down a regime. He has more influence than half the governments and mega-corporations that hire him. What made you think I could stop him?”
Kendra knew that was true, but it didn’t make her less irritated. “It would be nice if you’d made the attempt. The three of us came here to get a job done. I was so damn close last night, Jessie.”
She soberly shook her head. “I didn’t have the right to make the call. Lynch doesn’t usually go off half-cocked, and when he phoned me this morning, he was close to exploding. He didn’t tell me what happened in that poppy field last night, but you scared the shit out of him.”
“I only did what I was supposed to do, what I’m fully capable of doing. He had no right to step in and stop me.” Kendra was growing more angry. “Would he have stopped you? Hell no, he would have treated you with the respect you deserve. Because you had two tours here in Afghanistan and a background as a private investigator—I couldn’t agree more that you’re super qualified. But that doesn’t mean that it’s fair to ignore the fact that I might have my own capabilities.”
“Bullshit.” Jessie grinned. “You know damn well Lynch respects your ‘capabilities.’ His problem is that he’s a good deal too involved with certain other qualifications you display that have absolutely nothing to do with what’s going on in your head.”
She didn’t want to hear that right now. “Then he should concentrate on what’s important. The truth is that he never wanted me to come here anyway and he’s using this as an excuse. And you should never have agreed to carry his water for him. This has put me in an intolerable position, and I won’t—”
“Intolerable?” A booming voice behind Kendra caused her to whirl to face a tall officer with iron-gray hair who was getting out of his jeep. Both his stripes and the fact that the young private was at full attention indicated that this was the Brigadier General Kotcheff for whom he’d been waiting. He was gazing sternly at Kendra. “That’s a very harsh word when we’re trying to make this departure as comfortable and easy for you as possible, Dr. Michaels.” He turned to Jessie. “You’re Ms. Mercado? When I spoke to Adam Lynch, he told me that you’d make our task easier. I don’t see any signs of that.”
“Then you’ll have to take it up with him,” Jessie said. “I’m sure you won’t have any objection to doing that. He’s so easy to deal with.”
Kotcheff’s stare became even cooler. “That’s not been my experience. But we’re always willing to work with him when he requests a favor. It usually pays dividends.”
“Does it?” Kendra took a step toward him. “And interfering with my rights as an American citizen is worth that payoff? What the hell happened? Look, together with Adam Lynch and Jessie Mercado, I’ve been investigating Brock Limited, a government contractor that’s been sharing space on your base. That investigation has led us from San Diego to Kabul in search of evidence that would reveal the corruption Brock has been spreading throughout the world. You can’t do this. I’m not finished with my job here yet.”
“You are as far as we’re concerned. I’m afraid you’ve been a disruptive influence.”
She gazed at him, stunned. “I’ve only been here for three weeks. Even I couldn’t disrupt much in that time.”
“You underestimate yourself,” Kotcheff said sourly. “It appears that you caused something of an upset last night in Nurestan Province. In a war-torn country like Afghanistan, that sort of behavior can’t be permitted. You’ll have to leave.”
“What? Nurestan? There’s no way you could possibly know what happened there last night.” She paused. “Unless you were told.” She took a step even closer to him. “Perhaps by our friend Adam Lynch?” Her hands knotted into fists at her sides. “Dammit, you can’t do this to me.”
“On the contrary, I can do anything I please on this base. You’re the one who has no business here.” His lips twisted. “From your dossier, it seems you’re only a music teacher without even the credentials that Ms. Mercado possesses.” He yanked his thumb at young Private Dalrymple standing beside him. “Even this private has far better skills and qualifications than you. I find it incredible that you were even given a visa in the first place.”
Lord, he was arrogant. “Music therapist. I’m very proud of working with those children. But I do also