Between Here and the Horizon(90)

Five minutes later, Sully was escorted into the room by two armed guards. He was dressed in military uniform, and he looked like he hadn’t slept in days. There were dark circles under his eyes, but his back was ramrod straight, his chin held high and proud. When he saw me, he rushed into the room and threw his arms around me, sweeping me up off the floor.

“Damn it, Lang,” he said through gritted teeth. “I thought you wouldn’t come.” He rained kissed down onto my face. Putting me down, he cupped my face in his hands, scanning me from head to toe, as if storing every last minute detail of me to memory in case he never saw me again.

“Of course I came,” I whispered. “You didn’t do anything wrong.”

“The U.S. Army doesn’t see it that way,” he said. “I still f*cked up pretty bad. I should never have done what I did.”

I leaned my forehead against his chest, closing my eyes, breathing a sigh of relief. “You loved your brother. That’s all. And whatever you may have done, it seems like you’re in the clear. They told Linneman you were going to be released.”

Sully frowned. “They did?”

“Yeah. The officer who came and got me at the gate said he was getting your release paperwork.”

At that moment, the door opened again and Sam appeared, hurrying into the room. He gave us both a brief smile, and then held out his hand to Sully. “Second Lieutenant Coleridge. I don’t believe we’ve met.”

Sully shook Sam’s hand, head tilted ever so slightly to one side. He looked perplexed. “Coleridge?” he repeated.

“That’s right, sir. Sam Coleridge. Your brother pulled me out of that burning wreck outside of Kabul. I was only nineteen at the time.”

Sully rocked back on his heels, recognition dawning on his face. “That’s right. Kabul.”

“We’re almost done here, sir. If you’d just sign here, where we’ve indicated with the red crosses, then we can get you on your way.” Sam handed Sully the paperwork in his other hand, smiling wider.

“I don’t understand. Ronan wasn’t—”

“Don’t worry, sir. It’s all been taken care of. I personally testified that you weren’t the one to pull me out of that wreck. It was definitely Ronan Fletcher, as records of that night confirmed.”

“But what about the letter I wrote? I confessed that—”

Sam shook his head. “I’m sorry, sir. I don’t know of any letter being held in evidence relating to this matter. As far as we’re concerned, Ronan Fletcher served a total of five tours in Afghanistan, saving the lives of well over thirty-eight men during the period of his service. The USB drives that were found in his house were taken by him, under the proviso that they were something else entirely. We believe he had zero knowledge of their hidden contents.”

Sully closed his hand around the pen Sam was offering him. “Ah. I see.”

“Yes, sir. Luckily for you, this matter was resolved. You’d have been sent to Gitmo for sure, otherwise. Probably wouldn’t have stepped foot in the States again.” The tone in Sam’s voice made things very clear—he knew Sully was the man who saved him. He knew perfectly well that Sully had broken the law, but he was feigning ignorance in order to save him now.

“Then I ought to be thanking you,” Sully said slowly. He signed the paperwork and handed it back to Sam while I watched on in amazement. Sam took the paperwork and reached into his pocket.

“I always wished I’d seen Ronan again,” he said. There was an odd, obvious twist to his voice that made me want to cry. “I’ve wanted to thank him for a very long time for what he did for me. That wreck was catastrophic. I was badly injured. Beyond badly injured. It took me eighteen months to regain full use of my body. It was a long, hard, painful road, but I was grateful that I was alive to take each agonizing step of it. Ronan risked his own life to save me and the two other guys he dragged out of that truck that night. I’ll never forget it. Neither will my wife, or my two kids.” He opened up his wallet and held it out for Sully to see—inside was a photograph of a beautiful blonde woman, holding onto two tiny little boys who were unmistakably Sam’s. “They want to convey their thanks to the man that saved my life just as much as I do, Captain Fletcher. It’s a debt that can never be repaid.”

Sully stood motionless, looking down at the picture. He nodded very slowly, his hands now curled into fists as his sides. “I’m sure my brother would be honored that you’d built such a beautiful life for yourself, Sergeant Coleridge. And he’d want to tell you that saving your life was one of the only things he was proud of accomplishing in his life, too.”

Sam’s eyes shone brightly, filled with tears. “Well. Hoo-rah for second chances, huh, Captain?” he said, his voice choked with emotion. “For me, and for you, I think.”





EPILOGUE





Dr. Fielding was way taller than I’d assumed in person. His office smelled like worn leather, but not in a manly way. In the kind of way it might smell of worn leather if he’d gone to an interior design store and bought a candle called “Worn Leather” that he burned on a shelf, while he mentally assessed troubled children and their equally troubled parents.

Connor sat on the very edge of his seat, pressing two Legos together and pulling them apart again over and over. Amie was happily entertaining herself on the floor on the other side of the room with another little girl, who seemed perplexed by Amie’s disinterest in her Barbie collection.