Andrew Britton Bundle by Andrew Britton

Clusters—the list went on and on. Kharmai knew little about military decorations, but was aware that this man would be held in high esteem by anyone wearing the uniform.
    Naomi could see that he was educated as well, holding a bachelor’s of science in business administration from the University of Chicago. His graduate degree had been awarded by Duke University in 1994. By that time, Kealey was already a first lieutenant fresh out of Special Forces Assessment and Selection, soon to be followed by successful completion of the Q course at Fort Bragg.
    Unbelievable, she thought. He had achieved the rank of major in eight years, and that time included two years attached to another unit, the 1st SFOD-D, which she did not recognize. That was phenomenal advancement. The man was obviously being groomed for high command. She wondered what Ryan Kealey could have done to derail such a successful career.
    She had a sudden insight and flipped open the file to the last page, looking for the signatory: MG Peter Hale, USASFC. With or without Harper’s authority, Naomi Kharmai decided she would find a way to talk with Kealey’s last commanding officer.
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    It was fast approaching dark when Ryan finally returned to Cape Elizabeth two days later. There was little reason to wait around in Washington while the analysts did their work, so Harper had given him a brief reprieve. Katie had not answered her phone for the duration of the trip, so he couldn’t help but feel slightly apprehensive when he saw her little car parked outside the house.
    The interior was almost as cold as the air outside. He went directly into the living room, where he proceeded to carefully stack wood in the immense stone fireplace. It wasn’t long before the fire began to spread a pleasant warmth throughout the house. He turned to find Katie leaning against the doorjamb wearing tight jeans, a loose woolen sweater, and a look of consternation. She was watching him quietly. It seemed to Ryan that the temperature of the room had suddenly dropped again. Judging from the scowl on her face, he wasn’t about to receive a warm welcome home.
    â€œHey,” he said, after a brief, awkward silence. “I missed you.”
    â€œI can tell, the way you rushed in here to talk to me.”
    He lifted his hands in a gesture of exasperation. “I called you. It was a last-minute thing. Why didn’t you answer?”
    She was momentarily caught off guard. That’s a good question, she thought. “You know why! I can’t believe you just took off like that. It’s…I don’t know, it’s like you forgot I was even here.”
    A look of pain came over his face. “Katie, you know that’s not true. And it’s not fair.”
    â€œDid you lie to me?”
    â€œAbout what?”
    The scowl became a skeptical glare. Clearly she wasn’t buying it. “About leaving, Ryan. Did you really retire last year?”
    â€œOf course I did.” Her arms were crossed, her expression doubtful. “Katie, I would never mislead you like that.”
    She looked into his face for a long moment, gauging his sincerity. “If you left the Agency,” she said slowly, “why were you in such a hurry to get back to Washington?”
    It was a fair question to which he didn’t have an answer. She had won a small victory, but it didn’t register in her unhappy features. When she spoke again, it was clear from her tone of voice that she was already tired of arguing.
    â€œYou know, I’m scared to ask where I rank in all of this. Is it below the CIA? Below a bunch of crazy terrorists in some shitty third-world country?”
    â€œIt’s not a question of rank, Katie.”
    She smiled sadly and lowered her glistening eyes. “That’s a terrible answer, Ryan.”
    He dropped his own head and silently cursed himself for the stupid remark. God, he had never been good at this kind of thing. It had