"You must be tired."
Mac looked up at the young man and smiled. She almost had to strain to hear him, his voice was so soft, and it seemed to be blown away by the harsh Afghan wind. "I am, though I was able to sleep a bit on the plane."
"Master Corporal, you will show the Colonel her barracks, then we will meet in my office over dinner." General Stuart said shaking his head at the young soldier. "And go get cleaned up Christopher. I expect you two there in 30 minutes."
A grin broke the young man's face revealing dimples that were well hidden by the dirt, dust, sweat, grime and pain. "Aye aye sir." With a quick jerk of his head he started off towards the 'shanty town'. Makeshift barracks lined up side by side, a scar in the normally bare Afghan countryside. They passed through the dusty 'street' until they reached the far end.
"It's not...the greatest...I'm sorry Ma'am, it's probably not what you're used to." Corporal Christopher said, his face downcast staring at the dirt on his boots. "There's a tarp between the two racks Ma'am...and I...well...stole some boxes and shelves for you. And Private Howe was nice enough to donate her homemade closet." He opened the door and ushered her to the end of the building.
A tarp hanging from the wooden roof separated the room into two. The first was as immaculate as it could be in a war torn country. "This is my side...Colonel." He blushed and pushed the tarp aside. "This is yours."
Compared to his side of the barrack, hers was full of as many amenities as allowed. A makeshift closet was in one corner, a desk in the other. A cot, noticeably wider than his, was in the middle of the room. A large canteen sat on the edge of her bed.
"I filled up your canteen full of water Ma'am. I thought you might be thirsty...but if I overstepped my boundaries Ma'am...Colonel...please tell me. I'm...not used to working with...uh...a partner." He smiled shyly.
"Thanks Corporal, it's great. And...when we're not with our superiors...you can call me Mac." She placed her bags on the bed and smiled.
"Okay Ma'am...I mean Mac. You get comfortable, I have 21 minutes to shower and take you to the General's office. But...if you want...you can call me Sean... Excuse me Ma—ac." He took a few things from his side of the room and disappeared. Mac laid down on her cot and sighed. The warm air stuck to her like a cheap blanket. What seemed like seconds later, but was really 18 minutes, Mac opened her eyes. The smell of freshly washed skin and a male body wash filled her senses. Sean poked his head around the tarp.
"Sorry Mac, I was going to wake you. We have less than two minutes to make it to the General's office before he blows his lid." His face was clean of dust and sweat showing a handful of freckles that stood out against his pale skin, the shower took years off his look. Before he looked 22. Now he looked like an oversized schoolboy.
"It's alright Sean, I didn't realize I was that tired." She sat up and rubbed her eyes. "We should get going before, like you said, the General blows his lid."
She was rewarded with a smile and allowed Sean to hold the tarp aside for her and quickly left their barrack. "I expect the General to have the food in his office already Ma'am." Sean said leading the way across the town. They stood at attention in front of the General's office after knocking loudly on the outside frame.
"ENTER."
"Master Corporal Sean Christopher and Colonel Sarah Mackenzie reporting as ordered, sir." Sean said, his body stiff at attention in front of his Commanding officer.
"At ease. Come on in, the food is here. And I'm impressed, here with time to spare." General Stuart said motioning to the table that held the food.
"Here with 28 seconds to spare." Sean said softly, holding the door open for Mac until she was inside the building. He waited until they were at the table before pulling the chair out for Mac and unceremoniously throwing himself on the chair beside her. He muttered a few words to himself under closed eyes before digging into the plate in front of him. "It's not as bad as it looks." He explained to Mac who just stared at the boy shoveling down the rations.
"Are you two up for a trip to the Zhari district?" General Stuart asked poking the food on his plate. "We just lost three soldiers there and we need to figure out what the hell happened."
Sean's jaw tightened. "When do you want us to leave sir?" His eyes narrowed and his movements became more and more erratic and stiff.
"Not for a few days Corporal. We still need to secure the area." The General chewed thoughtfully on his mouthful before turning to Mac. "You've done translating before, haven't you Colonel?"
"Yes sir." She took a small mouthful of the rice and meat in front of her. "Whenever you say it is safe for us to go, I'm ready. I'll just need to read over the file to catch myself up."
"That can be arranged." General Stuart looked at the young Master Corporal who was glaring at the food on his plate and stabbing it with an unnecessary amount of force. "Corporal, once you're done with your meal, you can take the Colonel back and show her where all of the computers are set up."
"Yes sir." Sean replied mopping the rest of his food with the day old roll he held in his hand. He looked over at Mac who had picked out all of the peas out of her meal and was finishing her meal. "I'm ready whenever you are Ma'am."
Harm frowned at the TV in the bullpen. 3 coalition soldiers were killed in Afghanistan, another 6 injured. These just weren't car bombs anymore; they were getting more and more sophisticated. And dangerous. He watched the newscast, a sick feeling sticking in the bottom of his stomach as the newscaster spoke about a JAG marine and translator being brought over to help the coalition troops. He stopped listening and stormed over to his office and slammed the door. People would be looking at the closed door, exchanging worried glances, or maybe whispering about him. And he really couldn't care less. His computer screen blinked, notifying him of an unopened email. He smiled when he saw who it was from.
To: HarmonRabb .gov
From: SarahMackenzie .gov
Subject: Made it here
Hey Sailor,
I made it here safe and sound. Met my new 'partner' and he's exactly what I envision you to be at 22, but I won't hold it against him. Got all my stuff settled and got a chance to steal the Internet. We were just given the file on the bombing in the Zhari district. Once they get everything secured we're going to go in and check things out. Let everyone know that I'm all right.
Apparently, I'm supposed to go watch Sean (that is the Master Corporal's name) go "kick some ass" on the street hockey rink tonight.
I will get a hold of you whenever I can.
Stay safe Flyboy. Miss you.
Mac
Harm let go of the breath he didn't even realize he was holding. He re-read the email a few times, waiting for his heart to stop palpitating. She was safe. That was his main concern. Sarah Mackenzie was safe.
"Hey buddy, what's wrong? You look like you're having a heart attack."
Tearing his eyes away from the computer screen Harm looked up at the smiling face of Sturgis Turner. "Nah...just reading an email from Mac. She made it to Afghanistan safe and sound." He forced a fake smiled and wiped his sweaty palms on his pants.
"Want to grab a bite to eat?" Sturgis asked softly, watching his friend struggle to regain his composure. "I'll even buy."
Harm fought to swallow the lump in his throat. "S-sure. Can you give me 15? I'm going to reply to Mac's email. Anything you want to say?"
Sturgis smiled. "Just tell her to stay safe and that I'm watching your six. See you in 15." He walked out of Harm's office shaking his head slightly.
To: SarahMackenzie .gov
From: Harmonrabb .gov
Subject: Puck bunny!
Hey Marine,
Glad to hear you got there safe and sound. Your new partner sounds like quite the guy. Tall, dark, handsome and smartest guy around. Lucky you. Sturg says to stay safe and that he's watching my six. So make sure you have someone watching yours. So are you going to become the Canadian's new puck bunny? You may have to explain the finer points of the barbaric sport when you get back.
I miss you too, stay safe out there.
Love Harm
His finger hovered over the send button before he finally decided to press it. He watched as the email got sent into the expanses of cyberspace, hopefully reaching the intended recipient.
Mac finally understood why Canadians loved the sport so much. Even on asphalt and in a war torn country, with artillery bombs instead of crowds, the game was full of passion and portrayed the weekend Lemeiuxs and Gretzkys.
She spread the file out on her cot, listening to the constant chatter from the other barracks. The light flickered from the other side of the tarp and the sounds of plastic wrappers rustling made her stop. Sean knocked on the inside of the wall.
"Safe to come in?"
"Sure."
The larger Master Corporal slid onto her side of the room, his hands behind his back. "Pick a hand." He noticed her worried look and grinned. "Just do it." Once she chose a hand, Sean dumped the contents on her bed. Powdered juice mix, candies, breadsticks and peanut butter and a chocolate bar.
"My family sends great care packages." He explained, opening his chocolate bar and throwing the wrapper in the garbage beside her bed.
Mac smiled. "You don't have to. It is your stuff."
"Take it. I have tubs of it." He leaned against the wall. "How's reading over the file?"
Mac opened the chocolate bar and broke a piece off before placing it in her mouth. "You knew the soldiers didn't you."
Sean nodded and chewed the chocolate. "I did. All of them." He stared at her, his defensive wall building. "You're not going to stop me from helping because of it, are you…Ma'am?"
"No. I just need to make sure that your emotions won't get in the way of an investigation. We're here to help."
"You DON'T think I know that…Ma'am?" She watched as his face turned hard, colour rising from his tan tshirt. "I KNOW we're here to help…but…Ma'am…we're getting shot at, getting blown up…we have to find out SOMETHING. Find out who told the Taliban where we were going…and that they were the least protected." His voice dropped to a whisper. "Ma'am…Mac. I was the leader of the convoy. If anything I should have been the one who was blown up, not them." He looked down at his hands. "I'm…going to go to bed."
"Master Corporal…Sean. Tomorrow…I need you to help me answer some questions. And thanks. For all of this."
He shrugged and ducked underneath the tarp. His soft voice could be heard throughout the barracks, muttering words that only he could understand.
"You miss her." Sturgis said, watching his friend peel the label off the beer bottle in front of him.
"Yeah. I do." He stared out the window. "Thanks."
"For what?"
"Just being a friend Sturg. I know I can be an ass, so thanks for putting up with me."
"That's what friends do." He watched his friend, wading through his own personal hell, both men too proud to be the first to break.