Chapter 5 - the general’s invitation
At 1:17 a.m., Adrian’s secure phone received a direct order to report to Fort Halden.
The message came from General Voss.
COME ALONE. BRING NO CIVILIAN AUTHORITIES.
Detective Bell read the message and shook her head.
“You are not going alone.”
“If I ignore a direct order, he can accuse me of abandoning a classified operation.”
“He may already be preparing to accuse you.”
Adrian looked toward the neighbor’s house where Chloe was sleeping.
“What happens to Samantha?”
“She remains here while we determine the extent of her involvement.”
Samantha stood near the staircase.
“Adrian, please.”
He turned.
For the first time that night, she looked frightened for him rather than for herself.
“Voss knows things,” she said. “He knows details about your career that were never public.”
“That is expected from my commanding officer.”
“No. I mean personal things. He knew where you proposed to me. He knew about the argument we had after Chloe was born. He knew the name of the hospital nurse who stayed with me while you were deployed.”
Adrian studied her face.
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Because he said you had authorized him to assess me.”
“And you believed him?”
“He showed me documents.”
“Documents can be forged.”
“I know that now.”
Detective Bell asked, “What did he promise you in return for helping him?”
Samantha lowered her eyes.
“He said he would erase the debt. Then he said he could make sure Adrian received the promotion he deserved.”
Adrian felt something colder than anger.
“My promotion was announced two months after Voss contacted you.”
“I thought I was helping.”
“You sold access to my life.”
“I never intended for Chloe to be involved.”
“You continued after he mentioned her.”
Samantha’s voice broke. “I was afraid that stopping would make things worse.”
Adrian stepped closer, but his expression did not soften.
“Fear explains why you hesitated. It does not explain why you kept lying.”
He left the room before she could answer.
Fort Halden stood beneath low clouds twenty miles north of the city. Detective Bell arranged for state police vehicles to follow at a distance, while Adrian drove through the main gate alone.
Security officers checked his identification three times.
Inside the command building, the corridors were almost empty.
General Voss waited in the operations room.
He wore his formal uniform despite the hour.
“You brought police,” Voss said.
“I followed security protocol after a breach at my residence.”
“You created the breach when you removed the Atlas access key from the facility.”
“You ordered me to keep it under direct control.”
“I ordered you to secure it at Hangar Nine.”
“No. You changed the record after I left.”
Voss smiled slightly. “That is a serious accusation.”
“Your voice is on Samantha’s recording.”
“Modern voice synthesis can imitate anyone.”
“You visited my house.”
“I have visited the homes of many officers.”
“You built a surveillance passage behind my garage.”
Voss’s smile disappeared.
“Careful, Colonel.”
Adrian stepped closer to the operations table.
“The Atlas mission has been compromised.”
“Yes,” Voss replied. “By you.”
A side door opened.
Four military investigators entered.
Their leader, Major Lena Ortiz, had served with Adrian in two overseas operations. She did not meet his eyes.
“Colonel Adrian Samson,” she said, “you are being temporarily relieved of command pending an investigation into unauthorized removal of classified materials.”
Voss placed a folder on the table.
Inside were security images showing Adrian carrying the silver case out of Hangar Nine.
Another document claimed he had transmitted flight coordinates to a foreign contact.
The signature at the bottom looked authentic.
Adrian turned to Ortiz.
“You know this is false.”
“I know an investigation is required.”
Voss moved behind the table. “Where is the key?”
“It was stolen.”
“By whom?”
“You.”
Voss gave a disappointed sigh. “Colonel, emotional instability will not help your defense.”
Adrian looked at the general’s right hand.
The silver bird ring was missing.
“Where is your ring?”
For the first time, Voss appeared surprised.
Then Major Ortiz’s phone vibrated.
She read the message and looked sharply toward Voss.
“What is it?” Adrian asked.
Ortiz turned the screen toward him.
A photograph had just been sent from the police search at Adrian’s house.
The missing silver bird ring had been found inside Samantha’s bedroom.
Engraved on the inner band was a sequence of numbers.
May you like
Adrian recognized them immediately.
They were the coordinates for the second Atlas flight.
