The Final Line (41 page)

CHAPTER NINETEEN

It was a cold day in Coronado, but then, most days were cold in Coronado, at least until the middle of a summer day. The south-facing beach of the submarine base, where both Marine Recon and Navy SEALs conducted their training and drills, was carved out of one of the most costly pieces of real estate on the western coast of North America. Its subtle beauty belied the treacherousness of its waters and the hell that cold water and rough surf could be.

The Marines were dressed in their utility uniforms and full deuce gear, right down to their LPCs. They were going to swim the surf in their full gear. Those who survived today would get to navigate a Zodiac through the ocean and surf tomorrow. They would just have to do it without an engine.

Corey had hated the cold and the exhaustion of this part of training when he’d gone through BRC, but it hadn’t been particularly difficult for him. He was a strong swimmer and not afraid of the water. Corey’s greatest challenge had been being stuck with a team that had struggled to perform. Some had lost their PMA and others struggled to just hack it at all.

“How you feeling this morning, Staff Sergeant?” Whitfield asked him suddenly.

“Fan-fucking-tastic, Master Sergeant,” Corey replied eagerly. He hadn’t felt this good since before Afghanistan. He was sleeping well, he and Sean were taking turns cooking so he was eating well, an end to the legal issues hanging over head was in view, and he was getting laid on a regular basis. “I’ve had my coffee and I’m good to go.”

“Ooh-rah! Glad to hear it, Yarwood. I want you to take lead in this next series of training exercises.” Whitfield wasn’t wearing his Oakleys and Corey could see his eyes. He was completely fucking serious.

“I don’t understand, Master Sergeant,” Corey replied, heart pounding in excitement as well as anxiety.

“Yes you do,” Whitfield countered. “I want you taking over lead instructor responsibilities for the ocean Zodiac training.”

“Roger that, Master Sergeant. I’m just not clear why the most junior instructor is being given this task.” Corey knew he could do this and he wanted to prove it.

“I read your fit-rep from this set of exercises when you went through BRC,” said Whitfield. He angled his body slightly so he could watch the class beginning to assemble in the soft sand just beyond the edge of the surf. “The way you rallied your team and motivated them to successfully complete the training was impressive. Your natural leadership ability was obvious and I want you to continue to develop that.”

“Yes, Master Sergeant.” Corey was determined to succeed at this mission. He knew what Whitfield was doing. “I’m honored.” If Corey didn’t fuck up, when his shot came to be promoted to Gunny, he’d probably make it.

He took the clipboard with the roster of Marines who remained in the class and held a quick briefing with his fellow instructors. Now came the cold, messy part.

Corey explained the point of this segment of training and what was expected from the Marines, for them to make it through successfully. Next, he ordered them into the surf for a short swim around a buoy. As each Marine came stumbling out of the rough water, Corey checked him off his list. If he didn’t lay eyes on each student himself, rescue swimmers would be dispatched.

As each man hit the beach, chest heaving with exertion, Corey ordered him to roll in soft sand. It was natural camouflage. Recon Marines were stealthy motherfuckers. A mission was only considered successful if the objective was reached and the team remained undetected. Covering themselves in sand was a quick and easy way to blend in.

He sent the class back into the water. Recon Marines had to be able to stay alive in less than optimal circumstances, if a mission went tits up. Corey knew about missions that had ended with Marines having to swim into the open ocean and await extraction.

He watched the men drag themselves out of the surf. His fellow instructors gave words of encouragement and congratulations. Some gave out words of advice on how to make the task a little easier. Corey made a note of the Marines who encouraged fellow classmates or leant assistance when someone stumbled or struggled. He already suspected he knew who wasn’t going to make it past this point.

As dark settled over them, Corey called an end to the day. They piled into the transport vans for the hour-long drive back to Oceanside. As they crossed the Coronado Bay Bridge back onto the main land, Corey’s cell phone vibrated.

He expected it to be Sean but was surprised to see Jonah’s name on the display.

“Yo, Top,” Corey greeted.

“This is your heads up,” Jonah said without preamble. “Kellan’s report went to D.C. today. Hirata will make his arrests tomorrow. Kellan has given the Corps a chance to get in front of this and hold their own press conference, otherwise he’ll do it himself on behalf of the DOD.”

Corey’s blood turned icy in his veins. “What does that mean for me, Jonah?”

“In the immediate future, be on the lookout for the press and direct them all to the J.A.S.” Jonah answered. “You’ll probably have to testify at the court martials.”

“Everyone’s been hinting it went pretty high up. You actually found enough proof to convene court martials?” Corey asked. Kellan was thorough and cautious. If action was being taken, he knew Kellan had the goods.

“Agent Hoffman is a scary fucking interrogator when he gets going.” Jonah’s tone held grudging respect. “Did you know he was an
Intelligence Analyst
for the Marine Corps?” Corey heard the implied air quotes. “I think that’s just a cover ’cause the guy turned down a field agent position with the CIA to work for NCIS. Anyway, Lieutenant Adams cried like a bitch.”

“Is he getting off easy because of that?” Corey’s stomach turned at the thought. Adams was the asshole who started this whole goat rodeo.

“Are you fucking kidding me? This is military justice, not civilian,” replied Jonah smugly.

Corey chuckled in relief. “Does Hirata know anything about what’s gonna happen with that civilian case?” He was careful of the curious ears he knew were listening in, even as they pretended not to.

“He’s pretty sure this absolutely negates any use they may have for you as a witness,” Jonah assured him. “But if not, he’ll have your back all the way.”

“Good,” Corey sighed. “Thank him for me.”

“That brings me to the second reason I called,” Jonah said. “Kellan’s report contains details that affect national security, so it won’t be released publicly.”

“Understood.”

“If you want to come by the offices this evening, Kellan will let you read a hard copy. You have to leave it with us, but at least you’ll know exactly what happened and who did what to whom.”

Corey exhaled harshly. He was so close to putting all this shit behind him, did he really want to read all the gory details? When he considered all the rumor and speculation that he’d probably be faced with, Corey decided he wanted to know the truth. “Yeah. We’re RTB now. I’ll head over as soon as we’re dismissed.”

Corey ended the call and stared blindly out the van window. A heavy hand on his shoulder startled him. He glanced over to find the master sergeant watching him.

“Be proud of how you’ve conducted yourself, as a man and a Marine, in these last couple months,” Whitfield said with a sharp nod.

The unexpected praise knocked Corey off balance. “Thank you, Master Sergeant.”

Whitfield turned to look out the windscreen and Corey breathed a sigh of relief. He looked back over how things had changed since the first day of BRC and realized he
had
managed to get his shit together. He owed Sean a lot for his support and affection, but Corey had done the work and faced his demons.

When it had mattered most, Corey had been the man and the Marine he’d always wanted to be.

§ § §

Corey stared blindly at Kellan’s bold, swirling signature on the final page of the summary of his investigation into the events of Ghazni, Afghanistan. Captains Hirata and Evans had also signed, as well as Agent Chris Hoffman. They all certified the information contained in the two-inch thick report had been obtained through their own efforts and was truthful to the best of their individual and collective knowledge.

With a heavy sigh, Corey closed the front cover of the folder and sat back in his chair.

Jonah looked up from the laptop he was working on. “Everything okay?”

Corey knew what Jonah was really asking. “Yeah. Everything is okay,” he replied with conviction. And it was.

He was going to sit here and talk to Jonah about this shit. He’d go to Sean’s place and vent for a little while. Then he’d let it go and move on. He felt what Doctor Ingram called a
reasonable level of justifiable anger
and now he had a set of appropriate coping skills. Corey was fine and getting better every day.

“Do you have any questions?” Jonah closed the lid of his laptop.

Corey ran both hands over his face. He was so tired, but it was a physical tired. His fatigue was well earned from a day of hard work. He folded his arms over his chest and regarded Jonah. “Are the charges going to stick?”

“On the ones who count, yes,” Jonah replied. “The lieutenant colonel’s aide might not do prison time and may keep his commission. The platoon gunny will probably walk but the company gunny will most likely be dishonorably discharged.”

“What’s gonna happen to Nygaard and his team?”

“Nygaard will face court martial. We’ll let the civilian system have him and if he survives it, we’ll take him back to serve his military sentence.” Jonah shrugged. “The other four are as guilty as he is. They knew what they were doing was wrong. They showed cognizance of guilt. Nygaard didn’t have to threaten any of them to get them to go along. Each one of them knew that all he had to do was walk out a door and go to you. To a man, they knew you could, and would, stop Nygaard, but they wanted to go along.”

Corey leaned forward in his chair. “So, while my team and I were securing the hostile structure, a group of Afghan merchants rolled up on the platoon.”

“That’s correct,” Jonah replied with a nod.

“The Marines extracted them from the victor and secured them.” Corey struggled to form his next words. It was like none of this was real if he never spoke about it out loud. “But the lieutenant was still jacked up from the IED blast and ordered the men executed.”

Jonah sighed and frowned. “He and two others double tapped them in the back of the head. The idiot thing is, it probably could have been dealt with if Adams hadn’t covered it up. That made a stress reaction into a criminal act.”

“And the two Marines who also fired shots?” Corey’s anger gave way to sadness and disappointment. Adams might bear the most responsibility, but enlisted Marines were still culpable.

“Not enough evidence, but their careers are as good as over.”

Corey stood and crossed to Jonah, handing him the file folder. “Fuckers took nearly a year of my life with their lying shit.”

“Don’t let them have any more,” Jonah said fiercely as he slid the folder into a safe behind the desk.

“I’m not.” Corey headed for the office door. “That’s time and energy better spent on Sean.”

“Good to see you’ve got your priorities straight once again,” Jonah said with a grin. “I’m sure I don’t have to tell you to have a good night.”

CHAPTER TWENTY

Sean was about to empty his pockets and step through the metal detector at the Vista Court House. The deputies took one look at Corey in his olive green service uniform, barracks cover tucked under his arm, and pulled them both out of line. It took only seconds to pass the wand over each of them, determine they were unarmed, and send them on their way with reverently murmured thanks to Corey for his service.

He grinned at Sean as they crossed through a bustling line of foot traffic to where Captain Hirata stood waiting for them. Sean was dressed in a navy pinstripe suit, white dress shirt, and a navy tie accented with pale blue fleur de lis. He was a stunning sight and the heads of both men and women turned as they passed by.

“I see you made it, Staff Sergeant,” Hirata said in greeting.

“Yes, sir,” he replied with a smile. “Captain Hirata, may I present Sean Chandler. Sean, this is J.A.S. attorney Captain Mirai Hirata.”

The two shook hands and exchanged the common instructions to use first names.

Corey had expected to be nervous this morning. To his surprise, he wasn’t. Nygaard was evil, and Corey was on the side of the angels, and he realized he was ready for this.

“They’ve set aside a room for us to wait,” Hirata said, leading them down the corridor. “There is no telling how long we’ll be here. When they said you’d be first up this morning to testify, it was only an estimate.”

“Yes, sir, I’m aware,” Corey replied, setting his cover on the long table and moving to look out the wide windows. “That’s why Sean’s here; to keep me from getting too bored and getting myself into trouble.”

“Nothing more dangerous than a bored Marine with time on his hands, is there?” Hirata chuckled.

Corey smiled. “That’s no joke, sir.”

They settled down around the table, resigned to wait until Corey was called to testify. He was a prosecution witness now. All the incidents he’d had to deal with involving Nygaard’s fighting while in theater, the events in Ghazni, and Corey’s visit to Vista Detention the night Nygaard was arrested, would be brought out.

The fallout from Kellan’s report had been fierce, but the Corps had gotten ahead of it, held its own press conferences, and let military justice run its course. Several men were doing time in the Camp Pendleton Brig. A couple of them were serving their sentences in Leavenworth. Right up until the moment all of the officers were actually sentenced to prison time, Corey had been sure the enlisted Marines were going to be scapegoats.

Hirata worked on his laptop and spent a lot of time on his cell phone. Corey checked email and made a few phone calls. He read the news on his phone but he paid more attention to what Sean was up to. Sean trolled his own Facebook page, checking to see what his administrator was posting and reading some of the comments. He shared several of them with Corey and they laughed good naturedly at some of Sean’s more ardent fans, male and female.