Finishing Some Unfinished Business

[Poohbah]

Teton Valley Cabins
Driggs, Idaho
02 January 2022


I was sitting on the floor, hands cuffed behind me.

Charlie White was waving his pistol all over the room and screaming, "YOU SONSOFBITCHES BETTER GET ME A DAMN AIRPLANE WITH LOTS OF GAS OR--"

(Record scratch)

(Freeze Frame)

(Opening to The Who's Baba O'Riley)

Yeah, that's me. You're probably wondering how I got into this situation. Well, it really all started way back in 1987, when I sat on ol' Charlie's General Court-Martial for black marketing, fraud, forging government payment instruments, and conduct prejudicial to good order and discipline. He got busted from Staff Sergeant down to Private.

But the immediate cause was my daughter-in-law's Christmas graveyard shift.

To Be Continued...

[Matt Wiser]

This'll be interesting...

[Wolfman]

This'll be interesting...

Oh, yeah.

[Poohbah]

26 December 2022
Love's Truck Stop
Colorado Springs, CO

Cindy MacHugh was stationed at El Toro as an MP, and went to Twain's Down Under one night in early 2017. There, she met my daughter, Tiffany. They took a liking to one another. In due time, Cindy and Tiffany were married, Cindy taking Tiffany's name, and they moved to Colorado Springs. Tiffany established herself as an EE with a Air Force Space Command contractor, and Cindy became a Colorado State Police Trooper, patrolling El Paso County.

If you've traveled the Great Plains states by car, you've certainly seen and probably have dined at a Rachel's Kitchen, in part because they have a relationship with the TA Travel Plaza chain, as well as having standalone and mall restaurants. Their specialty is comfort food served in a comfortable environment; the ones at TA truck stops are open 24/7/365, and the chain overall is a fairly close second to JP's for fast casual dining.

So, Cindy had the Christmas graveyard shift (10 PM to 6:30 AM). She took her meal break at 2:15 AM, and she got herself a hot meal at the Monument TA Travel Plaza Rachel's. As she was finishing up dinner (soup, salad, and a meatloaf sandwich on sourdough, with coffee), she noticed a Ferrari 812 pull into the parking lot.

Cindy understood that Ferraris are summer cars.

The driver of the Ferrari--who didn't look like the sort of guy who would own a Ferrari--went directly into the bathroom, and Cindy made sure her body camera was on, wandered over to the front windows, and called in the plate.

Within 30 seconds, she had her answer: the vehicle had been reported stolen in Centennial on Christmas Eve.

Just then, the bathroom opened, and the man came out, shotgun pointed in the air. He fired into the ceiling.

"THIS IS A STICKUP!"

Cindy drew her sidearm and aimed at the robber. "COLORADO STATE PATROL! DROP THE WEAPON AND PUT YOUR HANDS UP!"

Everyone in the diner swore that they probably heard her up in Centennial.

Well, the guy showed that what he lacked in brains was not made up for in speed of action. He tried to bring the shotgun around, and Cindy fired three shots.

In the Marines, she'd shot Expert with the rifle and pistol, and had then gone on to earn the Distinguished Expert badge with the 3rd Marine Air Wing Pistol Team.

All three shots hit the gunman in the torso, and he went down, face-down.

Cindy closed in, pistol aimed and ready to shoot, and kicked the shotgun away, then cuffed his hands behind his back, just like they'd taught her at the academy. She then threw the keys to her cruiser to a bewildered waitress. "My car's right out front, pop the trunk and grab the big first aid kit!"

She then got on the radio. "Pueblo Dispatch, this 2 Baker 12, need backup, shots fired, suspect is down, I am rendering aid, send ambulance to the Monument Travel Plaza, suspect is in restaurant lobby, over."

"2 Baker 12, Pueblo Dispatch, 10-4 your last, say your status, over."

"Dispatch, 2 Baker 12, I am okay, over."

"10-4, 2 Baker 12."

Sirens were sounding in the distance as Cindy rolled the man over and began packing his wounds with Quik-Clot.

He managed to gasp, "You shot me!"

"Should've dropped the gun, sir." She read him his Miranda rights.

A police cruiser running cherries and berries stopped in the parking lot, and a man ran into the diner.

"Sergeant Thompson, Monument PD, I understand there's been a shooting?"

"Trooper Mantell, State Patrol. Guy was robbing the place. I've put in Quik-Clot . . . "

Thompson squatted down next to Mantell, and they continued working on stabilizing the patient.

Ten minutes later, Sergeant Hurn--who'd been her FTO--arrived, along with the paramedics. Within minutes, they'd finished stabilizing the patient and loaded him up. Thompson rode with him to the hospital.

Hurn said, "Cindy, let's get you to sit down here real quick, I don't like your color right now."

Cindy sat down in the waiting area, and felt herself start to shake.

Hurn asked, "You good?"

"Not really. Damn, why didn't he drop the gun?"

Hurn said, "Some people, when they were passing out brains, thought the guy said 'trains' and decided to wait for a later one. Here, just relax. You're safe now."

Hurn got up and went to the back of the restaurant for a few minutes, then came back.

"OK, Trooper Mantell, I looked at the surveillance video they keep here. That was just about textbook. You did everything right. You had him dead cold, and he thought he could outdraw a drawn gun. Doesn't work like that. You done good, Trooper. Don't second-guess yourself. Let's get this written up."

Thirty minutes later, she was seated in the passenger seat of Hurn's cruiser, headed back to headquarters. The crime lab had taken custody of her sidearm and body camera, and at the Troop HQ, she was formally notified that she was on administrative leave.

She got back to their apartment at 0517. She tried to slip quietly into the bedroom, but Tiffany woke up.

"You're home early."

"I was in a shooting, I'm on admin leave until the Review Board's done."

"You got any extra holes in you?"

"No."

"That's great news." She patted Cindy's side of the bed. "Backrub sound good?"

Cindy felt tears prick her eyes. "It sounds wonderful."

After about ten minutes of Tiffany kneading her muscles, Cindy drifted off to sleep.

[jemhouston]

She did the right things in the right order and the State Police are following what looks like the right procedures to support her.

[Poohbah]

26 December 2022
Teton Valley Cabins
Driggs, Idaho

Roberta and I had celebrated 30 years of wedded bliss by snowboarding at Grand Targhee. Way back in 1991, we'd taken a vacation up to Mammoth, we learned how to snowboard together, and we've always loved it. Grand Targhee is an amazing playground, with nearly constant fresh powder thanks to being at the end of a huge moisture channel running all the way from the Pacific.

We'd started with a leisurely run down the Teton Vista Traverse for a warm-up, then down the Headwall Traverse to Rose Garden and Sitting Bull to Sweetwater for a little freestyling in the terrain park (the look on one young punk's face when he saw a legit grandfather doing a Frontside 360 onto the rail was priceless), and then we were doing the black diamond runs the rest of the day.

We got back to the cabin in Driggs and we were planning on an evening at The Trap with a plate of Wydaho Nachos (nacho toppings on cross-cut fries) and some dancing to the music of our misspent and well-spent youth.

After we shucked our snowboarding gear, I checked my phone.

One missed call from Tiffany, about 30 minutes earlier.

I called back as Roberta started undressing for a shower.

"Hi, Dad."

I knew from the tone that this was going to be a Mom and Dad convo, so I gave Roberta the high sign and put my phone on speaker with the pair of Sony speakers I take on trips.

Roberta came out of the bathroom wearing a plush robe, and we sat on the sofa together.

"What's up?"

Cindy came on and told us about the shooting she'd been in.

Now, understand, I've had more than anyone's share of trigger time, and so has Roberta. I'd be able to face down the prospect of having to drop a bad guy fairly calmly. If thou fornicateth in a circular fashion, ye shall gain enlightment, that's what I always say.

But I still have the odd nightmare from when Roberta going up against a pair of Ramdyne hitters (even if one of them is now our sort-of-daughter-in-law because she married Tammy Cordwell), and from Krista going air-to-air with an aerial assassin over downtown Roswell--and that was almost a decade ago. And the prospect of Tiffany becoming a widow was likewise terrifying.

But Cindy had acquitted herself well. Now, she was just waiting on the shooting review.

Roberta had called up a video from a Colorado Springs TV station, and I watched as the shooting played out. From what I could see, she'd done it absolutely right, from soup to nuts. And I said so.

"Cindy, honey, could I talk to Tiffany alone for just a second?"

Tiffany said, "Yeah, Dad?"

"Tiff, Cindy's going to need support through her stress period, and that's your job as her wife and lover."

"I understand, Dad. We're working this together. We're heading out to her favorite little bistro for dinner and some romantic music, and I'm just going to hold her, tell her that she did the right thing, and that I love her."

I thought back to those times during the war, and cursed myself for a fool for not trying to reconcile with her, even if it was just by mail. I could've found her . . . if I'd wanted to.

No use crying over the past, Josh. Live in the present.

"You do that."

* * *

Dinner at The Trap was lovely and we danced to everything from I Can't Fight This Feeling by REO Speedwagon to Wings by Tyketto.

After we got back to the hotel, Roberta stepped into the bathroom, and came out wearing . . . well, it was a collection of leather strips and chrome rings that didn't actually cover anything. Six-inch spike heels canceled most of our height difference.

Most, but not all. I smiled as I considered the next moves in the dance.

She was utterly stunning.

Her expression was intense, her jade green eyes meeting my gaze without flinching, daring me to look away.

I didn't.

She sauntered to me, her lips curling in something between a delighted smile and a big cat baring its fangs.

My wife was making it very clear that she didn't want the candy-and-flowers kind of romance tonight. Roberta Elise Mantell wanted passion and fire for our 30th anniversary, and she didn't care if she got herself a little singed in the process.

She stopped and turned 360 degrees, letting me see all of her.

She asked, "You like?"

"Darling, you are definitely a GILF."

"You're saying I'm a grandmother you'd like to--"

I said, "That's not the only word that starts with 'G,' darling."

I took the chrome ring on Roberta's collar with my index finger and pulled her her gently to me, forcing her to look up to maintain eye contact.

She smiled coyly--but I could hear her breath become shallow, and saw her pupils dilate.

Roberta had realized that I was getting fairly intense, myself.

She panted, "Then tell me what word were you thinking of."

I bent to her ear and whispered, "Goddess," then kissed her neck and ran my hand along her hip.

She gasped and wobbled a bit before I swept her up in my arms and carried her to the bed.

* * *

27 December 2022

After we got back from our snowboarding, Roberta and I showered together (hey, it saves water), then contemplated whether to go out or to stay in for the evening.

"Josh . . . something's bugging you."

"I'm still processing Cindy's shoot."

Roberta nodded, said, "OK, we need to talk tonight," then worked her phone.

"OK, how does getting some grub delivered from The Royal Wolf sound?"

"Great idea."

We quickly sorted out our order (a plate of chipotle flavored pulled pork nachos to split, a Carolina Cheese Steak for her, and a loaded Buffalo Burger for me) and did it on GrubHub, then she called Kelly Ray in Pocatello.

They've known each other 26 years and change, ever since she worked on a refurbishment of a resort, and they were instant BFFs with shared experiences of captivity and a shared desire to enjoy every last bite of life. Kelly is "Aunt Kelly" to my kids, and her boyfriend is "Uncle Brad."

After the greetings and a summary of what happened, we got down to business.

Kelly asked me if I'd felt the same way with Krista flying in Roswell, and I said, "Absolutely."

"I see. What about me dropping ordnance in Chicago, or being a deputy in Bannock County and going after an armed suspect?"

"Still feel the same. Look, Kelly . . . everyone freaks out about these words, but I have to say them: I love you. I love Brad. I love Tiffany and Cindy. I would feel awful if something were to happen to you or Cindy, and leave Brad or Tiff widowed."

"Josh, Brad and I aren't married."

I laughed. "Oh, Kelly . . . you two are married to each other in your hearts; you both will love and cherish each other until your last breath. You just didn't bother with keeping the admin weenies happy."

Kelly and Roberta joined my laughter, and she said, "OK, point taken. You're scared in kind of the same way Brad gets scared for me. Roberta, he's fine. He just takes longer to process some things than others. But I'm glad you're on the line. Look, I'm going to be running for Sheriff in 2024--our incumbent is retiring. He's going to endorse me. I'm just about a shoo-in. About the only guy I can think of who might be able to beat me is the police chief in Pocatello, Charlie White. He's got the same kind of vibe. Leader in local law enforcement, known in the community, war hero in the Marines."

I blinked, and Roberta looked at me funny. "What unit and where'd he become a hero?"

"He was in your unit, actually. Fifth Marine Division. Got a Silver Star in Clovis."

I digested this for a minute, then said, "Might be a different guy than who I'm thinking of. Hold tight on that thought, OK, Kelly? I need to do some digging."

"Sure."

After a few more minutes, Kelly hung up.

The food arrived, and we tucked in.

Roberta looked at me and said, "You know him, and not in a good way."

"If--and that is a very big if--if it's the same guy, the only thing he got in Clovis was a case of the clap and a General Court Martial for black-marketing Dodge pickup parts."

Roberta's eyebrows tried really hard to climb up her forehead. "You're kidding!"

"Nope. I actually sat on his court-martial board."

After dinner, Roberta fiddled with her tablet and showed me the web page of the Pocatello PD. "That him?"

"Maybe. Let me do some digging."

I poked around, leaving a few questions on the Fifth Marine Division Association Forum, and we went to bed.

[jemhouston]

Sins of the past reappear.

[Matt Wiser]

And watch as Charlie White's hopes of becoming chief LEO for Bannock County disappear...

Kelly is still "Aunt Kelly" to Eric, Sandy, and Melanie, btw. And Kacey still uses it too, even if Kara doesn't admit it.

[Poohbah]

28 December 2022
Grand Teton Cabins
Diggs, ID

Overnight, an absolute blizzard came in. Wind was 37 knots sustained, gusting to 50-plus, with driving snow. The lifts at Grand Targhee were shut down until further notice, so we decided to eat a relatively light breakfast in the hotel restaurant (oatmeal and SOS for Roberta, scrambled eggs, sausage, and waffles for me), then spend the day lazing in our suite, with some hot tub time later on.

I checked at the 5th MarDiv Association forum, and I got answers.

"Yeah, it's him."

Roberta asked, "How'd he get hired as a cop with an Other Than Honorable?"

I scrolled through some posts and blinked in surprise. "Hey, this is weird. Idaho is the only state that doesn't actually verify DD-214s provided by applicants for law enforcement positions."

Roberta smiled. "Josh, it's a byproduct of the 'your handshake is your bond' culture we love so much in Idaho."

"Yeah, but we're trusting these guys to wield deadly force on our behalf."

The smile disappeared. "Good point." She sighed, then said, "You might want to call Sophie."

"Boss-Ma'am's out until New Year's. I'm calling my immediate senior."

In minutes, Major General Michelle Taldren was on the phone. "Josh! How's Grand Targhee? I hear you're getting shellacked."

"You hear correctly. Winds are gusting up to 50 knots, they've shut down the lifts. Good thing, too; we did two full days of fairly intense snowboarding, and I'm not quite as limber and spry as I used to be. A rest day is probably good."

"Gotcha. So, what's up?"

I laid out the situation, noting that Kelly Ray was a fellow reservist to me.

"Let me conference in the Staff Judge Advocate."

In minutes, Colonel Darlene Sweet was on the phone. I knew of her from dealing with some contract protests, but those had been handled by email.

"Okay, legal opinion . . . you're domiciled in Idaho, you found something concerning about the police chief AND the process for hiring personnel, as long as you're doing so in your private capacity, there's no concern. I do thank you for taking the time to review things to make sure you're coloring inside the lines, sir."

"By the way, Colonel," I asked, "is there any reason that this wouldn't have popped on a criminal record check?"

Sweet said, "Oh, that's easy, sir. It only gets reported if there's an immediate Bad Conduct or Dishonorable Discharge, or if there's confinement in excess of one year."

I frowned, then said, "That seems somewhat 'loosey-goosey,' to use a very technical engineering term."

Sweet chuckled politely at my nerd humor. "Agreed, sir."

Michelle came back on. "Josh . . . remember, we're all expected to be citizen-airmen, caring for our communities as well as defending America. That sounds like a major break in the system. Someone needs to sound the BS alarm, and it looks like you're elected."

* * *

So, I sent my representative an email.

From: Josh Mantell
To: The Honorable Ms. Elizabeth Routledge, Representative, 4th Legislative District (B)

Subject: Pocatello Police Chief: Questions Regarding Qualifications and Fitness for Office

Encl:
(a) Records of Court Martial Convened by CG Fifth Marine Division, 19 November 1987
(b) Readout of USMC Manpower Command Records in re: WHITE, CHARLES G.
(c) Biography of Charlie White, Pocatello Police Chief

Liz,

1. Nothing but God's love for those paste-eating idiots you have to put up with your professional colleagues in the Statehouse, but somebody better explain to me why in the hell is Idaho could someone kindly explain why Idaho is the only state that does NOT require a cross-check of veterans' status for law enforcement hires through the Department of Veteran Affairs and/or the Department of Defense? This gentleman's name came up in conversation recently, and I was quite thoroughly surprised to hear where this guy landed.

2. Seriously, this needs to be fixed. Sooner, as opposed to later. He is likely to be engaged in other shenanigans. And we need to be sure there aren't other problems waiting to be found the hard way.

3. Give my regards to Tommy. Roberta says hi. I swear to Jeebus I will be visiting Coeur d'Alene in June, we need to get together and do some barbecue. I have a new seasoning mix that is supposed to go absolutely perfect with that Carolina Gold sauce you and Tommy love.

Sincerely,

Josh

About ten minutes later, I got a phone call from Liz.

"Josh, please tell me you're joking."

"I'd have to lie."

"Got it. Well, you got Bob Porter to say, 'Gosh, Mr. Mantell actually asked a darn good question.' Getting him to use gosh OR darn is pretty amazing, getting him to use both is unheard of."

"Next thing you know, he's going to be drinking espresso while renewing his Temple Recommend and cheating at cards on Sunday. What's happening with this?"

"Bob passed it to the Attorney General's office and asked for an investigation. He also sent it to Marva Watson--she's the mayor. They're thick as thieves--a heck of a lot more honest, of course, but they do coordinate everything."

"I see."

"By the way, Josh, are you the 'Gunnery Sergeant Mantell' on the trial record?"

"Yes, he requested a panel of 2/3rds enlisted personnel. He probably shouldn't have, officers were more sympathetic than we were."

"Okay, stand by to get people asking questions, because KBOI's statehouse reporter--LaDona Walsh--picked up on it. She's a damn good reporter, but it's going to make things awkward."

"I'm going to send them back to you and Bob Porter. All I did was verify a few things and pass it along to the responsible adults."

* * *

30 December 2022

Things got spicy. The 29th was clear, and the runs had amazing amounts of fresh powder, so Roberta and I concentrated on snowboarding. KBOI and KPVI (the latter was the Pocatello NBC TV affiliate) went all in on coverage, and it was a topic of conversation in at the resort as we waited in line for lunch.

I got a couple of phone calls from the press and said "No comment."

On December 30th, the Mayor of Pocatello issued a terse statement announcing that Charlie White had been fired for cause, and that a formal investigation and review of his actions as police chief was underway.

Headquarters Marine Corps then issued a statement that reported the circumstances of his discharge accurately--he'd been booted out at the earliest opportunity as Lance Corporal, with an Other Than Honorable Discharge--but the First Marine Amphibious Force HQ had made a mistake that was, in the words of the Commandant, "utterly inexplicable," and which he apologized for. One of the charges he'd been convicted on was forging Military Interdepartmental Purchase Requests to cover up why parts were disappearing out of inventory.

He'd been put in the Fifth Marine Division G-1 shop as a gofer. And he'd apparently taken the opportunity to create a clean DD-214 that showed an honorable discharge as a Staff Sergeant and a Silver Star. Now, you'd have to know some inside baseball to see why that's suspicious--any NCO getting a valor award got short-listed for either going to knife-and-fork school like I eventually did, and/or getting slotted onto the platoon sergeant/company first sergeant track. So, when he applied to be a cop in Idaho, he was golden. He even scammed the Bannock County VSOs.

And that, I thought, was that. Roberta was a little less certain.

"Josh, you just made this guy's world implode on him. He might be looking for some payback."

One of the reasons I fell in love with and eventually married Roberta was her wisdom. Pity I didn't always listen to it.

[jemhouston]

Your default position should be someone is out to get me. Considering how many people have come after you and your wife with deadly intent is amazing.

[Poohbah]

Your default position should be someone is out to get me. Considering how many people have come after you and your wife with deadly intent is amazing.

I'm an eternal optimist.

[Wolfman]

Your default position should be someone is out to get me. Considering how many people have come after you and your wife with deadly intent is amazing.

I'm an eternal optimist.

Develop some professional paranoia why don’t you?

[jemhouston]

Your default position should be someone is out to get me. Considering how many people have come after you and your wife with deadly intent is amazing.

I'm an eternal optimist.

Develop some professional paranoia why don’t you?

Probably a good idea, you started going after what looks like child molester school resource officer, then medium size air / ground engagement in LA, a Major Air / Ground engagement (both involving nukes) in New Mexico. As topper you have Chicago, which by sounds of it is the largest battle in CONUS since WW3.

Now you have this.

[Wolfman]

I'm an eternal optimist.

Develop some professional paranoia why don’t you?

Probably a good idea, you started going after what looks like child molester school resource officer, then medium size air / ground engagement in LA, a Major Air / Ground engagement (both involving nukes) in New Mexico. As topper you have Chicago, which by sounds of it is the largest battle in CONUS since WW3.

Now you have this.

Damned straight!

[Poohbah]

02 January 2023
Grand Teton Cabins
Driggs, ID

We got back from another day of snowboarding and were crossing the lobby when the clerk said, "Mrs. Mantell? We have a call here for you from a Mister Dawson at Indiana University Press."

Roberta looked at me and said, "I'll be along shortly. Probably about the book."

Roberta's book had gathered some interest as word had leaked out that she was seriously researching Frank Lloyd Wright's buildings, including the design process and her assessment, as an architect, of why various decisions were made.

I made my way back to our room, reached into my pocket for the keycard . .

A man's voice from behind me said, "Drop the snowboard, spread your legs, and put your hands behind your head, please."

I heard the sound of a M1911A1 getting cocked.

Damn.

I complied. Only an idiot tries resisting when he doesn't know the score.

He brought my right wrist down and professionally cuffed me.

"Charlie White, I presume."

"Shut up."

He got the other cuff on, then reached into my right pocket, grabbed the keycard, and unlocked the door.

Roberta's voice. "Josh, who's--"

Charlie grabbed me and yanked me off-balance, then spun me around and used me as a shield.

Roberta had her SiG P320 out.

"Don't try it, ma'am."

He yanked me back into the room. I heard Roberta running back up the hall to the front desk. I wasn't worried; she knew what to do.

Call the cops and report a barricaded suspect with a hostage, call 20th Air Force Command Duty Officer and report the situation.

I figured that neither Driggs, nor even the Teton Sheriff's Department, would have a full SWAT team--the county population was barely over 11,000.

OK, Idaho State Police. SWAT is in Boise, it's a national holiday, might be here tomorrow morning. Just try not to get shot tonight, m'kay?

Unfortunately, I hadn't reckoned with the 20th Air Force Command Duty Officer. Or who the duty officer had to call.

* * *

Of all the people Roberta could have dealt with at 20AF HQ in Cheyenne, it was pure dumb luck that she drew Lieutenant Colonel Taylor Laning.

She was an old-school silo sitter who, for various reasons, had drawn two back-to-back HQ tours--we'd gotten her from SAC HQ at March. She was mostly in charge of the STANEVAL crews at the missile wings.

She knew procedures dead cold. She knew that procedures were meant to be obeyed as if they'd been written by God's own finger. And she also that they were not to be questioned.

This was an unfamiliar situation. The desktop binder referred her to OPREP-3P PINNACLE/ANTIMONY in the secure file cabinet; she spun open the lock, pulled the file, and noted idly that the date on the seal was 1987. She broke open the file, and saw a checklist.

The first number to be called was an exchange in Grand Island, Nebraska. She dialed the number.

"Five-five-three-one."

"This is Lieutenant Colonel Laning, at Headquarters 20th Air Force. I am reporting a OPREP-3P PINNACLE/ANTIMONY event." She looked at her authenticator list. "Authenticate Kilo Seven Bravo."

"I authenticate Zero Papa Victor."

It checks.

"Right. Initial Report. Situation?"

"General officer being held hostage, Grand Teton Cabins, Driggs, Idaho. The person holding him is believed to be one Charles Gordon White, formerly the chief of police for Pocatello Idaho."

"Name?"

"Brigadier General Joshua Mantell."

"And your sponsoring command?"

"Strategic Air Command."

"Copy. We'll be watching for the message traffic."

Laning then proceeded to make the next call to SAC Headquarters.

* * *

The phone number in Grand Island was an accommodation line. The phone had actually rung in Northern Virginia. The man who'd answered was the watch officer for the Department of Public Safety, known to those with appropriate clearances as "The Firm."

When he looked up PINNACLE/ANTIMONY, he found the following:

WARNING:

IN THE EVENT OF A PINNACLE/ANTIMONY INVOLVING A GENERAL OFFICER FROM ANY OF THE FOLLOWING AGENCIES/COMMANDS, IMMEDIATELY REFER TO SECTION 31 FOR DISPOSITION.

OSD
JOINT STAFF
OPNAV STAFF
HQ USA STAFF
HQ USAF STAFF
HQMC STAFF
CINCSAC
CINCAFNORTH (US PERSONNEL ONLY)
CINCAFSOUTH (US PERSONNEL ONLY)
NSA
DIA
USAINSCOM
ONI
NAVSECRUACT
USAF ESC
JSOC
USSOCCOM
ARSOC
AFSOC
NAVSPECWAR
AFSWC
USN SSPO

The watch officer picked up the phone and dialed the extension for Section 31.

A man's voice. "This is Saturn."

The watch officer gave a summary of the situation.

Saturn said, "Call Vesta in Denver and have her and the alert Zebra Squad proceed to Driggs."

* * *

02 January 2023
20th Air Force Headquarters
Warren Air Force Base
Cheyenne, WY

Lieutenant General Sophia Lodge stepped into the lobby of the headquarters building and waved to LtCol Laning.

"Good evening, Colonel. Checking in from leave."

"Yes, ma'am, I'll log you in. By the way, we have a situation you should be aware of."

She quickly explained the situation and concluded with, "I have the PINNACLE/ANTIMONY message ready to go, ma'am."

Sophie chuckled. "I haven't heard that term since the end of the--"

Then it hit her.

"Colonel, did you make a voice report to SAC?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Anyone else?"

"AFOSI . . . and some outfit in Grand Island, Nebraska."

"What outfit?"

"They didn't give a name, but they did answer the authenticator correctly."

"Get them on the phone right now."

Laning dialed.

"Five-five-three one."

"Hello, this is Lieutenant General Sophia Lodge, CC of 20th Air Force; my duty officer spoke to you earlier. Just who the hell are you people, and why are you on the distro for OPREP-3s?"

[jemhouston]

The good news, The Firm has it's act together expect in matters of employee screening, where they are little lax.

Zebra teams only hire from Tier 1 units normally. The exceptions being Apaches, Comanches, and people who have two Silver Stars or a Service Cross.

At least that's what I've heard.

Is Michael Coldsmith-Briggs IV or V around?

Michael Coldsmith-Briggs III was the person who could out plan a certain uncle, possible.

[Matt Wiser]

Charlie White snapping-his hopes for Sheriff-and higher office-say Congress or a State Legislature seat-just got dashed. Assuming he even lives through this, he's in a HEAP of trouble.

Watch as various units show up-some dressed in black and that is a giveaway to their being SOF/SWAT/Hostage Rescue. And watch the future Sheriff of Bannock County (Hopefully) be one of the Deputies responding to the initial call. That'll make the soon-to-be either dead or incarcerated Mr. White freak out even more.

[Wolfman]

Sophie is… less than pleased with all this… The Firm had better be ready to explain how they wound up on the list of people who have to be called when something like this happens…

[jemhouston]

I did pick up on Section 31. FYI, in one Matt Helm novel, his normally unnamed agency was called Department of Public Safety. I'm not sure if that was their actual name since there was a coup about to start and Mac was trying to stop it.

[Wolfman]

I did pick up on Section 31. FYI, in one Matt Helm novel, his normally unnamed agency was called Department of Public Safety. I'm not sure if that was their actual name since there was a coup about to start and Mac was trying to stop it.

I also picked up on Section 31. Let’s hope that they’re nowhere near as out of control as they are in Star Trek…