Overview: Ian Ridgefield's shoulders are broad and can handle the load put on them.
With his body finally healed after his death inside the smoke-filled Pentagon, where he saved many from certain death and then said his final goodbye to his mother, Ian is ready to take on more. With his engagement to the woman of his dreams and his first child on the way, Ian can still take on more. And when one of the richest men in the world agrees to bankroll his operation to uncover who is behind the attacks on military buildings within the United States, Ian can still take on more.
When a man has a reason to take on more, he can and will. When a man who has been trained by the best of the best and has been at the tip of the spear, there is no weight too burdensome to bear. Now, the time has come for a reckoning to begin. Ian Ridgefield is putting the puzzle pieces together and working through the underworld of deceit and corruption.
Those in powerful positions that are being revealed do not take being brought to light kindly. In fact, they have their own protection that is just as willing to ensure Ian, and his team, never let the proverbial cat out of the bag - by any means necessary. Thankfully, Ian has been able to pull together a team of men and women that can stand up to anything thrown at them.
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| Bravo by John Henley (Military Might Series Book 2) |
Bravo by John Henley (Military Might Series Book 2) Read Online Chapter One
Eight Months Earlier
“Sit the hell down, Fred,” The President of the United States ordered his Vice President.
“I don’t feel like sitting, Alan,” The V.P. stated.
“SIT DOWN!” Barked out the President. Then finished through a tight mouth, "as a reminder, it is, Mr. President.”
The V.P. did as he was told, embarrassed at being spoken to like a child and pissed that the man who shouldn’t be his boss was talking to him this way.
Five of the most influential people in the entire world were now seated inside one of the most well-known offices on earth. The tension between them was tight enough to squeeze the air out of any who had never walked in this type of political hellhole. Because these five did not see the past, present, or future in the same way, they were knotted into a tug-of-war with nationwide consequences.
President Alan Davidson, Secretary of State Helen Preston, and Chief of Staff Phil Knotts were sitting on one couch. Vice President Fred Thomas and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mike Johnson were seated on the opposite couch. It was possible for the first time on record that this assembly of individuals sat together on the oval office couches. What was an absolute was that all five of them were tired, frustrated, and beyond irritated with the situation, the polls on how the leadership of America was handling the attacks on military bases, and why no one seemed to be able to figure out where it was coming from. Of course, the buck stops with the President, but that doesn’t stop him from being pissed off.
“Someone needs to talk, now,” President Davidson said.
“Mr. President, I understand this isn’t what you want to hear, but no one on my team has been able to get leads on who may be responsible for this. I have at least thirty people hunting down any possible person connected to these attacks,” Mike Johnson stated.
“We also have NSA, FBI, and CIA teams dedicated to this,” Fred Thomas said, pouting at his scolding.
The President leaned forward, facing his second-in-command, speaking with an authority that no one would confuse with being happy. He said, “Get this shit together, Fred, and get it together now. I thought your fifty years of service here in D.C. would give you more than enough contacts to get this kind of information sent up instantly.”
“Ala… Mr. President, do not put this mess on me. These attacks never came into play until you started cutting contracts and removing military members. I told you it was a bad idea then, and look at where we are now,” VP Fred Thomas said.
The elder of the two men, who had been working within the politics of Washington D.C. for well over half his life, felt good about making that statement in front of everyone. He’d suffered more than a few indignations from the President since they were paired up, and this was one of the first times he got to strike back. It felt even better to make the digging stab with these other super players sitting next to him.
Sitting between the President and the Chief of Staff, Helen Preston let eyebrows raise just a fraction. No one would ever tell she was shocked by how the V.P. spoke to their boss. Even more so, she was ready to see the fireworks after the way that abuse was spat out.
Phil Knotts, a lifelong lawyer and the actual right hand of the President, slid forward in his seat, opened his eyes wide, and was ready to verbally attack the man who had just contested his friend and the leader of the free world. It wouldn’t be the first time Phil came in like a sniper and ripped someone to shreds with his intellect. Before he could get his engine rolling, though, the President laughed.
“Stop being such a baby Fred. You know this has nothing to do with me. Or any of us. This is someone, or someone’s, working on destabilizing the very foundation of what our country stands on. If it continues, and we cannot stop it, this legacy will follow both of us. So, instead of trying to fight me, take a breath and work together to ensure the best for our country,” President Davidson said.
Helen and Phil let out a breath and collectively thought, “and that’s why he’s President.” The ability to know when to hold his tongue or, at the right time, snipe the foe so quick they don’t know what hits them. It’s a learned technique that very few ever master. Most let their emotions control their thoughts, and those emotions become words letting loose from their mouths. In those times, your ability to play chess starts to fall apart.
“Sir, my suggestion …” Mike Johnson began but was interrupted by a knock at the door.
Explicit instructions were given that there were not to be any interruptions during this meeting. The Chief of Staff took the lead in answering the door, and the group paused any discussion until Phil shut the door and turned back to the group. His face was horrified, and it told enough of a story that President Davidson and Secretary of State Preston stood. Not more than a heartbeat after, the V.P. and Chairman stood, turning to look at what caused the reaction.
“Sir,” The Chief of Staff slowly said as he took a few steps back into the room.
“What is it, Phil?” President Davidson asked.
“Sir…. It’s… I… There was another explosion. Fort Rucker. This time though, it was at an on-base elementary school,” The Chief of Staff stuttered out. The usually confident orator couldn’t get through the sentence without stopping.
“Oh my god,” Mike Johnson said.
“It’s a Wednesday morning. How many were injured?” VP Thomas asked.
“What in the hell is happening? This is the first time an explosion happened during the workweek and at a non-official military building. Fred, get in front of the media on this. Tell them we know something has happened, and as soon as we have more info, we will tell them more. Mike, go start getting answers from your military side. Helen, Phil, please stay here so we can get some talking points for our international allies,” President Davidson stated.
“Mr. President, I can make some calls as well. I think we should be on the same page with our discussions,” VP Fred Thomas said.
The President did his best not to roll his eyes and sigh and caught himself before replying, “We will later this afternoon. Please don’t put up a fight right now, Fred. We need to get through this first phase. On your way out, please tell them not to interrupt me for the next fifteen minutes.”
“Yes, sir,” The V.P. replied.
With that, the V.P. and Chairman removed themselves from the Oval office. There were instantaneous calls for attention from the few people already clamoring to be the first with news from the President about the attack. It was always the same. Someone received the information before 99.9% of the world, but their ability to attract readers would not be high, but if there was a quote from President Davidson – and they could be the first to get it worldwide – then it would be a big boost for a reporter.
As soon as the door shut, President Davidson did not walk to the Resolute desk. Instead, he stood in place, put his hands behind his head, stretched his upper back, looked between the Secretary of State and Chief of Staff, and asked, “What in the hell is going on? I hate to admit it, but Fred is right. None of this happened until I made those announcements. Not having any real answers is a terrible situation for us to be in. Also, did you guys know there were elementary schools on military bases?”
“No,” Both of his confidantes replied.
“If I may, sir,” Helen asked.
“Jesus, no one is listening. Alan is fine,”
“Ok, Alan. If I may. Someone is going to go down for this. It is inevitable. We all know it. May I suggest we consider a plan to ensure it isn’t you that goes down? We need to come out as heroes here. The old saying of being proactive versus reactive is appropriate here,”
“I agree, Alan. Positive attacking is necessary,” The Chief of Staff confirmed.
“I don’t see how. Too many buildings have crumbled, and now the school. All on my watch. I’m very much open to suggestions,”
Helen continued, “Assign the Vice President to an oversight committee. Give him thirty days to get it all figured out. He won’t be able to get this fixed within that time. As the days drag on, more and more blame will be put on him. We will ensure little birds keep on chirping about how bad of a job he is doing while giving the committee false leads to chase,”
“I can’t have them chasing ghosts, Helen,” The President said.
“Not ghosts, but enough loose ends to ensure his ability to focus continues to fork off in too many directions,” Helen replied.
“Alan, I think this is as good a plan as any. This cannot fall on your head. Besides, this helps us more than we could have ever planned. Once you give the green light, we will get our companies to start buying stocks just before those new contracts are given,” Phil said.
The greed in the eyes of all three members in the room couldn’t be missed. They were about to fleece the American financial system for billions. They had set it up perfectly, and they had enough dilution between them and the businesses buying up stocks that it would take more than what the U.S. government would dedicate to spending time on. And that is precisely what the three in the Oval Office wanted. They could imagine skating off into the sunset with hordes of money via the public sector.
“Ok. I agree. I still need to call these countries and tell them we have things handled. I know they will start questioning our position now that a school has been hit. Let’s get some talking points together for them, and then get me a few bullets on what to say to the public. I’ll need to fly down there to show how serious I am taking this,” President Davidson said.
“I’ve got just the words for you, sir,” The lawyer said and began scribbling down some talking points on a scratch piece of paper.
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