Home. The best of words. The best of places.
At home you could build. In life, so often you had to destroy. You might not want to, but that was just the way it was. You had to fight to preserve what was worthwhile. And fighting, no matter how you did it, meant destruction. But there were times when, despite the consequences, you had to take a stand.
Freedom was not free. That pretty much said it all.
He saw Cochrane as he approached Nick Rowe's grave. They ran the last few hundred yards together in an easy silence..
Fitzduane placed several stones on Nick Rowe's headstone.
"From the Devil's Footprint?" said Cochrane.
Fitzduane nodded.
They walked together. Arlington was quiet and nearly empty and very beautiful.
"Well, you got me fitter," said Cochrane.
Fitzduane laughed. "How is the fight going to save the Task Force?"
"Lots of promises and little action," said Cochrane. "Counterterrorism isn't much of a vote-getter, and the average person thinks it's covered."
But it isn't, thought Fitzduane. And with the Cold War over America was dropping its guard. Forgery, economic terrorism, infiltration, selective assassination, the threat of weapons of mass destruction, the emergence of a whole host of new nuclear nations, fundamentalism in its various forms. Third World countries wanting a piece of the pie the easy way. There were some seriously bad people out there.
The list of real and immediate threats was a long one. But the new dangers were complex, interwoven, and frequently not readily apparent – unlike the clearcut simplicity of the Cold War. And people wanted to get on with their lives, collect the peace dividend, and hope for the best.
Only a few really understood.
Human nature.
"We're getting through to some people on the Hill," said Cochrane, "and it doesn't take too many to make a difference. Meanwhile, we'll hang in there. We'll just show up."
Fitzduane smiled. "I guess that's how this country get started."
He shook Cochrane's hand. It was a stronger grip than he remembered.
"Hell of a thing, Lee," he said. "You are fitter."
"Keep the faith," said Cochrane.
"There's not really much else to do when you come right down to it," said Fitzduane. "But right now, Lee, stop plotting. I'm going home."
They ran together to the Iwo Jima memorial and then headed their separate ways.