Chapter 10: Sniper

5 Years Ago

"Sarge, when do we head out?" A grumpy soldier walked over to Beca with slouched shoulders.

"Few hours, King. I'm waiting to hear from Baker. Are the trucks ready?"

"Yeah, we're just sitting on our asses doing nothing." King scoffed as he looked down at the brunette who outranked him.

"I could have you clean all the guns and wash the tent sheets if you're bored?" Beca talked to him like a mother would to a child. King just let out a sigh and walked away.

"You don't need to be so rude. I mean you're already sarcastic enough, you don't gotta hurt the poor boy's feelers." Fisher walked over to Beca and leaned against the table where she was fiddling with a laptop.

"Well he's a jackass and makes plenty of gay slurs to make up for it." Beca shot him a look.

"True." Fisher raised his arms. "So...anyone back home waiting for ya?"

"Nope." Beca smirked. "Just hook ups."

"You give gays a bad name." Fisher laughed.

"Shut up!" Beca playfully punched his arm. "What about you? How's your girl?"

"Annie's just fine. We got to skype last night."

"Don't need the sordid details." Beca raised a hand.

"Not like that!" Fisher backed away in disgust. "I think...Sarge, I think I want to ask her to marry me."

"Dude, that's awesome!" Beca lit up, restraining herself from giving him a hug.

"I hope so. I get home in less than two months. I want to ask, I just hope she says yes."

"She'll say yes." Beca assured. "Besides...she's met me and didn't leave you so I think you're in the clear."

"Ohh a woman who didn't fall at the feet of the seductress, Beca Mitchell?" Fisher laughed as he pulled out a picture of Annie. "She's beautiful, Sarge. I just want to spend my life with her."

"You will." Beca looked at the picture. "Damn, she's hot."

"I hate you." Fisher rolled his eyes as he put the picture back in his pocket.

"Wanna play some cards to kill some time before we get our orders?" Beca snatched her favorite deck of cards with nude women on them. The men in her camp didn't seem to mind either.

"Sure." Fisher went to gather some rocks. "King you want in?" King just looked over at Beca and the cards.

"Don't worry, pal. You won't turn gay just by playing cards with a lesbian." Beca winked as she set up the table.

Sargeant Beca Mitchell tilted her head back and laughed as she threw her cards on the small wooden box that she and the other soldiers were using as a table.

"Careful, Fisher, if you're as bad in the sack as you are at cards I might just steal your girl." Beca collected the rocks they were using as poker chips.

"Oh please, she needs the D too bad." Henry Fisher rolled his eyes.

"That's disgusting." Beca shivered dramatically.

"I wish they'd kept don't ask don't tell in place." King mumbled to Beca's left.

"Care to repeat yourself louder for the group, King." Beca shot him a look as she started dealing out a new hand. He just glanced at her with disgust as he picked up his cards.

"Doesn't matter, asshole." Fisher chuckled. "She's the top soldier in our unit. She'll out shoot and out fight any of us, and who she fucks doesn't change that." His comment seemed to shut King up. Beca flashed Fisher a subtle but grateful smile.

Suddenly a sharp gunshot was heard in the camp. Beca turned full on alert as she snatched her pistol sitting at her feet. Her eyes frantically screened the camp, looking for intruders.

"Captain Baker?" She barked into her walkie talkie. "Do you see where shots are coming from?"

The static hissed before Baker replied. "Sniper on the roof at your three o'clock!"

"Get to cover!" Beca shouted orders at the six men in the camp. She sprinted to the small armory and grabbed her own sniper rifle, barely dodging a bullet as she slid behind a rock for cover. Fisher sprinted to a small wooden wall to her left. King stood up to run to a place of cover when another shot was heard. It hit him straight through the heart, killing him instantly. Beca watched him fall to the ground as she attached her scope.

"Shit." Fisher whispered as he ducked his head. Beca quickly turned to look through her scope at the rooftop target. It was a boy, no older than ten years old. She inhaled sharply and felt her heart race.

"Mitchell!" Fisher shouted to get her out of her trance. "Take the shot!"

"It's a kid!" She spun her head to glare at him. Another shot rang through the camp and another soldier went down with a bullet in his leg as he ran to try and get to cover. "Fuck!" She gritted her teeth. She tried to steady her hand to get a good view of the target. She took a breath as she could see the boy clearly in her scope. Her finger was on the trigger as she tried to stop shaking.

"Take the shot, Beca!" Fisher shouted again as a bullet sped by his wall, about a foot from his head. Beca swallowed hard as she focused down the sight. When she saw the boy turn and aim his sniper directly at her, she quickly pressed her trigger and watched until she saw the boy fall and she quickly looked away.

Once she regained her composure, she spoke into her walkie talkie which she was gripping so hard it might snap. "Do you see any other tangos, Baker?"

"No. Its all clear from here." He spoke back, trying to hide the grief in his voice. She tossed the walkie talkie aside and looked at King's body. Fisher stepped next to her.

"He might've been a homophobic asshole...but he was still a soldier." He tried to put a hand on Beca's shoulder but she shrugged him away.

"Get a medevac." She ordered as she marched passed the poker table. Without thinking she took a violent kick at it, knocking rocks and cards all over the sandy ground. She reached her tent and closed it for privacy. She took a few deep breaths before putting her head in her hands and allowing herself to cry. She sobbed into her hands, telling herself to get it all out now, so that she wouldn't cry about it again.