Bradley’s hands forcefully clasped her cheeks, demanding eye contact. “This is not your fault. You couldn’t have stopped that first bullet. And neither could I.”
“What about the second one that killed Will? Or the one that killed my mom?”
“For God’s sake, Abby, you were ambushed by a sniper team. And you nailed both of them.”
Head shaking, she said, “You shot the sniper.”
Bradley stood, pulled Abby to her feet, and placed his helmet onto her head. “See for yourself.” Grasping her elbow, he guided her down the hill.
Aided by night vision, she saw it right away. There were two bullet wounds, one to the head, a second to the chest.
“He was already dead when I shot him. That was one hell of a ‘shot in the dark.’ ” Bradley’s voice softened, growing huskier with emotion. “I’m proud of you. Gramps would be too—”
A gunshot resounded.
Bradley took off down the hill, and Abby struggled to keep up on jellied legs.
“It’s okay,” Ryan was saying, an M4 in one hand, the M1A in the other. “Your husband’s a friend of mine.”
“Mom ... ?” The suffocating grip of guilt loosened, and Abby felt weightless. She tackled her mother, enveloping her in a hug. “Thank God you’re alive!”
Bradley squatted beside Will and reverently closed his eyelids. “Ryan, what the hell happened?”
“She thought I was the sniper. That was too fu-u-uh—fudging close. Where’s Kyle’s whiskey?”
Still holding Abby in a one-armed bear hug, her mother began craning her neck. “Where’s your father?”
A flurry of fear contracted around Abby’s heart. “Bradley, where’s my dad?”
“Holy shit! He actually followed an order!” Bradley cupped his hands like a megaphone and shouted, “Kyle, we’re all clear!”
( ( ( 92% Complete ) ) )
* * Change of Heart(4L)? * *
YES ... Back to Moral Dilemma 4F
NO ... Page forward to continue
( ( ( Epilogue L ) ) )
190L
Thursday, March 6th
BRADLEY SUNK DOWN ONTO the Murphys’ front porch and slouched against the house, elbows draped atop his knees. He and Ryan had just finished transporting Gramps and Will into the garage to protect their remains from predators until they could be buried in the morning.
Numbly, he stared into the blackness. Memories of his grandfather were trickling into his mind, bonding with guilt, forming a toxic emotional haze.
Ryan sat quietly beside him. He made no effort at small talk and offered no obligatory condolences, reminding Bradley of Will’s stubborn presence when his mother died. The memory was an ache in his chest. In just a couple hours, he had lost so much.
The front door swung open, and Kyle emerged, a bottle of whiskey in his hand. “Jessie finally fell asleep. Abby’s keeping vigil over her and Billy.” He settled beside Bradley, taking a long gulp of whiskey before passing it on. “We need to leave for Camp Sunshine ASAP—”
“I’m not leaving until I bury my grandfather.” Bradley’s tone came out harsh, edged with anger.
“Of course I-I,” Kyle stammered. “I didn’t mean it that way.”
Bradley downed a mouthful of whiskey, and it hit his stomach like a mortar round. “It’s okay. I know you’re just worried about your wife.”
Kyle leaned toward Ryan. “Camp Sunshine has a hospital, right?”
“Affirmative.” The Ranger lifted the whiskey bottle from Bradley’s hand and swilled it. “But they’re gonna confiscate your guns and personal possessions.”
“Like the savages in Tavares?” Kyle demanded.
“You can’t have sleepers waltzing in with assault rifles or bombs hidden in suitcases and stuffed animals.”
Bradley eased his head back against the wall, waiting for the alcohol to dull the ache inside him.
“I don’t like it,” Kyle said, resignation echoing in his voice. “But I don’t have much choice, do I?”
“There’s more.” Ryan paused to down another gulp of whiskey. “Since there’s no post office, e-mail, or telephones, people are being drafted as they walk through the gates.”
Silence thickened in the night air, congealing into a solid mass, pressing against Bradley. Civilians expected a military rescue, not a military induction.
That can’t be going over well, he thought.
“I’ll gladly fight for my country,” Kyle said. “Especially if it saves Jessie’s life.”
“They’re not gonna draft you,” Ryan said softly. “They’re enlisting everyone ages sixteen to forty. Male and female.”
Bradley’s already tense muscles jumped to high alert. He watched Kyle rub his face as if kneading dough. Would he still opt to go?
“Ryan, what if you and Kyle take Jessie to Camp Sunshine for treatment, and I stay here with Abby and Billy until they return?”
“No go. Once Kyle and Jessie are in, they’ll relocate them to Texas—where the power grid’s been partially restored—and assign them jobs based on their skill set and government needs.”
“So it’s a combination draft board and labor camp?” Kyle asked, anger radiating like a blast furnace. “When did this country become a dictatorship?”
“Look, we’re at war on multiple fronts,” Ryan told him. “If the U.S. can’t start producing beans, bullets, and bodies to fight, you’ll find out what it really means to live under a dictatorship.”
Bradley had mixed emotions. If the government could draft someone and ship them overseas to fight, why not to Texas to work an assembly line? But how long would these extraordinary powers endure?
After lengthy introspection, Kyle said, “Jessie’s bleeding is under control, the wound’s been disinfected, and she’s tough. You heard her. She said that getting shot in the thigh was nowhere near as painful as giving birth.” His head swiveled toward Bradley; a eurekalike expression lifted his features into a hopeful question. “Is there any chance Abby’s pregnant?”
Laughing, Ryan said, “You’re banging his sixteen-year-old daughter?”
In unison, Bradley and Kyle shouted, “Shut up!”
Yesterday in the lanai, the thought had tempted Bradley. His overprotective inclinations had wandered dangerously close to controlling and sabotaging. “No, sir. No chance.”
“Well, you still could—”
“I won’t.”
Ryan leaned toward Kyle and said, “How do I apply for that job?”
The flippant remark triggered a firestorm inside Bradley. He grabbed Ryan’s throat and pinned him against the house. “I’m already getting court-martialed, and the Army thinks you’re dead. Do the math!”
“Relax, I was joking. I’m old enough to be her father.”
“Not funny.” Although Bradley released Ryan, his stare continued drilling into him.
“Understood.” The Ranger redirected his attention to Kyle. “Now that you have the facts, what are you gonna do?”
“We’re staying,” Kyle said flatly. “If the wound gets infected, then we’ll go to Camp Sunshine.”
“It will get infected. It’s just a matter of time,” Ryan argued. “And if you wait, Bradley and I won’t be here to help transport her. The bullet may have passed through her leg, but she can’t walk on it. She’ll need to be carried the entire way.”
Kyle rolled his head back. “Then we’ll lie about Abby’s age, tell them she’s fourteen. Without a birth certificate or electronic records, how would they know?”
“Won’t work,” Bradley said, his words dripping frustration. “Abby wants to enlist. She would lie to get in. Not to dodge.”
Angrily, Kyle rose to his feet and wrenched open the front door. “So I’m supposed to choose between my wife and my daughter?” He nearly plowed into Abby.
“Dad, what’s wrong?”
The door slammed shut, vibrations rattled the house, and Bradley stood, gripping the stucco wall to steady himself. He’d had a few beers with the g
uys on base, but never whiskey on an empty stomach. Once the light-headedness passed, he shouldered his backpack and rifle then started toward the slain sniper.
Scurrying to catch up, Ryan said, “Why don’t you get some shut-eye? I’ll keep watch.”
Bradley mumbled his thanks and kept moving.
It’s my fault, he thought. I engaged at Astatula and Haywood Field; I left a trail that led them to Sugar Lake.
He knelt beside the man who had murdered his grandfather, ejected a round from the M110 semiautomatic sniper rifle, and slipped it into the outer flap of his backpack.
“I understand Kyle’s reluctance about Abby serving,” Ryan was saying, “but you were training her. Why are you dead set against it?”
Using a red-filtered flashlight to search the dead man, Bradley said, “I hate the thought of savages shooting at her.”
“Give me a break. They were shooting at her here.”
“But here, I knew her status.” Bradley paused to extricate a black IRGC headband and a ring from a cargo pocket. It was a wedding band with some sort of inscription inside. He began flaking away the dried blood with his fingernail. “I just don’t want to wake up every morning wondering if Abby’s dead or alive.”
“Well, if that’s the issue, I might have a solution for you.”
Bradley wasn’t listening. Eyes fixed on the ring, a bitter sense of resentment was surging through him, making his entire body quake with rage.
191L
SINCE READING THE NAMES engraved into that wedding band, combative thoughts had been colliding in Bradley’s mind, anger versus empathy, vengeance versus mercy.
He had been awake all night, restless and inconsolable. By 0800 hours, Bradley had dug Gramps’ grave, laid him to rest in the backyard beside the fishpond, and marked the site with a slab of granite wrested from the kitchen island. Onto it, he had chiseled: Beloved Grandfather, Brigadier General, George Anderson.
After the burials and impromptu memorials for Will and Dave had concluded, he set out on the three-mile hike to Fern Ridge.
From his hillside perch overlooking the concentric-ringed neighborhood, Bradley stared at the house as he had that fateful night, this time with condemnation rather than compassion.
Although Kyle had insisted the dead sniper was not Zaakir, Bradley was certain the bastard had steered death toward Sugar Lake. The only variable was intent.
He knew damned well that we fed his family, that I put myself at risk to protect them. How could he betray us?
Did he disclose the information under duress? Did the Iranians threaten his family? Take them hostage? Was the blood-encrusted ring evidence that Zaakir had been tortured?
Or did he voluntarily trade the information for food?
What if he was one of the savages? Maybe he died fighting alongside his jihadist brethren; maybe the Iranians were planning to return the ring to his widow.
Then why didn’t Zaakir shoot Kyle, Dave, and Will yesterday?
Was he disseminating those flyers to herd Americans into that death camp? His family, the suitcases—was it all just part of the ruse?
Bradley’s gaze dropped to the brass casings scattered at his feet.
If I hadn’t intervened that night, would Zaakir have died? Would Gramps be alive? If we hadn’t shared our food, would they have moved on, away from Sugar Lake?
Without answers to so many crucial questions, how was he supposed to make the right decision?
Detecting movement, Bradley’s head bobbed upward. A puffy-eyed woman exited the glass sliding door and scanned the hillside, calling Zaakir’s name. The sight of her personalized his dilemma.
Invite her to accompany us to Camp Sunshine? Or leave her and the children to fend for themselves?
In his mind, he could hear Gramps asking, “Would you want to be punished for the sins of your father?”
Bradley frowned. He didn’t feel like doing the Christian thing. He was in no mood to turn the other cheek. He wanted to hold someone accountable; and to his thinking, merely walking away was a hell of a lot more charitable than sending mercenaries to their doorstep.
He turned for home, then speaking aloud as if to justify his actions to the world, Bradley said, “Zaakir got Will and Gramps killed. He almost got Abby killed. Screw his family! I already went out of my way twice to help them, and look where it’s gotten me.”
192L
Saturday, March 8th
ABBY TOSSED AND TURNED in a fitful sleep. The battle reenacted through her subconscious on a marathon loop; and with each round, her dreaming mind tried a different course of action. The outcome never changed. After running through every option, she said, “I’m sorry, Gramps. I couldn’t save you.”
She was startled to hear him reply, “It was my time.” Gramps’ deep, warbling voice sounded at peace; and Abby sensed his presence engulfing her like warm bathwater. Then a hand began gently rocking her shoulder. “Abby, wake up.”
Prying open heavy eyelids, she squinted at Bradley, who was squatting beside her. Her visual range widened, and she took stock of the unfamiliar room, dimly lit by a flashlight.
Where am I? she wondered. Then it all rushed back: burying Gramps, Will, and Uncle Dave; leaving Sugar Lake, transporting her mother on a makeshift stretcher; hunkering down for the night in an abandoned house north of Fruitland Park. An electric current of fear cut through her, and she bolted upright, muscles stiffening, bracing for bad news. “Is my mom okay?”
“Her fever’s holding just below a hundred,” he said, hands gripping her shoulders reassuringly. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”
Relief slackened her tense muscles. “Is it time for my shift already?”
“No, I—” Bradley averted his eyes. His mouth hung open. “I need to talk to you.”
“Is this my twenty-four-hour warning?”
“Sort of.” He paused, reaching into his pocket. “This is for you.”
Abby’s eyes zeroed on the copper-jacketed bullet, dangling from a length of black parachute cord. “You can’t give me your hog’s tooth. I want to earn my own.”
“You did. And in some ways, yours is more real than mine. According to superstition, only one round is destined to kill you—the one with your name on it. When you dispatch an enemy sniper, you take that round from his magazine and wear it around your neck so it can never be fired, ergo you become invincible.”
After draping it over her head, his fingers skimmed slowly downward, past her elbows and along her forearms; then he clasped her hands. “As for us, I was thinking that ... If the military thought we were married, we could get status notifications. We could find each other again.”
Caught off guard, it took Abby a moment to recover. “You want to lie to the U.S. military?”
“Not exactly. The way I see it, two people can be committed to each other with or without some piece of paper from the government.” There was an uncharacteristic flicker of vulnerability in his hazel eyes. “I already talked to your dad. He says it’s your decision.”
Dumbstruck, Abby wasn’t sure if she was awake or still dreaming.
“Before you say anything, you need to understand that my future isn’t exactly rosy. There’s a laundry list of reasons why I could be court-martialed. Besides being AWOL for two weeks, I could be facing murder charges.”
The anguish in Bradley’s expression sent her heart into free fall.
“Will rigged those IEDs. Not you.” Abby’s fingers glided along his stubbly jaw, beneath his chin. “It doesn’t matter. I love you, Bradley. Nothing can change that.”
He released her right hand, reached into his pocket again, and pulled out a tiny dark object. “This was my mother’s wedding band. I spray-painted it black, so it won’t reflect light.”
His gaze floated from the ring back to Abby, and he dropped onto a knee, still holding her left hand. “I love you, Abby. Will you be my wife?”
193L
Wednesday, March 12th
SURRENDERING HIS WE
APON, Bradley glanced upward at the imposing twenty-foot watchtowers surrounding Camp Sunshine. Triangular with cross-member supports, they looked like oil rigs connected by chain-link fencing topped with spiral razor wire.
The damned death camp looked more welcoming, he thought. Did the facility feel prisonlike to everyone else? Or was his perception distorted by circumstance?
His return to base was bittersweet. Bradley was thrilled that the civilians had made it to safety, yet disheartened that Gramps hadn’t; gung ho to reunite with his unit, yet hesitant to say good-bye to Abby; eager to end his AWOL status, yet reluctant to face the consequences of his actions.
Cherub-faced teens clad with blue latex gloves were confiscating personal items while more seasoned Army personnel performed airport-style pat downs. A bomb-sniffing dog checked each pair of shoes and alerted on Bradley’s combat boots. Despite his uniform and military identification, his shoes were seized.
Walking along the gravel path in socks, he swore under his breath. Ahead, a Soldier with a ruggedized laptop was processing civilians, gathering names, birth dates, and social security numbers; scanning fingerprints and logging specialized skills.
After spewing all the required information, Kyle added, “My wife’s been shot and needs immediate medical attention.” Jessie was deathly pale. Her fever had spiked, and she’d lost consciousness hours earlier.
“I’ll call for a stretcher,” Private Wilson said, not looking up from his computer screen. “But the surgical facility is on base, and you don’t have the clearance to accompany her. Report to the civilian clinic. They’ll keep you informed, and once she stabilizes, they’ll transfer her. Right hand, please?”
The Private affixed a blue plasticized band on his wrist. “This identifies you as a civilian. I’ll need your wife’s hand too.”
Bradley stepped aside to allow Eliza, Raeleah, and Zak to check in; and he forced a polite smile. He was still grappling with resentment, alternately blaming Zaakir and himself for his grandfather’s death.
Ryan whispered, “Given the circumstances, I would’ve left their asses behind.”
Powerless- America Unplugged Page 181
