Chapter 5 - The Name He Should Have Known
Ryan forced his voice into command.
“Who cleared you onto this range?”
Amanda turned her head toward him.
“The people who came to evaluate you.”
The sentence landed harder than the shot.
Ryan’s face changed.
Not fear yet.
Calculation.
Behind him, Commander Brooks stepped into the lane.
“That’s enough, Cole.”
The lieutenant colonel straightened.
“Sir, with respect, I need to know who she is.”
Brooks looked at Amanda.
“Go ahead.”
Amanda removed one earmuff, then reached into the side pocket of her range bag. She pulled out a slim credential holder and opened it just enough for Ryan to see the seal and classification band without letting the watching shooters read anything.
His eyes moved across it.
Then stopped.
His color drained slowly.
Amanda Reed.
Senior Marksmanship Evaluator.
Joint Special Operations Standards Review.
Ryan looked at Brooks.
The commander’s expression did not rescue him.
“You were informed an outside evaluator would be present,” Brooks said.
Ryan’s mouth tightened.
“I was not informed she would be on the line without identification.”
Amanda slipped the credential away.
“That was the point.”
The range remained silent.
Every shooter understood at the same time.
Ryan had not been testing a lost civilian.
May you like
He had been performing for an inspector.
And every word had been witnessed.
