COLONEL ANGUS LINGERED near the memorial situated off Augusta National Golf Club’s eighteenth green long after the dedication ceremony had concluded. His rheumy eyes had remained moist throughout the ceremony. Regret and remorse had filled his heart ever since the warning signs were spelled out that day during his phone conversation with Russell Fox. But such feelings were familiar companions to the old warrior who’d held the balance of life and death in his hands many times during battles fought long ago on foreign shores.
An attractive young woman wearing a black dress and dark ribbon in her sun-kissed hair watched the proceedings from afar. Although Jessie knew little of Arman, what she did know was enough to last her a lifetime. She lingered long enough to see the colonel kiss his fingertips, bend down, and then lightly touch the plaque that read:
In memory of Arman Yasin, a fallen hero who sacrificed his own life in order to protect his fellow man. His courageous final act will never be forgotten.