As she started to walk from the office, her father said, “Cynthia, do not make me force this.”

She turned and faced him. “I’m thirty-two years old. I’m a grown woman. You raised me to be strong, independent, and make my own choices. What can you possibly do to force anything? Come to think of it, why would you want to?” She blew him a kiss. “Be safe going home.”

Colonel Jenkins sat in a recliner and glanced at Rick’s team. He preferred to do his debriefs in the rec room. He felt that with everyone relaxed and in a nonthreatening setting, they would be able to remember more details and feel less intimidated by rank. Rick had always thought him a rather odd man. Eccentric. Despite that, he was a great leader and always had their backs.

The colonel had a broad chest, long limbs, and large features. He kept his head shaved and sported a West Point alumni ring over his wedding ring. As usual, and in defiance of a few military regulations, he toyed with an unlit cigar while he spoke. “I looked in on Lieutenant Osbourne this morning. He seems in good spirits.”

Rick had looked in on him as well. He knew Ozzy well enough to see the shadows in the corners of his eyes. But he didn’t correct the colonel. “He’s a fighter.” He paused and then added, “We might want to make sure a chaplain checks in on him pretty regularly.”

Colonel Jenkins nodded. “When we received the report of the extent of Lieutenant Osbourne’s injuries, we went ahead and had a new medic assigned to your team. You met him yesterday. Timothy Waller. Staff Sergeant. He was dying on the vine out at Carson. As of now, he’s OPCON to you with orders to PCS him to our unit soon to follow.”

Rick thought about the tall blond man who had stitched his head. He hoped he wasn’t too green. He didn’t feel like breaking in someone who had joined Special Forces because the recruiting posters made it look cool. “Yes, sir.”

The colonel pointed his cigar at him. “He’s also from Kentucky,” he said, as if that made everything right. “You guys might have something in common.”

Peña chuckled. “Yeah, Daddy. Because Kentucky.”

Colonel Jenkins continued. “Sergeant Sanders will rejoin the team as soon as he gets clearance from the doctor. At this time, I don’t see a need to replace him. Any objections?”

“Sergeant Sanders is irreplaceable, sir,” Rick said.

“Tell me what kept you in the jungle. I read the reports. Give it to me fresh from your perspective.”

Peña interjected. “All due respect, sir, the reports are our perspective.”