Texas Nights - Book 13 of the Damned of the 2/19th

The Crystal Ball

Charlie Company Area
15th Forward Support Battalion
Fort Hood, Texas
United States of America
24 September, 1991
1630 Hours

"Well, Chief?" Captain Jane asked me after I had sat down in the chair across from her desk. She had let me get my folder in order, and ignored Specialist Donovan, who stood on my left at Parade Rest, staring above Captain Jane's head.

"Honesty, or do you just want your butt polished?" I asked her bluntly.

She looked thoughtful, tapping her pen, then smiled.

"Oh, how about polish my butt," She said.

"Your unit is the best unit ever and I'm sure won't kill the first patient that wanders by," I grouched, cracking open a Pepsi and drinking half of it in one long swallow. I wiped my mouth and stared at her. "I'm sure they'll all shoot expert, and Congress will bestow upon them maiden and honors."

She winced slightly. "That bad?"

"Through no fault of their own," I stated bluntly. "Your officers are idiots, half your NCO's spend more time trying to avoid doing their jobs than actually interacting with their squads, and I know for a fact two of your married NCO's are having sexual intercourse with enlisted that are directly their subordinates."

"That's a serious accusation, Chief," She said slowly. "Are you sure?"

I nodded. "I saw it with my own eyes. If my word isn't good enough, then be damned with you and First Cav."

She nodded again. "May I have their names?" She asked slowly, bringing a piece of paper to in front of her.

I shook my head. "No. I caught them, I warned them. If they do it again, then we can discuss charges. They get their one chance like everyone else."

"And if I order you to give me the names?" She asked.

"Better check my enhanced interrogation file if you don't want to be here all week," I snarled. "My word is my bond, the only currency I have right now."

That made her nod and set the pen down. "All right, Chief Cromwell, I'll let it lie," she paused, "For now."

"That's all I ask, Ma'am," I said. "If I find out that there's favoritism going on, I'll come to you myself and swear out a witness report."

She nodded. "I believe your enough of a hardass to do just that."

"But, aside from that, you need to have a talk with your officers about what constitutes abuse to subordinates," I stated flatly. "I'm not going to lie, if one particular officer lays their hands on me like I have witnessed them doing to a lower enlisted, they will need immediate medical treatment."

She raised an eyebrow. "No name?"

I shook my head. "Not yet. The Chain of Command exists for a reason. I can't counsel them, you can, Ma'am, that's what they pay you the big bucks for," I gave her a grin. "Right now, your soldiers don't know me. I have no reputation beyond what's on my uniform. Rumors are just that, rumors. They know I'm scarred up, people know already that my 201 file is heavily redacted, and that even S-2 isn't privy to my full records. That means they have to go by how I act, how I treat them, and what competence or incompetence I show them."

Crossing my legs, I put my laced fingers over my knee and pulled slightly, popping my right hip. "Which works in both our favor."

"How so, Chief?" She winced at the second pop. "Doesn't that hurt?"

I grinned, "Actually, it feels really good. But, if I do something wrong, you come down on me, and everyone knows you're in control and watching everything. If I do something right, you take the credit," I shrugged. "The people who matter know me. You could claim credit on paperwork for everything I do from here on out, and the people who matter to my career will recognize my fingerprints all over anything I dealt with."