“Hey, wake up,” Darrick said, nudging Kara awake with his foot. His actions not only woke up Kara, but also caught the attention of his wife, Tonya.
“What are you doing, Darrick?” Tonya asked him.
“I want some answers.”
Kara collected herself and sat up on the couch. She looked at Darrick and rubbed the sleep from her eyes.
He bent over to pick the backpack up off the floor and slung it over one shoulder. He already had a rifle slung over the other shoulder and pistol on his side. “Tell me. Carissa’s upstairs asleep. I understand why you whispered to me last night about Jimmie, but what I don’t understand is why you didn’t tell me. We were right there, and you said nothing.”
“I tried to tell you. You shushed me, like, three times.”
Darrick knew she was right. “You should have led with a different word or something. I don’t know, but that was important, and you shouldn’t have let me leave without my brother.”
“I’m sorry,” she said, standing up. “My mind has been a little preoccupied with the things I’ve been through, so forgive me if I seem a little selfish.”
Darrick only had a notion of what she had been through. He felt bad for expecting so much of her. His mind was racing with many issues, but the mass of them would have to be managed later. Right now, he needed to grab some breakfast and get his mind right for the trip to the Berts’ homestead. “Whatever,” he conceded. “I’m going back to the Berts’.”
The wood floor creaked just around the corner. Darrick, Tonya, and Kara looked toward the edge of the hallway. It was Carissa. She had listened to most of the conversation and revealed herself when Darrick said his last word.
She was looking squarely at Kara. “How long have you known about my Jimmie?”
“Since yesterday. Right before Darrick talked me into following him home.”
“Wait! What?” Tonya interjected. Looking at Darrick, she asked him, “You talked her into following you home?”
“Tonya, not now!” he said, hoping to avoid a conflict with his wife.
She huffed and shook her head, but she wasn’t ready to throw in the towel.
“Why didn’t you tell Darrick yesterday?” Carissa asked, as if Tonya’s argument was insignificant.
“Didn’t you hear what she said?” Darrick defended. “She tried to tell me three times, but I wouldn’t have it. She was tortured and –” Darrick cut himself off, realizing he was about to mention something that might trigger Kara. He thought a moment, then corrected himself. “– and abused.”
“We’re literally in the apocalypse, Darrick. How can anyone use an excuse?”
“I don’t have time for this, ladies. I’m going after Jimmie.”
“I’m coming with you,” Carissa said.
“No, you’re not,” Darrick argued. “You need to stay here and help Tonya take care of Dad . She can’t handle him alone.”
Carissa knew Darrick was right. “Fine, but you’d better not disappoint,” she added.
Darrick was done arguing. He looked through his assault pack to make sure he had everything he needed. Jimmie had a few things lying around the house that Darrick had put together in an assault pack. There was a camouflaged burlap blind that duck hunters would use to conceal their position, a few loose rounds for the hunting rifle he was carrying, a buck knife, binoculars, some 550 paracord (about fifty feet’s worth), and a flare gun with two flares.
“I’m coming along, then,” Kara said.
“You’ve been through enough,” Darrick said. “Besides, not too sure I can trust you anymore.”
“Because I protected you?”
“Because you lied to me.”
“Not telling isn’t lying.”
“Close enough.”
“Doesn’t change things.”
“What do you mean?”
“I’m still coming.”
“No, you’re not.”
“Watch me.”
Darrick was frustrated and tired of arguing. “Fine. If you get in a jam, you’re on your own.”
“Wouldn’t be the first time.”
Kara grabbed one of the packs that was lying on the floor and threw it over her shoulder. Tonya jumped up from her position and snatched the backpack from Kara’s shoulder.
“That’s my pack and you’re not taking it.”
Darrick was done with all of it. He let out a loud sigh and headed out the back door. Kara followed closely behind.
Tonya and Carissa were left standing in the front room area. Carissa look at Tonya. Tonya shrugged her shoulders and headed to the bedroom.
Just outside, Kara was chasing Darrick toward the Berts’ homestead. Her legs were quite a bit shorter than Darrick’s, so she was moving twice as fast.
“Wait up,” she called out.
“Keep up or stay back,” he said.
“Look, I’m sorry I didn’t say anything.”
“You tried to, right? You tried to, and I didn’t want to hear what you wanted to say. Sad thing is that you wanted to tell me and I shut you out.”
“So are we good or what?”
Darrick stopped in his tracks and turned around to face her. “I want us to be, Kara, but this isn’t a lost puppy or something that was borrowed and was lost. This is my brother. You left him lying in the woods and hid it from all of us. Even if I wouldn’t hear you, you let Carissa think he was still out there. How do you defend against that?”
Kara raised and lowered her arms in frustration. It was a shrug of sorts.
Darrick turned back toward the Berts’ and picked up his pace. “I have no idea how you’re going to be able to make this up to her,” he said. “Me, maybe so, but Carissa? Oh, and let’s not forget my wife doesn’t seem particularly fond of the idea of my bringing in a woman.”
“Okay, that is not on me. You said she’d understand.”
“That was before this. I’m bringing my brother home today, and he’s been lying in the woods for God knows how long. We’re trekking into a potentially dangerous area with six bullets in my pistol and a few loose rounds for the rifle.” Darrick stopped again to study Kara. “And you’re not even armed,” he said, pulling the pistol out of his holster. “Don’t worry; it’s ready to fire. All you have to do is point the boom stick at the bad guy and pull the trigger.” He handed it to Kara.
“Does this mean you trust me now? You were trying to hog-tie me last night.”
Darrick ignored the question, choosing instead to turn back toward the Berts’ homestead and start walking again.
“You were in the Marines, weren’t you?” she asked, trying desperately to get him to open up to her.
“I was.”
“What did you do?”
“It doesn’t matter.”
“You went through a lot, didn’t you?”
“Don’t worry about it.”
“You just seem like a person who’s hiding something.”
Darrick stopped again and turned around in a fury. “What do you know about –”
His angry gaze met Kara’s. She felt like he was burning a hole in her soul. She watched his eyes and waited. They quickly subdued and surrendered to hers.
“It’s okay,” she said. “You can talk about it with me, and I’ll never speak of it again.”
She maintained her eye contact. She could almost see his walls coming down.
He turned and started walking again. Just when Kara thought he was about to shut down again, he started talking.
“It started when I was a boy. My dad would send me out back to pick a switch for him to swat me with. I had to come back with the biggest one I could find. If it was too small, he would make me get a clothes hanger out of the closet. I’m not talking about the plastic ones, either. Don’t get me wrong, those hurt too, but the metal ones would wrap around and cover more area. In turn, I would go to school and release my aggression on other kids in the school yard. I would get in trouble, get more beatings, and perpetuate the violence. Jimm
ie was always smarter than me. He caught on and adjusted. He still got it, but not as much as I did. If he interfered with the beatings that I was receiving, he would get his and mine. That’s all it was in the end. Jimmie started taking them for me every time. Up until the time I left. I ran away at sixteen and took care of myself until I was eighteen. I left Jimmie alone with that man and I joined the Marines. I figured it was a good way for me to release some serious aggression issues.”
“What happened to you in the Marines?”
“Three years into my service I joined MAGTF.”
“Magtaf?”
“It’s kind of like a crisis response team.”
“How’d that go?”
Darrick didn’t answer. She could sense that he was starting to shut down. Whatever vein she had opened up was the issue that was causing him so much pain. It was working him over more so than his childhood trauma.
Darrick broke his silence by asking Kara a question. “What did you do before the Pulse?”
Darrick couldn’t see it, but Kara was smiling. “I was a clinical psychologist.”
Darrick stopped and caught her smiling at him. “Have you been shrinking my head this whole time?”
“Hey, you didn’t ask, so I didn’t tell.”
“So, are you gonna be able to cure my issues, doc?”
“No, but I can help you get through them. That’s about the extent of knowledge. If it were two or three years ago, I’d refer you to a psychiatrist for some Valium or something.”
“So I need meds?”
“Only for your anxiety issues. But that’s neither here nor there. What we can start working on is getting you to open up so that you don’t have to bear the weight alone.”
“We need to keep moving. It’s not smart to stand still,” he said.
Kara knew he was still shutting her out. She wasn’t going to push him any further today.
Sometime later
Darrick and Kara took up positions behind the rabbit cages of the Berts’ homestead.
“We can’t be too careful,” Darrick said. “We have to assume that somebody’s here until we clear the house and we know for sure.”
“Why can’t we just run over to the wood line, grab your brother, and beat the dirt?”
“If you remember right, there’s a door on the back side of that house, along with a few windows. If anybody’s in there, they’ll have the advantage over us.”
“Good point.”
“You keep to head-shrinking and leave the security to me.”
Kara smirked at him.
“Here’s what I need you to do,” he said. “Stay here and cover this door. If I come running out, be ready to shoot whoever comes out after me. Got it?”
“Got it.”
Darrick slowly stood into a crouched position. His military training taught him that he needed to maintain a low profile while moving. Smaller profiles meant smaller targets. He had no intention of becoming some killer’s target. He moved into position against the house and listened for anything out of the ordinary. Nothing. It was a dead calm. The birds whistled in the background, and the morning breeze blew through the trees, causing the leaves to rustle.
Now for the dangerous part .
Darrick poked his head up and peered in through the window. The shades were closed, but he could see in through the sides.
No movement . Time to open the door.
Darrick had a flashback.
QRF Typhoon Base
1st Battalion 2nd Marines Headquarters
Musayib, Iraq
Babil Province – 10 years earlier
“Okay, listen up, Marines,” Captain Horowitz shouted. “I know you guys are a reaction force, but this one came down from on high. We’ve received word of a high-value target just south of here right smack in the middle of Musayib.”
Captain Horowitz walked around a table that was blocking his reach and pointed to a position on the Euphrates River. “The objective is right here in this building. As you can see, there’s no easy access point and it’s completely surrounded by Iraqi rubbernecks. Unfortunately, because of the way the things are put together, the inner cordon will be exposed from the east, and there will not be an outer cordon to provide assistance from the west, because the river is outright blocking the approach. The walls that surround the residence are four feet tall, making the breach easy, but we’ll need to maintain a low profile to avoid detection. If you’re a Devil Dog on the shorter end, then you may need assistance getting over. Sergeants, make sure your small Marines are over the wall first. Don’t leave them hanging out to dry.
“I want the TOW thermals to stay river side so you don’t have to worry about your backsides being exposed. Battalion has pledged to keep us covered from the west side of the Euphrates.
“Sorens, I want your platoon to provide perimeter security for Rednaur’s hard-chargers. Once they breach, there may be light resistance. Dilshad Al Halsheem is the HVT and will have a small security team of five or six of Saddam Hussein’s ex-Republican Guard fighters with him; they won’t go down without a fight, so make sure you have concussions, smoke, and NVGs to make a hasty snatch ’n grab.
“Any questions?” The captain looked around and saw one hand. “Yes, Corporal?”
“Isn’t there something we can drop on that area instead of risking our necks, sir?”
“You’re a Marine, Mitchell,” the captain read from Darrick’s name tape. “Your orders are to make the breach, grab the HVT, and get out. I’ll indulge your question just this once. The quarters are tight for this extraction, Devil Dogs. The idea to drop a precision strike was considered, but the powers that be thought it was too risky. The ROEs are loose, but the chance that we injure or kill civies, even on a precision strike, is too great. Besides, it was discussed that if we can take this man alive, we can obtain valuable information that will lead us to the apprehension of Azad el-Amin. As you know, that’s a man who’s managed to stay two moves ahead of us for the past three weeks.”
Captain Horowitz looked around one last time and said, “Dismissed.”
Darrick stood up with the rest of his platoon and started making his way back to his barracks.
“Did you have to put me on the spot like that?” Corporal Guy asked.
Mitchell laughed. “You know me. Always looking to add a little spice.”
“Can’t ever leave good enough alone, can you?”
“Now where’s the fun in that?”
Guy laughed.
“You guys can lollygag later,” Staff Sergeant Singleton said to them. “Head back to the barracks. Formation’s at thirteen hundred hours.”
“Aye, Staff Sergeant,” Mitchell answered.
“He’s had a stick up his butt for the last couple of weeks,” Guy said as they were walking back to their Humvee.
“I know. He’s getting grouchy in his older years.”
“God, I hope I don’t get like that when I’m thirty.”
“I’ll be like that in seven years,” Mitchell said.
“You’re the saltiest corporal I’ve ever had the misfortune of working with.”
Mitchell knew Guy was joking around. Guy always bantered with him about being busted down from sergeant to corporal for starting fights in E Clubs. Mitchell had made corporal rank at four years. At five years, he made sergeant and got into his first fight with a corpsman at Camp Hansen in Okinawa. After a run-in with some nonjudicial punishment, he was demoted to corporal.
“You gonna re-up again next year?” Guy asked.
“No, man, I think I’m done. I had some stuff in me I needed to get out. I thought fighting would help, but I think I just compounded the problem.”
“There’s always rehab,” Guy joked as they entered their Humvee. “I’ve got one week before I get out. This’ll be my last mission, man. I’m stoked to be going home.” Guy could see that Mitchell was thinking about that crush he had back home. He always smiled when he thought of her. “You’ve got feelings for that gir
l back in Pleasant Bray, Georgia, don’t ya?”
“Tonya? No, man. She was a high school infatuation.”
“I heard you talking about her with Wade, not to mention every time I talk about home, you start grinning ear to ear. I know it’s not because you miss your pops.”
“Busted.” Mitchell laughed. “Yeah, I guess I do think about her a lot.”
“I guess that explains why you have to get out, eh? Strike while the iron’s hot?”
“She’s single, Guy. I’ve been keeping in touch with her.”
“Saving ’er letters, too, aren’t ya?”
“Yeah. It keeps me sane in this Godforsaken country.”
“It is Godforsaken. It’s Muslim, man. These hajis’ll kill a woman for looking cross-eyed at a man. When you do catch a glimpse of a woman’s eyes, it’s like, wow, a woman! But the men here, they’re not even civilized. They’re like animals.”
“That’s why I don’t hesitate to pop one every chance I get.”
“How many have ya killed?”
“Not sure anymore. A dozen, maybe. I don’t know. It’s not like I’m keeping score or have somebody to confirm each kill.” Mitchell had a couple of seconds of reflection before asking Guy an important question.
“Hey, man?”
“Yeah?”
“I want ya to promise me something.”
Guy looked at Mitchell and smirked. “That depends. I don’t write blank checks.”
“I have a bad feeling about this raid. I want you to promise me that if something happens to me, you’ll find my girl, Tonya Ross, back in Lower Georgia, and tell her I had every intention of asking her to marry me.”
“Sure, man. We’ll be fine. I’ve done this a time or two. We’ll be fine,” he reassured him again.
“I know we’ve got a few raids under our belts, but something just feels different this time. I can’t shake it.”
Later that night
The mission was supposed to be a surprise raid, but all the clues suggested otherwise. The neighborhood was eerily quiet, and it was hard to silence the gentle rumbles of a platoon of Humvees. The outer cordon (the security element) had tightly sealed off a large area around the target’s residence, all except the area against the Euphrates. Guy’s unit was the inner cordon (the support element). Their job was to make sure the breaching teams were extracted safely and to provide assistance should things go awry during the raid.
After The Pulse (Book 1): Homestead Page 7
