The Independents Read Free Page B

messages to HBR’s executives. We, gentlemen, are going to be like a rash in a whorehouse – unwelcome and bad for business. ”
    Terri snapped to full attention and barked, “Sir , I am a rash. Sir!”
    Both Bishop and Terri laughed out loud , and then he continued. “ And so the briefing continued for another two hours. Satellite images, topographical maps , and every possible piece of intelligence was distributed and covered. I was scared shitless.”
    Terri moved to an old chair next to the wall and sat down to improve her view of Bishop’s work. She propped her chin on her hand , making it clear she wanted to hear the rest of the story.
    Bishop started to wave he r off, but she wouldn’t have it. “Bishop, you’ve never told me much about your work. I still haven’t heard about this Moss-whoever-he-was guy. G o ahead…please.”
    Terri’s tone indicated she would not be easily dismissed today. Bishop cleared his throat and resumed working on his gear. He had that “far off look” in his eyes that let Terri know his mind was wrapped up tight in the vivid memory of long ago. Bishop was silent for a minute more a s he gathered his thoughts . “ In less than a week, we were on a helicopter flying over dense jungle . Pressure was high to get down there quickly. Those first few days are a blur to me now. Packing gear, requisitioning supplies , arranging transport…god…it all flew by so quickly. I didn’t get any sleep at all. Anyway, we were on our way to the site - Pe g One was what someone had named it. I’ll never forget that cool wind from the open side of that old H1 Huey bl owing through the cabin . We arrived at the hottest time of the year , and that breeze blowing through was more than welcome . There were five of us in the lead chopper: Elvis, Reaper, Carlos, myself and Mr. Franklin P. Mossback.”
    Terri interrupted him. “Elvis? Reaper? Carlos? Sounds like a rock n’ roll band reunion . ”
    Bishop laug hed again and shook his head. “All of the security guys use d code names. Kidnapping was big business in a lot of the places we operated. We assumed t he bad guys had radios and could listen in on us at any time. We were cautioned against using our given names. The fear was that if the local criminal element knew our identities, they might leverage that information against us somehow , I guess. In reality, using code names made things simpler . You see, w e didn’t have permanent teams; everyone switched around on different assignments. It was hard enough to memorize everyone’s specialties , let alone their real names. Besides, being called Reaper sounded way more macho than Franklin. ”
    Terri thought about that for a minu te while Bishop critically examined his rifle rack . He seemed to be having trouble picking the right gun to take with him . He finally selected one and immediate ly checked to see if it were loaded. He moved quickly back to the bench, picked up a small pouch of tools and began cleaning the weapon .
    Terri prompted him to continue the mission’s account. “Bishop, what was your code name?”
    He showed her a completely deadpan face and responded , “ Why, Studly Hungwell , of course .”
    His unexpected interjection of humor caught her off guard. Terri started laughing immediately and finally covered her mouth in an atte mpt to stifle the urge to giggle some more . She might have been able to gain co ntrol of herself more quickly, but Bishop faked an injured look before asking , “Is that really so hard to bel ieve? I don’t get it. What’s so funny ?”
    She shook her head , trying to regain her composure , a snicker breaking out again every time she tried to talk. Tiny tears had collected in the corners of her eyes, threatening to stream down her cheeks, when she managed to clear her throat and weakly reply , “Sorry, baby. A nd no, that’s not why I was laughing.”
    Bishop had turned away from her, pretending to be busy, but she could see his shoulders moving