Read Exposure (Jackson Chase Novella Book 1) Online
Authors: Connor Black
Exposure (Jackson Chase Novella Book 1) (10 page)
“We’ll settle for a lift back to Bagram,” I said.
He let out a hearty laugh. “That is the least we could do!”
I
am not
sure what I expected to find when we arrived back at hangar Lima Six. Some cheers? A cold beer and a pat on the back?
Instead, we were greeted by a mealy little US Army aide. The stuttering Second Lieutenant sputtered a simple thanks from General Woodford, commander of coalition forces in Afghanistan, along with orders that Chen, Sterba and I report to the Pentagon at 0800 in two days.
This gave us a bit of time to thank the SAS boys and the Brits that loaned us the Little Bird I destroyed. This was done adhering to strict international protocols by getting completely shitfaced, and telling stories until the wee hours of the morning. I think Chen was still a little green around the gills when we boarded the flight for the first leg of our journey back.
A
rriving
at the Pentagon a few minutes early like the good sailors we were, we encountered yet another aide, this time an Ensign. He took us through a maze of corridors and stairwells before bringing us to a door that, unlike all the others in the Pentagon, had no markings.
After dismissing the Ensign, I turned and opened the hatch for Chen, Sterba, and myself.
I was surprised to see Landon Clark in the room. He had begged off the post operation celebration, mumbling something about Langley, and we hadn’t seen him since.
But if I was surprised to see Clark, I was positively shocked to see the tall man standing next to him in a charcoal suit. It was my former sailing coach, Admiral Doug Christie, now retired.
I snapped to attention, pulling my shoulders back.
He extended his hand, and with a warm smile, he said, “Good to see you, Jackson.”
I took his hand and replied, “Good to see you, too, sir.”
His eyes moved down to the NZSAS insignia on my right collar. “Still breaking uniform regulations, I see,” he said, still grinning.
“The unit will always be a part of me, sir.”
“A part you should be proud of. And frankly, a part of you that President Karzai should be extremely thankful for.”
“It was the Kiwis and the team here that saved him, sir,” I replied, waving my hand to the others while doing my best to deflect the compliment.
“Yes, your ad-hoc team. You know, you’ve raised quite a few eyebrows around here. How about telling me the story before we head to the woodshed?” he said, motioning for us to have a seat.
I
hope
you enjoyed this introduction to Jackson Chase. I know he left you hanging there, but that’s because he’d like to return in more short adventures in the near future.
If you did enjoy the story, I would appreciate you helping other readers meet him, too. You can lend this ebook via Amazon, share a link on Facebook, or simply tell a friend. You can also
leave a review on Amazon
or Goodreads. (If you do, please send me a note at
[email protected]
so that I can thank you personally.)
J
ackson
and I have been thinking of one another for years. To be honest, he’s been in the dark recesses of my computer, held prisoner by my own fear of letting others read his story. Am I a good enough writer? Is he as great a character as I know him to be? But my goodness, I talked myself out of releasing him for far too long. It was time to stick my neck out.
There are several folks who helped in this adventure, and I couldn’t have written this little book without them. Thanks to Bill, Ken, Jamey, and Matt for entertaining my silly questions. And special thanks to my wife, Niki, who was so good to keep pushing me forward.
Finally, I would like to recognize the fine soldiers of the NZSAS. This quiet group of professionals operates in such complete secrecy that only hints ever make it to the surface. And while their rigorous adherence to silence made research nearly impossible, it did afford me some flexibility in building Jackson’s background.
My hope is that these heroes will have a laugh at the addition of Jackson to their ranks. Please know he joined the unit out of respect for your unique combination of humility, professionalism, bravery, and incredible skill. Kia kaha.
C
onnor Black is
an interactive design consultant in Northern California. He lives with his wife, a New Zealander, and their two sons, who are dual citizens much like Jackson Chase.
J
ackson Chase adventures continue in
…
T
his book is
a work of fiction. All names, characters, events, and places are a product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, events, establishments, or locales is entirely coincidental.
All rights reserved. No parts of this story may be reproduced in any manner whatsoever, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or in any means – by electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise – without prior written permission from the author.
E
xposure - A Jackson
Chase Novella
C
opyright ©
2013 Connor Black
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