“Sir, you are always welcome here,” Troy spoke truthfully. “I’ll take good care of her.”
“Of that, I have no doubt. I’ll get my things and say goodbye. Would one of your team get me to Halsey Field?”
“Absolutely.”
Chapter 26
After checking in on the sleeping Gwen, Troy stepped into his new office with Trask and Gavin Anderson, XO for 3-Romeo, and Dan Bishop, 3-Romeo’s team leader before closing the door. Trask looked around. “I… wow…” he mumbled.
Troy smiled. “Yeah. Owen outdid himself. He wanted to make sure, if I worked from home, it would be ‘spectacular.’ On to the reason we are here. Dan, Gavin, I’d like to offer your team, 3-Sierra, my full-time protection detail. I’d like you to step out and discuss the offer with them. There’s no hiding what came out in the news today. I wish I had better control of the release of the narrative, but the story is true. I realize the situation can make some people uncomfortable protecting me. I don’t want anyone doing a job they don’t want to do.”
Bishop looked at Gavin before speaking, “Sir, we don’t need to step out. We had some downtime after the story broke. We had a team discussion. It would be an honor to protect you,” Dan said.
“Thank you. I would like you to explore the operations center and make sure there is a functional plan for both estate and personal protection. I need Miss North to be safe. If you need more personnel, ask.”
“No problem, Mr. Bremen,”Dan said. “I will have it completed by 2000 hours.”
Trask waited for Anderson and Bishop to leave. “You’re really the cat’s meow,” he teased.
“I don’t want someone working for me who doesn’t want to be here.”Troy sighed.
Trask looked down. “Boss, when Gwen was packing to leave Virginia, Remy told her Gerald Billings mentioned you caught more than a beating in Silverton. Remy wrote him up and transferred him to Lima Team. Gwen co-signed the transfer the day you left for here. I asked Tech to find the report.”
“Good. Call Mirouette. I want to hear the story from him. Also call Linc in Denver. I want Billings on a plane here ASAP. I spoke to my mystery caller again today. Make sure Tech pulls the recording off my phone. Plus, the call Martin and Kip reported. I want those transcripts.”
“I read the report. Her ex called her Gwenny. Do you think he’s involved?”
“Anything is possible. We’re running their records. All I know is the female victims all sustained injuries similar to Gwendolen’s. And then there are the men. Why them? Did they stumble onto something? Or are their attacks separate from the female attacks? James Richmond said his assailants told him there was no place in the Marines for a guy like him. And they said, ‘Do it again, and we will be back.’ He had no idea what ‘guys like him’ meant. The caller today told me there’s no place in the world for people like Gwen or me. He went on a rant about me helping people. Is that a clue? Tomorrow, I want to speak to Brody Garrett. Have Tech check personnel records. Look for any in the command who were working during the dates of the attacks.” Troy blew out puffed cheeks.
“Except for Gwen, why did they choose the women?” Trask asked.
“We need to re-interview the victims. We’re missing something.” Troy pursed his lips.
When the doorbell rang, Trask withdrew his gun and moved rapidly to protect the office door. At Trask’s chuckle, the door to the office opened completely.
Martin walked in with Ian Chase. “The doorbell works,” Martin said.
Troy stood and faced Ian. “I need to thank you,” Troy’s voice cracked.
“You being here is more than enough. I can only understand a little how tough today was for you. We will find these people. Martin and I were working through some wording for a companywide statement.” Ian pulled Troy into an embrace.
* * *
After everyone retiredfor the evening and Troy signed off on the new security protocols, he sat with Tim Holland in what was now deemed the medical quarters instead of the maid’s quarters. “I’m going to arrange for a mini pharmacy and other equipment to be delivered before your surgery. It will be easier than working out of a med bag. But I’ll be discreet. The equipment will help your recovery, but I don’t want you to be identified by it.”
Troy nodded. “I need to thank you again for taking this assignment. It’s a lot for one person to handle. Hell, I’m a lot for one person to handle. I don’t expect you to work twenty-four hours a day. I’d like you to speak with Eric and make sure he has coverage for you. Also, security concerns are an issue. I want you to feel this is your home too. I wish I could let you have any guest you’d like, but you know I can’t. Anyone here needs security clearance or very restricted access. Instead, Julian and I have standing rooms at the Omni. All you have to do is ask.”
“That’s generous. Thank you,”Tim said.
“The good Dr. Sommerfeld sent home an informative pamphlet. I suspect you’ll need more than generosity after you're up to your elbows.” Troy shook his head.
“Incontinence is part of the recovery. You didn’t choose this,” Tim said. “It’s been a long day. How are you?”
“A loaded question. And then there’s your no BS rule. I told Mac, part of what I feel is numb. I’m not quite sure what else I feel. But as I think about it, it’s not numb; it’s peaceful. Talking with Mac, he helped me realize the tapes being released forced my hand. Choices were made for me. And now I need to make my own choices.
“As the final attack played, I watched what they did to me. Every blow, every evil act, their savagery. It wasn’t Royce Mills; I watched myself fight back. I never gave in. For those few minutes I lay on that cold floor, I wanted to live long enough to take them down, but if that wasn’t possible, I’d die on my own terms.
“Today, I thought about the countless victims I’ve interviewed.” Troy’s eyes drifted. “If I bury my head in the sand, I’m a fraud. How can I help someone if I can’t help myself? Tim, I can’t live this way anymore.”
