesturing to the chair nearest his desk.
Ralph sat.
“Now, the question is, Sergeant, why on earth did I ask you to travel three hours to see me instead of just calling you on the phone?”
Ralph raised a finger to answer but was cut off before he could speak.
“Let me get right to the point. You’ve been in my chain of command for what, five years or so?
Correct?”
“Yes, Sir. It’s actually six years.”
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“Six years, well then. What do you know? At any rate, in all that time you have never failed an assignment given to you by any officer over you.”
Ralph’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Yes, Sergeant, I’ve been tracking you. I do it with all my hi-pots.”
“Hi-pots, Sir?”
“Yes, high potential people. I’ve chosen you because I need someone I can depend on. Are you that person, Sergeant?”
“Yes, Sir, I am. What can I do for you, General?” Ralph said as he sat proudly in his chair.
“We have an issue overseas. You’re an exceptional trainer; it’s why we assigned you to teach martial arts at the dojo to our AIs. I need a similar skill level to teach some local government military. Interested?”
“Yes, Sir. Where will the training take place?”
“Afghanistan.”
“Sir, there are a lot of people already in-country who can do that type of training. Why me? What else is involved?”
Lance grinned broadly. “See, exactly why I called you here. You’re not just another pretty face. Picked right up on it, son! I like your style.
I’ll give it to you straight.” And then, in a lower voice, as if conveying a great secret, “I have intel some of our military in one province are on the take from local drug lords. I’m not surprised because it’s how most of the country makes its 126
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money and stays solvent. Afghanistan is one of the biggest opium and heroin producers in the world. They can’t grow crops for shit, but poppies will grow anywhere.” Lance let his words sink in.
Ralph shifted in his chair and leaned toward the desk.
“At any rate, I need to get someone over there I can trust to sniff things out. Hell, if you find something, I might even fly over myself. Cleaning up a dirty operation within the military would be a great notch in my belt towards my next promotion. Of course, it would help you a lot too.
When can you expect to make Sergeant First Class?”
“Probably not for another five to six years, Sir.”
“I’ll tell you what, Ralph, you do well in this assignment, and I can see to it you make Sergeant First Class this year. Do outstanding, and I’ll see what I can do to make you a Master Sergeant.
How does the assignment sound? What would it mean to you and your AI Concepts tootsie?”
“Sir, you know I’m dating someone from AI Concepts?”
“Son, Lance knows everything,” the General said with a reptile’s grin.
Ralph squirmed slightly in his chair.
Lance continued, “It would be a six-month assignment, depending on what you find. No need for an answer today. Go home and think about it and what it would do for your long-127
range future. A Master Sergeant’s pay would help a lot with plans, wouldn’t it?”
“Yes, it would, Sir. It’s quite an offer.”
“Get back to me with a ‘yea’ or ‘nay’ within two days. Otherwise, I’ll have to find someone else. Hey, thanks for coming all this way. You see why we couldn’t talk about this on the phone, right? It takes a face-to-face meeting, plus the operation is highly classified, and need-to-know only.”
“Yes, Sir. I will get right back to you. I thank you for the opportunity.”
The uneventful train ride back to Manhattan gave Ralph time to think about the offer.
“The promise of higher rank and the pay accompanying it is a powerful incentive. But, even so, it seems like there’s more to it,” Ralph thought with unfocused eyes looking out of the window.
“Why on earth would a Brigadier General even suggest he would go to Afghanistan when he isn’t a combat general? His background is in Computer Information Systems. They could monitor anything in Afghanistan through CIS
from the States. Something is amiss. It most certainly is.”
“I need to talk to Martha tonight,” he said to the road.
***
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“Hi, Honey,” Ralph said as Martha ushered him into her apartment. “I know it’s late, but I had to talk with you.”
Martha wrapped her arms around him. “You know you can drop in anytime you want. You can stay the night anytime, too.” She snuggled into his arms. “Sorry I didn’t have time to change from work yet.”
“I’ll never turn down seeing you in that leather skirt, Hon. Let’s sit for a second. I have something to tell you,” Ralph said quietly as he led her to the overstuffed sofa.
“That sounds ominous,” she responded.
“What’s the bad news? You’re not acting like yourself.”
“I had a meeting with General Coopers earlier today. He wanted to tell me in person I’m being reassigned for six months to train some troops.”
“So far, it doesn’t sound too tragic,” she said, and then and then furrowed her brow, “The assignment’s around here, right?”
“It’s in Afghanistan,” Ralph lowered his head,
“training some of the Afghan government troops.”
“Oh no, no, no,” Martha gasped as she pivoted on the couch and straddled Ralph with her legs. She wrapped her arms around his head and drew him in tightly. “No, I can’t let you go!
Can you tell him you don’t want to go?”
“Technically, I could, but in the real world, there is no way to turn anything down when a General calls a Sergeant into his office. No, I can’t.
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He didn’t make it a direct order, but it certainly was. I can’t figure out why he wanted my buy-in, though.”
“I’m scared, Ralph. I don’t want you to go,”
she said as she held him tighter. Ralph put his arms around her and pressed her hips into him.
“My timing is bad, but I need you right now,”
Ralph mumbled as he buried his face into her.
Martha lightly bit his ear. “Me too.”
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