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Ghost discovered that my natural ability to file away emotions made me an incredibly good soldier once I got the hang of it, and he taught me everything he knew. He also worked behind the scenes to help me as much as he could.
This didn’t mean he was gentle with me in any shape or form. My mentor may be many things, but a gentle bear he was not. I didn’t mind. He was the best, and that was all that mattered.
I absorbed everything like a sponge and worked harder than everyone else. Because of this, I became better, stronger, more focused, and the kids at school learned to leave me alone.
Even Jacob Hayes stopped his persecution of me when his superiors noticed my improvement and commended him on a job well done.
You would think this was a good thing, but no. The bastard knew for a fact that he wasn’t the reason for my progress and became suspicious.
The fucker could eavesdrop and nose around as much as he wanted, however.
There was a reason Ghost was nicknamed after a specter. He had an uncanny ability to not be seen unless he wanted you to, and make no mistake about it, he did NOT want people to find out he was helping me.
The commander walked up to me, followed by his assistant and Marlow, making me swallow with difficulty.
Never let your enemy see you bleed. Surprise is your friend. It can sometimes be your only shot at getting out of a situation alive.
As Ghost’s words of wisdom played in my head, I chased away the adrenaline coursing through my brain to calm my heart rate.
It was that or I throw all the sacrifices I made in the past year in a garbage can.
“Initiate Murdoch, how nice to see you again,” he smiled, while I stared at him impassively.
You should have seen the surprise on my team leader’s dumb face.
Like everyone here, he hadn’t known I’d met the Commander. That a senior commanding officer knew the name of a mere trainee, and not his, did not sit well with him.
But despite his many flaws, Hayes wasn’t born yesterday. He hid his anger at the slight and continued like nothing was going on.
I didn’t address the man or respond in any way to his query because it would be seen as a sign of disrespect.
“Are you ready for your first mission?” the Commander queried.
“You know about that?” The man lost his amused grin when I forgot to address him by his title in my shock. So, I hurriedly added “Commander” to my sentence before they tossed me into the fire pit.
“I’m here to see how you’re going to perform. I’ve spoken to the General about you, and we have big dreams for you.
I certainly hope this little training exercise has refreshed you, because not everyone gets to hack the Pentagon’s security system on their very first mission.”
Did he just say the Pentagon? He couldn’t be serious.
“I’m gathering from the shocked look you’re giving me you didn’t know?”
“No, Sire. Missions are not divulged to initiates,” Hayes intervened, making Marlow look at him in panic.
“Hum, I wasn’t aware I was talking to you, Team Leader, but thank you for the information,” the man declared dryly.
“I apologize, Sire.”
“No harm done. But, how about we proceed, Rector Marlow? I don’t have all day.”
“Of course, please follow me.”
***
“Son of a bitch,” I swore as a warning appeared on my program and an electrical shock jolted my nervous system, making me pant in pain.
Marlow and the commander had brought me to an empty room with a large two-way mirror. It had a 60-inch monitor that projected everything I did in real time.
