Read Online The Talented by J.R. McGinnity - Free Book Online Page B

be.”
    Adrienne knew there was
more waiting to be said.
    “ I have never doubted your
soldiering ability, or your commitment. I have known you would be
great since you were thirteen, awkward and gangly when crossing the
courtyard but completely controlled in the ring. You are a woman,
but no one who is in Kyrog more than a week sees that as a
liability.”
    “ I assure you that it is
not, sir,” Adrienne couldn’t help but say. She had met female
officers before. Adrienne knew Captain Garrett to be a fair man,
and she didn’t think he would hold her back due to
gender.
    “ Yes. My concern had
nothing to do with your gender, or your skill. It is your ability
to lead that I have questioned through the years, whenever the
question of promoting you came up.”
    Adrienne felt as if she
had been punched in the gut. Worse, because she could not
retaliate, or even defend herself from another blow. “I see,” she
said, struggling to sound calm despite the screaming in her head.
That Captain Garrett, a man she liked and respected, should find
her lacking in such an important area hurt far more than she could
have anticipated.
    “ Do you? You are very
action-oriented, Adrienne. This is a good quality in a soldier, but
you prefer to act alone. Though you follow orders, it has not
typically been in character for you to take the lead in a group
situation. To my knowledge, you have only one true friend here, and
only a small group outside of that with whom you choose to
socialize.”
    Adrienne had not realized
that Captain Garrett knew so much about her private life, though
hearing it now she did not find it surprising. The captain was a
very thorough man. If he was considering promoting someone to
officer, he would look at all aspects of that person’s life, not
just ability in the sparring ring or speed on an obstacle
course.
    “ Because you demonstrate
the qualities of a loner, I worried that you might not do well in a
command situation. A leader needs to know more than just how to
fight.”
    “ I understand why you might
think that,” Adrienne said. She was a loner. For all her skill, Adrienne was aware
that she preferred to be by herself, with Ricco as the rare
exception. Most leaders were more sociable, more
charismatic.
    “ I think that you do
understand. However, since you took on Jeral Rosch as your trainee,
of your own accord, I have been forced to reconsider my
thinking.”
    “ Sir?”
    “ Training someone,
especially with the attention and consistency you have given Rosch
for the past eight months, is not an easy task. Although I know you
to be a determined individual, I sense that it is not only
determination and a sense of commitment that drives you to continue
his training.”
    “ No, sir,” Adrienne said.
“I enjoy training Rosch, watching his progress, adapting my own
methods to best suit him.”
    “ The results are proof of
your dedication,” Captain Garrett said with approval. “Ricco
reported to me after Pelarion and told me how Rosch performed. From
what Ricco said, Rosch is now a far superior fighter compared to
the recruits who arrived when he did. He has benefited from the
personal instruction he gets from you.”
    Adrienne had known that,
but she was proud that the captain had come to that conclusion as
well.
    “ I am also pleased that you
have enlisted some of the others here to help you with training.
Although I believe that you still have loner tendencies, it has
become apparent in the past eight months that these tendencies did
not affect your ability to train Rosch, or your willingness to
bring others in on your projects.”
    “ Rosch benefited from
practicing with different soldiers,” Adrienne said. “I would not
deny any trainee that, not if I wanted him to excel.”
    Captain Garrett nodded.
“There was an incident some months ago that also moved me to
reconsider your career.”
    The way he phrased it left
no doubt in Adrienne’s mind that the captain was referring to what
had