The priest finished the service at the gravesite, and the attendees paid their last respects. Ford was last out of the group, completed his good-bye, and turned his head towards the east when heard the low and deep grumble of multiple aircraft. Looking over towards the Pentagon, and above the trees, was a formation of black aircraft. It wasn’t just any formation of aircraft, though.
“This… this was the least we could do,” Calvin announced, pointing his thumb up at the sky towards the sound.
Coming over head was a formation of three B-2 Spirit Stealth bombers from the U.S. Air Force Global Strike Command, Missouri, along with two F-117 Nighthawk Stealth fighters from Nellis Air Force Base. Flying in the fingertip strong right formation in the shape of a V, the third B-2 jet in the formation peeled away into the afternoon sun, just as they passed over the Cemetery. It was a stunning, private, and secret sign of respect for Wu.
Ford looked up in awe at the sight and grinned. He placed his hand up to shield his eyes from the sun, then put it down as he hung his head down for a moment. He looked down at Wu’s gravesite, read what was on the headstone, and then smiled. Awkwardly, Ford started laughing over the roar of the jets.
“Ford. Ford! What on earth are you laughing at?” Emily asked in a stern voice.
“Let me guess, Robert, a final request?” Ford asked, pointing to the name on the headstone.
The white grave marker, already chiseled out, named this grave for:
CAPTAIN WILSON LEONARDO, U.S. AIR FORCE
“Yup. That was the name he requested, since we couldn’t use his real name,” Robert explained. “He told Chris and Vic back at the Consulate that’s what he wanted. Said everyone in the Stevens family would get the joke.”
“Hey, he was adamant about it, too, Chris shared with me. Wu was positive that’s how he wanted it to read,” Mark added.
“Oh, yeah! Yeah, that’s his American name….his nickname… when we were kids!” answered Sam Stevens, laughing and pointing. “Remember from the van during white water rafting?”
Ford got out his smart phone and looked for the app with music. He scrolled down with his thumb and found the song he was searching for. He pressed play on The Doors’ ‘L.A. Woman’, a tribute to their “Jojo rising” saying, and it belted out on the phone speaker.
Ford continued to smile, looked at Emily, then glanced up and over at the stealth aircraft formation again as they departed over Rosslyn, Virginia to the west. The roar of the jets was getting softer as they flew off over the horizon. “Jojo rising, Wu. Jojo rising….”
Acknowledgements
A warm and since thank you to the following individuals for their expertise, encouragement, and research. This book could not have been written without your help. Thank you!
Thank you, Jodi, for the love and patience over the past year
of writing. Gavin and Brennan, for the positive attitude, museum visits, and story ideas. Sean M., for the edits, flying stories, and technical aspects. Thank you to Jerry T., for the love of the characters, asking critical questions, and story development. A special thanks to Chris H and his family for the background on Gulfstream Special Missions in Savannah, Georgia. Special thanks to the men and woman of the 328th Airlift Squadron, Niagara Falls, New York. Thank you to John B. for his background on State Department and the inside activities of a U.S. Embassy. Shout out to the Washington Field Office boys with FBI, and specifically Bob H. And finally, thanks to Neal B., for the historical accuracy, review and perfect beta reader.
A special thank you to my publisher, Mach278 LLC Books!
Dedication
For Mrs. L, who said it couldn’t be done.
A portion of the proceeds from the Ford Stevens Military-Aviation Thriller Series will go to:
Team Rubicon Global
www.teamrubiconglobal.org
Team Rubicon Global provides veterans around the world with opportunities to serve others in the wake of disasters. Learn how you can support our efforts to build a global veteran community that provides assistance to disaster victims.
The Headstrong Project
http://getheadstrong.org/
Headstrong Project, a non-profit partnered with Weill Cornell Medical Center to fund and develop comprehensive mental healthcare programs to treat Iraq and Afghanistan veterans free of cost, stigma, and bureaucracy.
Publisher’s Note
All members and employees of the Department of Defense (DoD) are required to submit their writings for prepublication review. The Publication Review is the process to determine that information proposed for public release contains no protected information, is consistent with established Department of Defense policies, and conforms to standards as determined by the Department leadership.
Author Lawrence A. Colby, whose career for DoD entailed real-world operations, abided by the Policy. His manuscript was reviewed by Defense officials in Washington, D.C. and returned to him after an in-depth and extensive six-month review. All edits that DoD determined were necessary are complete. The book is aligned with DoD for fiction publication and all comments related to national security matters have been changed without protest from the author.
This book has been approved by formal process at the Department of Defense Publication Review.
About The Author
Aviation-thriller author Lawrence A. Colby loves to fly, and is part of a small group of pilots that completed both U.S. Navy and U.S. Air Force Undergraduate Pilot Training Programs. Known in the squadrons by the callsign “Cheese”, he is qualified in jets, propeller aircraft, and helicopters, and has completed multiple world-wide deployments. Cheese is also a commercial pilot.
Cheese has had the opportunity to work with an assortment of organizations, from the Department of Homeland Security, to U.S. Naval Special Warfare, to the Los Angeles Police Department. His previous experiences in global flying and at the Pentagon includes time in the U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Air Force Reserve, Office of the Secretary of the Air Force, and Office of the Secretary of Defense.
Cheese and his family live in the Washington, DC area.