Page 98 of SEAL's Resolve
He rolled his eyes. “Probably sleeping in our vehicle down the street.”
Eli folded his arms across his chest. “Why are you working for a third-rate company like Ward Security?”
“Finding a job isn’t easy. I applied to hundreds of companies after I separated from the military. WS was the only company willing to give me a chance.”
“You were dishonorably discharged,” Jon said.
“How did you know about that? Who do you work for?”
“Fortress Security.”
Adams froze. “Brent Maddox’s company?”
A nod from the sniper.
“How did you get hired on with Fortress? I heard Maddox doesn’t accept applications.” He sighed. “Not that it would do me any good to apply with my record. Maddox would never consider me for a position.”
“Depends on the reason for the discharge.” Eli sat in the chair Rafe had vacated. “What’s your story?”
The Ranger’s expression darkened. “Major Kline sent my team into an ambush. He suspected the Taliban were waiting for us and sent us in anyway. I lost good men that day, including my best friend, and was shot twice myself protecting my team. When I was strong enough to stand up, I tracked Kline down at a bar off base and decked him.”
“What about the civilian you assaulted?”
Adams scowled. “If you’ve seen my record, you already know what happened.”
“Records don’t tell the whole story.”
“What difference will it make?”
Rafe seated Kristi at the table. “The reason for the assault matters.” Since Kristi wasn’t going back to sleep, Rafe grabbed a mug from the cabinet, dropped a bag of peppermint tea into water, and heated it.
“Yeah, all right.” Adams rubbed his jaw. “I was in another bar fight. A male civilian was hitting on a female staff sergeant. The jerk came on strong, refused to take no for an answer, and scared her. When I moved between them and told the guy to back off, he threw a punch at me.”
“Land it?”
Another snort. “Nope. I decked him with one punch. His buddies swore I was the aggressor. Cops got involved and reported the incident to the military.”
“No one else saw how the incident unfolded and spoke up?”
“The place was packed and noisy.” He shrugged. “Wasn’t really a fight.”
“What about the staff sergeant?” Eli asked. “Did she speak up for you?”
A nod. “Didn’t matter. The major had labeled me a violent troublemaker, and this incident was the last nail in my coffin. The major pushed the brass for a discharge.”
Rafe set the tea in front of Kristi and sat beside her. “Why do that instead of reducing your rank?”
A wry smile curved Adams’ mouth. “I threatened to tell the media about the debacle with my team. Major Kline was angling for a promotion. Bad publicity could have made the top brass look into my team’s mission and the man who ordered us into an ambush. He wanted me gone before I threw a spanner into his promotion. He accomplished his goal.”
“Did you follow through on your threat to go to the media?”
“What was the point? Most of my team was dead, and my career was over. All I wanted to do was leave the whole mess behind me.”
“Did you?”
“Sure.” Bitterness filled his voice. “The only things I have left from my military career are PTSD and the knowledge that my team died on my watch.”
Rafe glanced at Eli and gave a slight nod. Wolf Pack’s leader handed Adams a business card.