Chapter 55 Chapter Fifty-Five

There seem to be a million coffee shops within walking distance of this part of Arlington.Puller and Carson passed several of them, but they were full of loud teenage kids fiddling with smartphones and laptops.Instead of going in, they found a place in a deserted street.There are no other customers here except them.The sweltering heat began to recede, and the night air was fresh and cool.They sat down by an open window of the café. Puller took a sip of his hot coffee, put down his cup, and watched Carson silently. She added a long-sleeve white T-shirt and Nike sneakers before leaving the apartment.There were wrinkles around the corners of her eyes.The crow's feet engraved on the faces of officers are deeper and deeper than that of ordinary people. One person has to pay a price for leading a group of guys with guns.

Carson's tanned face accentuated her blonde hair.Carson's looks and body were perfect, and her mannerisms reinforced her strengths in both.Puller knew that she was forty-two years old and had become a one-star commodore through hard work.He didn't want to ruin her future.Anyone can make a mistake at work, and this time it seemed to be her turn. "You look great in your green military uniform," she said softly. "A special occasion?" "Army and Navy Club. A little activity." She nodded and sipped her coffee. "Matt called me four weeks ago."

She spoke quickly, as if she wanted to hurry up and get it over with.Instead of looking at Puller, she kept her eyes on the table. "What did he say?" "He stumbled into something. That's what he said, stumbled across. It wasn't planned, and I'm sure I didn't send him there on a mission. He just went there for the weekend with his wife and kids. Together. He found me on the phone out of the blue." "I see." Puller took another sip of his coffee and put down the cup. "He met a guy there who was involved in something. I correct him, he met a guy who discovered something," Carson said.

"What? Who?" "I don't know what kind of person it is." "How did he meet this man?" "By chance, I think so. Certainly not by arrangement, anyway." "And you know what he's talking about?" "A very serious matter, whatever it is. Matt thinks it's too big, and he suggests we should maybe send some people over here." "Then why didn't you send someone?" She spoke faster. "Because I don't know enough about the situation. I don't want to shoot myself in the foot. It's totally outside our business, and it's not under my jurisdiction. Hey, I even think it's the same army Nothing to do with it. I'm asking for trouble if I do that, Puller, and you have to understand that. I have no control over the sources and directions of the information in this matter, and I have no way of verifying them. True or false. Matt can't do that either. He can only rely on people he doesn't know."

"But you can go to the police, or let Matt go." "What to say to them? Matt didn't have a good grasp of the situation either, at least that's what he told me. A lot of things were guesswork based on intuition." "Did he say this man might be an undercover agent?" "Undercover?" She expressed sincere surprise. "You mean like a police officer?" "Sometimes civilians also voluntarily serve as undercover agents." "Does that happen a lot?" she asked skeptically. "One instance is enough." "Well, Matt never mentioned anything like that."

"And what did you say to him? Tell him to wait and see what he finds out? Do you think this might be an opportunity for advancement? To break new ground outside the usual business?" "You were blunt, but you were right. The next thing I heard, he was dead. His whole family was dead. Wife, kids...everyone." Her lips began to tremble.She picked up the cup, but her hand shook so badly that the coffee in the cup spilled. Puller took her cup and put it back on the table, wiped her coffee with a napkin, and took her other hand. "You know, General, you may not have managed this well, but no one can always get it right. And I know you never imagined it would come to this."

She glanced at him, then looked away quickly, turned her head away, and wiped her eyes with another napkin.Puller waited patiently. Finally calmed down, she turned to him.She said, "I'm so sorry, Puller. The General shouldn't be crying." "I've seen them cry over the dead bodies of their soldiers." She smiled in resignation. "I'm talking about female generals." "Well, what did you do when you found out what happened to Reynolds?" "To be honest, I was completely stunned. When I calmed down, the only thing I could think about was how badly this might affect me. Admitting that would not do my image any favors, but it is what it is."

"You understand that the fact that the head of intelligence operations has been killed is, in itself, a source of widespread concern. You know that there are many, much higher-ranking individuals who could have bypassed us and directly intervened in this matter. So you presumably implied that , it’s best not to make a big fuss before finding out the truth, but to treat it as an ordinary murder case, and CID will send an investigator to find out the bottom line and see what the result is.” "I'm not sure I planned it that well. But as soon as I said these thoughts, I realized that maybe one day people will finally understand what all this is all about, and then I will feel ashamed. It's been torturing me."

"I can understand. But maybe you've come a little closer to the truth than you think. You're saying Matt stumbled upon it?" "Yes, Matt also said that this may be a matter of national security. Indeed, he really said that to me. I have no way to verify his statement, but I know he is. thought." "Have you ever been to Drake in West Virginia?" She shook her head. "Well, it doesn't look like a hotbed of terrorism, if we're talking terrorism." "Everything I tell you, Matt told me." "It must have been, and someone killed him for it."

Carson stared down at his hands sadly. Puller continued to think, and said, "Don't blame yourself too much, General. You just thought maybe you could do something, do something that would help this country." "One is one, two is two, Puller. I was thinking that getting this done might help me get a second star. I'm selfish and short-sighted. Four people died, they didn't damn it." seven people.To be precise, seven people died.Puller thought to himself. "Well, can you think of anything else that might help me?" "Matt said that whatever it is, it's going to happen very quickly."

"And why it's happening soon? Is there a fear that something will be exposed? Or is it because it's something that's been planned for a long time and now it's time to do it?" "Probably both, considering they actually felt compelled to kill Matt and his family for that." "I'm surprised Matt didn't provide you with more details." Carson asked, "Didn't Matt leave some clues that would help solve the case? Are you sure?" "We didn't find anything more useful. We thought a soil sample might have something to do with it." She looked at him with an inquiring expression. "A soil sample?" He nodded. "The killers actually ran back to the scene for it. So it might be important. Do you have any recollection of that?" "Well, Matt said that this matter involves a very wide range of fields." "But he never said anything more specific." "No. I really regret that I didn't ask him to go into more detail. I just didn't expect this to happen, and I think I should have. The Army always tells us to fully consider all possibilities." "We're human, and that means we're not perfect." "The Army demands that we be perfect," she retorted. "No, the army only requires us to be a little stronger than the enemy." Carson glanced at Puller's notebook. "How are you going to report this?" "I must say that you have cooperated with the investigation and provided me with valuable information." "I owe you, Puller. My behavior towards you was undeserved." "No, it might be right to give me a killing stick, you just didn't hit the nail on the head." "Busy to be a brigadier general, and a woman herself, the result of the combination of the two is a lonely life." "There is one family that surrounds you, and it is our army." She smiled softly. "Well, I think you're right. Come see me when this is over and maybe we can have a drink." "Maybe a drink." Puller closed the notebook and got up to leave. On the way back to find the car, Pooler glanced at his watch.He had one more place to go before he could catch the morning flight back to West Virginia. Sadly, it looks like his plans are going to fail.Four people surrounded them.