A/N: So to recap: As I have been told, I am the their of joy. Anna miscarries and yeah, I shot at Kristoff and Sven's chopper. Thanks to all my followers and Tumblr family. I really appreciate the love and hate mail when I make shit bad...
Chapter 13: Rescuing the Rescuers
The helicopter spun despite Kristoff's training to keep it in the air. The lush African jungle was getting closer and closer to them. "Brace for impact!" Kristoff shouted. He reached for the photos of his family to tuck them into his pocket. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Sven do the same thing. He looped his arms through the seat harness and held the stick steady, trying to lessen the force of the impact. He managed to crash-land the helicopter on it's side, his side, to protect his best friend. He heard a snap and felt pain shoot up his leg.
"Well, that's the best landing we've made in months," Sven said, groaning. He pulled himself out of his seat and reached for the crash kit. "You okay buddy?"
"Define okay," Kristoff said. He didn't dare look down at his leg. He knew it had to be broken or worse. The damage to the chopper was mostly on Kristoff's side. Sven, barely banged up crawled over to his best friend and surveyed the carnage. Kristoff's left femur was sticking. The whole left side of his body was mangled and bruised.
"Oh man. Flagg's going to be pissed you broke the new radio," Sven said, keeping the mood light.
"Not as mad when I tell him it was attached to the new helicopter," Kristoff said. "Ow. Short breaths."
"Run it down for me, buddy."
"Pretty sure about a broken femur, possible rib fractures, concussion and pretty sure I can't feel my left arm," Kristoff said, groaning as Sven tried to move him. "Yeah, let's not do that." He still had his helmet on and with it the radio. "Hawk Seven to Command, come in Command." All he could get was static. "Did the rescue beacon go off?"
"I think it did just before we ate jungle," Sven said. "The secondary team should be right behind us. What you'd go and crash on your side for? Coral's going to kill me if you don't get home in one piece."
"For a second there, I forgot that I had someone waiting for me to come home to. The second I banked left to save you her face, man. Her face..."
"I know buddy. You gotta hold on ok. Think of Anna and the kids. Kristoff! Damn it, dude, don't you fall asleep on me!" Sven shook his friend smacking him in the face. "Dude, if you die and Coral kills me for it, I am so going to kick your ass in heaven for all eternity."
Kristoff let out a cough and a groan. "Get off my ribs, jerk."
"Don't do that!"
Overhead they could hear another set of choppers coming. Out of the sky dropped several rescue squad guys and their gear. They made quick work of getting Kristoff out of his mangled state. Sven assisted the best he could but his own shoulder was strained in the crash. They got Kristoff's leg set and his other broken bones before loading him in a cage and lifting him out to the hovering chopper. From there he was rushed to a field hospital in Kinshasa, the closest major city to them. From there he was taken into surgery and airlifted to Ramstein Air Base in Germany.
Two uniformed men departed a black SUV parked in front of Anna's home. She was in the kitchen having just put Astrid down for a nap. August and Krista were at the table doing their homework. Coral was due any moment. The door bell rang and Anna went to answer the door. Her breath caught at the sight of the two men in uniform standing at her door.
"Mrs. Captain Kristoff Andrew Bjorgman?" the first man asked.
"Yes?"
"Ma'am, my name is Major Frank Potter and this is my colleague Major Wilson O'Reilly," Major Potter said. "May we please speak with you?"
Anna waved them inside and into the living room. She pulled the pocket doors to keep the children from hearing the conversation. She sat down in Kristoff's chair and prepared herself to be a widow. The only reason for them to be there is that he was dead. Kristoff was dead.
"Mrs. Bjorgman, ma'am, your husband, Captain Kristoff Bjorgman was injured in a helicopter crash in the Democratic Republic of Congo around 1800 hours yesterday. Since then, he received emergency care in the city of Kinshasa and was then flown to Ramstein Air Base in Germany where the best doctors in the Air Force are working on him," Major Potter said.
"He's not dead?" Anna breathed.
"No ma'am," Major O'Reilly said. "Captain Bjorgman suffered a open femoral fracture, several broken ribs, a concussion and both bones in his left arm and dislocated the shoulder on his left side."
"He's hurt but not gone," Anna said again.
"Yes ma'am. While he is injured his injuries are severe enough that we have been authorized by our commanding officer that you and your children will be given a military escort to Germany to reunite you with Captain Bjorgman."
"I don't have passports for myself or my children or the money to travel to Germany right now."
"Mrs. Bjorgman, you are the wife of a highly decorated officer in the United States Air Force. This is standard procedure. Now tomorrow morning, you'll be flown from Fort McEntire to Ramstein Air Base in Germany. You'll be given an apartment in Officer's quarters near the hospital for the duration of your stay at Ramstein and an enlisted man to drive you wherever you need to go on base," Major Potter said. He handed Anna an itinerary with a copy of the orders for their travel to Germany.
"I don't need all this. Really, I'm no one important," Anna said, taking in all of the information.
"Ma'am, you are important to a highly decorated officer in the United States Air Force, therefore you are very important to us."
"I can't leave tomorrow. I have to make arrangements with my work and my son's school.'/p
"A Marnie Johannsen, I believe she is the wife of an enlisted man in your husband's squad, who works in administration has made a few calls on your behalf. Everything is taken care of, ma'am," Major O'Reilly said. "I will be traveling with you and your children to Germany, to act as your escort and sponsor until your husband is able to do so."
"Thank you. When are we leaving?"
"If you can be ready in two hours we can get you on the next flight," Major Potter said. "If not we will be on the two-thirty flight in the morning."
Anna looked at the closed door and tried to figure out how she was going to tell August that his father was hurt. "Would you gentlemen mind if I brought my son in to speak with you? I don't really know how to tell him all this without frightening him," Anna said.
"Of course ma'am," Major Potter said.
Anna stood up and went into the kitchen where Krista and August were doing their homework. Coral should be there soon. She knew her friend would fly in a panic at the sight of the government SUV parked outside the house. Anna needed to make sure she was calm and collected enough to explain what's going on. "What about Captain Olson? Is he okay? His daughter is in the next room with my son. I can't tell my son his father's hurt without mentioning Sven."
"Captain Olson only suffered minor injuries in the crash," Major Potter said. "He remained in Kinshasa and will return to his squad when released."
How was Kristoff the only one to sustain major injuries? "Can you tell me anything about the crash?"
"No ma'am, I cannot," Major Potter said. "All I am authorized to tell you is that your husband is in serious condition and that his co-pilot sustained minor injuries."
Anna nodded and went into the kitchen to get August. "Come in the living room with me, kids," Anna said. "There are some men here from Kris and Sven's squad that need to talk to us."
"Is Daddy alright?" Krista asked, fear and tears filled her eyes.
"Sven's all right honey," Anna said, pulling the little girl into her arms. "But Kris is really hurt."
"Dad…" August said, his voice timid and scared.
"ANNA! ANNA!" Coral's voice shouted through the house, the front door slamming shut. "ANNA!"
"In the kitchen!" Anna answered, going out to meet her friend.
"If everyone would like to come into the living room, we can explain everything," Major Potter said, standing to greet the newcomer.
Three hours later Anna was on a plane with her two children, leaving the US for the first time. Anna had never flown before and she was scared. Their escort, Major O'Reilly assured her that they were on the safest plane in the world, flown by the best pilots in the world and that there was nothing to worry about. August on the other hand was having the time of his life. He pestered Major O'Reilly with dozens of questions. The pilots let him come into the cockpit. It was a little boy's dream come true.
"Mama, this plane is so big!" August said when he came back to her a few hours later. A sergeant had taken him on a tour of the plane and kept him occupied during the very long flight. Anna tried to sleep but the fear and worry for Kristoff was too great. They kept telling her that he was in serious condition. Serious to Anna meant he could be dead by the time they got to him. Astrid fussed from her seat. Anna dug in the diaper bag to make her a bottle to calm her down. A bottle wouldn't sustain her for long and trying to feed Astrid while strapped in her carseat for safety reasons was difficult. After feeding her children and taking a much needed nap she finally felt the plane start to descend.
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"Mrs. Bjorgman, we should be landing in Ramstein in about twenty minutes," Major O'Reilly said, shaking her shoulder. "A car will be waiting to take us to quarters. A nanny has been dispatched and will be at your beck and call for your time while you are here. She will meet you at quarters."
"Thank you but I would really like to just see my husband," Anna said. "My mind has been running an endless screenings of the worst case scenarios."
"Yes ma'am. I will have the car take you straight to Landstuhl."
The plane landed and Anna and her children were escorted to a waiting SUV and taken into K-Town, as the service men called the town that surround Ramstein Air Base. The base was it's own city. Major O'Reilly had told her that it has on any given day nearly 16,000 members of the US Armed Forces coming and going from it. Base life had that small town feel but a lot noisier with all the planes coming and going. The pulled up in front of the hospital. Major O'Reilly escorted the family to the floor where Kristoff was. He was on his phone and was directing the nanny he had hired for Anna to come to the hospital.
Major O'Reilly stayed with Astrid and August while Anna went in first to see Kristoff. The whole left side of his body was covered in casts and bandages. Tubing and bagged medicine and blood flowed into his right hand from the IV. He appeared to be sleeping. She softly closed the door and backed out.
"Mama, I want to see Dad," August said, a big yawn overtaking him.
"In the morning, sweetheart," Anna said. "Dad's sleeping right now."
"Mrs. Bjorgman, this is Greta," Major O'Reilly said, introducing an older woman to her. "She will be assisting you with your children while here in Germany. And this is Corporal Stan Burns, he'll be your driver."
"If you don't mind Major, I'd like to take my children to their beds so they can get some sleep. It's been a very long and emotional day for us all."
"Yes ma'am, of course."
The corporal took her diaper bag and August's hand and they went out the doors and back to the car. Once they were settled in their quarters, Anna, unable to sleep, asked Greta to watch her children so she could go back to the hospital for a bit. The older German woman smiled and patted her hand.
"Frau Bjorgman, not my first time watching little ones of officers," she said, her accent thick and her English broken.
She and the corporal drove back to Landstuhl and Anna went back up to Kristoff's room. He was still asleep. Anna climbed into the hospital bed with Kristoff, carefully avoiding the left side of his body. She could barely see the gold band on his hand from all the bandages and casts.
"I should be furious at you for scaring us all like this," she whispered to the sleeping man. "But it's hard to angry with someone when they're in a half body cast."
"Anna? I must be dreaming," Kristoff mumbled, starting to wake up. "Anna? Anna?"
"I'm here baby. Kris, I'm here," Anna whispered, tenderly caressing his bare cheek. "I'm here and you're going to be okay."