Weathering the Storm
D
uring his time off from Onyx, Mason was able to catch up with Raina like never before. She had told him that his suspension was a blessing in disguise and now he truly believed that to be the case. The rest of the summer consisted of a routine that Mason wasn’t at all used to, but one that he sorely needed all the same. His days were filled with walks on the beach and his nights consisted of relaxing dinners with Raina at his side.
Mason used to believe that he needed the adrenaline and intensity of energy that went along with participating in high risk missions. But the past few weeks he had learned to purposefully go at a slower pace and he felt the better for it. Clara meanwhile was finishing up her summer session, and promising to come back home to visit with him as soon as she was finished.
Mason viewed this as the perfect time to get Raina and Clara better acquainted. They already liked each other, but he figured spending a couple of uninhibited weeks together would further seal that bond. As they took this time out, the other members of Onyx had been vigorously fighting to have their uniquely dispositioned team of contractors reinstated.
At first it looked like Thomson’s old boy network in the Pentagon would be able to effectively blockade the progress of anyone Thomson didn’t agree with. But upon receiving pressure from the President of the United States, Verne Landers himself—Thomson was finally forced to back down.
As summer drew to a close, General Thomson ultimately convened an emergency meeting of Onyx in which he reactivated all members of the team, no questions asked. At least Thomson hoped that no questions would be asked
. But Mason couldn’t let him off the hook quite so easily.
On the day of their reinstatement, Mason sat right across from the General at the conference table in Onyx HQ and demanded to know, “So what caused your sudden change of heart General?”
Thomson attempting to be as smug as ever however, brusquely replied, “We just thought that we would give you guys another chance that’s all.”
Mason looked over to Raina who was seated next to him and then back to the General as he sarcastically quipped, “Just out of the kindness of your own heart you wanted to put us back on the payroll huh?”
Thomson wasn’t going to take the bait however, as he snapped, “You heard me. And I really don’t think that there is anything else here to say. So, if you don’t mind—I’m going to go ahead and declare this meeting officially adjourned.”
The Onyx team then watched as General Thomson got up, nervously cleared his throat and stormed out of the room in silence. After Thomson was out of earshot, Benton remarked, “Is that guy for real? I mean seriously?”
Nevertheless, Mason declared to his assembled teammates, “I guess we’re back in business.”
To which Kyle lamely remarked, “I guess you just can’t keep a good Onyx down.”
But Mason knew that there was more to it than that. In the end it was only through the direct intervention of the President of the United States as well as his own friends in high places such as Luke Simon who endlessly advocated on his behalf, that Onyx was able to be kept on life support.
At first glance, things on the professional front would seem grim for Mason. But he had been through the mill before, and he knew that as long as he had a little help from his family and friends, he knew it really couldn’t be that bad after all. In the end it was just a few passing storm clouds that he had to weather his way through.