Countdown. Lindsay McKenna

you have to leave someone special behind at Camp Lejeune?”

      For a moment, pain flitted across Annie’s heart, but she knew Rose was being kindly, not nosy. “Well…there was someone…but he died in Desert Storm.”

      “Oh, dear,” Rose murmured, and reached out to touch Annie’s arm. “I’m so very sorry. Were you in Desert Storm, too?”

      “Yes. We need provost-marshal and brig people in a wartime situation, too, I’m afraid.”

      Frowning, Rose took a few stabs at her salad with her fork. “Were you married?”

      “No, engaged. Jeff and I decided to wait until Storm was over to get married.” Annie shrugged, feeling the residual loss and pain filtering through her. “I guess it was the best decision. I don’t know….”

      “My grandma always told me it was better to have loved and lost than never to have loved.”

      “Your grandmother was a wise woman.”

      Rose smiled a little. “Well, who knows? Maybe you’ll meet someone here at Camp Reed.”

      “No,” Annie murmured. “I made myself a promise never to get involved with another marine. I think a civilian man will be safer in the long run.”

      “Now you sound like Libby Tyler—she’s a riding instructor here on the base. You know, I think Captain Ramsey really likes her. Joe is doing some preliminary investigating for Libby right now, as a matter of fact. She’s noticed that someone’s been riding five of the stable-owned horses nearly to death about once a month. She feels something fishy is going on, so Captain Ramsey sent Joe to check it out.” She paused in her monologue to take a sip of cola. “Libby was married to a marine helicopter pilot,” she explained, grimacing momentarily. “He died three years ago in a crash here at Reed, and since then she’s sworn off marines as potential mates.”

      “I don’t blame her,” Annie said softly, feeling sympathetic pain for the unknown woman. “People in our line of work face more dangers than most.”

      “I don’t agree,” Rose countered matter-of-factly. “I mean, I could be killed in a car crash on the way to work at this base on any given day. If marines follow the proper safety procedures, they don’t get hurt any more than your average human.”

      “Except in case of war,” Annie amended wryly.

      “Yes, but that’s the only exception.”

      Annie finished her salad and started on her french fries. “Do you think our boss is serious about Ms. Tyler?” she asked, intrigued.

      Rose grinned. “I think so.”

      “Captain Ramsey was at Camp Lejeune when I first enlisted. I liked him a lot. He was a fair man who cared for the people who worked under his command.”

      “Nothing’s changed that I can see,” Rose murmured. “But I have to tell you, the last commanding officer, Captain Jacobs, was a stinker. I felt sorry for the enlisted people who worked under him. He was a terrible manager and the entire brig section more or less collapsed under the weight of his mismanagement. If it hadn’t been for Joe Donnally, I think a lot worse could have happened.”

      Annie’s heart raced momentarily. “Sergeant Donnally…”

      “He’s quite a man, isn’t he?” Rose gushed.

      Not sure how to answer that, Annie kept her own counsel. After a moment, she offered, “He made quite an impression on me.” At least that was the truth.

      “Joe’s special. He’s a tough sergeant and he’s a fighter from the word go. I don’t know how many times he squared off with Captain Jacobs. They had awful shouting matches behind Jacobs’s office door. I mean, you could hear their voices clear down the passageway sometimes. Jacobs tried to get Joe transferred, but he fought that, too, and won.” Rose wagged her finger at Annie. “I’m telling you, Joe Donnally single-handedly supported the brig personnel during those two years. He was more the officer than Jacobs. He got things done right and on time—and then Jacobs took all the credit. Jacobs got even by not allowing Joe to get his next sergeant’s stripe. He gave him bad ratings in his personnel record. But Joe didn’t care. He knew he stood between Jacobs and the welfare of his people.”

      “So Joe should be an E-6 instead of an E-5?” Annie asked slowly, thinking of her stupid remark to him about passing her E-5 test to become a sergeant. Perhaps that’s why he had rounded on her so angrily—she’d struck an old wound.

      “Yes, he should have made E-6 at least a year and a half ago. I’m sure Captain Ramsey will right the wrong as soon as he can, but the poor man’s snowed under with work. Jacobs left our office in a disaster, moralewise and every other way.”

      No wonder Joe Donnally had been short with her, Annie ruminated, folding her hands and resting her chin against them. “Is Captain Ramsey working to create better conditions for the brig chasers?”

      Chuckling, Rose wiped her mouth with a paper napkin. “Better believe it. We were four people short, and the captain already has four new people coming in, you among them. Of course, he went after you big-time when he saw the layout of Reed—all the rugged terrain and such.”

      “Have there been many brig breaks?”

      “No, but when there have been, a tracker’s been needed. We’ve always had to fly someone in from another base.”

      Annie nodded. “When I worked with Captain Ramsey at Camp Lejeune, he set up a drug program for the base. Is he doing that here?”

      “Yes. Colonel Edwards was so impressed with what he did down at the Yuma Air Station in Arizona that he had him ordered up here to set up a similar program for Reed. Captain Ramsey’s a real doer, but then, so is Joe Donnally.” She laid her napkin aside and picked up her purse. “They’re a great team. I can already see the positive effects around our office. ’Course, Captain Ramsey’s still new and I’m trying to fill him in on all the stuff that concerns us here at Reed, but he’s a quick study.” She smiled happily. “Well, you ready to get to work? I know Captain Ramsey wanted to see you at 1300. He wasn’t able to come and meet you personally, but he wants to see you as soon as possible. Joe will take you in to meet him.”

      Annie’s heart fell. She wished she could go alone instead of under the angry, watchful eyes of Donnally. Was he always like that, or just with her? Well, she’d find out soon enough.

      * * *

      Joe felt their entrance into the brig office long before he heard them. He was working at his desk over a stack of paperwork, and his heart raced momentarily, puzzling him. Annie’s voice had a soft, husky quality to it, surprisingly low and soothing, as she conversed with Rose. Trying to ignore her tone, Joe hastily signed his name to several pieces of paper as Rose approached with the tracker.

      “She’s all yours, Joe.”

      “Thanks, Rose.” He refused to look up even though Annie stood patiently in front of his desk. Getting up, he threw the papers into his Out basket and finally nailed her with a glance. He was struck by how serene Annie appeared in the midst of the office chaos. Did anything ruffle her composure? Probably not. He’d heard that Native Americans traditionally were stoic and expressionless.

      “What would you like me to do?” Annie ventured.

      Joe snapped a look at her. “That file over there. Read it.”

      Trying not to be hurt by his gruffness, Annie reached for the file on her new desk.

      “When you get done reading the report I typed up, we’ll talk.”

      Annie quickly perused the file on the Libby Tyler investigation that Rose had mentioned at lunch. She found it interesting that Ms. Tyler had reported the horses were being ridden hard at night during the new moon—and that the stable manager, Stuart Garwood, refused to take the matter seriously. But when she saw the scribbled note recently added to the file, she turned in