Edge of Honor Read Free

in control at all times, regardless of the circumstances. He fought the urge to shout “Is my son okay?” Instead, he waited. Why did he ever let his only son, his living link to Shoshana, go off to the military academy known simply as the Hill?
    “General Pontowski,” the superintendent finally said, his voice carefully modulated and carrying weight, “John McMasters here. Sorry to keep you waiting, but I was talking to the White House. Your son was in a fight with Brian Turner. No one was really hurt.” The superintendent paused to let his words sink in. Like every parent with a son or daughter at NMMI, Pontowski knew that Brian Turner, the son of the forty-fourth president of the United States, had enrolled in NMMI in the same ninth-grade class as Little Matt.
    Pontowski shook his head in disbelief. Then it hit him. Brian Turner was a strapping fourteen-year-old with at least six inches and forty pounds on Little Matt. It was with good reason his son carried his nickname and rumor had it that Brian Turner was a spoiled bully.
    “Little Matt in a fight?” Pontowski finally replied. “That’s hard to believe. How badly was he hurt?” A vision of Little Matt with a bloody nose and his face streaked with tears flashed in front of him. The poor kid was probably terrified.
    McMasters didn’t answer for a moment and Pontowski’s fears started to rise, only to be submerged by a deep anger. Had Brian Turner mauled his son? Or had the Secret Service gotten involved and done something stupid? “For the record,” McMasters said, “Mr. Pontowski beat the living hell out of Mr. Turner who is now in the infirmary.”
    The White House
    Maura O’Keith entered her daughter’s bedroom just after seven o’clock in the morning. Madeline O’Keith Turner was sitting at the small table drinking coffee and reading a newspaper, still wrapped in an oversized white terry-cloth robe, her brown eyes bright and clear. “You’re up early,” Maddy Turner said, a gentle smile on her face.Maura was not at her best in the morning, while it was Maddy’s favorite part of the day.
    Automatically, Maura pulled a hairbrush from her ever-present handbag and stood behind her daughter. She started to stroke Maddy’s dark brown hair, evaluating the stylist’s work from the day before. Maura had been a hairdresser most of her adult life and liked the way the stylist was highlighting her daughter’s hair with an auburn tint and covering up the gray hair that was beginning to streak back from her forehead. “The superintendent at NMMI telephoned early this morning. I took the call. It was nothing serious so I didn’t wake you.”
    “What’s Brian been up to now?” Maddy asked, recalling her meeting with General McMasters. “I was hoping he’d stay out of trouble a little longer.” NMMI did not tolerate problem students.
    “He was in a fight with another cadet. He got roughed up a bit and he’s in the infirmary. The doctor says he’s fine.”
    “What the hell was the Secret Service doing? It’s their job to protect him. Was it hazing? General McMasters assured me there is no hazing at NMMI.”
    Maura recognized the signs. Like most mothers, Maddy was overprotective of her son. She brushed her daughter’s hair harder. “There was no hazing and Brian started the fight.”
    “With who? Was some upperclassman harassing him because he’s my son?”
    Maura brushed a little harder, trying to get Maddy’s attention. “It was another freshman like him.”
    “Some hulking Cro-Magnon recruited to play football?”
    “No. The other cadet was much smaller. They call him Little Matt.” She could tell from the way Maddy’s shoulders slumped that she would listen now. The older woman dropped into the chair beside her daughter. She eyed the flaky croissants on the table. “I’ve got to go on a diet,” she moaned.
    Maddy laughed at the way her mother changed subjects, putting her at ease. “If you can’t be happy with your weight at