“Killed one. Still looking for Young.”
“Split up?” Hansen suggested.
“No,” McCullers shook his head hard. “Stick together. Let’s find him. We’re dark and I don’t like not having coms on.”
We moved deeper into the woods, our guns raised and our eyes darting. I strained my ears for any sounds that may help us find Young, but there was nothing. Everything was silent except for our soft footsteps as we inched through the woods.
Finally, we heard a scuffle a few yards to our right. I raised my gun higher and crept forward with McCullers and Hansen on either side of me. I was sure the noise meant Young was close by, but we had to move slowly. We had to be careful in case it wasn’t him.
The closer we got, the quieter everything became. We couldn’t hear the scuffling anymore. We couldn’t hear anything at all.
When I saw the blood at my feet I knew the worst had happened. I raised my eyes and saw him lying with his back against a tree trunk. McCullers sucked in a ragged breath and Hansen turned around aiming, I ran to him. My whole body lurched forward and I threw my gun to the ground. All of my training was forgotten in that one moment. All I could think about was reaching him.
I grabbed him and pulled him against my chest. My fingers searched frantically for a pulse, but it was too late. He was already gone…
…I sat up quickly, my heart racing and sweat pouring down my face. I tried to slow my breathing, but I couldn’t shake the image of Young lying dead against that tree.
It had been four months since our mission failed, but not a day went by where I didn’t think about Young and wish I had done more. After weeks of counseling and conversations with my superiors, I knew there was nothing I could have done. I acted perfectly. I followed every protocol. I did everything I was supposed to.
Still, Young was dead and I couldn’t help but think I should have saved him. If I had moved faster, run harder, listened more intently, maybe he would still be alive.
Three
Logan
The darkness pressed down around me. I forced myself to focus. This mission was too important to fail. There was too much at stake, for me and for my team. I knew I couldn’t let them down. I took a deep breath and remembered my training. The fear disappeared from my body. My breathing relaxed and my heartbeat steadied. I took a confident step forward. I knew what I had to do.
I walked for half a mile before I heard the shot. My heart stopped beating as I whirled around to face the direction it came from. I heard the shot on my left where I knew Young was moving in the same direction as me. No one knew where we were. There shouldn’t be any gunfire. This wasn’t that kind of mission.
It took a fraction of a second, just long enough for me to question breaking my orders, before the second shot echoed around me. Then the third.
My orders were clear: if the mission is compromised, locate your team and return to camp. Without a second thought, I took off running through the darkness. My legs moved smoothly beneath me. I felt like a wild animal bounding through the forest. The only noise I made was the rustle of my pants. I moved faster than I’ve ever moved in my life. Nothing and no one would stop me.
I closed the distance in less than a minute.
My gun was raised.
I saw him immediately, but he hadn’t seen me yet.
I didn’t hesitate.
I fired.
He collapsed.
I spun around, checking for more, but everything seemed calm. My eyes were peeled as I moved slowly, trying to find Young. My instinct was to call out to him, but my training forced me to hold my tongue. Whatever happened, I couldn’t risk giving away my location.
Every noise I heard made my body tense. I felt like there were a million eyes on me. I expected to be shot each time my feet shifted, but there was no other person in sight. I hadn’t heard gunshots in almost five minutes. I knew the rest of the team would be converging on me soon. I was the closest to Young’s path, but McCullers and Hansen weren’t far either. They would be here any second and I still hadn’t located Young.
“If the mission is compromised, locate your team and return to camp.”
Our orders were clear. I had to locate Young before McCullers and Hansen arrived so we could all get the hell out of dodge. We had to leave together, as a team.
My eyes scanned the ground around me, searching for any sign of Young. I looked for blood or scattered gear. Anything that may lead me to his location, but there was nothing. Nothing at all.
I was frustrated as I continued my search. I needed to find him fast. I’d already been here, exposed, for far too long. Where were McCullers and Hansen? Why weren’t they there yet? Had they been hit, too?
As soon as their names entered my mind, they appeared beside me. I breathed a sigh of relief and moved closer to them. We spoke in hushed whispers, our eyes constantly looking around.
“Found anything?” McCullers asked.
“Killed one. Still looking for Young.”
“Split up?” Hansen suggested.
“No,” McCullers shook his head hard. “Stick together. Let’s find him. We’re dark and I don’t like not having coms on.”
We moved deeper into the woods, our guns raised and our eyes darting. I strained my ears for any sounds that may help us find Young, but there was nothing. Everything was silent except for our soft footsteps as we inched through the woods.
Finally, we heard a scuffle a few yards to our right. I raised my gun higher and crept forward with McCullers and Hansen on either side of me. I was sure the noise meant Young was close by, but we had to move slowly. We had to be careful in case it wasn’t him.
The closer we got, the quieter everything became. We couldn’t hear the scuffling anymore. We couldn’t hear anything at all.
When I saw the blood at my feet I knew the worst had happened. I raised my eyes and saw him lying with his back against a tree trunk. McCullers sucked in a ragged breath and Hansen turned around aiming, I ran to him. My whole body lurched forward and I threw my gun to the ground. All of my training was forgotten in that one moment. All I could think about was reaching him.
I grabbed him and pulled him against my chest. My fingers searched frantically for a pulse, but it was too late. He was already gone…
…I sat up quickly, my heart racing and sweat pouring down my face. I tried to slow my breathing, but I couldn’t shake the image of Young lying dead against that tree.
It had been four months since our mission failed, but not a day went by where I didn’t think about Young and wish I had done more. After weeks of counseling and conversations with my superiors, I knew there was nothing I could have done. I acted perfectly. I followed every protocol. I did everything I was supposed to.
Still, Young was dead and I couldn’t help but think I should have saved him. If I had moved faster, run harder, listened more intently, maybe he would still be alive.
Four
Logan
I shook my head and tried to clear the images from my mind, but they were burned inside my brain forever. No amount of therapy, sleep, or time would ever erase them. They were mine to hold onto. Forever.
I checked the clock and saw that it was two in the morning. I knew I should try to go back to sleep, but I couldn’t bring myself to close my eyes. I didn’t want to see his face again…his bloody body…
Without hesitating, I jumped from my bed and pulled on my sweatshirt. Sleep was no longer an option and I knew the only thing that might help was to move. I hurried down the stairs and out the front door. The second my feet hit the sidewalk I started running.
I let the breeze shake me awake and the cool air clear my senses. I took a few deep breaths and closed my eyes while my feet beat a path beneath me. It wasn’t long before my body went into autopilot and I was able to run without any thought. The peaceful nothingness was more inviting than anything had been for a long time.
My legs tightened and my abs clenched, but I kept moving. My breathing was s
low and steady. Even after months away, I was still trained for this. I could run at this pace for hours without breaking a sweat. My breathing would never falter. My sides would never begin to ache. I had the body of a Navy SEAL and right then, as I ran through town, it was the only thing holding me together.
With my arms pumping beside me, I turned sharply down Peach street. I ran quietly through the center of town, my eyes scanning the shop windows. Angie’s café wouldn’t open for a few more hours and the bank after that. The Prewitt’s flower shop was always closed until noon on Sundays and Margie’s new stationary store wouldn’t open at all until Monday morning. Only the diner was open at this hour. I thought about stopping in for a milkshake, but I ran past without slowing down. It wasn’t the night for a diner trip.
I kept my pace as I put the town square behind me and moved further into the surrounding neighborhoods. All the houses were dark, not a single light was on anywhere. Only the street lights lit my path as I ran silently. I knew if anyone was awake they wouldn’t come outside to greet me. Everyone was nervous around me since I returned to Bradberry. I was that hardened Navy SEAL with war wounds. No one wanted anything to do with me.
When I ran into people on the street they were always nice. Everyone made polite chit chat, but no one asked me anything real.
“How’s the weather?”
“Seen your mom lately?”
“Have you checked out Margie’s new store?”
The questions were always the same. I answered them with a reassuring smile that told people it was okay, they could talk to me, I wasn’t going to snap. Still, no one hung around longer than a few minutes. I pretended not to notice when people crossed to the other side of the street as I passed by. Mothers would shield their children from me and I would turn a blind eye. They thought of me as dangerous and, in a way, I was.
Since that night, I’d changed. My one true purpose in life was to be a Navy SEAL. Once that happened I felt whole. Complete. After Young died, everything changed. Nothing about my life as a SEAL felt real anymore. I changed. I hardened. I really did become dangerous, but only to myself.
I started questioning who I was, who I was meant to be. I doubted whether I was ever really meant to be a SEAL. I questioned everything.
That’s why I was discharged. They didn’t discharge me with negative marks. It didn’t feel like a dismissal or a rejection. I spent almost five years with my team. We had successfully completed over a hundred missions. We were indestructible. Until we weren’t.
When we lost Young, everything fell apart. Our team stopped being a team. We lost our connection, our bond. We all drifted apart and, slowly, we all retired. It didn’t make sense to a lot of our fellow SEALs, but they weren’t there that night. To them, when you lose a guy you grieve and move on. You keep fighting. You keep working. You let the loss fuel the fire in your gut. Your job does not end. But to us, everything ended.
Our job no longer felt like ours. It felt as if we were playing dress-up in someone else’s clothes. We weren’t really us anymore. We were just shadows of our former selves and nothing anyone said could change that.
I kept running, past house after house, without knowing where I was going. It wasn’t until I was turning onto her street that I realized where I’d been headed all along. The Prewitt’s house was at the very end of Tuckerton Court. I’d been there a thousand times, but not for years. When I saw Mr. and Mrs. Prewitt in town they always waved politely. They never spoke to me. I don’t blame them. They didn’t like me back then and I was certain their feelings hadn’t changed.
The closer I got to the Prewitt’s the more confused I became. Every other house was pitch black, but there was a faint orange light peering out from beneath the oak tree in the front yard. I ran faster, wanting to get a closer look. I knew what room was behind that tree.
I stopped in front of the house and stared at the window with my mouth hanging open. I told myself it was nothing, it didn’t mean that she was home. As far as I knew, Piper hadn’t been home in five years. Not long after I left town she left for New York, just like she always planned. I hadn’t spoken to her since. She never returned my calls or my letters, but I knew through the town gossip that she’d moved. I was proud of her when I found out, she was doing exactly what she always wanted to do.
Still, I hated not seeing her around town. Everywhere I went reminded me of her. I had so many memories of our time together that I couldn’t imagine Bradberry without her in it. To me, Bradberry was Piper and Piper was Bradberry. Always.
Staring up at her window I tried to see some movement inside. I strained my eyes, desperately trying to catch a glimpse of her shadow. Something, anything, that would tell me it was really her. That she was really home. I prayed to see her hand inch around the side of the curtains and pull them aside. I would have given anything to see her blue eyes or watch her dark curls catch the light just right.
After a few minutes, I knew I needed to move, but I couldn’t bring myself to leave that spot. My feet were cemented to the ground, my eyes locked on that orange light. I couldn’t explain it, even to myself, but I could feel her. She was closer than she’d been in years and I could feel her presence like it was calling out to me. My entire body was being tugged forward by something deep inside my soul. I didn’t realize what I was doing until I was halfway across the lawn, trekking a determined path toward the front door.
Just as quickly as I started moving, I stopped. I shook my head and turned around. I half-ran back to the street. My legs protested, my body longed to go back to the door, but I pushed harder against myself until I was sprinting down the street. I ran hard and fast, not stopping until I was all the way back home. My feet felt like lead, but I forced them to keep moving until I was safely back inside my bedroom. I couldn’t believe what I’d almost done.
Walking up to the Prewitt’s door at two in the morning because I thought Piper might be inside? What good would that have done? I could only imagine the look on Mr. Prewitt’s face if he’d opened the door.
I threw myself on my bed and sighed. I felt like I was losing my mind. After waking up in a panicked sweat the last thing I needed was to confront Piper after all these years. Besides, I didn’t even know if she was home. It was just a feeling after all, just an old instinct that told me she was there.
I forced my eyes closed and told myself I was imagining it. There probably hadn’t even been a light on in that room. I was seeing things. Shit. My mind was playing tricks on me.
After dreams about that night with Young I always felt shaken and confused. Running was the only thing that cleared my mind. I told myself I was probably still shaken up when I passed Piper’s house. I was hoping to see her, that was all.
Sleep continued to evade me for the rest of the night, but I remained still. My head was pressed against my pillow and my blanket was wrapped tightly around my body. Whenever I got the urge to leave my bed, I pulled it even tighter. I told myself it would hold me together, keep my mind and my body in check, but I knew that wasn’t true. I knew nothing could hold me together anymore.
Five
Piper
“You aren’t ready yet?!” Audra’s annoyed voice snapped me out of my daydream.
“I was having a nice moment and you just ruined it,” I said as I turned around to glare at her.
“A nice moment? You were staring out the window.”
“Exactly. It was peaceful until you showed up.”
“Cry me a river,” Audra said with a roll of her eyes. “Get dressed. We have to leave in ten minutes. Mom and Dad are already freaking out that we’ll be late.”
“They’ve been freaking out since I got here, what else is new?”
“Just hurry. Please,” Audra hissed.
“Well, since you said please,” I teased. I walked over to the closet and pulled the door open. I grew up in this room and had unpacked my things the night before, but I still felt like I was living in someone else’s home. The five years since I’d
last slept in that bed and opened that closet door had put up a permanent wall between me and my parent’s home. Nothing felt like mine.
I pulled out a dark dress and some heels. Laying them on the bed, I stripped down to my underwear without realizing my sister was still in my doorway.
“What?” I snapped, “I’m getting dressed.”
“Don’t you own anything black?” Audra asked, her eyes glued to my dress.
“That is black,” I explained with a shake of my head.
“No, Piper, that’s blue,” Audra said. She walked over and picked up the dress. She held it up to my nose.
I took a step away from her and rolled my eyes.
“Fine,” I said. “It’s blue, but it’s a navy blue so no one will be able to tell the difference.”
“You didn’t pack a black dress?” Audra’s voice was beginning to gain it’s mothering quality. The last thing I needed was a full-on Audra-style lecture right before a funeral.
“I must have grabbed the wrong one,” I shrugged.
“Haven’t you heard?” A voice called from the hallway. “Navy is the new black in New York City. Our Piper here has to stay up on the latest fashion trends if she wants to stick it out in the bit city.”
“Thanks for that, Aunt Miriam,” I called back.
I caught Audra’s eye and we both erupted into silent giggled. Just like that, all tension faded from the room and Audra helped me step into my dress without any further comment. She zipped me up and leaned against the dresser while I slipped on my shoes.
“So, tell me,” she began, her tone suddenly serious. “How is it being back?”
“Honestly, Aud, I don’t know.” I shook my head and gestured around the room, “All of this, it just feels surreal. It feels like an entirely different life. I’m not the same girl I was when I lived here.”
“I know that,” Audra nodded. “We all do, Pipe. No one expects you to be exactly the same. We just wanted to see you.”
“I know and I’m glad I’m here.”
SEAL'd With A Kiss: A Second Chance SEAL Romance Page 2
