General Austin didn’t even look at Trent.
She walked straight past the trembling barrel of the gun, stopped three paces in front of the cast-iron bench, and brought her right hand up to her eyebrow in a crisp, reverent, and formal four-star military salute.
"General Roker," General Austin announced, her clear voice carrying across the entire memorial grounds.
Trent’s jaw dropped in sheer, paralyzing horror.
His eyes bugged out, the blood draining completely from his face as the pistol in his trembling hand began to shake violently.
Chapter V: The Commander of Commanders
General Frank Roker.
The legendary former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, five-time combat recipient of the Distinguished Service Cross, and the highest-ranking military strategist in modern history—whose name was literally engraved on the academy halls where Trent had trained.