A spilled coffee energy drink that exploded on impact soaked into the pavement mixing with the metallic scent of blood. Headlights illuminated a dark stretch of the road. The distant hum of traffic was interrupted by police sirens, emergency radio calls and the desperate voice of an injured motorcyclist.
“My wife,” he repeated. “I have to call my wife.”
Moments earlier, Staff Sgt. Martin Schortye, 2nd Security Forces Squadron base defense operation center controller, had been starting what seemed like an ordinary patrol shift. He had just dropped off Airmen who were posted at Barksdale Air Force Base’s main gate and was heading back toward the 2nd SFS headquarters building…