Eddie stood still as the Libyan commander ripped the rank patches off his shirt and removed all his pins. He looked Eddie right in the eye and called him an impotent coward—probably meant incompetent—and an embarrassment to the Libyan nation. Eddie never said a word. He wondered how many of the people at this table disagreed with what was going on. He wondered how many of them knew the Russian commander had been up at the alpine base or knew any of what took place up there. Eddie doubted it. The Russian commander wouldn’t look at him. Not once. That was another sign Eddie was right.
Eddie knew anything he said here would be either construed as a lie or ignored altogether. It didn’t matter how much dirt he had on the Russian commander. There was no fight here he could win. Eddie was given his choice of post “anywhere more than one hundred miles from Denver.” After looking at the map of bases on the wall he selected Buena Vista, Colorado—125 miles southwest of Denver—the closest city still on the assumed American route. He “accepted” a transfer there.
He was to remain at that post unless otherwise ordered by The Seven commanders themselves. Even if the soldiers there were sent on assignment elsewhere, he was to stay at that base. Period. Lazzo was being transferred with him, but Cabo and Omar were being reassigned to another division. Eddie would not be told anything more. His career in Qi Jia intelligence was done. He should be thankful he still had his life. This was his last chance… blah, blah, blah.
Eddie had tuned them out well before he left the room. If he ever came face to face with that Russian commander again he was a dead man, even if it meant Eddie’s own death. He found it hard to believe the other commanders could so gullibly accept Eddie’s “sole responsibility” in all of this, but those seven men seemed intent on at least pretending to have a unified front. If they only knew.
Eddie was met at his office by a smiling Lazzo. The prison commander had called an hour ago to inform them the guard they’d spoken with had “fallen down a flight of stairs and tragically died.” Shocker. The Russian commander was never going to let him get in front of that panel and even begin to point a finger elsewhere. Thus the sarcastic smile on Lazzo’s face.
Eddie, in turn, told his younger brother they had each lost their ranks and were being assigned to a troop down in Buena Vista. He and Lazzo also had to say their farewells to their good friends, Omar and Cabo, who were to go to the nearest airbase that night to be flown out in the morning. Eddie told them both before they left, “Stay alive, men. We’ll meet again someday. Insha’Allah (God willing).” Though he was pretty sure even God couldn’t keep them alive.
He and Lazzo were leaving early the next morning for their new post. They used their last night in the Intelligence Division to collect maps, as much strategic Qi Jia information as they could find—including the NORAD bunker info and a map of all Qi Jia bases—and lastly to check in one more time on Estes Park. Eddie had Lazzo pack his officer badges and medals instead of leaving them on his desk. One never knew when they might come in handy.
Eddie and Lazzo took the two men from the Endovalley base to their new post in Colorado Springs and introduced them to their new commanding officer, Captain Kubar. He hadn’t been informed of Eddie’s demotion, and Eddie neither told him nor allowed him to see the lack of stripes on his uniform, keeping his jacket on the entire time. Eddie’s office radio had been shut down, but Captain Kubar saw no problem in letting him check in with Estes Park from his office. Captain Kubar took his two new men to meet the other soldiers, and Eddie got on the radio to the Alpine Visitor Center.
As expected, Eddie was told all the troops were being pulled out of Estes Park first thing tomorrow morning. There was no reason left to contain that site, as there was no way in, no way out, and no signs of life at this point. If anyone were still there they’d surely be dead by spring.
Some of the Estes Park troops would join the eighty men currently up at the alpine base, while the rest would be sent to the other end of Trail Ridge Road in Granby or Grand Lake until spring. That was all Eddie needed to know.
He thanked Captain Kubar for his help and told him he and his men were being reassigned to Buena Vista. If anyone asked the captain what he knew of Eddie’s whereabouts, Captain Kubar would tell them what the commanders already knew. There would be no surprises on any end, and Kubar would never be the wiser about being used. Perhaps he would even remain someone who Eddie could count on, if needed, in the future.
Cabo and Omar were never reassigned. They were killed in their sleep that same night.
SIXTY-FIVE: (Ryan) “Bitter Cold”
The troops were gone by noon. Dozens of helicopters flew in, and all the base camps were abandoned. A couple of helicopters flew up to the Alpine Visitor Center, but most of them headed in the general direction of Denver. It didn’t matter to us anymore. We were safe where we were and could hold out here for the duration of winter, no problem. We had plenty of food, plenty of water, plenty of shelter, and enough distance between us and the soldiers who had been down here that, paired with the freezing conditions outdoors, we never had to worry about anyone walking up to our cave and knocking on the door.
We held a service for Cameron and for Vice President (or President) Moore later that same afternoon. They were both military men and were honored accordingly. We didn’t have sufficient silencers for the appropriate gun salute, but we improvised and allowed Danny to run the service as he wanted.
His conversation with Reagan had gone easier than expected. I guess the daughter of a politician, especially one in higher office, must have to prepare herself differently than the rest of us. Sure, she hurt. Sure, she cried. But she seemed to accept what had happened as a gift her father had given to keep the rest of us alive. She had devoted herself from that point on to getting her little sister through it. That had been the difficult conversation. Abbey had so many questions. Danny and Reagan were careful to word their answers so she wouldn’t feel the least bit responsible for her father’s death—or for Cameron’s.
Danny recognized the vice president at the service as an honorable man, though I couldn’t help but notice Reagan didn’t seem to share those sentiments. Danny remained haunted by some of the vice president’s final words to him. When Danny had praised him in the tent, the VP had told him not to, suggesting there was a great deal Danny didn’t know. It seemed Reagan was aware of what her father had been referencing.
Danny didn’t say much about Cameron. He dug the grave himself, and he had written some words on a piece of paper. He buried those thoughts with his best friend, but held onto the American flag he had originally intended to cover his body with. It was our last American flag, and clearly Danny had some other purpose for it.
After the ceremony, we gathered inside and shared memories of our time with our friends and family who had passed. I even shared some memories of Sophie. It seemed so much easier to talk about her now, especially with Tara at my side. Emily and Abbey had become fast friends, and Hayley had more time now to hang out with the rest of us.
At one point I noticed Danny excuse himself and walk up the tunnel to the ledge, with Hayley right behind him. Unsure whether I’d be wanted, I held back until Tara nudged me. “You need to go up there too,” she said.
I didn’t argue. I met them out on the ledge. It was still light out but rapidly darkening. Danny was sitting on the ledge when I stepped out, his arm around his little sister. Hayley patted the ground beside her, and I sat down next to them.