Page 53 of Cameron's Contract

“I know you are.”

“It’s just been a little intense lately.”

“I’ve got this, Henry.”

“I’ve been thinking.”

“Thinking?”

“About everything. Cole Tea, Dad’s expectations—”

“He knows we’re giving this our best.”

“Am I? Really?”

“Yes, Henry, you’ve not stopped since we landed.”

“You’ve not stopped.”

Stretching my legs out before me, I was ready to follow where he was leading.

“I’m meant to be the future CEO,” he whispered.

“You are.”

“Then why are you masterminding every move we make?”

“You’re utilizing the skills of your team.”

“Don’t patronize me, Cam. You know your handle on all this is better than mine.”

“That’s up for debate. Time will tell.”

“I still have so much personal shit to work through.”

“We’ll work through it together. Simple. You and me chatting over a beer. Righting the world as we did as boys.”

“It’s meant to be me.” He shifted to face me. “I’m the prodigal son, me. I was the one destined to leave the military and continue the family name. Take the business to the next level. Instead, where have I been the last few years? In a self-imposed prison weighed down with guilt…”

“Guilt?”

“For living such a privileged life. For these opportunities.”

“We were born into this.”

“Many of my boys didn’t make it,” he muttered. “I pledged to protect them, keep them safe.”

“Think of the ones you did save?”

“Why me? Why do I get to live and they didn’t?”

“Henry,—”

“The smell of diesel at a gas station,” he muttered. “Takes me right back.”

I had my nightmare infested memories too. That flight out to join the mission.

A desert dryness, the low hum of a C-130 cargo plane, the controlled chaos of finalizing a drop point.