hesitate . . . my hand just reacted . . . and I shot him.” He pointed to a spot just above the left temple. “He dropped on the spot.
“The now-acting C.O. tied me to the flag pole with some chains and left me there alone for nearly three days with the threat of being caught by the enemy. When they came back, they arrested me. We met three weeks later.”
Samantha was stunned. Such cruelty made her wonder if the timeline deserved saving. Will removing UNK005 make a difference, or will humanity only find another way to disappoint?
She looked up to see Jensen waiting for a reply. “I am so proud of what you did.” She gave him a conspirator’s grin. “I have a nasty little habit of hacking into classified data. It’s been my way of making sure no orders came in that could endanger my work, Boomer’s life, or my own. Two weeks ago a military truck driven by a man named John Baymont entered secure ground in Louisiana. Thirty-three souls arrived safe and sound. While they lost a couple along the way, you saved a lot of lives. If it were up to me, I’d give you a medal and some well-earned leave.”
Jensen’s head dropped, and a heavy sigh of relief left his lips. “I think I’ll take that dunk in the loch now.” She helped him up from the ground and let him join the other men.
Jensen stopped after only a few paces. “Where are we, Major?”
“Together,” Samantha answered simply. There was so much more she wanted to say to the man but was afraid she would cry on the spot. The men needed a strong leader, not an emotional wreck.
When Jensen was gone, Samantha let the tears flow. Each man in her company had shared a similar tale of horror, of atrocious orders and unspeakable acts. For the first time, she was glad her father was dead. The new world would have killed him.
The back of her hand couldn’t hide the tears as Faolan crouched by her side. He softly said, “I judged the man too harshly. You were so verra wise to keep him.”
She nodded at the eavesdropping acknowledgment and rose to her feet. As Faolan did the same, she found her eyes level with his breastbone. She looked up and said, “I’m better now.” As she stepped out of the shelter of the rocks, she asked, “Have you seen Jeff or Boomer? They need to hear this, too.”
“They have joined the men in the loch. Mayhap you should wait here while I fetch them. There are some things you dinna need to see.” Faolan offered with a wink.
She laughed at the notion of literally catching everyone with their pants down while they swam. “It can wait until they’re done,” she replied.
No sooner had she spoken then the two men she wanted appeared, walking toward her. Both had grins that spoke of enjoyment and simple pleasure.
“The men are almost done and then are under orders to give you some time alone in the water,” Jeff said.
“I’ll stand guard,” Boomer offered.
“No, Boomer. I want you to stay by Jensen and make sure he’s okay. I don’t want him to feel isolated, and the rest of the men may stay away, given his conduct earlier.” She took the opportunity to tell them both about her encounter with Jensen. They took it as hard as she had, and both wore grim expressions.
Boomer broke the silence. “You did good today. Jensen opened up and now should be trustworthy.”
“I just wish it hadn’t taken such an extreme to get there.” Samantha mused at the oddity that it took violence to bring forth stories of violence and gain acceptance. Some matters would never make sense to her.
Private Miller joined them. “Major, the lake is yours after I inspect your arm to make sure your wound is still closed.”
“Did you inspect the others?” she asked as she removed her jacket.
“Affirmative, and everyone checks out with no signs of infection,” Miller replied as he viewed the sealed cut on her upper arm. “Looks good. Oh, and nice ink, ma’am.”
She smiled at the comment. She loved the simplicity of the Semper Fi on
“The now-acting C.O. tied me to the flag pole with some chains and left me there alone for nearly three days with the threat of being caught by the enemy. When they came back, they arrested me. We met three weeks later.”
Samantha was stunned. Such cruelty made her wonder if the timeline deserved saving. Will removing UNK005 make a difference, or will humanity only find another way to disappoint?
She looked up to see Jensen waiting for a reply. “I am so proud of what you did.” She gave him a conspirator’s grin. “I have a nasty little habit of hacking into classified data. It’s been my way of making sure no orders came in that could endanger my work, Boomer’s life, or my own. Two weeks ago a military truck driven by a man named John Baymont entered secure ground in Louisiana. Thirty-three souls arrived safe and sound. While they lost a couple along the way, you saved a lot of lives. If it were up to me, I’d give you a medal and some well-earned leave.”
Jensen’s head dropped, and a heavy sigh of relief left his lips. “I think I’ll take that dunk in the loch now.” She helped him up from the ground and let him join the other men.
Jensen stopped after only a few paces. “Where are we, Major?”
“Together,” Samantha answered simply. There was so much more she wanted to say to the man but was afraid she would cry on the spot. The men needed a strong leader, not an emotional wreck.
When Jensen was gone, Samantha let the tears flow. Each man in her company had shared a similar tale of horror, of atrocious orders and unspeakable acts. For the first time, she was glad her father was dead. The new world would have killed him.
The back of her hand couldn’t hide the tears as Faolan crouched by her side. He softly said, “I judged the man too harshly. You were so verra wise to keep him.”
She nodded at the eavesdropping acknowledgment and rose to her feet. As Faolan did the same, she found her eyes level with his breastbone. She looked up and said, “I’m better now.” As she stepped out of the shelter of the rocks, she asked, “Have you seen Jeff or Boomer? They need to hear this, too.”
“They have joined the men in the loch. Mayhap you should wait here while I fetch them. There are some things you dinna need to see.” Faolan offered with a wink.
She laughed at the notion of literally catching everyone with their pants down while they swam. “It can wait until they’re done,” she replied.
No sooner had she spoken then the two men she wanted appeared, walking toward her. Both had grins that spoke of enjoyment and simple pleasure.
“The men are almost done and then are under orders to give you some time alone in the water,” Jeff said.
“I’ll stand guard,” Boomer offered.
“No, Boomer. I want you to stay by Jensen and make sure he’s okay. I don’t want him to feel isolated, and the rest of the men may stay away, given his conduct earlier.” She took the opportunity to tell them both about her encounter with Jensen. They took it as hard as she had, and both wore grim expressions.
Boomer broke the silence. “You did good today. Jensen opened up and now should be trustworthy.”
“I just wish it hadn’t taken such an extreme to get there.” Samantha mused at the oddity that it took violence to bring forth stories of violence and gain acceptance. Some matters would never make sense to her.
Private Miller joined them. “Major, the lake is yours after I inspect your arm to make sure your wound is still closed.”
“Did you inspect the others?” she asked as she removed her jacket.
“Affirmative, and everyone checks out with no signs of infection,” Miller replied as he viewed the sealed cut on her upper arm. “Looks good. Oh, and nice ink, ma’am.”
She smiled at the comment. She loved the simplicity of the Semper Fi on
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