Summary: Sam Hanna finds a fellow SEAL down on his luck and tries to find a way to help him.
A/N: This is dedicated to all the men and women in service to our country, past and present, especially those who continue their watch in their eternal vigil.
A/N 2: Any resemblance of Timothy Larson to any real human being is entirely coincidental. He is a character of my imagination. He is not patterned after anyone.
Disclaimer: The characters and sets of NCIS:LA are all owned by CBS, Donald P. Bellisario, and Shane Brennan. I only own a copy of the DVDs from season 1-5. I do get to play with everyone, but they all have to be home by curfew.
A DAY TO REMEMBER
Sunday, Memorial Day – 1 || 9:43 PM
"He looks years older than his age of 38. He has no car; he can't afford one. His only job, today, was to help place small American flags on the soldier's graves. Stay tuned to KFMB, CBS, San Diego for this story from Channel 8 reporter Adelmira Mascarenas-Ruedas."
. . . . .
The Hanna family was in San Diego visiting the family of Sam's friend and SEAL buddy, Ralph King. Ever since he lived in California, Sam's family spent the Memorial Day weekend with them at the Naval Base in Coronado, just outside San Diego.
Six years ago, Ralph King was stationed at the base and bought a home in the city. Since that time, it became an annual event for the two families to gather together for this holiday.
This year it was just the three of them traveling down from Los Angeles. Aiden had been home on a three-day pass earlier in the week. Since he had been promoted to Cadet Sergeant, he had to return to school for special leadership training classes.
Kamran looked forward to playing with Daniella King, looking on her as a younger sister even though Kamran was only eight months older.
The girls had played all day and were now semi-settled down for the night in Daniella's bedroom. The adults related the happenings in each of their families, at least the ones that could be talked about. The four of them had settled in the front room of the house, planning to watch the news. Since the following day was full, it looked like an early night for them too.
When the teaser about Adelmira Mascarenas-Ruedas' came on, Ralph paled and just stared at the screen.
Sam looked at him and asked, "What's wrong, man? You look like you've seen a ghost."
"I think I did. I think I know that guy. If I'm not mistaken, he's one of us."
"A SEAL?" Sam asked.
"Yeah," was the only reply he got.
They all watched the local news. There was a short report on the upcoming celebrations at the Naval Base. But there were a lot more stories about all the recreational activities that were opening up for the summer season. Every commercial was trumpeting something else that was on sale for Memorial Day, so hurry in before Monday evening and take advantage of the sale.
Finally, the story came on that the two men were waiting for. The location was one of the local cemeteries. Headstones filled the background, merging in the distance. Many of the graves had a small American flag hanging limp in the still, calm air. Very few people were seen visiting the graves in the heat of the day.
The camera turned and focused on the reporter, Adelmira Mascarenas-Ruedas, whose long, wavy hair and brimming smile seemed so out of place for the location. She opened her mouth and started the introduction to her news report,
"We're here today with Timothy Larson, a former Navy SEAL, for his perspective on Memorial Day."
"I knew it. I've seen this guy. We met at the VA Medical Center a couple of years ago. He had just moved here from the east coast."
"So, he was a SEAL there?" Sam asked.
"Yeah. From what he told me, his group went through hell."
"Don't we all?"
"Not like this," Sam, "not like this."
The news crew cameraman had been focusing on Larson, showing what most people would call a bum. The man hadn't shaved for several days, and the rest of his face looked like old leather. He looked like he tried to contain his hair under a traditional soft brimmed 'boonie hat', the kind the troops wore in desert areas, but it was a losing battle. His long sleeved camouflaged shirt was halfway buttoned up, covering an old, faded, olive drab tee shirt. Huge dark patches of sweat discolored fabric stained his armpits and the center of his military cargo pants he wore looked like they hadn't been washed in weeks. A pair of combat boots finished off his clothes.
Adelmira began by asking him, "Mr. Larson, you were a Navy SEAL?"
"Yeah... Was," his words were clipped.
"I suppose you have a lot of stories you could tell us about what you did as a SEAL."
"Nope... Classified."
"Well, we came to ask you about a different subject. Can you tell us what Memorial Day means to you?"
Larson looked at her and said, "You don't wanna know my answer." He started to walk away.
Adelmira reached out and grabbed his arm, a little reluctantly. "Wait, Mr. Larson. We all want to know your opinion on the holiday."
"Why?"
"It's a day set aside to honor the fallen veterans."
"**** (Bleeped). I wish that Congress would never have thought of the fool idea."
"But why is that?"
"Honor?" He gestured with his hand to the graves behind him. "These people are not honored. It's more a day to honor the politicians. They come out just to press the flesh, shake everybody's hand to remind them who to vote for. They just want to be seen to be seen. None of them has ever served. They just made laws to send people out in their place, and once they do the job, the politicians just forget all about them."
"They can't all be bad."
"Hah. Together they're worse than individually. They promise us jobs programs. Where are they? When we ask about it, we're told it is too expensive to start up. Taxes would have to go up; it will hurt the economy so we can't do that. Even reservists, who are pulled from their jobs, when they get back, they find that their jobs are gone. Is it any wonder that the Veterans Administration Hospitals, especially the psych departments, are flooded with people needing help? Maybe that's why the younger guys are not joining the American Legion groups. Either that or they are just cynical."
"We did an expose on the VA Hospital here last year."
"To call it a hospital is a joke. I took a bullet to my leg. It fractured my femur into thirty-some pieces. They tried putting the pieces back together and slapping a metal plate over it. I still limp today and it hurts like hell. When I signed up at the VA I had to wait seven months to see a doctor, and he just gave me aspirin for the pain."
"So what did you do?"
"I took the aspirin, went back to my room, crawled into bed and kept my leg elevated for two days."
"I noticed that you were one of the volunteers to put out flags to mark the graves of the veterans."
"Only the veterans seem to want to do it any more, and there are fewer and fewer of us to do the work. I know of several parades that should have happened tomorrow, but they have been cancelled, because there are not enough people to help put them on. A military honor guard at a funeral has been dropped down to two people to fold the flag. We don't have enough buglers so 'Taps' is usually a tape or CD recording."
"There will still be a parade at the Naval Base."
"And ninety-nine percent of the people watching will be military. The public doesn't care. They are all at the beach, the parks, or the lakes, enjoying the first weekend of the summer. Either that, or running around trying to find the latest bargains of the 'Memorial Day Sale' that are going to expire Monday at midnight."
"So what's the answer?"
"People need to take the time to remember, for a minute, for an hour, for a day, what price these men and women paid so that they can have fun at the beach, buy the latest bargain, have a day off from work. That's what you see out there." He gestured again to all the graves behind them, and then turned and walked off.
. . . . .
Sam looked at Ralph with a scowl on his face. "You know, everything he said was true. What do you know about the man?"
"Nothing really official. You know how SEAL ops go. But I heard that he was one of the ones that went in on Red Wings II in Kunar Province in Afghanistan."
"Wasn't that a recovery operation?"
"Yeah. Seal Team 10 really took a beating on the original Red Wings operation. Of the twelve guys they sent out, only one came back alive."
"And Red Wings II went to bring everyone home?"
"Yeah."
"I see what you mean about a special kind of hell. I hope he is at the base tomorrow. I want to personally thank him for his service, especially for bringing the heroes home."
"You know, we don't come home, until everybody can come home. Never leave a teammate in the field, dead or alive. That's the SEAL Warrior Creed."
Monday, Memorial Day +/- 0 || 08:00 hours
Memorial Day dawned bright and clear in San Diego. The Hanna and King family made their way to the base early enough to attend the non-denominational service. Prayers were read for all those servicemen and women who had died the past year by Christian, Jewish, and Islamic clergy.
A floral wreath was laid by a Defense Department official, and a 'missing man formation' flyover was performed by the F/A-18s off the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson that was in harbor.
Then everyone found their places for the parade. The military bands played patriotic songs. Different branches of the Navy and Marine squadrons marched and were reviewed by the base commandant. The veterans from World War II, Korea, Vietnam, Iran, and other campaigns marched in the uniforms that they wore back then, at least the ones that could still fit in those uniforms. Among the veterans were a small number of those who were disabled in combat.
. . . . .
Both Sam and Ralph were trying to find Timothy Larson, the SEAL who was interviewed on the news the night before, but they came up empty. Throughout the rest of the day, as their families visited the displays and took the tours, they looked for him. But it appeared that Larson did not make it to the base that day, and Sam began to worry about the man.
Originally, Sam had planned to fly home with his family later that day so he could go into work the next morning. His concern about a fellow SEAL caused him to change his plans. He asked Ralph if he could see Michelle and Kamran off on their flight, while he stayed over one more night.
When Ralph gave him a look that asked him what he was planning, Sam said he wanted to get Larson's address from the TV station, and see if there was anything he could do to help. He felt it was the least he could do for a fellow SEAL. Ralph assured him it would be no problem and said he was thinking of doing much the same thing himself.
Tuesday, Memorial Day + 1 || 9:30 AM
While Ralph called the TV station to find Larson's address, Sam put in a call to Hetty to explain why he would not be in the office that morning. When Hetty had heard everything that Sam told her, she gave him one of her suggestion orders to do what he could to help the man out. She also added that if Sam could think of anything that the Office of Special Projects, or her personally, could do for his friend, to let her know, and she would see that it got done. Sam thanked her and the two SEALS took off to find their brother.
Tuesday, Memorial Day + 1 || 10:15 AM
Ralph drove his car and parked near the address that he had been given by the TV station for Larson. They went to the door, looked for his name on the register, and buzzed his apartment. After several attempts, Sam decided to try to buzz the apartment that had a faded name, but also a piece of tape with the letters, MGR after it. After a few minutes, an elderly man dressed in a LA King's tee shirt and cargo shorts and slippers came to the door.
Sam looked at him and decided to show him his badge. "I'm agent Sam Hanna, NCIS, and this is my partner, Ralph King. We're looking for Timothy Larson, We tried buzzing his room, but he doesn't answer."
"And he won't," the manager answered. "I got orders yesterday to terminate his lease immediately."
"Who told you to do that?" Sam asked as he tried to control his anger.
"The owners. They didn't like his interview on the news. Said it would bring nothing but trouble for them. Trouble that they didn't want and didn't need."
"So where did he go?" Sam's words were almost a growl as his anger was getting greater.
"I have no clue. The last I saw of him he had all his stuff packed into a shopping cart and he was headed toward the center of the city."
Ralph swore later that if the manager had been standing outside the door, Sam would have hauled off and hit him. He looked at Sam and spoke forcefully to him as he guided the big man away with his hand.
"Come on, Sam. There is nothing we can do here. Let's just go and see if we can find another option."
They got into the car and discussed what they were going to do.
Sam finally came to the conclusion that he needed to go back home. He would get the wonder twins to find out where Timothy Larson had gone, and turn Hetty loose on the owners and manager of the rooming house.
That would be their worst nightmare, and a day they would always remember.
A/N 3: This story is fictional - the heroism and dedication of the US Navy SEALS is not. If you want to read more about the mission described here Operation Red Wings and Operation Red Wings II, please check the (probably highly redacted) account in Wikipedia under the title OPERATION RED WINGS.