Disclaimer: As usual all rights to TG and the BBC
Prologue
"Someone loves you Molls"
Belinda smiled as she handed the bouquet to her daughter, it was huge, yellow, pink and white, sunflowers and chrysanthemums, lilies and rose buds, carnations and greenery, all hand tied with raffia inside layers of stiff coloured cellophane ….. and she didn't want them.
"You can 'ave 'em Mum"
"Don't be daft, they're lovely, just look at them"
"I've got nothing to put them in and nowhere to put 'em"
"You sure? These must of cost someone a bleeding fortune"
Belinda buried her nose in the bouquet and sniffed, trying to see whether the flowers had any scent which, of course, they hadn't. Molly could have told her that looking for perfume in a bunch of hot house flowers, no matter how big or how beautiful, or even how expensive they were, was bound to be an exercise in disappointment, pretty much like everything connected with the sender of the flowers.
"There's a card here, aren't you gonna read it?"
"Give it 'ere"
Molly took the card and after a bit of a struggle managed to rip it in half, throwing the two halves in the bin without even opening the envelope to look at it. She didn't need to look to see who'd sent them or to read what was written on the card, she already knew.
It was well after midnight when she crept out of the bedroom she was sharing with her younger sister and tiptoed downstairs through the darkened house to the kitchen, crossing her fingers that the bin hadn't been emptied yet, a very unlikely scenario because the bin didn't normally get emptied until it was so full the lid wouldn't close. She rooted around in the eggshells, used tea bags and slimy potato peelings until she found the two halves of the card, still in their respective bits of the envelope and took them out, wiped the stray bits of gunk off them and read the words on the card, then smiled.
-OG-
"Right, listen up fellas"
The two rows of squaddies sitting facing each other across the aisle of the noisy, rattling transport plane sat up straight, turned off whatever they were busy doing or watching on their mobiles, put away their Kindles or were nudged awake by their immediate neighbours and prepared themselves to listen to the boss. His announcement was very welcome, meaning as it did that they were nearing their destination, the journey had been tedious and uncomfortable.
"An hour outside, so gear on, no need for helmets but we'll review that when we're on the ground. Remember, gentlemen, this is a refugee situation, these people are displaced from their homes and whatnot, they are not, repeat not, insurgents, well not according to the politicians and civil servants sitting on their backsides behind their nice warm desks in Whitehall they're not, and it's our job to make sure that no harm comes to a hair of anyone's head"
He knew he sounded cynical, and that was because he was …. very. All the way along he'd been exceedingly sceptical that they would be able to prevent any member of the so-called Islamic State from slipping through security precautions at the UNHCR refugee camp on the Turkish/Syrian border, and all the assurances that none had already got through to hide among the vast numbers of people currently pouring into the camp looking for asylum, were, in his opinion, quite frankly laughable. No-one could be absolutely certain of anything, least of all that.
"Don't forget that there are a number of UN aid workers in the camp, mainly girls and women, and it is our job to look out for them at the same time, to keep them safe, but not to touch any of them, are you listening lads? Fingers? Dangles? They are strictly out of bounds so if any of you cockwombles decides it would be a good idea to lay a finger on one, or anything else you might have in mind, don't! Not unless you want to be on a charge and on the first plane out on your way back home"
"What's the difference between girls and women, Boss?
"Bloody funny, Fingers"
He glared at the self-appointed comedian of the group, who didn't need any encouragement at all, as one of the others yelled "About ten years" and someone else pitched in with "Gratitude" so that a gale of tension dispersing laughter swept along the lines of squaddies sitting in extreme noisy discomfort.
"It really doesn't matter does it, because you won't be getting anywhere near any of them, will you?"
"No Boss"
"Fine, just as long as we understand each other"
The Captain took his seat at the end of the row and looked across at the faces of the young soldiers sitting on the opposite side of the cabin, this was not the sort of active service he was used to, or that any of the lads were used to either. He knew that the more seasoned veterans amongst them saw it pretty much the same way he did, even though he couldn't say so out loud, that it was a futile exercise in pretending to play nanny to hordes of people in transit, playing to the world's media in effect. They were under-resourced, under-trained and under-prepared and would be completely ineffective in the event of any sort of attack being launched, there weren't enough of them and there were far too many potential victims of collateral damage for the use of weapons of any sort. Even one casualty would be too many for the bleeding heart liberals in the media.
-OG-
The wind was blowing hard across the exposed runway of the American run air base at Incirlik, and it was bitterly cold with tiny gritty granules of snow and ice crystals scouring the exposed skin of their faces. Captain James knew that most of the squaddies hadn't believed a single word of the warnings they'd been given that it would be very cold at this time of the year, because everyone knew that Turkey was hot, it was where you went for your summer holidays, wasn't it? It was bloody ideal for lazing around on a beach all day before spending the evening visiting the bars and restaurants of the resort to get pissed and pick up girls.
"Fucking Nora, it's bleeding cold out here"
"Now, now, now" Brains wagged one finger in the squaddie's direction "Didn't you hear what the bossman said? We're not allowed to fuck anyone, not even Nora"
"Oh you're so bleeding funny?"
"Lads, lads, that'll do, remember we're supposed to be ambassadors here for fuck's sake"
Corporal Easter, the replacement for Kinders, had to raise his voice over the gale of laughter, completely failing to register the anomaly of his own use of bad language as they made their straggling way towards the coach which was waiting with its door open, ready to take them out to the camp.
Captain James stood off slightly during the exchange as he waited for his driver, an American Marine, to finish his conversation with the Major who'd just got out of the Military Land Rover and who was obviously about to depart, if his kit bag and hand luggage was anything to go. The Captain was destined for the NATO Command Centre to give and be given the once-over by the American Colonel who was in overall charge on the ground, in effect his boss for the next six months.
-OG-
"Bloody hell, this is a bit of a piss hole, isn't it?"
The coach had slowed to a virtual crawl as they'd entered the camp, the driver had to go exceedingly slowly, at little more than walking pace, to avoid mowing down some of the hundreds of pedestrians, men, women and children who were walking down the middle of the road carrying their belongings, some of them carrying stuff in small hand carts or babies' pushchairs, some of them with bundles of it weighing them down in both hands or on their backs, people who were jam packed in a crowd making its snail paced way towards a porta-cabin which had the UNHCR blue flag flying above it. There were a number of people wearing the blue tabards of the UN mingling in amongst the crowd, darting backwards and forwards helping to keep the mass of people on the move. Some of them were carrying children, some of them were helping old people to keep going and they were all, without exception, as the Captain had said, female. None of them were taking a blind bit of notice of the coach load of newly arrived British soldiers.
"Where the fuck do they all come from?"
The squaddies were obviously unprepared for the sheer numbers of the people they could see making their way into the camp with its rows of tents stretching away into the distance as far as the eye could see.
"United Nations of course, you prat"
"Not the totty, wanker, I weren't talking about the totty, I was talking about the rest of them, but I just hope those tents have got some sort of central heating, its pissing cold here and them kids look a bit parky to me"
"Of course they don't have central heating, they're tents, tent's don't have radiators, tosser"
"I know tents don't have heating, don't I? I was just saying, that's all …."
"Lads, lads, that'll do" Corporal Easter did his best to pour some oil on the troubled water that was beginning to escalate on the bus "Everyone needs to calm down"
"Never mind the kids, I'm bloody parky, me"
"Mansfield, for fuck's sake, mate"
"I never meant that I don't care about the kids, of course I do, I was just hoping that I remembered to pack me bleeding thermals, that's all"
"Didn't your mum do your packing for you then?"
There was a ripple of laughter and not for the first time Easter wondered whether Mansfield was as thick as he sometimes seemed, or whether he'd just deliberately deflected the ill feeling that had started to build at the sight of the miserable tide of humanity on the other side of the windows.
"Yeah of course she did, but she's probably packed my trunks and factor 50, she thinks Turkey's hot, doesn't she?"
"What the place or Christmas dinner?"
"Bloody funny you lot, aren't you? I bet most of you were the same as my Mum, thought it was hot here, didn't you?" Easter again wondered about Mansfield Mike's motives, especially as he'd just given his tormentors the finger, but had, nevertheless, successfully changed the focus of the conversation and the atmosphere in the bus.
-OG-
"It's not a lot bloody warmer in here is it?"
The tent was long, standard army canvas accommodation, with its camp beds, each with a pillow and a single blanket and absolutely fine in places like Afghan, hot countries, with 40 odd degree heat in the summer, but not so wonderful in the minus temperatures of the winter chill in Turkey or Syria. It was draughty, cold and clammy as the sleety rain outside turned to snow.
"Fucking hell I hate to think what the shitters and showers are like"
"Probably won't want to hang about in there"
Brains laughed at the expressions on the faces of his mates as they contemplated stripping off to stand under a jet of water that would, if they were exceptionally lucky, be warm enough for a shower that would last at least 30 seconds from beginning to end.
"I just hope the water isn't frozen"
"Lads" The Corporal was calling them to stand to attention as the Captain appeared in the doorway of the tent and nodded in acknowledgement as they were told to stand easy.
"Briefing, Ops tent 30 minutes" he turned to Easter, "I presume there is a bloody Ops tent here somewhere?" He jerked his head indicating for Easter to follow him as he left, he'd been in the camp for less than fifteen minutes and was totally appalled at what he'd seen so far. It bore no relation to the NATO Command centre where he'd spent the early part of the afternoon listening to American smartasses state their fairy tale assessments of the current situation and talk longingly of the day they hoped was coming soon, when they'd be given the go ahead to start bombing the fuck out of villages near to here to get at ISIS, or so they hoped.
He'd checked out his own accommodation, a cursory glance as he dumped his kit, it was part of a divided porta-cabin, one in a group of three such cabins behind the reception. Effectively it was a small metal box with an even smaller shower and lavatory, a cabin which was to double up during the day as the office and, being metal, would be even colder than a tent and the colder it got outside, the more condensation there'd be and the damper it would get inside. It reminded him of an office on a used car lot or the one on the building site where he'd recently bought his flat in Guildford.
What appalled him most wasn't the basic accommodation or even the facilities, although they were bad enough, he could foresee a whole lot of unshaven, unwashed and stinking squaddies complaining bitterly about having to use latrines where the water for the flush and the urinals was frozen, which was a fairly lovely prospect in itself, but, what appalled him most was the never ending flood of people walking slowly towards the reception in the half dusk. People who showed no emotion at all at the conditions, they just seemed resigned as they trudged along in steadily falling snow without looking to the right or to the left, and not even the children showed any interest whatsoever in the Land Rover or the Marine who had driven him here. How the bloody hell were they supposed to protect this lot, together with all the people wearing blue tabards, when their numbers were miniscule in comparison to the numbers you'd need to carry out the task they were here to perform?
-OG-
"Right lads, listen up, there's some credible intel from the Americans, or so they reckon, that an attack could be imminent, and according to them it's more likely to come from inside than anywhere else, so Kevlar for everyone, including UN staff. There are some UN vests in the stores, wherever the hell they are" He turned "Easter, your job, find and sort please, and lads, it's your job to make sure they've all got one and that they're all wearing them, okay? Remember stay focussed, and you all know the rest"
"Yes Boss"
The chorus was fairly muted, most of the men, there were no females in the deployed sections, were cold, tired and hungry and almost all of them hated the thought of wearing the Kevlar bullet-proof vests all day. Wearing one while you were out on a patrol was a necessary evil, but this job meant that there weren't any patrols as such, only inside the camp, and although the vests were effective against most one-to-one attacks, they were uncomfortable to wear and ineffective against anything below the hip or above the neck.
-OG-
It was another grey, bitterly cold morning, although the snow had stopped and turned back to sleet when he walked from the mess tent towards his office and saw two of the section standing a short distance away on the muddy footpath, apparently engaged in a violent argument with a tiny girl wearing a blue tabard. A very slight, dark-haired girl with a single long plait falling down her back between her shoulder blades, an English girl judging from her voice, a girl who seemed to be in a foul temper about something as she yelled at the two soldiers at the top of her voice, using extremely colourful language.
"Nah, how many more times do I have to pissing well tell you, cos I've already told you twice haven't I? You deaf or summat? Just fuck off the pair of you and take that bleeding thing with you"
"It's for your own safety, Miss, we've been told that everyone has to wear one, that there might be an attack, it's to stop you from getting hurt"
"What?" She sounded incredulous "One of me nippers got a gun in his nappy has he? or maybe his mum is gonna have a knife up her sleeve?" She snorted a derisive laugh down her nose "Listen, moron, I'm sticking needles in kids this morning, so I don't need a sodding stab vest and I'm not bleeding wearing one, anyhow you've done your job, you've told me now and I'm not taking any notice, so you know what you can do with it, don't you?"
The Captain walked over and stood with his legs apart behind the girl, folding his arms across his chest and tucking his hands under his armpits, a favourite stance when he needed to look as authoritative as possible, and asked quietly and politely whether there was a problem, which caused her to spin round, she hadn't heard him approaching on the muddy surface of the pathway. She narrowed her eyes as she glared at him, a huge pair of sea green eyes, eyes that were blazing with anger.
"Oh look, its bleeding Rambo, be alright now he's here, won't we"
"I beg your pardon?"
He decided not to notice the hastily suppressed sniggers from the squaddies or the way they both suddenly found their feet fascinating to look at.
"You heard me, and listen mate, you can fuck off as well and take these two muppets with you, I'm not wearing any of this … " She paused and then pointed to the bullet proof vest "bleeding stuff, not for you, not for them, not for no-one. I'm gonna vaccinate kids today, stop 'em getting the measles, and none of them are gonna stab me, or shoot me or nothing, so why don't you lot just sod off and go and play soldiers somewhere else"
"Thank you for the advice" He used the most sarcastic tone of voice he could find and took a deep breath "As my men have said, we'd strongly advise you wear the vest, but we can't force you, so we're very sorry to have bothered you, Miss …?"
He raised one hand inviting her to supply her name, an invitation she completely ignored, so that he leaned forward slightly to read her name badge "Miss Dawes" then nodded his head in acknowledgment and half turned towards the two men. Despite his ultra-polite manner and the measured and calm tone of his voice, he was actually seething with barely suppressed anger; it had been a very long time since he'd come across anyone who was quite as rude as she was. She turned on her heel and walked away, dropping the Kevlar vest onto the muddy ground behind her as she went.
"Nice girl" Dangles made no attempt to hide the sarcastic tone of his voice as he raised his eyebrows and snorted a laugh "Wonder what her problem is? I was just thinking" He pretended to be mulling over his options "Do you think I should offer to help her out with it?" Fingers laughed and added "Nice arse though"
"Lads!" There was a strong note of warning in the Captain's voice, but the girl had obviously heard what they were saying as she walked away and proceeded to give them the finger behind her back as she carried on walking, and he shook his head and stood stock still, watching her as she went.
-OG-
A/N: I know, I know, I'm addicted to my parallel universe, not even a disobedient, downright naughty and completely adorably gorgeous puppy can distract me for long. Hope you enjoy it, please let me know.