Title Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Author Dawn
Rating PG 13
Spoiler Info: We all know the CIA was very involved in our defeat of Saddam Hussein, and who else is going to be in the middle of it but our favorite ex-marine.
Chapter 2
Gage was in his office talking to a General from the Pentagon. They were discussing putting CIA agents on the ground in Baghdad. Gage told him "We have a former marine on our staff. I think he will be perfect for this assignment. I've already discussed this with him. He is eager to go." they stood up. "Since you will be working closely with my staff, why don't you come to the morning meeting and meet everyone."
As they walked down the hallway Gage asked, "General, how long have you been stationed at the Pentagon?"
"Just got transferred here. My wife is an English professor. She is working at Georgetown. It's only my second day at the Pentagon and I haven't spent much time there. My son is stationed there and I haven't even seen him yet." Gage was beginning to figure out just who this General was.
Everyone was in the conference room talking. Terri and Vicki were talking "Stiles came over last night. Everything was perfect. He finally told me he love me." Stiles and Jackson were talking about anything but the war. Jackson knew they needed a break. Terri walked over and Stiles held her hand.
Gage walked in "I want everyone to meet. General Frederick Stiles." Stiles turned around quickly and snapped to attention.
"Dad?"
"A. B. What the hell are you doing here?"
"I work here Sir."
"I thought you worked at the Pentagon."
Stiles looked at Gage "Can you excuse us for a minute sir?" as he ushered his father out of the room.
Gage nodded, "You can use my office."
Everyone just looked around at each other. Terri was very curious. Stiles never mentioned his father was a general or that he was at the Pentagon. Quinn said. "Now here is where it gets interesting. I wish I were a fly on that wall." he chuckled. Vicki was the only one who laughed at Quinn's comment.
She turned around and said to Terri. "He didn't tell you about his dad?"
"Apparently he was surprised by it." Terri wondered how this would affect Stiles. They had just made progress this morning. She hoped it wouldn't be one step forward and two steps back.
**************************************************************************
In Gage's office, the two Stiles men began to argue. "A. B. what the hell are you thinking, working for the CIA?"
"We weren't getting anywhere in Afghanistan. We still don't have Bin Laden. After Pat's death, I was beginning to think what's the point. That's when Quinn convinced me that with the CIA, I could maybe make the difference."
"You have always been stubborn. You are a Marine, you shouldn't be wasting your time in the CIA"
"Dad I like what I do. I'm really happy here. Besides what are you doing here?"
"I'm the liaison between CIA and the Pentagon. Your mother is worried, I expect you to call her. She is working at Georgetown. I can't believe you are doing this. You know Gage wants to send agents into Iraq." He already knew that his son was the one Gage was talking about.
"I'm going, I've already discussed this with him." Stiles looked at him, he could tell his Dad was mad "Lets finish this later Dad. Everyone is waiting for us. We should get back to the meeting."
**************************************************************************
They walked back into the conference room. Stiles was very tense. He went and sat next to Terri. Gage started the introductions. "This is General Frederick Stiles, as I said before, and we now know Agent Stiles father. He is going to be the liaison between the Pentagon and our agency."
"This is Mr. Robert Quinn. Robert is our liaison with homeland security. He was the former director."
"Mr. Quinn and I worked together on several operations when he was the director."
"I knew from your work, it was a good idea to recruit your son. He is doing an incredible job for us. We're all very proud of him." The general just looked at Stiles, when Stiles noticed his stare he lowered his head. He looked at Quinn. Quinn, proud? The General was a little proud and a little annoyed that he had no part of this decision. Frederick Stiles was a controlling man. He wanted to be the one to make the decisions. He insisted that Stiles go into the Air Force. Follow in Dad's footsteps. Stiles wouldn't let him win completely, that was why he went into the Marines.
"This is Carl Reese. He is my right hand man. My deputy."
"Nice to meet you General."
"This is Vicki Smith. She is one of our OTS staff."
"Nice to meet you General."
"This is Terri Lowell. She is probably one of our best artists in OTS. She is also works in the field for us."
"Nice to meet you Sir." Terri smiled at him. This was the father of the man she was in love with. She still didn't know why Stiles hadn't mentioned him.
"The pleasure is all mine Miss Lowell" Stiles just looked at him. The way he said that he knew his mother had told him about Terri.
"Of course you know A. B. Next to him is Joshua Nankin, he is the head of OTS."
"Sir I'm looking forward to working with you. It is a pleasure working with your son." Joshua said as he patted Stiles on the shoulder.
Stiles leaned over to Joshua and whispered "Thanks." They both grinned.
"That is Lex. He is our computer wizard, he also assists in the field."
"Nice to meet you General."
"And last but not least, Jackson Haisley. He is one of the best analysts we have."
"Very nice to meet you Sir." Jackson looked at Stiles and his father. He could tell this was not going to help Stiles' mood.
Gage took the floor again. "General Stiles and I have been discussing sending some agents into Iraq."
"We need good intelligence. We are getting help from other countries but I want our guys in there. The CIA and Military intelligence will be working closely." The general didn't like what was going to come next. His wife Hannah was so relieved that their son was no longer in active duty in the Marines, he was sitting behind a desk in the Pentagon. She had been having a very hard time since their son-in-law Pat was killed in Afghanistan, leaving their daughter with 4 children. This was the first military action in 12 years that she would not have to worry about him getting hurt, or killed. Now directly because of his request, their son would soon be put in harm's way.
"Mr. Stiles has been in Iraq, recently. He has both combat and intelligence experience. We will be sending him in as the team leader. Mr. Stiles you will leave in three days."
"Yes sir." Stiles said as he reached under the table and took Terri's hand. He could tell by looking at her she was very upset and fighting back the tears. Vicki looked at Terri, and patted her on the arm, as a sign of support. General Stiles paid close attention to Terri's reaction.
"Thank you Mr. Gage, and thank you all. A. B. I expect you at dinner tonight at 1800 hours."
"No sir. I have plans." The general just looked at him and then at Terri.
"You can bring Miss Lowell with you. She is the Terri you have written to your mother about?" He turned and walked out, Stiles followed him.
"You have no right to give me orders, General." The anger and sarcasm in his tone only made his father mad.
"In three days you are going off to a war zone. This isn't about me, you owe your mother a dinner, and a proper goodbye. You have to be the one to tell her you are going not me. Not this time."
"I." The general did not let him finish.
"I am asking you for a few hours. You and Miss Lowell can have the rest of the time together, to do whatever you want. Tonight at 1800, Is that clear?"
"Yes Sir." He saluted him and turned around, Terri and Jackson were standing there. "A pleasant man my father, isn't he?" Jackson and Terri both laughed. He took Terri's hand in his. "Would you care to join me for a fascinating evening with my parents?"
She smiled at him. "I want to be wherever you are."
Gage walked out. "Miss Lowell, Mr. Stiles you are on leave until Mr. Stiles leaves for Iraq. Joshua will take care of everything." Joshua, Vicki and Lex now walked out of the meeting. "Enjoy your time off." Carl walked by put his hand on Terri's shoulder and smiled at her, then patted Stiles on the back.
Terri said, "I need an few hours to go over some things with Joshua." Stiles nodded, and kissed Terri on the cheek.
Jackson walked up to Stiles "You want to talk?"
"No."
"Talk to Terri today, Stiles. She loves you. She needs to know how you feel. This is going to be hard for her."
"I know Jackson. We did talk this morning. She wasn't surprised about Iraq in there, I already told her that. Could you look out for her while I'm gone?"
"Of course I will. You don't even have to ask."
"I did my best to try to explain things to Terri." Stiles reached out his hand. "Jackson I appreciate your friendship. It means a lot to me, and to Terri. I want to thank you for everything. Tell her I'll be back to pick her up in a couple of hours." Stiles went and changed into his Marine uniform. Stiles cover was that he was working at the Pentagon.
Terri and Joshua went over what Terri had been working on. "Terri are you ok with this? Stiles going to Iraq."
"No, but its something he feels he has to do. I'm going to miss him."
"Why don't you turn all of this over to Vicki."
Terri walked out and sat down by Vicki's desk. "Joshua told me to go over this with you."
"Terri are you sure you are ok? Did you know about this?"
"Vicki he came by my house at 3:00 this morning. He told me he needed to hold me and be close to me. He finally told me he loved me."
"Terri I'm happy for you. Maybe he isn't so bad, but don't you dare tell him I said that." They both laughed.
Author Dawn
Rating PG 13
Spoiler Info: We all know the CIA was very involved in our defeat of Saddam Hussein, and who else is going to be in the middle of it but our favorite ex-marine.
Chapter 2
Gage was in his office talking to a General from the Pentagon. They were discussing putting CIA agents on the ground in Baghdad. Gage told him "We have a former marine on our staff. I think he will be perfect for this assignment. I've already discussed this with him. He is eager to go." they stood up. "Since you will be working closely with my staff, why don't you come to the morning meeting and meet everyone."
As they walked down the hallway Gage asked, "General, how long have you been stationed at the Pentagon?"
"Just got transferred here. My wife is an English professor. She is working at Georgetown. It's only my second day at the Pentagon and I haven't spent much time there. My son is stationed there and I haven't even seen him yet." Gage was beginning to figure out just who this General was.
Everyone was in the conference room talking. Terri and Vicki were talking "Stiles came over last night. Everything was perfect. He finally told me he love me." Stiles and Jackson were talking about anything but the war. Jackson knew they needed a break. Terri walked over and Stiles held her hand.
Gage walked in "I want everyone to meet. General Frederick Stiles." Stiles turned around quickly and snapped to attention.
"Dad?"
"A. B. What the hell are you doing here?"
"I work here Sir."
"I thought you worked at the Pentagon."
Stiles looked at Gage "Can you excuse us for a minute sir?" as he ushered his father out of the room.
Gage nodded, "You can use my office."
Everyone just looked around at each other. Terri was very curious. Stiles never mentioned his father was a general or that he was at the Pentagon. Quinn said. "Now here is where it gets interesting. I wish I were a fly on that wall." he chuckled. Vicki was the only one who laughed at Quinn's comment.
She turned around and said to Terri. "He didn't tell you about his dad?"
"Apparently he was surprised by it." Terri wondered how this would affect Stiles. They had just made progress this morning. She hoped it wouldn't be one step forward and two steps back.
**************************************************************************
In Gage's office, the two Stiles men began to argue. "A. B. what the hell are you thinking, working for the CIA?"
"We weren't getting anywhere in Afghanistan. We still don't have Bin Laden. After Pat's death, I was beginning to think what's the point. That's when Quinn convinced me that with the CIA, I could maybe make the difference."
"You have always been stubborn. You are a Marine, you shouldn't be wasting your time in the CIA"
"Dad I like what I do. I'm really happy here. Besides what are you doing here?"
"I'm the liaison between CIA and the Pentagon. Your mother is worried, I expect you to call her. She is working at Georgetown. I can't believe you are doing this. You know Gage wants to send agents into Iraq." He already knew that his son was the one Gage was talking about.
"I'm going, I've already discussed this with him." Stiles looked at him, he could tell his Dad was mad "Lets finish this later Dad. Everyone is waiting for us. We should get back to the meeting."
**************************************************************************
They walked back into the conference room. Stiles was very tense. He went and sat next to Terri. Gage started the introductions. "This is General Frederick Stiles, as I said before, and we now know Agent Stiles father. He is going to be the liaison between the Pentagon and our agency."
"This is Mr. Robert Quinn. Robert is our liaison with homeland security. He was the former director."
"Mr. Quinn and I worked together on several operations when he was the director."
"I knew from your work, it was a good idea to recruit your son. He is doing an incredible job for us. We're all very proud of him." The general just looked at Stiles, when Stiles noticed his stare he lowered his head. He looked at Quinn. Quinn, proud? The General was a little proud and a little annoyed that he had no part of this decision. Frederick Stiles was a controlling man. He wanted to be the one to make the decisions. He insisted that Stiles go into the Air Force. Follow in Dad's footsteps. Stiles wouldn't let him win completely, that was why he went into the Marines.
"This is Carl Reese. He is my right hand man. My deputy."
"Nice to meet you General."
"This is Vicki Smith. She is one of our OTS staff."
"Nice to meet you General."
"This is Terri Lowell. She is probably one of our best artists in OTS. She is also works in the field for us."
"Nice to meet you Sir." Terri smiled at him. This was the father of the man she was in love with. She still didn't know why Stiles hadn't mentioned him.
"The pleasure is all mine Miss Lowell" Stiles just looked at him. The way he said that he knew his mother had told him about Terri.
"Of course you know A. B. Next to him is Joshua Nankin, he is the head of OTS."
"Sir I'm looking forward to working with you. It is a pleasure working with your son." Joshua said as he patted Stiles on the shoulder.
Stiles leaned over to Joshua and whispered "Thanks." They both grinned.
"That is Lex. He is our computer wizard, he also assists in the field."
"Nice to meet you General."
"And last but not least, Jackson Haisley. He is one of the best analysts we have."
"Very nice to meet you Sir." Jackson looked at Stiles and his father. He could tell this was not going to help Stiles' mood.
Gage took the floor again. "General Stiles and I have been discussing sending some agents into Iraq."
"We need good intelligence. We are getting help from other countries but I want our guys in there. The CIA and Military intelligence will be working closely." The general didn't like what was going to come next. His wife Hannah was so relieved that their son was no longer in active duty in the Marines, he was sitting behind a desk in the Pentagon. She had been having a very hard time since their son-in-law Pat was killed in Afghanistan, leaving their daughter with 4 children. This was the first military action in 12 years that she would not have to worry about him getting hurt, or killed. Now directly because of his request, their son would soon be put in harm's way.
"Mr. Stiles has been in Iraq, recently. He has both combat and intelligence experience. We will be sending him in as the team leader. Mr. Stiles you will leave in three days."
"Yes sir." Stiles said as he reached under the table and took Terri's hand. He could tell by looking at her she was very upset and fighting back the tears. Vicki looked at Terri, and patted her on the arm, as a sign of support. General Stiles paid close attention to Terri's reaction.
"Thank you Mr. Gage, and thank you all. A. B. I expect you at dinner tonight at 1800 hours."
"No sir. I have plans." The general just looked at him and then at Terri.
"You can bring Miss Lowell with you. She is the Terri you have written to your mother about?" He turned and walked out, Stiles followed him.
"You have no right to give me orders, General." The anger and sarcasm in his tone only made his father mad.
"In three days you are going off to a war zone. This isn't about me, you owe your mother a dinner, and a proper goodbye. You have to be the one to tell her you are going not me. Not this time."
"I." The general did not let him finish.
"I am asking you for a few hours. You and Miss Lowell can have the rest of the time together, to do whatever you want. Tonight at 1800, Is that clear?"
"Yes Sir." He saluted him and turned around, Terri and Jackson were standing there. "A pleasant man my father, isn't he?" Jackson and Terri both laughed. He took Terri's hand in his. "Would you care to join me for a fascinating evening with my parents?"
She smiled at him. "I want to be wherever you are."
Gage walked out. "Miss Lowell, Mr. Stiles you are on leave until Mr. Stiles leaves for Iraq. Joshua will take care of everything." Joshua, Vicki and Lex now walked out of the meeting. "Enjoy your time off." Carl walked by put his hand on Terri's shoulder and smiled at her, then patted Stiles on the back.
Terri said, "I need an few hours to go over some things with Joshua." Stiles nodded, and kissed Terri on the cheek.
Jackson walked up to Stiles "You want to talk?"
"No."
"Talk to Terri today, Stiles. She loves you. She needs to know how you feel. This is going to be hard for her."
"I know Jackson. We did talk this morning. She wasn't surprised about Iraq in there, I already told her that. Could you look out for her while I'm gone?"
"Of course I will. You don't even have to ask."
"I did my best to try to explain things to Terri." Stiles reached out his hand. "Jackson I appreciate your friendship. It means a lot to me, and to Terri. I want to thank you for everything. Tell her I'll be back to pick her up in a couple of hours." Stiles went and changed into his Marine uniform. Stiles cover was that he was working at the Pentagon.
Terri and Joshua went over what Terri had been working on. "Terri are you ok with this? Stiles going to Iraq."
"No, but its something he feels he has to do. I'm going to miss him."
"Why don't you turn all of this over to Vicki."
Terri walked out and sat down by Vicki's desk. "Joshua told me to go over this with you."
"Terri are you sure you are ok? Did you know about this?"
"Vicki he came by my house at 3:00 this morning. He told me he needed to hold me and be close to me. He finally told me he loved me."
"Terri I'm happy for you. Maybe he isn't so bad, but don't you dare tell him I said that." They both laughed.