'No, you and I need to work this out,' Hood said. 'I don't want our friendship to end.'
The sentiment made Rodgers squirm. He was not sure why. 'Look, don't worry about it. I'm probably overdue for a change. The army will reassign me. Or maybe I'll do something else.'
'Maybe we can out source some of our intel or recon activities, work with you on scenarios for the crisis sims,' Hood said.
'I'd rather look at other options,' Rodgers replied.
'All right. But the offer stands.'
'Was there an offer?' Rodgers asked. 'I heard a 'maybe.'
'It was an offer to try to find projects '
'Busywork, you mean,' Rodgers said.
'No,' Hood replied. 'Assignments for a uniquely skilled intelligence professional.'
Rodgers took a swallow of coffee and rose. He did not want to talk to Paul Hood right now. He had no doubt Hood fought to keep him. Perhaps he had even threatened to resign. But in the end, Hood chose to stay on and confront his 'friend' with hard facts and cold efficiency. 'When does the CIOC want me out of here?'
'Mike, no one wants you out of here,' Hood said. 'If they did, we would have done this when Striker was officially disbanded.'
'Right,' Rodgers said. 'It's the position that's being eliminated not the man. I'd like to resign rather than being downsized. That has a little more dignity.'
'Of course,' Hood said.
'How long will Plummer need to take my post?'
'Two weeks?' Hood guessed.
'Fine,' Rodgers said and turned to go.
'Mike '
'I'm okay,' Rodgers said. 'Really.'
'I was going to say that it has been a privilege working with you.'
Rodgers stopped. Screw this, he thought. He was a soldier, not a diplomat. He turned back. 'Would it be a privilege to resign with me?' he asked.
'If I thought that would have changed Debenport's mind, I would have done it,' Hood told him.
'As a maneuver,' Rodgers said. 'A tactic. What about standing shoulder-to-shoulder as a point of honor?'
'To me, falling on my sword would be vanity, not honor,' Hood said. 'It would be an act of surrender.'
'Backing a friend and coworker?'
'In this case, yes,' Hood said.
'Jesus,' Rodgers said. 'I'm glad I didn't have guys like you watching my ass in 'Nam. I'd be under a pile of rocks somewhere.'
'This isn't combat, Mike. It's politics. People fight with words and access. They don't die. They get marginalized, they get recycled, they regroup. It's the nature of the beast. Some people do it for ego, and some do it for principle. I took this job to serve the people of the United States. That is sacred to me. I won't give it up to make a dramatic statement. One that won't change a thing.'
'Is that how you view loyalty, Paul? As a dramatic statement? Was I just being dramatic when I helped save your daughter in the UN takeover?'
'That's not fair,' Hood said. 'We've been in the line of fire for people we don't even know. We agreed to do that when we went to work here. We agreed to protect our nation and its interests.'
