CHAPTER
54
“WHAT THE HELL are you doing here?”
Julie Carson was not in uniform. She had on jeans and a sleeveless Army green T-shirt and her feet were bare. Her arms were tanned and muscled. She probably hit the gym every day and ran at lunchtime to catch the rays and keep her body lean, thought Puller.
She gazed up at Puller, who stood on the other side of the door to her condo. In his regulation dress uniform shoes he was about six feet five and the breadth of his shoulders filled the doorway.
“Got some follow-up questions.”
“How’d you know where I lived?”
“I don’t mean to insult your intelligence, but I’m an Army investigator and you’re in the Army. Like looking in the phone book.”
“I still don’t like it.”
“Duly noted. Can we do this inside in private?”
“I already talked to you.”
“Yes, you did, and like I said, I had some follow-up questions.”
“I’m busy.”
“And I’m investigating a murder. Of one of your people.”
The door down the hall opened and two young people came out and looked over at them.
“Inside might be better, General,” observed Puller.
She glanced at the young couple, stepped back, and let Puller in, closing the door after him. She led him down the hallway. Puller noted the high-end fixtures, oil paintings, and tasteful furnishings in her condo across from Pentagon City Mall that was only one Metro stop from the Pentagon.
“Nice commute for you.”
“Yeah, it is,” she said brusquely.
They settled in the living room. She’d pointed him to an upholstered chair and she sat on a small loveseat across from him.
On the walls were pictures of Carson with an array of high-ranking military personnel and politicians. Every one of these people, and they were mostly men, had probably been instrumental in her career path. He had noted a similar photo wall in her office at the Pentagon.
“Nice place.”
“I like it.”
“I still live like I was back in college.”
“I’m sorry,” she said bluntly. “Maybe it’s time you grew up.”
“Maybe it is.”
“I’m not sure what sort of follow-up questions you might have.”
“Based on new information.”
“What new information?” she scoffed.
“About Colonel Reynolds.” He stopped and stared at her.
“Okay, I’m waiting, or am I supposed to guess?”
Puller took his time sliding out his official notebook and uncapping his pen. While he was doing that, he was also watching her. He saw Carson run her eye over his ribbon rows. You didn’t wear your ribbons or medals on your fatigues. But the dress uniform showed them in all their glory. And she could not help but come away impressed. Like his SAC had observed, Puller had been a stud in the field. The colored ribbons and bits of metal had never meant much to him. The actions behind the official awards were what he remembered. But if the military’s display of bragging rights got someone’s attention in an investigation, they were worth their weight in gold to him.
“You’ve accomplished a lot, Puller,” she said with grudging admiration.
“Only thing I want to accomplish right now is to find a killer.”
“Then you’re wasting your time sitting here talking to me.”
“I don’t think so.”
“Get to the damn point. I’ve got better things to do than this. As I told you, I have to give the briefing tomorrow morning.”
“Yeah, I’m kind of surprised you’re not still there making sure it’s perfect for the four-star.”
“That’s none of your damn business. And let’s not forget which of us has the star. I’m beginning to lose my patience. And just so you know, I’ve got good contacts at CID.”
“I’m sure you do.” He glanced up at her photo wall to see the image of the current CID head staring back at him. “And I’m sure they’re better than mine.”
“So get to the point!”
“Talk to me about what Colonel Reynolds told you about what was happening in West Virginia. Specifically what he was concerned about.”
She looked at him in bewilderment. “I already told you that Reynolds didn’t talk to me about anything that happened in West Virginia.”
“I know. I’ve got it written down in my notebook. I just wanted to give you the opportunity to correct the record before it becomes permanent.”
The two stared stonily at one another.
“I don’t like what you’re implying,” she said.
“And I don’t like being lied to.”
“You’re way out of line.”
“What’s out of line is giving me false information that will make it that much harder for me to find Reynolds’s killer.”
“Who told you that I knew anything about this?”
“I’m an investigator. It’s my job to find out things.”
“If people are saying false things about me, I have every right to know.”
“If they’re false. But not if they’re true.”
She folded her arms and sat back.
He noted this. Before her posture was aggressive. Hands on knees, torso angled toward his, just begging to tell the truth and get this over with. Now things had changed.
She must’ve noted his appraisal, because she said, “I helped revise the manual on interrogation techniques, Puller, so spare yourself the embarrassment of trying to read me.”
“Would that be enhanced interrogation techniques, ma’am?”
“You know as well as I do that the Army adheres to the Geneva Convention.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
But she sat still farther back and her eye contact was not as direct.
He decided to press his advantage. “Was Reynolds a good soldier?”
“Yes, he was. I told you that.”
“And good soldiers follow chain of command?”
“Yes.”
“So if I told you that Reynolds had told someone else of his concerns who was not in his chain of command, it seems likely, does it not, that he would have told his direct superior as well? Meaning you? He’s the eagle cluster. You’re the one-star, as you so clearly pointed out to me.”
She crossed her legs, her chin dipping slightly. “I don’t know what to tell you.”
“Sure you do. The truth will do just fine.”
“I can have your ass in the stockade for a statement like that.”
“But you won’t.”
“Why? Because of your old man? He’s long gone from the ranks, Puller. So don’t try that leverage on me, legend or not.”
“That’s not what I was thinking.”
“Sure it was. Your poker face leaves a lot to be desired.”
Puller continued on as though he hadn’t heard her. “Actually, I was thinking of that star on your shoulder.”
Her features hardened even more. She actually looked like she might jump up and attack him. But to an experienced interrogator such as Puller, he could see just beneath this hard shell the beginnings of fear in the woman.
“Why?” she said. “Thinking of trying to knock it off? Don’t even bother. I worked my ass off for it. I earned it.”
“Actually, ma’am, I was thinking that your shoulders look broad enough to carry that star and probably at least one more.”
This tactic had clearly surprised her. Carson uncrossed her arms and legs and sat forward. She eyed the notebook.
Acknowledging this subtle gesture, he said, “This will all go in the report as though it took place at our initial meeting at the Pentagon.”
“Frankly, I didn’t expect that sort of nuance from you, Puller.”
“Probably most people don’t.”
She looked down, her fingers nervously rubbing together. When she looked up she said, “You want to go grab a cup of coffee? I feel like getting some fresh air.”
He rose. “My treat.”
“No,” she said quickly. “I think I’ll buy, soldier.”