20. Cub's Help

After our breakfast, which I was first finished, I went to find my Dad. I wanted Dad to help my friend with whatever traumas in his childhood still affected him. I was just walking up wondering if he was in the sergeant's cabin once again and where he slept when I saw a blonde figure at the shooting range. I knew my Dad's style well enough to realise who it was. I walked up to the shooting range to ask him about Polar Bear. Dad stopped just before I opened my mouth to alert him that I was there. He obviously already knew that, the bloody spy.

'Hey John,' Dad greeted turning to smile softly at me.

'Hey Dad,' I said.

'You did well in the driving,' Dad said. 'If you get your turns and parking right you'll pass in no time.'

'Thanks Dad,' I said. 'But I've more or less given up.'

Dad's eyes flashed at this, 'what have I told you about giving up.'

'If there's not a way make one,' I said.

'Precisely,' Dad smiled.

'When did you learn to drive?' I asked Dad.

'When I was fifteen,' Dad said.

'That was young,' I commented.

'Teenage spy,' Dad replied.

'What do you know about Polar Bear?' I asked.

'I've read his file,' Dad replied.

'Do you know who his parents are?' I asked.

'I thought he was from an unknown abusive household,' Dad said.

'He doesn't know,' I said.

'I don't know but I'd probably need some of his DNA to find out,' Dad said. 'But it might not happen if his family isn't on my records.'

'I'll ask,' I said.

'Well you better hurry combat training,' Dad said. 'There's a surprise today.'

I didn't know or like the sound of that but I left anyway. Dad stayed by guns I could only presume that he was taking or at least helping with the shooting lessons. I got to the Combat Hall and was surprised to see Uncle Ben and Aunt Tamara there. I could have rolled my eyes at my damn father. His "surprise" of course was Uncle Ben and Aunt Tamara being there. Aunt Tamara was getting more odd looks that Uncle Ben being that we had never seen a female here. I wondered what they were going to teach us.

'Come in units,' Uncle Ben's familiar voice sounded.

'These are two high ranking spies,' the sergeant's voice growled. 'Fox,' he nodded towards Uncle Ben, 'and this is Vixen.'

'You know Wolfie I really hate that name,' a faded American voice retorted teasingly.

I thought the name was apt considering she was married to Uncle Ben. It seemed the others had understood considering that Uncle Ben and Aunt Tamara's chemistry was obvious. Wolf seemed to look between the two spies and leave. Uncle Ben and Aunt Tamara began to circle around each other on the balls of their feet. Were they really going to fight each other I wondered? I mean Aunt Tamara was a woman. Okay so was Jackie and she could beat up most boys. I thought it was probably because I had joined the army to save women like my mum that I thought this.

'Okay newbies,' called out Aunt Tamara. 'We're going to fight each other like we would enemies because on the field your enemy isn't going to care your gender, your age, whether you're tired or injured, they're going to kill you. And you should treat them the same because I am also going to show why you should never underestimate a girl.'

I could have laughed Aunt Tamara suddenly sounded so much like Jackie. I supposed she could have easily have gotten it from Aunt Tamara being the only woman in her life since she was seven was bound to have some affect on her even if it hadn't on Helen. Aunt Tamara's eyes were twinkling mischievously almost flirtatiously at her husband. Ben's dark eyes were cold and emotionless as though he couldn't – or more likely wouldn't – see his wife for who she was. I was holding my breath with the rest of my comrades.

'It's not right, he shouldn't be fighting a woman,' muttered Lion.

Uncle Ben seemed reluctant to start the fight. I guessed it was because however he acted this woman was his wife. This woman was the girl he had fallen for. This woman was the woman he had married. This was the woman who had born and birthed his son and only child. I didn't blame him in the slightest for being unable to fight her. Aunt Tamara, however, had no such qualms about hitting out at her husband. Well we had always known who had always worn the pants in that relationship. Not that Benjamin Daniels would ever admit that his wife had the power.

Aunt Tamara did a round house quick that ended up in Ben's groin. He groaned and fell to the floor. Aunt Tamara laughed at this. Well I always knew that she liked to torment men. How Uncle Ben had managed to survive being married to Tamara Daniels once Knight I did not know. She liked Ian, Alex and I but despair if we ever even hinted at saying anything slightly chauvinistic they would be all but murdered. I now supposed that Aunt Tamara had killed before. How my views on my family had changed.

'And that is why you do not underestimate women,' smirked Aunt Tamara.

Aunt Tamara helped Uncle Ben off the floor not showing a lot of sympathy for her husband's family jewels. If this was how she often treated her husband there was little wonder that they had only had one child. Plus Aunt Tamara was too much of a career woman to spend off on maternity leave for more than once. She was just a typical spy I supposed. I now realised that I had grown up surrounded by spies on all sides. Family secrets were mad weren't they? Aunt Tamara then turned to see us gaping at her.

'Now I want to see how you Brits fight,' laughed Aunt Tamara.

We didn't hesitate to start not particularly wanting to get on Aunt Tamara's bad side (and get our privates mutilated by the crazy spy). There was nothing worse to any man than that threat. I faced off with Bat which I won of course. After the combat lesson I went to catch up with Polar Bear to tell about what Dad had said beforehand about finding out about his family. I hoped that whoever had hurt my friend would face the hell that they so deserved. Polar Bear was in a hurry to get to lunch probably because he had been beaten by Dog somehow.

'Polar Bear,' I called.

'Tiger,' grunted Polar Bear.

I glanced around, 'I talked to dad,' I said.

'Good,' Polar Bear said shortly.

'He said he'd look into it,' I said. 'But he'd need a bit of your DNA.'

'Later,' growled Polar Bear.

And true enough that night after an afternoon of learning pressure points from another SAS man from Dad's units called Snake, Polar Bear and I had arrived back at our cabin first. He pulled out some of his greying, dirty blonde hair. He shoved it into my hands without as much as a word. Two seconds later Dog and Bat entered laughing. Polar Bear and I decided to pretend that it had never happened. I didn't want to lose the little friendship I had with Polar Bear and it was obvious that Polar Bear didn't trust those two.

The next day we had trained with the sergeant who had taken us parachute jumping. I was just glad that none of us had been injured in the fall. I knew that Bird of D Unit hadn't returned from being flown to the hospital since his fall yesterday. Then we had Snake again who taught us about edible plants and poisons from countries that we might find ourselves in. After lunch we had "fun" swimming again. However, it wasn't as bad considering it was the afternoon. Dad joined in and I saw the scars that Dad always concealed whilst at home.

No wonder he had never gone swimming with us. I thought he had been allergic to chlorine or something because he always enjoyed swimming in the sea. I now realised that was because you could wear a wetsuit in the sea whereas it would look odd in the swimming pool. There was a bullet wound just above his heart. I could see it was not just a shooting but a sniper attack. I was faced with the fact that people wanted my Dad dead that badly and it made me sick to the stomach. It reminded me of Mum's death.

No wonder he tried to protect us so much from what he did. He had been tortured at some point in time if the black burns, whip marks and various other assorted injuries were to go by. He had an old knife wound on his calf. There were burns in a pattern of exclamations marks all up his back and a few more new burns on his arms. I could see that he had another bullet wound on his right arm and a few bullet grazes. Nobody else seemed worried about this but it terrified me. How many times had I almost lost my second parent? Why did Dad to this? Was it for the same reason that I thought? With these thoughts in mind I stayed behind as everyone else went to get some dinner.

'Hey, Dad,' I greeted.

'Tiger,' Dad smiled at me.

'How did you get all those injuries?' I asked.

'Spying is a risky business,' Dad said.

'Have you been tortured?' I gulped.

'Oh too many times,' Dad said with a haunted look in his eyes.

I gulped, 'and shot?' I asked.

'So has Dog,' Dad said softly.

'Not in the heart,' I muttered.

'Two centimetres above,' Dad corrected.

'Isn't it time for you to come off the field?' I asked.

'This old man isn't done yet,' Dad retorted.

'I got you some of Polar Bear's hair,' I said.

'Good I'll get back to you in a few days time,' Dad said.

'Well, see you,' I said and walked back off to eat with my unit.

I wanted another father/son moment and I wanted to expand on Polar Bear's past in this chapter. Ben and Tamara are in it too. What do you think of name Vixen for Tamara? I chose it because a Vixen is a female fox and she is married to Fox. I wasn't sure what kind of code names they would use in the CIA. I hope you liked it. There's only going to be one more chapter after this.