She nodded, but didn’t reply.
Brodie looked at his partner. She appeared more vulnerable than he’d ever seen her. Her professional polish made him forget sometimes that at the end of the day, Maggie Taylor was Magnolia Taylor, a country girl from the hills who had clawed her way out of a hardscrabble existence in a place that, like much of rural America, celebrated a kind of bold, unsophisticated, and unequivocal patriotism. She had answered the call without questions, and she’d worn the uniform with pride. But nothing had prepared her for a man like Trent, who probably paid lip service to the things that Maggie Taylor held most dear.
He asked her, “How did you follow up?”
She held his gaze. “We followed procedure. Our platoon leader, a newbie lieutenant, and the three squad leaders, including me, reported in person to our immediate superior, Captain Evers. He seemed… a little distraught and a little unbelieving. He told us he’d pass this on to the colonel. A few days later, he told us that a task force, comprised of military Intel people, CID, and a forensic team, was going to visit Mirabad, take statements, look at physical evidence, and get at the truth.”
Brodie nodded. “Good.” He asked, “And did anyone take a written statement from you or anyone in your unit?”
“No.”
“Did anyone get back to you about the results of the investigation?”
“No.”
“And when you didn’t hear anything, did you or anyone inquire further?”
“I asked Captain Evers what was happening. He said the investigation was ongoing, and that it was up to the CID to contact us if and when they needed any further statements from me or anyone in my unit.” She added, “I’m still waiting.”
“Right.” If the first casualty of war is the truth, then the second casualty is justice. He informed her, “You could have bucked the chain of command and gone right to the commanding officer of your Civil Affairs battalion. Or even higher.” He reminded her, “You can do that in extraordinary circumstances.”
She nodded. “I could have… but I was told by Captain Evers, in no uncertain terms, that because of the sensitive nature of this incident—he called it an ‘alleged incident’—that I was to say nothing to anyone—including senior officers. I was to speak only to CID or JAG, and only if asked for a statement.”
“And you did as you were told.”
“I did. We all did.” She added, “Now… if something like that happened, I would act differently.”
“I’m sure you would.” And that probably included writing a negative report on Chief Warrant Officer Brodie, who was breaking a few rules and procedures of his own in the Mercer case. Maggie Taylor had learned a few things over the years, and there was a lot more to be learned. Like when to open your mouth, and when to keep it shut. Every soldier is schooled on the subject of obeying a lawful order, no matter how crazy or dangerous it sounds, and disobeying an unlawful order—if you’re sure it’s unlawful. Clearly Captain Evers had given her an unlawful order not to speak to superior officers in her chain of command about a crime that she had direct knowledge of. It was a tough position for a young soldier like Maggie Taylor, and she could only guess at what would happen to her if she went over Captain Evers’ head. Also, she half believed that the system would work and thatjustice would be done. As for the truth, the truth was that four helicopters full of men did not take it on themselves to wipe out a village. The order had come from a high place. In fact, what Maggie Taylor had seen was no doubt a small peek into Operation Flagstaff.
He asked her, “Anything else you’d like to say about the alleged incident?”
“Just that I’ve had to live with this for all these years.”
“It’s not about you. But do you feel better now?”
“No.”
“Would you feel better if we could find evidence connecting our criminal investigation of Kyle Mercer to Flagstaff?”
“I would… and that’s why I told you about this.”
Brodie nodded. “Also, you know that if I actually get my hands on Mercer, he might tell me something similar to what you just told me.”
“You heard it here first, Scott. Give me some credit for honesty.” She added, “I didn’t have to tell you any of this.”
“Actually, after Luis told us that Worley and Ted used the word ‘Flagstaff,’ you did. And if you had told me earlier, I would have had a better understanding of the bigger picture.” He added, “Also, let me remind you that you told me, quote, I slept with the guy, Scott. I didn’t get recruited by him. End quote.”
She had no response to that, but said, “You need to focus on this mission. Find and apprehend Kyle Mercer.”
“Right. But now it appears that Brendan Worley is trying to make sure that he finds Kyle Mercer first.” He added, “And I don’t think Worley intends to apprehend him. He could leave that to the CID. Worley intends to shut Mercer up. Permanently.”
She nodded. “That was another reason I told you what I knew.”
“Good. So you unburdened your soul, shed some light on this case, and trusted me with a dark secret. All within”—he looked at his watch—“ten minutes. That’s a good night’s work.”
“The night is not over.”
Did that mean she was ready to sleep with him? Probably not.
