(I've done a little editing on the second draft)
Chapter 3- A Hero's Gift
May 1, 2011
Southern Osea
Jennifer Klien was an unusual woman in an unusual place. Why was she here? People would constantly ask that question. Her family was one of the richest in Osea. She could have anything she wanted, any man she wanted, anything at all. Some in their opinion, why would a 21-year old born into a large affluent family go off and marry a regular guy who was an orphan, relatively unattractive(to the most aesthetically inclined), and one who hardly had anywhere near the status and privilege she did. He was a lower middle class man, he never drank, he seemed to have the bare minimum of elitist sophistication. He was in the military. Why would she give it all up?
The money, the privilege, the titles made no sense to her. She took after her older sister, one who always believed in proving one's money's worth. Her family had little love, as it was constantly obsessed with gaining more money and lucrative business deals. Anything that interrupted this was ignored. The drive for more power was infuriating to her. And yet here was a guy who had pretty much nothing. Here was a man that was almost never loved, never cared for, and was never missed. He taught himself all the sophistication he needed to know. He was rough and tumble, expected of a person who had to make their own way. Yet, for some reason, he seemed as gentle as a house cat. His eyes were windows to a soul that had lived through everything. A man who had few friends, who once bounced around from foster home to foster home as a teenager. So it was this man that out of blue came and defended her as she lay stranded in a bad neighborhood due to a flat tire, something she was never taught to handle. And it was this man who worked and was inspired by what he saw. A man who spent it all on a ring to ask her to marry him. Here was a man that did everything for someone even if they did nothing for him. He gave it all, more than he should have. He spent much of their first year of marriage going though army basic training, airborne training, and the toughest of all: Ranger training. Even though his ranger regiment was never activated, he still fought for home in some far away place. She wore around her neck his Distinguished Service Cross, one given for his actions months ago. Inside of her carried his and her legacy; a legacy that they hoped they'd learn from the mistakes of the past.
Damien. That was the name of her personal hero. But there were so many wives who had their personal heroes.
However, Jennifer was fortunate. Damien had given far more than anyone could ask. But he lived. Her neighbors to her immediate left and right were not so fortunate. They had lost people her husband called his friends. They were gone and some knew families moved in. She could not have the arrogance to simply to only pay attention to her life. She was devout and every night she prayed for him. Was it God that saw him through? Or was it his skill? He was the designated marksmen for his unit. Was it his determination to return? She read his diary on occasion. There were many things about the war that shocked her. His vivid detail was as macabre as it was engrossing. But that was longer relevant. Damien was alive. But he was not here at the moment. Usually, he'd just drive his bike around to pass the time on the weekends.
Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. Jen didn't have a lot of friends. She liked the small intimate company she kept. So who could it be?
She went to door, only to find a man who looked at bit like her Damien, but he was taller. Towering, that is. Jennifer was barely five tall. Her husband was only 5'7". This man was about 6'2".
"Can...can I help you?" she said nervously.
"Oh, is there a Damien Klein here?" the man asked her.
"Well, he's out right now. Are you a friend of his?"
"Well...not really. He does know my fiancee though...somewhat. I just wanted to thank him." he said.
"For what?"
"Well, this may take a little time to explain. Um..can I come in?" the man asked almost anticipating what the answer was going to be.
"Um...okay." she said tentatively.
The man was behind a set of sunglasses. He realized that he was making this woman extremely nervous, so he took them off. She was shaking, her lips were trembling. If only she knew who it was she was talking to.
"I'm sorry if I'm making you uncomfortable, but I really wanted to thank your husband. I really do. I took me forever to find this place." he said apologetically.
"Um...why? What did he do?"
The man looked at her blue laden cross.
"DFC huh? Your husband must be a pretty cracker jack guy huh." he said while chuckling.
Jennifer laughed nervously.
Why is she so jittery? I didn't come here to take advantage of here. Well, I guess I can understand why. She's shorter than Kei. She's shorter than Grimm. I guess anyone could overpower her if they wanted to.
The man shook his head. "Well, I never got to thank him for helping me save my fiance's life."
Jennifer snapped back in attention. "Huh?"
"Well, I hate to do this. I can't keep up this facade any longer, it's driving me insane. Look, my name's David Lovecraft..."
"Lovecraft...so he was right." she said.
"What?"
"He never thought you guys were dead. He wrote about you guys a lot when he'd write to me."
"You knew?"
"We wrote me a long letter about it. Told me everything. About him getting lost in the woods, nearly getting captured, meeting who I assume is your fiancee, fixing the transmitter..."
"Yeah. That was it. She said she couldn't fix it. And somehow he did. He never told her how he did it though." David said.
"That man can fix anything."
"If it wasn't for him, we may never have found her. But he got no thanks from the media or whatever. They only wanted to talk about us and what we did. It's ironic that absolutely insignificant thing ends up saving the day, but in the end means nothing to everyone else except you and me." David said.
"Well, thank you. I'm sure he'll be here any time, so you can you can wait around if you want."
"No thanks. Um...actually, I was wondering if you'd like to come to our wedding."
"Huh..wel...sure! We'd be delighted. When is it?"
"Ten days. That isn't a problem isn't it?"
"No, not at all. He gets the weekends off. He hasn't used any vacation days since the base is so close to here. Says a lot about him...he'd rather be with me."
I can see why, he thought.
"Where is it?"
"It's in...well..." David began to speak as he reached into his pocket and pulled out something, "Here's the address. We're keeping this pretty small."
"I understand." she said.
There was a pause and then David spoke up.
"If...I may ask, um...what is it? A girl or a boy?"
"It's a girl actually. He just doesn't know yet."
"Ah...I see."
"My friends thought I was crazy. I just wanted a family that was the opposite of my own family."
"Join the club."
"What...your childhood was bad as well?" Jennifer said nonchalantly.
"No...her's. In a way you cannot believe. I can't even tell you, much less understand it myself." said David sadly.
"Oh."
There was a bit of an uncomfortable silence between the pair.
"Well...I'd better go. See you at the wedding."
And with that he was gone; but, not five minutes later another young man came inside. Or in his case, bounced in. He was about 24 years old, about 5'12", with green eyes and a brownish skin complexion. He was visibly scarred on his face and neck, a testament to his survival...and luck.
"Hey! I've got some good news." he said.
"I've got some too."
"Well, you go first."
"You're not gonna believe who just came to our house..."
July 10, 2010
Detroit, Osea
No matter how much she couldn't stand her parents, she could not lack the sadness of their departure. No matter if they crashed head on into each other while her mother, an avid alcoholic, was in her usual drunken stupor. But despite the lack of love, the lack of respect for her husband, their narcissm, they still left her a sizable chunk of their life's earnings: five hundred million dollars. She had it made already in her point of view. Now it was compounded by all this extra money. She took only a small percentage for her own family, a tad to secure the future of her and Damien's child and any others, bought him a new motorcycle, gave some to various charities and families members of those killed in the war(some subsequently being some of her husband's friends). Never before had she had the chance to lose it all in such a big way.
But what could she do now? What else could she buy for someone? There was the Lovecraft family, a family who'd saved her husband's life in that fateful drop on the last day of the war. David Lovecraft had gone out his way, risking exposure, to thank her husband for helping rescue his new wife. She never got to get them anything. So what could she do? Get practical, she thought. They were pilots. What does one get pilots...? A plane.
But what kind of plane? A modern jet was far too expensive to buy and maintain. A classic plane? That would be more practical. She remembered overhearing him say something to a friend of his.
You know, I used to fly my grandfather's Messerschmitt before I went into the academy. It was a training version though.
Then again...she remembered the real reason why she considered doing this...
May 7, 2011
Somewhere in Northern Osea
It was quite the drive. Jennifer felt a bit sorry for David, having to drive a rowdy group of the opposite sex to a secluded town to get married. In the car was herself and David, Kei, and David's mother and sisterCatherine and Chloe. Catherine shared her son's eyes; but David was a carbon copy of father.She did not look a day over 35, yet was about seven or eight years older than that. Catherine was red-headed with smooth, freckled skin. Chloe had just turned 19. She was a thin, long-haired, blonde with blue eyes.Chloe had entertained everyone with her constant readings from Aviation for Dummies, a not-so-subtle hint at what her life's aspirations were. But it could have all come crashing down...
"So...how far are we from this place anyway?"asked a somewhat impatient Chloe.
"Six miles, at the most." David replied, "So anyone want anything or...?"
David was standing by the window. Kei was standing some 3 feet from him. Jennifer was standing near the door. Catherine was some 10 feet away. Chloe was 5 feet from the counter. The clerk was a guy in late teens, a man David thought was ogling at the estrogen express. But suddenly, everything changed. The other guests were someten miles behind because of some unknown delay. So it was quite a surpise when two armed men entered. In a shocking turn of events, one grabbed Jennifer and held a gun to her head. Kei's blood turned to ice. Catherine slipped and fell in one of the aisles in a panic. In a show of brutality, the other man wasted no time and shot the young man in he head. Chloe yelped as blood and sinew covered her. David's reaction was not one of fear, but sheer white hot rage.
For the first time in her life, Jennifer had known true fear. She could barely keep herself intact. She not only feared for her life, but her child's as well. David could see she was turning pale.
Jen's heart rate quadrupled. She was shaking and sweating. Tears were visible.
My god, why now...This is just too cruel. Why? No sense begging him to let me go. My baby...He's already killed that man...what to stop him from killing us? Oh Mary full of grace...
The second man pointed a gun at David as he kicked a bag over to him.
"You! Fill it up."
This is the biggest exercise in stupidity I have ever seen outside of an aircraft, thought David.
Chloe was completely immobile. Catherine was off to the side, helpless. She watched in sheer terror her only son was forced to fill a bag with everything in the register. But David had other ideas...
"Hurry up!" the other man said impatiently.
David could sense the tension in them. The man who held Jennifer hostage was shifting his gun towards the others instead of her. The other man was doing the same. These men are going to kill us. No doubt about it. If I could time it just right...
What happened next was believed to only happen in the movies. It was perfection only seen when he was Blaze in the cockpit of a plane.
"Jen, duck!"
In an instant, she got down just as David threw the bag with all the force he could muster. Then his luck kicked in. The bag caught them by surprise. It hit one man in the face, he panicked...and shot his partner. Instinct. Kei kicked in to motion and held the other man in a headlock while disarming him. Jen then proceeded to kick him in the groin. Quick thinking he had. He'd saved their family and his own from what could have been a nasty sixfold murder. But for David, he acted as if the events never happened. Of course, Damien would have done the same thing. Would one expect anything less from those who'd faced death in the face as a profession...
Present Day...
She owed her life to that man. With that thought, she found herself at a random mansion in North Hampton talking to an old friend of her father.
"So you're interested in these?" the older man said.
"Yes, I am." Jen said.
"Just for collection or to fly yourself?"
"I do actually have a pilot's license. But it's not for me. Even if it was...as you can see..."
"Oh yes, yes. Um, how much are you offering?"
"How much you want for 'em?." she said with a smile. She never really realized how fun philanthropy could be. Now I just have to figure out where and how I'm going to get theseplanestoMallora Island.
To be continued...