Author's note: Been trying to brush up on my language skills during the holidays, heheh, but haven't really been succeeding so far. I know this chapter is late…hope you will enjoy it all the same. :)

Chapter 10

"Mummy, when is Daddy going to come back?" A small hand tugged at a corner of her apron, and Evelyn Johnson looked down into the innocent eyes of her son. He had the same soft brown eyes as his father, Evelyn thought wistfully. She really hoped she would get to see him again someday.

Since Danny Walker Jr. was born, she had shared with him the few photos she had of his father, just to make sure that he knew who his father was. Rafe had agreed to this, and Evelyn loved him all the more for his understanding. Danny Walker Jr had been asking for his father ever since he learnt to talk, and he was almost two years old now.

Bending down, she smiled at her son. "Your Uncle Rafe has gone off to look for him, honey, and I'm sure Daddy will come back this time."

"You said that the last time too."

Evelyn gathered him in her arms and hugged him. Danny buried his head in her shoulder. "I want Daddy to come back."

Patting him on the back, Evelyn sighed. "I know, honey." So do I.

Danny had left so that he would not intrude on their lives anymore, but both Rafe and Evelyn knew that he would always have a part in it. In fact, they wanted him to be a part of their lives, but Danny was the only one who couldn't see that. He thought they would want him to leave, for goodness sake.

The last letter Rafe sent told her that he had completed the training, and would be carrying out the mission shortly. There had been no mention of Danny. She hoped Rafe would be able to find him someday.

A small hopeful voice piped up. "When is Uncle Rafe coming back?"

"Any more questions? Alright, come on boys, let's go. " With a clap, the general dismissed the pilots from the briefing room. The planes were due to take off within half an hour.

Danny and Rafe walked up to where their planes were parked. Holding up his hand, Rafe said, "Land of the Free."

Danny grinned, and gave him a high five. "Home of the Brave."

"Compared with what we have been doing so far, this shouldn't be too hard." Rafe commented.

"Just pick up the guys and we will be off home." Danny shrugged. "Sure, shouldn't be too hard."

"Still, be careful, alright?"

"I will."

Soon, the noisy whirring of engines filled the air and two planes took off.

The general had explained the need to keep the number of planes on the mission small, because they needed to be as inconspicuous as possible to prevent being discovered by the Japanese. Each plane was only manned by a skeleton crew of four people, to make more space for the ten pilots they would have to evacuate. If they were discovered…Danny tried not to think of what would happen. He was thankful that he had Rafe by his side. With the two of them, they could get out of almost anything. Almost. Well, he always liked a challenge.

After fifteen minutes, Danny glanced at the receiver, and started worrying. The pilots they were supposed to evacuate were flying planes fixed with signal transmitters, but no signal has been received so far, and China was getting nearer.

Another five minutes passed. Still no signal…

Finally! Danny breathed a sigh of relief as the receiver blinked green. For a second, he almost thought none of those ten pilots had made it.

"Got that, Danny?" Rafe's voice came over the radio.

"Yeah, I got it, Rafe."

"Seems like they are down by the beach."

"Just like old times." Danny said wryly. During the Doolittle Raid, both he and Rafe had encountered Japanese soldiers when they had to land in China, and it had been by the beach as well.

The two planes landed at the Chinese air base there, and the pilots got off. They gathered for a last minute discussion.

"Anyone still unclear of the objectives of the mission?" Rafe asked, and everyone shook their heads. "Great. The eight of us moving around in a group might draw attention, and if the Japanese catch us, we're dead, so we scatter, ok? Move around in pairs, and cover for each other. Get those boys, and we'll be out of here. Alright then, we move out."

As they moved off in pairs, Danny smiled. "Let's go get them, Rafe."

"You mean those pilots, or the Japanese?"

Danny groaned. "I was kind of hoping we won't meet up with the Japanese."

As they neared the beach, Rafe elbowed Danny, and whispered urgently, "Is it just me, or is there a Japanese patrol right up ahead?"

Danny had been looking around for signs of Japanese soldiers at the sides, and when he looked up, sure enough, there was a Japanese patrol a few metres ahead of them. There were about ten soldiers in that patrol, and Danny gritted his teeth. Eight against ten. Not very good odds, but thankfully, they had surprise on their side. The Japanese patrol had their backs to them, and Danny intended to keep it that way.

The other pairs had seen the patrol as well and had gotten their guns ready. Rafe gave the signal, and they all moved forward silently. Counting silently under his breath, Danny aimed and fired when he got to three. Seven other gunshots rang out, and five of the Japanese soldiers fell. It was quite an achievement, considering they did not have any communication between them to synchronize their attack.

The remaining Japanese soldiers panicked, and a few of them managed to fire some shots before they were shot down. The pilots reloaded their guns and moved off at a faster speed. Someone was bound to have heard those gunshots, and another patrol would soon be on the way. They did not have much time left.

Some distance ahead, close to the beach, they saw the remains of a plane, but several shots rang out before they could get any nearer, and the pilots had to dive for cover.

"Hold your fire! We are Americans!" Rafe yelled. The firing stopped, and someone peered cautiously from behind the plane. Seeing that the newcomers were indeed Americans, he breathed a sigh of relief.

"Thank goodness you are here. I almost thought you people had forgotten about us."

Danny stared. "Kyle?"

Surprised, Kyle Delt looked at Danny. "Hey, didn't know you were coming." Then his voice became more serious. "A few of us are injured though, we need to get them out of here as soon as possible."

Nodding, Danny followed as the other pilots went around the plane. There were only five people there, counting Kyle. Before he could ask, Kyle pointed ahead. "The other one went down over there."

"We'll take that one." Rafe said. "See you back at the Chinese base." Giving them a wave, he moved off with his crew.

There were two injured pilots, and Danny and his crew managed to get them back to the base without encountering any Japanese soldiers along the way. Just as Danny was getting worried, Rafe's group got back to the base as well. The pilot Rafe was supporting seemed to be in a pretty bad shape. Most of his face was covered in blood, and he was leaning heavily on Rafe. It gave Danny quite a shock when he recognized the pilot as Ryan Taylor. He hurried up to help Rafe get him into the plane. "Ryan, what happened to you?"

Ryan's eyes focused on Danny, and he forced a grin. "Just…sort of…twisted my ankle." Danny looked at his leg. It looked more broken than twisted.

Danny gave his hand a comforting squeeze. "Don't worry, we'll be back home soon." Ryan smiled, "Wake me up when we get back, ok?"

Worried, Danny nodded. He got back onto his plane and started the engines. "Don't worry, Danny, we'll get them back." Rafe radioed him.

Danny managed a smile. "Sure, we will go home together."

The two planes took off. "I'll take that as a promise."

"Huh? What?"

"As soon as this mission ends, you are coming home with me." Rafe grinned. "We'll go back to Tennessee."

"But…There's still a war going on, we can't just leave like that!"

"Oh, we can apply for a longer leave." Rafe grinned even harder. "Come on, Danny. You've got to meet your son, and I want to get married."

"You mean, they are in Tennessee?"

"They will be."

"Oh." Danny paused. "Alright then."

"Ha! You said it, no denying when we get back."

"Oh shut up Rafe. The mission isn't even over yet."

Hope you enjoyed this chapter!