Real Team One, Angel of Death & Rescue Sam
Seven Weeks After Explosion – SRU HQ – Briefing Room
This week had been awesome so far Leo thought. The team that he was told about did exist. Although they were still not completely themselves given the circumstances but they were dealing much better with it now. Each still had some bad moments and he saw they all continued to covertly leave little notes in Sam's locker.
They had just finished debrief for the day. That last call had been pure adrenaline rush from start to finish. He had loved it, reminded him of SF missions. Leo replayed parts of it in his head.
"Team One Hot Call suspected bomb at the CN tower" Winnie had called out.
"What details do we have?" Sarge asked confidently as they all had geared up.
All the way there information mixed with joking banter flew back and forth over the headsets. Spike almost seemed giddy about using Babycakes as they rolled up to the scene.
Greg took immediate control of the scene communicating with the first responders and the building security. Ed called out roles but everyone had already moved out to execute said roles like they knew what Ed was going to assign. Only he had waited to hear his role. No need for a sniper Leo was directed to help with clearing the building.
Leo had moved floor to floor clearing along with Wordy, Ed and Leah. Jules was in the truck pulling up video feeds to try and identify who may have left it while Spike moved into the basement to assess the bomb.
Spike had stayed far away from the bomb as he maneuvered Babycakes close to do the bomb sniffing for him. Babycakes didn't find any hint of explosives. So Spike had moved in to do a visual inspection and that's when everything went into overdrive.
"Boss, we have a big problem. I've seen this type of bomb before. It's unique, sending you all a picture of it. Boss I think we need to contact the General. Going to check for more of them before touching this one" Spike had called out.
"Spike are you saying it is the same as in the warehouse?" Ed had asked and Spike responded yes.
Wordy had given him a look of this is bad, real bad then said "We need everyone out now. Move it now."
"Jules, anything on the video feeds?" Sarge had called out.
She had replied that she has narrowed it down time wise to two men and she was running their faces through recognition software to see if they could figure out who they were dealing with. He then told her to contact the General directly.
Jules called and informed the General of the situation. He connected her to a guy named Cameo. She sent him the video captures of the man. Within minutes he had returned with names and better pictures. They were dealing with known terrorists with new explosives. They were looking for Abdullah Nania and Donesh Rostami.
Both had entered the country under aliases six days ago. Cameo found out because Abdullah had been flagged as a suspicious entry and taken to second level where they had captured his photo. Then the guy had quickly reviewed the entry tapes at the same time and located his accomplice entering just before him in another line.
Greg directed Jules to send out the photo to all police in an all-points bulletin then to help with the evacuation. He directed the uniforms to move the perimeter back and to clear adjacent buildings.
"Boss, I see them they are in the crowd on the west side watching" Jules had called out as she left the truck.
Uniforms were directed to take over the evacuation while the rest of them minus Spike and Sarge covertly surrounded and apprehended them. Donesh struggled a lot but Wordy quickly took him down with a smooth move. Abdullah just gave up with no fight at all.
Spike had called out for assistance "Boss, there are three of them. Best I can determine they are based on the model Sam described. They are using the multi-tapping timers he told me about. They are identical in design. We have twelve minutes to defuse them. I need two others to help."
Leo had asked Leah what Spike meant by multi-tapping timers since everyone but he seemed to understand the severity of what Spike was indicating. Leah explained it meant that if one was defused the timers on the others would automatically drop to sixty seconds. They needed to disarm them simultaneously based on what Sam had told Spike about them.
"Ed, Wordy go help Spike" Sarge had ordered.
Leo had grabbed Ed's arm a moment "Ed I have lots of experience with bombs from my time in SF. Perhaps I should go instead of you or Wordy."
Ed had agreed and instructed Wordy to stay and guard the subjects with Leah.
As they headed in Leo could hear Sarge and Jules begin to question the subjects. They refused to speak English or even acknowledge Jules existed. Jules had covertly gotten on the phone with the General again and was put in touch with someone called Russ. She set it up so he could listen in and convey to her what they were saying.
According to this Russ guy Abdullah rambled on scared while Donesh kept telling him to be quiet or he would kill him right here and now. Abdullah asked why. It isn't like they can even understand me. I could tell where we were staying and who we work for and they would never know. He had to stop listening to that as he and Ed reached the basement.
Leo was impressed by Spike's bomb defusing skills. Spike directed them step by step to methodically defuse the complex bombs. Each cut was done simultaneously as Spike counted them down. It was a nerve wracking nine minutes. Spike warned them before they cut the next to last wire not to freak when the timers dropped to sixty seconds. He explained which would be the last wire they would need to cut. Spike counted it out and they cut both wires in succession on his counts.
They were drenched in sweat as they each removed the explosives which were inert without detonators. He had never seen an explosive like that. Similar to C4 but more like the consistency of silly putty and had no odor at all. High fives were made all around in that basement. Ed and he gathered the gear while Spike handled the explosives.
While they were working the Abdullah idiot didn't realize he had given away their hotel location thinking no one could understand him. Jules, Wordy and Leah were sent to the location. They had found more of the explosive material and maps showing their other targets. Thank god for idiots like Abdullah.
The Sarge contacted the General and was notified a unit led by Russ would be sent to SRU HQ to take the subjects into custody and collect the explosives from them. Sarge had asked about Sam and was stonewalled. That put a slight damper on the day but only a small one.
As he watched his teammates around the table he saw the team everyone had told him about. Leo thought they handled pressure well. They each had qualities that would make them good SF soldiers if it weren't for the fact of all the killing.
Leo could see they had a very different mindset than a soldier's. They talked to save even the so called bad guys. A soldier shot to kill the bad guys with no talking.
It made Leo wonder again why a Braddock would prefer the SRU over the military. It would be interesting if he got to work with Braddock in JTF2. Leo felt a tap on the shoulder and looked up to see Jules.
"So Leo, you joining us at the Goose tonight?" Jules asked.
He nodded yes and Jules smiled.
Leo had come too really like the team but especially Jules. She was feisty but also the heart of this team. He could see that she of all of them was most affected by the missing Sam. He wondered if there wasn't something more between the two of them then just friendship.
Although there might not be either, just a tight knit team because Ed, Spike, Wordy and Greg seemed to care almost as much. He could see that Leah cared but it wasn't anywhere near the same level as the others, probably because she was new to the team.
Leo had enjoyed working with the team but he was also ready to go back to the military. All this trying to read people was making his head hurt.
Somewhere in Afghanistan – Outside Tunnel Location 1
Mason and Winds had been dropped in hostile territory three days ago. They had made it in record time to Ali Radwan's home. The man was very helpful and indicated that the last time he saw Blondie was eleven days ago. He explained how he had looked and behaved. That worried both of them a lot.
Ali also said that they saw the enormous explosion six days ago and talk had indicated that both tunnel sites were in ruins and Tahir had retreated to his old unused site. They stayed the day in his basement then headed out as soon as it was dark.
They ran fast, steady but carefully for two nights with night vision goggles. They knew they needed to be careful, if they injured themselves they could not help Blondie. They arrived at the tunnel location in predawn and did a fast recon of the site to locate a concealed spot to observe. Both wanted to go in now but they did not know the strength of force they were dealing with. They needed to have some idea; they could not afford to go in blind.
Mason and Winds both knew they needed the cover of night to get Blondie as far away as possible if it was a larger force then they could deal with. From the two videos they saw Blondie would be in no shape to travel under his own power. With that knowledge Winds indicated he would take first watch so Mason could sleep and recover. Mason settled in and instantly fell asleep knowing Winds had his back.
Around 1600 hours Winds woke Mason.
"Winds why the hell did you let me sleep so long? You need sleep too man" Mason scolded clearly upset.
Winds just looked at him and said "You're going to be doing the brunt of carrying Blondie. We both know it. You needed more sleep. I'll be okay with a couple of hours. So far I've counted a dozen men. There are usually three or four outside at a time. They rotate nearly every three hours. Last rotation just occurred. All have been armed with Uzis, hand guns and knives. Have not seen any com sets so I don't think they are linked in. I have not seen Tahir."
Mason nodded "It will be dark in three hours. I say we go in four hours. Let them think it is a quiet night before we hit. That way it will give us most the night to travel with Blondie. Based on the tunnel drawing and info on what Blaze remembered I think this chamber is where we will find Blondie."
"I was thinking the same thing. Either that one or this very back one, but I say we check the one you indicated first" Winds said pointing at the drawing.
As he folded the map and put it into the inner vest pocket Mason said "Agreed. Now get some sleep old boy. You're lookin a bit washed out."
"God I wish we had Patch with us. Not sure what shape Blondie is gonna be in. I just hope he loses consciousness and is not in too much pain. All the jostling of being carried is gonna suck for him. We could sure use Patch's help" Winds replied as he settled down to get some much needed shut eye.
Shifting to a position to watch better Mason said "I checked the medical supplies the General had packed for us. Included are several vials marked pain meds/sedative specially formulated for Hell-Froze. He remembered that Blondie is special that way."
Winds sighed with relief "Thank god for small favors." Then he laughed "Can you believe the code name they gave him. Fitting but damned funny too."
Mason laughed then said "Go to sleep already."
Winds drifted into a light sleep knowing Mason had his back and that the two of them would have Blondie out soon, if he was here. If not they would keep looking until they found him. Winds just hoped they found him in time to rescue him not recover his body. But either way they were taking Blondie home. They would never leave him here alone.
General Braddock's Home – General's Study
William Braddock sat in his leather desk chair tilted back feet up on the desk facing the large bay window but he had his eyes closed. It had been four days since Mason and Winds had left for Afghanistan. One day to travel and be dropped as close to the destination as they dared to avoid detection and then three days to make it to the tunnels. Waiting was so hard.
His wife Yvonne had known something was up long ago. His haggard condition and his lack of appetite had concerned her. He had stayed away from home for most of the last week to avoid worrying her over much.
But today she had called his office and ordered him home. When Yvonne ordered you followed it or paid a high price. Well high for him at least. He couldn't stand to have her mad at him. Her angry glares always hit him hard and he was always the first to apologize. So he had come home.
She took one look at him and had insisted he eat and sleep. He told he would eat but could not sleep. He was hoping for word on an important mission. She had backed off and told him to at least rest.
That's how he ended up in his study at 0500. He had been here all night; the half eaten sandwich she had brought him eight hours ago still sat on the corner of his desk. He should get rid of it or she would be angry he didn't eat it all. But he didn't have the energy.
A loud banging sound came from his front room as someone stormed into his house. William reacted instantly and was alert and armed in seconds. Before his study door flew open he heard his brother Ryan bellow out "Why the hell did you allow that to happen William?"
Ryan stormed into his study followed by his brothers Mark and Erik too.
Three very irate Braddock brothers glared at their eldest brother. None cared that he was armed or looked like death warmed over at the moment. After they were finished with him he was gonna wish he was dead. They were on a rampage. Jeff and Scott had finally told them the situation last night unable to keep it to themselves any longer.
Erik bellowed "Why? Tell us why you let Sam reactivate. We all know and respect how he feels about being in the military."
The commotion had alerted Yvonne and she had come flying into the room just as Erik was yelling.
Yvonne stopped in her tracks. Her normally bright green eyes landed on her husband. He made contact with her eyes and she could see the despair and the regret he felt. She gasped. What Erik just said was true, it was clearly written on her husband's face.
William first looked to his wife. He could see the hurt and shock this had caused her. Then he looked at his brothers and all he saw was pure unadulterated rage in their eyes directed to him. Not one ounce of understanding. He was a dead man if only figuratively.
He set the gun down and sank into the chair. In a despondent choked voice he said "I had no choice. It was the only option open to me to keep Samuel safe at the time. But it …"
William couldn't finish. He dropped his head into his hands.
His brothers were shaken by his behavior just now. They had seen him rage, they had seen him cry on occasion but they had never seen him broken. The utter desolation and despair in his eyes when he had looked at them slammed each of them powerfully. They also now recognized his physical state, he was close to collapsing as far as they could tell. They all wondered what the hell was going on?
Yvonne was the first to react. She went to her husband and knelt close and put her hand on his arm "Will, honey talk to me. Tell me what is going on. Did Sam really re-up and if so why?"
He turned his head to the side and looked into her eyes. William saw concern and understanding. He desperately needed that right now.
"Sweetheart, I'm so sorry. None of this is what I wanted things happened I couldn't predict. I can't tell you what is going on. I wish I could but I can't. All I can say is yes Samuel reactivated. No it's not considered a special assignment. He's stuck for five years unless he …" He couldn't finish that statement either and began to tear up and she pulled him close.
Erik, Ryan and Mark simply stared unable to fathom their big brother in this state. Something terrible must have happened. Courtesy of Scott and Jeff, they all knew there was a Priority 1 and it involved Sam. By William's state it had to be bad and it definitely involved Sam somehow.
After several moments Yvonne pulled away. "I'm going to make some coffee and bring in something to eat. You gentlemen need to talk. I mean talk. No more yelling or bellowing or shouting or any other description you want to use. I mean talk. I'll be back in a bit."
Yvonne glared at the three Braddock brothers lifting one eyebrow and said firmly "You understand me right?"
"Yes Ma'am" they all replied promptly. Every Braddock male knew never to cross or disregard a command given by a Braddock female. Their lives would be hell if they did. The women talked and if they failed to follow a command of a sister-in-law then their wife would make them pay.
When she left the brothers all took seats in chairs around the spacious room. By mutual silent agreement they all decided to wait until coffee was brought before they forced Will to talk. Until then they allowed him to sit with his head bowed and in his hands gathering his thoughts and composing himself.
Yvonne came in with a tray and all three brothers immediately rose. Mark was closest and took the tray from her and set it on the small round table. He poured one cup for her and one for each and delivered them then took his seat.
Mark calmly said "Will start talking. We understand there are things you cannot say but fill us in on what you can."
When William finished telling what he could it was a somber room.
"So there is really nothing you can do to get Sam out early or reclassify this as a special assignment?" Erik asked.
William shook his head no.
Ryan stood to refill his coffee "If there is anything any of us can do you will let us know. We are here for you all."
He then placed a comforting hand on Yvonne's shoulder. Ryan thought this woman was so strong. So much had happened to her children. Yet she endured and retained a brightness and laughter that shone. It was dulled at the moment. She was very worried for her son as they all were.
Somewhere in Afghanistan – Inside Tunnel Location 1
Sam's mind was a million miles away solidly locked in a pleasant memory as the blows rained down on him. Fortunately this part of his SF training did not desert him. Most often he chose something to do with Jules or his SRU family. Right now he was enjoying the memories of their day of paintball at Wanderlust Lodge.
He had just finished thinking about the ATV race and several of the games. He was on the one about Spike's little spider in the tunnel. As the story was told over and over by Spike the little dime sized spider became the size a Goliath Bird-Eating Tarantula.
Sam smiled and laughed out loud thinking about Spike's antics as he retold the story.
Tahir was growing very frustrated. This man would not break and give him any information. He didn't even bother giving his name, rank or serial number.
The one and only time he had spoken at all was when he had answered the question 'who are you?' with a flat emotionless 'when hell freezes over'. No matter what he or others said they never got another response from the man except grunts of pain as some blows landed.
When they were not beating him he was either unconscious or his eyes stared lifelessly forward and the only emotion displayed was hostility. But when they beat him his eyes went unfocused as if a million miles away and he often laughed or smiled, like he was doing right now, very unsettling.
Over the course of eight days this man's behavior had unnerved more and more of his men.
At first, his men had all thought it rather funny a grown man and soldier had a stuffed animal and clutched it so tightly like a frightened child would. His men all had tried to take it from him several times over the past eight days.
None were successful in all attempts until the last one this morning. But two of his men were now dead from that final attempt. Their necks snapped in split seconds when they succeeded to get it from his grasp.
The soldier had flown into a howling fury and his men were too slow to get beyond the reach of his chains. After he killed them he snatched the blood stained, torn duck from the dead man's hand then collapsed to the ground and curled up.
None had thought he was even capable of moving let alone standing after so many days of beatings. Tahir realized he had underestimated this soldier's capabilities. His chains were shortened.
But most of his men were now too scared to even try and take it from him or go near him at all. They started to call him the Malak al-Maut (the Angel of Death) for several reasons. The first reason was because of his dead eyes and wrathful look on his face. The second was how rapidly he could kill. Today was not the first time they had seen him kill quickly.
Several hours after the blast they had found him about five miles from the tunnels as they were heading in to see what had happened. As they approached Tahir watched through the binoculars. He saw the soldier stand take three or four steps then fall down. The soldier repeated this over and over.
By the time they reached him the soldier could no longer stand but he had started to crawl. Tahir laughed at him. The soldier seriously thought he could get away by crawling. What an arrogant bastard.
Tahir sent four of his seventeen men to capture him alive, he wanted information. All watched as his men had him get to his knees. Then two of the men leaned down to pull him up. Their throats were slit so fast no one saw until the two fell to the ground. The soldier had the third man down and nearly slit his throat when the fourth man hit the soldier in the head with the butt of his gun and knocked him out.
The third reason they called him Malak al-Maut was because of all the men that died in the two blasts he was responsible for. Sixteen had died in the first blast. Thirty-nine had died in the second explosion. But the soldier had survived both. Now only three of his men would venture close enough to do the beatings.
Tahir sneered at the man on the floor. He would pay for all he had done. The soldier was no Malak al-Maut, he was just a lowly soldier sent to do another man's bidding.
If anything Tahir, himself was the Malak al-Maut. Maybe that is the name he would use when he claimed responsibility for the CN tower collapse. That should kill thousands of infidels and put fear into all others wondering who had the power to kill so many at one time. It would make Osama look like weakling compared to him.
Growing tired of watching his men beat the man Tahir sat down at the small table and searched the internet for any news of the CN tower blowing up. He should have found something by now; they were scheduled to do it already.
It should be front page news on all news sites. Tahir raged when he found and read a small article. He threw his knife at the soldier. Tahir was so angry his aim was off and it missed him by three inches almost hitting one of his own men.
Tahir continued to rage, Abdullah and Donesh had failed. The article said that while in custody of the police Peyman Alibadi was murdered by Mansoor Chanji who then committed suicide. They reported that the two were arrested on suspicion of being the ones to plant a bomb at the CN tower but they died before police could find out why they planted. The police had successfully defused the simple home-made bomb.
He went and picked up his knife and shoved it into its sheath. The only good news was that their aliases were not found out and no connection to him established. But overall Tahir was still pissed.
His entire supply except what Abdullah and Donesh had with them was destroyed by the man lying on the ground. He would have to use the formula to make more. His entire operation was in a shambles. Two locations and almost his entire stockpile of munitions were completely destroyed and he had only a handful of men left now. Most killed in that last blast.
If he had not been at this old location scoping it out to take over for location two he and all his men would have been killed in the blast too. This damned man ruined everything. He would beat him daily. Never enough to kill him but enough to make him wish he was dead.
Tahir learned that from Qasim, but he couldn't stomach most of his sick methods so Tahir only allowed his men to use fists and kicks. The videos were posted as a warning to anyone who would think to attack his operation in the future. They would know what was in store for them if they crossed him.
The sound of gunfire alerted Tahir that something was going wrong out front. What the hell now he thought as he yelled at the men beating the man to go see what was going on outside. He grabbed his Uzi and walked over to the man he hated with a passion. Tahir contemplated putting a bullet between his eyes right now. No, he decided, this man needed to suffer more.
He gave the man one hard well placed kick to the abdomen with his steel toed boots before he headed out to deal with this next problem. It better not be his men being stupid again. He really needed to find a higher intelligence quotient in his men. They started shooting at shadows more often than not.
The sight that met Tahir's eyes as he exited the tunnel shocked him. Every last man was dead. It was the last thing he saw before he joined them due to two perfectly placed head shots.
Mason and Winds moved forward passed the thirteen dead terrorists. Stealthily they made their way through the tunnels meeting no one. They had cleared every single chamber except the last one in the back. They had been getting discouraged that Blondie was not here. The door was closed. So they did a fast entry ready for anything.
What they found tugged at their hearts. Curled in a ball on the floor was a very badly beaten Blondie clutching Ben's duck close to his heart. They both rushed forward. Mason slung his MK12 SPR rifle onto his back as knelt to check on Blondie while Winds maintained cover in case there were terrorists left they had missed on the way in.
"Mason, what's his condition?" Winds asked glancing back over his shoulder at him quickly.
"Not good, not good at all. Shoulder carry won't work. He has several broken ribs. Might cause one to puncture a lung. He's so dehydrated, need to start an IV soon then I can assess further. But we need to move to a safer location first. We don't want to get caught in here, not defensible" Mason responded.
Winds nodded agreement and went to the door to keep watch as Mason picked the locks on the shackles chaining Blondie to the wall. Mason gently scooped Blondie into his arms easily like he weighed no more than a feather.
Winds glanced back at Blondie in Mason's arms "Ready?"
Mason nodded yes.
"Let's get our little brother home" Wind said resolutely.
Five miles out they found enough cover that was defensible and Mason laid Blondie on the ground. They were both so glad he was unconscious otherwise his wounds would have caused him immense pain while they ran. Mason started an IV and did a thorough check out like Patch had taught them all to do.
Emotion lacing his words Mason told Winds "I don't think he can make it three days travel with all the jolting. Besides the broken ribs I feel his abdomen getting tense and rigid. I think he is bleeding internally. Looks really recent could be a slow bleed or something more serious. I'm not sure how bad. But we can't take a chance. Blondie needs help now. Make the call. See if there is anything he can do."
Winds cussed for the entire five minutes it took for his sat phone call be to authenticated and routed. He and Mason knew it was a long shot to get help here. But he had to try it was the only hope of making this a rescue rather than recovery. Winds knew the General would move heaven and earth to help his son if he could.
General Braddock's Home – General's Study
Ryan had just sat back down after refilling his coffee and offering a comforting hand to Yvonne when the General's phone rang. "Braddock"
["Package acquired. Need med evac now! Critical" Winds spoke urgently.]
The General stood and paced "At evac location?"
["No. Package too damaged for overland transport. Need evac to us soonest" Winds replied crisply.]
"Location?" General Braddock requested.
Winds gave him the coordinates.
"Hold." The General sat at his desk and checked the aerial footage of the area pinpointing their location. He was pissed, so close but so far away. William had no helios that could make it quite that far in and back to the base hospital.
William studied the area closely and found about one klick away was an area that looked like it was flat and long enough for a small plane. He turned to Ryan then turned the laptop to Ryan "What do you have available that can make it in and out of this location and retrieve minimum one max three?"
Colonel Braddock immediately made a call detailing the needs to the commanding officer of Air Force operations in Afghanistan. Within ten minutes he had arranged the necessary aircraft. He relayed the information to the General.
"Transport enroute ETA one hour. Relocate one klick north east of present location." He gave them the full coordinates and frequency to contact the aircraft. "Will package make it that long?"
["We'll do all in our power to make it so. Moving out." Winds hung up and gave Mason the good news.
He helped Mason stabilize Blondie as best they could. Mason gave him one dose of the pain meds sedative combination as a precaution.
Winds took the duck from Blondie's hand; he saw the head and leg were nearly ripped off. He quickly tucked it into the waist of Blondie's pants so it was still close to him but wouldn't fall from his hand.
Then they headed for the evac location as quickly as they dared trying not to jostle Blondie too much.]
The General slumped into the chair. He had not said it was Samuel but everyone in the room knew for a fact it was.
Ryan looked at his brother and smiled "Will, you up for a jump seat ride with Zach in his CF-18 Hornet? It would cut your travel time nearly in half."
William hugged his brother. Yvonne hugged him too. Arrangements were made and the General left within the hour.
Base Hospital in Afghanistan – ICU Room
Mason and Winds were sitting in the ICU room with Blondie when a young orderly entered. The orderly looked at the two soldiers sitting quietly with the injured one. These two had caused such a ruckus when they arrived five hours ago. They broke all hospital rules but no one could get them to leave the injured soldier's side. They stayed with him every step of the way.
They demanded the doctor follow certain things and even gave him special meds for the soldier. Normally this would not be allowed and MPs would be called. But the smaller one had whispered something to the doctor and they were allowed to do whatever they wanted no questions asked.
She'd never seen anything like it before. It's the reason the injured soldier was now dressed in a loose pair of Army sweat pants instead of a gown and the two men were allowed to be in ICU.
Marsaili looked to the injured one and she flinched. She still wasn't comfortable seeing all the terrible injuries. It was hard to detach and be professional. She really needed to change job roles to one that she didn't have to see people in pain. Maybe a clerk would be a better job for her.
This poor soldier had been so badly beaten and his face so bruised and swollen she would lay odds not even his mother would recognize him. Heck when he first arrived she thought he had rusty brown hair. She had been the one to wash him up and was surprised to find it was blonde.
Marsaili finally recalled why she had come in. She had been off shift for two hours now but she had busied herself the entire time with a singular task she assigned herself. She had found it when she was putting the man's bloodied destroyed clothing into the bio-hazard burn bag.
It had tumbled to the floor when she picked up the cut open pants to check the pockets for keep items. At first she thought nothing of it and shoved it into the bag it was so nasty looking and covered in blood. But before she sealed the bag something niggled in the back of her mind and she withdrew it.
"Um excuse me" Marsaili said softly.
Winds was conked out but Mason looked up at the cute young orderly "Yes" he said tiredly.
The orderly noted the extreme fatigue now in the huge mountain sized soldier's scarred face. But he was so large and intimidating he still frightened her. "Um. It was really not my place to do this but um, something came in with him. I um found it in his clothes. It should've gone in the burn bag it was so bloody, filthy and torn up. But um, I took the liberty of cleaning it and mending it. I hope that was okay."
Noting she had his complete attention and it was daunting to be the object of his intense stare she hurriedly stammered out the last. "I, I worked hard and um I got most the stains out. I had to sew the head and leg up they were nearly torn off. But um, see it's almost good as new." Marsaili tentatively held out a small stuffed duck.
Mason flashed a huge grin that lit up his eyes and before she knew it she was dwarfed completely wrapped tightly in a hug.
He pulled away and saw the surprised concern in her face and softly said "I'm sorry if I scared you with that reaction. Thank you. Thank you so much. It is very, very important to him. I thought we lost it in transport."
Marsaili smiled and relaxed at his words. It felt so good to know she saved something important to the beaten soldier. The huge man's reaction alone told her that but the words were icing on top.
Mason reached out and took it from her. He turned to Blondie and placed it in the palm of his hand. Mason gently closed Blondie's hand around it then ever so gradually and carefully moved his hand to his heart. "Hey little bro you still have the duck. Do you feel it? It's close to your heart."
Contented she had done good today, the orderly watched the mountain sized man as he showed tender care for an injured mate. Soldiers she thought; hard as steel on the outside, but soft as kittens on the inside. She watched a few moments longer as he whispered things she could not overhear.
Marsaili then turned and left them in privacy. It was clear this was a close unit that took care of their own. She wondered about the duck but thought it probably belonged to his kid or something. Many soldiers kept small tokens of their loved ones with them.
Shortly after the orderly left Mason sat in the small unstable chair and continued to look at Blondie. He allowed his internal thoughts to be voiced out loud "Damn good thing you're too tough to kill. But seriously you gotta stop this kid. Too much, way too much. Sometimes I just wish you would say fuck the order, fuck others safety. You are important too. We don't want to lose you. There are ways to get out of this commitment, just say the word and I'll help you do it."
He sighed, he knew Blondie would never do it. It just wasn't who Blondie was. It would be like trying to get a cat to quack, never gonna happen.
Sam's eyes flickered open and landed on Mason.
"Hey Sunshine. Nice to see ya buddy" Mason said to cover the gasp as he saw the empty eyes looking at him. "Ya had a rough time of it. But ya did it. Your mission was successful."
No response at all. Mason's heart hurt. "Okay little bro. You should probably close your eyes now and get some rest. Winds and I are here. We have your back." He wanted the eyes closed, it was too hard to see them like that.
Sam's eyes closed and drug induced sleep resumed.
Winds had awoken while Mason was musing aloud and watched the entire thing. Blondie needed help. He was beyond fine. He was lost. "Mason, he needs help" Winds said softly.
Mason jumped and turned to Winds and said quietly "Christ man you gave me heart attack. Didn't know you were awake. But yeah he does. He's so lost. What was the General's ETA?"
"Should be here in another hour or two depending on how long the refueling stops took. Once he gets here I hope he lifts the blackout. Mission was successful and threats neutralized. There are a lot of people that have been really worried about him for a long time and want to know his status" Winds replied.
Mason nodded and tried to get comfortable in the little chair. He finally gave up and sat on the floor with is back to the wall. Mason breathed out sadly "How are we going to reach him this time Winds? I wasn't with you guys the full time. What did Matt do the last time? What do we do now?"
Winds shook his head and joined Mason on the floor "Honestly I don't know. But I've never seen it that bad. Maybe it's just part of the sedative or something."
"I hope you are right. God I hope you are right" Mason said as he leaned his head against the wall and sighed.
Both realized there was nothing to do about i at this time so closed their eyes to rest. They had brought Blondie safely home. The rest they would begin to deal with tomorrow. Both were just very glad Blondie had a 'tomorrow'.
Base Hospital in Afghanistan – Hallway Outside ICU Room
A few hours later found the General and Zach Braddock striding down the hall at a quick pace to Samuel's room. As they drew near they saw the doctor leaving and sped up.
General Braddock stated "Doctor a moment. I need status on Braddock."
The doctor turned and looked at who had called him and immediately came to attention "General Braddock. Who did you need …" then it struck him.
He was new here but damn the kid had looked familiar even through all the bruising and swelling but his mind had not placed him until now. The two that brought him in only referred to him by code name. "Sir. I assume you mean Hell-Froze. The men with him only identified him with a code name and Priority 1 status."
"Understood. Yes. Status?" General Braddock said quickly.
The doctor detailed Sam's injuries "He's pretty beat up. So covered in bruising it was hard to determine all his injuries at first. We did an ultrasound and CT scan of the head, chest, and abdomen. Based on the results we have decided to take an observation approach of the internal bleeding rather than a surgical exploratory laparotomy at this time. The over the last few hours the bleeding appears to be slowing and stopping on its own. But we will watch closely for the next twenty-four hours and if need be we will move to the other route."
"Chest scans showed he has three broken ribs and eight cracked. Luckily none punctured his lungs. The head scans showed signs of a recent severe concussion. He is likely to still be dealing with the effects of it. It caused a little swelling on the brain. We will need to see once he wakes if there is any damage from that. But I'm not too worried in that regard."
"He also has a partial tear to the posterior tibialis tendon in his right ankle. His ankle took a lot of abuse after the initial injury. It will need to be watched carefully to ensure it does not progress to a complete rupture. No weight bearing for at least 3 weeks. "
"Even though none of the injuries are life threatening, he's going to hurt quite a bit for a while. The men with him provided me with the pre-packaged his pain meds but I need his records to know what was in them. He is resting now sedated. His mates have not left his side since they arrived. They could use some sleep. And by the looks of it Sir so could you."
The General ignored the last comment and asked "When can I transfer him home?"
The doctor answered "I'd like to keep him here at least three days. Make sure the bleeding had stopped completely and verify no ill effects from the concussion before putting him in the air. But let's play it by ear. If it looks like it would be safe sooner we can make that call and if not ready after three days will take it day by day. This is his room Sir if you want to go in. If you have no other questions I have other patients I need to check on."
The General shook his head no and the doctor moved to the next room.
Base Hospital in Afghanistan – ICU Room
Zachary had entered the room while his uncle was talking to the doctor. He noted both Winds and Mason sound asleep both on the floor propped against the wall. They looked wiped out.
His eyes landed on Sam and he almost cried out. Sam was in the bed with the sheet pulled only to his waist. His chest was bare except for heart monitor leads and a bandage on his right side. There was not an inch of skin he saw from his head to his waist that was not bruised. Sam also had multiple abrasions and small cuts on his face, arms and chest.
He walked close and saw Sam's hand lying on his heart. There appeared to be something in his hand but he could not tell what it was. He was about to reach for it when his uncle entered the room.
William softly but urgently said "Zach stop. Remember don't touch him. Not until we know what state he is in. Your dad would kill me if I let you get hurt."
Zach backed off. He had forgotten that you don't touch Sam unless you had a death wish. In his fight mode, Sam could kill you in an instant even if he looked incapacitated. "Thanks, Uncle Will. I forgot. There is something in his hand though. Was wondering what it was."
The General came close. The sight of his son broke his heart but not completely. His son was alive. Samuel made it out alive and mostly whole. Recovery would take a while but he was alive. The word alive just kept repeating itself in his head. William had been so worried it would be a recovery not a rescue.
Zach pulled the chair close to the bed "Sir. Sit please before you fall. Aunt Yvonne would kill me if I let you get hurt." Zach laughed inside as he used the same words back to his uncle. But the man looked so worn out he looked like he would collapse at any moment.
He was glad his uncle complied. "Sir. Can I make the calls? Is the blackout lifted?"
General Braddock nodded yes.
"Thank you, I'll be just outside the door if you need anything. That way my calls won't wake Sam, Mason or Winds." The General nodded again and Zach slipped out of the room to make the calls.
William shifted his gaze toward the two men sleeping on the floor. The exhaustion was evident on their faces even in sleep. They had not bothered to clean up yet. Both were covered in layers of dust and dirt.
He could see the blood on the handles of their knives and splattered on their uniforms. He looked to the corner of the room and saw their rifles propped up near their vests. The vests both also splattered and the chest of one had a large area covered in it.
William owed these men a huge debt of gratitude. They risked themselves to save Samuel. Samuel had risked himself to save so many others. The public really didn't know how close the threats really were and it was better that way.
The cover story and disinformation on the deaths for the CN tower bomb had worked. The news speculated disgruntled employee rather than terrorist as the reason and with the reported deaths quickly became disinterested. Now they had two very much alive terrorists in custody who were providing information on the extended terrorist network.
Looking back to Winds and Mason again he mused. The public may be unaware but the men in his command knew just how close the threats really were and they were willing to pay the ultimate price to save others. He was glad he had such men in his command. Commendations were in order for their bravery and service to the country. And their service to him personally. He owed them more than he could ever repay.
The General looked back at Samuel. He saw the hand on Samuel's chest and saw the orange duck foot sticking out. He still had it. He was surprised Samuel took something so personal along on a mission, it was not like him to do that. But was glad he did. It was what confirmed it was Samuel in the videos.
William wondered how Samuel had managed to hang onto it through it all. Not something his captors would have likely let him keep. He was glad though. He had observed how it had helped reduce and stop the nightmares at the cabin. William might ask about that when Samuel was ready to talk.
As he continued to visually inspect his son's battered body noting every scar, old and new, William knew his son had been through too much. Samuel willingly took on a critical mission to save thousands if not more lives. A mission with so little probability of survival it was essentially a suicide mission. Samuel was successful and he beat the odds coming out alive.
But fate was going to be cruel to Samuel one day and his luck at surviving would end. William knew he needed to do something he never thought a Braddock would ever do in his life. But he needed to do this for Samuel. His son deserved a chance to live the life of his choosing. He had done more to serve his country than any man he knew.
General Braddock dialed his phone and when it was answered he said "Sir. General Braddock here. Sir we need to talk. I need your help."