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The first time I saw the Accursed Mountains I was coming in on an Osprey off the assault ship USS Fallujah, laying the groundwork for the Enrums’ visit. The bird came in low over the blue Adriatic, its turboprops rattling the fillings in my teeth. My name is Brigadier General Violet Compton, and I had just pinned on my star—I was in command of the Marine Expeditionary Unit embarked on the ships of the Amphibious Readiness Group—making me the most senior woman in the Fallujah ARG. Not that it really mattered. I didn’t think of myself as a woman, not