9781422277140

M ission B riefing

K en Heiney walked into the school assembly on March 24, 2003, with a grave look on his face. The principal at Wirt County High School patiently waited as nearly 400 students, teachers, and staff seated themselves on the hard bleachers of the school’s gym, home of the Tigers. Located on Mulberry Street in Elizabeth, West Virginia, the dark, red brick building is only a few yards from the Little Kanawha River and a short drive up Route 14 from the town of Palestine where Jessica Lynch grew up. Many people at the assembly knew Jessica. She had graduated Wirt High three years before in 2000. With her bright-blonde hair, perfect bangs, and a ready smile, Jessica was not only athletic but a good student as well. Her brother and sister teased her with the nickname “princess.” Jessica didn’t disappoint. She won the title of Miss Congeniality at the Wirt County Fair the year she graduated and was excited to start on life’s journey. No longer bound by the chains of childhood, Jessica longed to see the world.

Words To Understand contentious causing or likely to cause disagreement operatives someone who performs a task, often behind the scenes terrorist person who uses violence for political purposes

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