Red Meat in the Cage

293.

The wolves are hungry. We have reached the infamous point of no return. That complex and illusive point on the time-line where going back, a reverse pivot, paints a picture of failure. Full-on, all-in or half-baked the time is now. TOM was fond of saying that courage seeks out moments like these. It is what we do and why we train. We boldly go. We move into the danger zone expecting a fight. One either embodies the spirit of a warrior, or stays home.

Julie, Harlan, Mustang and I review the strategy one last time before departure. We feel that the plan, Mongoose TOM, is solid and tactfully sound. The major pieces, Davis and Saunders, as Sharkey and Bess, will be with the Goldson entourage while the four of us will travel with Senator Hartaugh as security. Having embeds on both sides is a miracle in itself - minor or otherwise - and we have a pair of sleeved aces ready for play, but the margin for error might be as slim as the playing cards themselves, maybe thinner.

It is under these demanding circumstances that we rely on training and experience. As the song warns us, 'You've got to know when to hold 'em and when to fold 'em.' I feel especially 'concerned' about two of our cast: Davis, whose flamboyant, extroverted, snake-oil salesman cover, Sharkey, is the key to closing the deal. He is the liaison, the conduit, the epoxy binding the two together, but it is fire we try to bind with ice. He must be flawless in the furnace blast heat of the deal, and my second concern, to a lessor degree, interestingly, is The Queen herself. In her exuberant, youthful, intellectual brilliance she is prone to knee-jerk situational reactions, having neither the depth of training nor the abundance of experience in field ops. In each of their cases I consider the importance of providing them with maximal amounts of emotional support and leadership through guidance. I silently wish that TOM was around to offer the same to me.

"I have a past, but I don't live there," I say to myself, "Put all those toys, all the loss, pain and suffering - along with the myriad trophies, medals and awards - in a bankers box, seal it with glass-tape, grab a fat sharpie and mark it PAST. Bless that box. And then walk out of its grasp and into the reality of the current situation. Maybe one day you will find the strength to add a sub-heading disclaimer to the bold full-caps identifier, something like; 'An ego's collection of artifacts, flotsam and jetsam, props and interesting things found along the way that have all assisted to varying degrees, in the making of me.'

Julie sees that I am walking in that direction and offers her usual encouragement. "I feel good about our preparation. All the parts are in place. We have the cover of security that will allow us the overt use of communications, we have assets on the flip side, the location is wired from basement to ceiling and the wolves are hungry."

Harlan nods thoughtfully in agreement. I walk the line. There is no going back.

"Let's toss the red meat into their cage."