R Patterson - The Shadow Hunter

If necessary, Miller was prepared to wait out the two men, who were undoubtedly government agents. He was unaware that Thomas Colton even had a son, a comment Brady Hawk had likely made just to get Miller to let his guard down and think they were friends. But the pair had followed him all the way up the Chesapeake and into the Potomac—and now here.

A half-hour earlier, Miller wasn’t sure he wanted to win. He deeply cared about his country, but he was tired of taking orders. He’d grown weary of being a pawn in the game. He’d just as soon make it all stop as he would continue to follow commands. He wanted to give them—and give them with authority. North Korea would’ve already been a sheet of glass if he’d been able to convince President Norris to go along with his idea.

But here he was, scrambling though the forest with his hands becoming more numb by the second, hoping to kill a pair of agents who were surely on the cusp of exposing him. Miller wanted to go out on his terms. Even though he knew what he was doing was patriotic, he didn’t want to be branded a traitor and tossed into a prison. Benedict Arnold was forever reviled for turning his back on George Washington, but at least Arnold had a life.

That’s all Miller wanted at this point—his old way of life back. But he was afraid those days had long set sail on a ship never to return. And he wasn’t sure what was left for him. His position of power and prestige had been reduced to the latter, all his power being usurped by someone else.

Whatever happened, Miller smiled over using his Revolutionary War tactics to outsmart a pair of trained agents. Until a few months ago, the war re-enactment group he’d been a part of for more than a decade regularly trained at this site in the woods of Kinsale, a small Virginia farming community.

Miller paused to catch his breath before peering over the edge into the pit.

“Mr. Hawk? Mr. Earvin?” he called out.

That was the last thing he said before uttering a string of expletives as someone pushed him from behind and into the pit.

WHEN HAWK HAD started to slip, he instinctively reached up and grabbed a vine dragging the forest floor. Big Earv almost suffered a less noble fate, but wrapped his arms around Hawk’s feet. Hawk was able to hold on just long enough for Big Earv to get on solid ground and avoid tumbling down.

Their shouting had alerted Miller that his ruse had likely worked, sending him sprinting toward their position.

As soon as the admiral reached the edge, Hawk eased up behind Miller and pushed him in.

Miller fell to the ground, cursing all the way down.

Hawk used a flashlight from his ruck sack to illuminate Miller’s face. The admiral shielded his eyes as he looked at Hawk.

“Why’d you run, Admiral?” Hawk asked. “Because in my experience, the only people who run are guilty ones or those who are afraid someone is out to get them. So, which is it for you?”

“Isn’t it obvious?” Miller asked.

“Not to me, it isn’t,” Hawk said. “We just wanted to talk.”

“Sure you did,” Miller said. “That’s why you have weapons right now.”

“You led us up here to kill us,” Hawk said. “It’s a good thing we brought our weapons.”

Miller sighed and shook his head. “You don’t even know what you’re doing here, do you?”

“We’re here because you tried to sabotage us,” Hawk said. “And I think we all know that you ran because we mentioned the name Doug Mitchell.”

Miller shook his head. “You’ve got it all wrong. I’ve never even heard of that man.”

“Is that why you called him and told him about a special operation by Navy SEALs that occurred recently on the coast of North Korea where their nuclear missiles were housed? There were only a handful of people privy to what was happening there.”

“You don’t understand,” Miller said. “I didn’t have a choice.”

Big Earv jumped into the fray. “Who made you do this, Admiral Miller? Was it the president?”

“Of course not. I’ve been trying to do everything I could to get him to get rid of the North Koreans once and for all. If he had, I might be free too.”

Hawk kept his beam steady on Miller. “You keep acting like you’re a slave to someone else’s whims. If that’s the case, you must know who?”

“Have you ever heard of The Alliance?”

Hawk shook his head. “Who are they?”

“They’re going to come for you one day,” Miller said. “And when they do, you’re going to wish you’d listened to me. You do what they say, or they take everything you hold dear in life, mark my words.”

Then Miller started to raise his gun.

“Don’t, Admiral,” Hawk said, placing his hand out and gesturing for Miller to lower his weapon.

“Then stop me,” Miller said.

Hawk didn’t hesitate, putting two bullets in Miller’s chest. The weapon fell out of his hand as he collapsed to the ground clutching his chest.

Hawk and Big Earv jumped into the pit. After collecting the gun, Hawk knelt next to the admiral.

“We only wanted to talk, sir,” Hawk said.

“Thank you,” Miller said. “Now, I’m free.”

Miller’s body went limp, leaving Hawk and Big Earv sitting there in disbelief, not at what had just transpired but what they’d heard.

“Have you ever heard of The Alliance?” Hawk asked.

Big Earv shrugged. “Maybe as a myth, but nothing that ever sounded serious.”

“What Miller just said sounded serious to me.”

“I’m with you,” Big Earv said. “And this isn’t a mystery I’m excited to explore.”

Hawk drew in a deep breath and exhaled. He contacted Alex over the coms.

“We’re safe, honey,” he said.

“I know. I was watching.”

“Then you know we’re going to need a cleanup out here—and a cover story.”

“Already on it,” she said. “Now, when are you coming home?”

“Soon,” Hawk said. “But I’ve got one more stop to make.”

Charlotte, North Carolina

HAWK CONVINCED BIG EARV to head back to Los Angeles in order to attend to some personal business. While Big Earv put up a fight, he eventually acquiesced, leaving Hawk with some solitude for a long drive to Charlotte. During that time, he had plenty of time to think about his past—and his future.

Hawk reflected on his time with Eddie Tyson, wondering if he was still alive in North Korea. If the opportunity arose as intel became available, Hawk would go back and get him. But he wanted to talk with Sheila, at least give her some closure in a way that only he could. And if one day Tyson walked back into her life, they could sort things out then. On the long car ride from Siberia to Sonbong, Tyson had expressed how he wanted her to move on, even though it’d hurt to see her with another man. And he’d asked Hawk to convey that to her in as delicate of a way as possible.

Hawk parked by the curb of the Tyson family home and closed his eyes, plotting how he could tell her. He’d picked up a couple of pizzas and brought gifts for all the kids. When he found the nerve, he rang the doorbell, instigating instant chaos.

Sheila, Tyson’s wife, barely had time to hug Hawk before Joey and Sam swarmed over the pizza and carried it off.

“Make sure Caleb gets a piece,” she shouted as they darted off toward the kitchen with their food and gifts.

“Uncle Brady” hadn’t stopped by to visit in several years, and Hawk was sure that none of the kids remembered him.

Sheila offered a thin smile and tucked her hair behind her ears. “They’re a motley crew, aren’t they?”

“They take after their dad,” Hawk said with a grin.

“Thank you,” she said. “I’m glad someone else sees that. I was always trying to convince Eddie that I had nothing to do with these children.”