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Moreover, Jimmy wasn’t the only one as lost His teammate, Sal Mezzina, was also killed Perhaps even worse, their other teammate, Malik Fournier, was captured and held as a prisoner for months

Malik has been rescued, though—just over teeks ago—and I’e has lifted from my shoulders

For some reason, I became heavily invested in the search for Malik For months, Jameson put forth hundreds of thousands of dollars into covert trips into Syria We paid off inforovernment’s express wishes to stay out of any rescue attempts, and scoured the country for him It was only after Kynan offered a million-dollar reward for credible inforot solid evidence of his imprisonment

Kynanhelp—or soovernment, which has to play by certain rules—and rescued Malik from his captors

The newsti hands in our tea Malik home

Malik’s been in Montreal for the last teeks, recuperating at his family’s home He enjoys dual citizenship between the United States and Canada with hisan American and his father a French-Canadian I expect anyone in his position would want to be home for a while after what he’s endured Kynan says he’ll be co back to work soon, and I can’t wait to lay eyes on him I need to assure myself that miracles can occur, and perhaps Jimmy’s death wasn’t all in vain

True to my expectations, there’s a box of donuts on the counter of the large kitchen that bleeds into a living area This floor of the Ja holds a handful of personal apartuys live in, the kitchen where we have large tea area co-screen TV I’ve heard Kynan throws a hell of a Super Bowl party here

Glancing at my watch, I see I have another fifteenwith Kynan, where we’ll go over his schedule and my duties for the day I make myself a cup of coffee, nab amy phone There are already three texted pictures of Avery frorin for a few moments while I nibble at my donut

The refurbished freight elevator arrives on the fourth floor, and the gate slides open I don’t even bother glancing up fro up for a donut and some coffee

“Hey, Kynan,” I say as I flip back to the first photograph of Avery blowing a little spit bubble “Check this out”

I lift ape in shock at the e military duffel over his shoulder

Malik Fournier

We’d only ht before he and the teaes between that nificant

Malik was a big man, and he’s still incredibly tall But he was brahen I’d met him before Packed solid with muscle he’d appeared to kno to use The ained soht back over the last alhtly sunken in, and his eyes have dark circles under theer than teeks to catch up on the sleep he surelyheld prisoner

I knoas bad for hiory details when he returned to Pittsburgh after the rescue He’d balked at first, but he’d finally caved That’s because Cage has become an incredibly close friend over the last several months, and he knows more than anyone how much I’ve tied this rescue of Malik to the final peace I need to move past Jimmy’s death

Cage had told me all the details After he’d finished, I’d wished he hadn’t I just can’t iine how anyone survived that type of experience

And yet… seeing hi beforein his own right for surviving captivity—and it affects me the way I kneould

It’s a bal what an absolute miracle he is to have survived While it doesn’t make Jimmy’s death any easier to accept, it definitely replaces a portion of enuine happiness that Malik has overcome practically the impossible