I want to say thank you to everyone who sent their best wishes for myself and mum.
I will update as the time goes on but at the moment the cancer hasn't spread and they are pushing for her to have the operation.
-.-
What really happened in Syria
"Don't forget 2 Section we have a certain amount of time before the airstrikes start so we will have to hurry up and get everything done" Charles said to the team before they started to do their job.
"Bit messed up aint it, Bossman?" Brains asked and looked over at Captain James "I mean we have to come in before the air strikes start and then get back out, what happens if we don't do everything done before they actually strike?"
"Well then we will have a failed mission and no one wants to be around when those bombs start falling" it was the truth and a fact. Charles wanted to get his team out of here before anything happened.
If Charles was being honest with himself then he didn't want to be here in the first place. He wanted to be at home with Molly, Adam and Sam. He wanted his little family around him and for all of this to be put behind him. He had been thinking about it while on the plane ride over to Syria, it was time for him to hang up his boots and make a life outside of the Army. Even if at one point he wasn't ready but now he was. Now he was ready to put it all behind him.
Other than Sierra Leone he knows that Molly doesn't do anything outside the UK anymore and now he was here, he wanted more than anything to be at home.
"Why would anyone want to stay here?" Their medic, Emma Daniels, asked and grabbed her kit out of the back of their vehicle.
Charles sighed under his breath. She was definitely not as loud as Molly or as troublesome as Georgie. It was nice actually because it might mean he would have a quiet tour when it comes to the medic side of the team. "I honestly have no idea, Daniels" he admitted and watched her for a moment but then dropped his eyes. He really didn't understand any of this sometimes but he had to trust that those higher than him could see the big picture.
Emma Daniels was a new medic on 2 Section, since he and Molly got married she had gone to another section, Georgie stayed in the UK with Elvis and now he was on his third medic which wasn't that unusual but sometimes it was nice to have something that never changed. After Molly and Richards butt heads while in Sierra Leone he wasn't sure if he wanted to keep her in the section but at the moment she didn't seem to be causing anyone any trouble, she was the loudest one of the team right now.
They were meant to be having a male medic but it had been changed at the last minute and in came Emma Daniels.
2 Section was looking through the houses but most of them were completely deserted because most people had common sense and got the hell out of here but there were people who stayed because of the fact it was all they really had.
It was sound of gun fire but it was in the distance and they were in contact with their home base at all times.
After what felt like forever of going through everything they knew they were running out of time and had to get back to the base because of the airstrikes.
"2 Section back on the truck" Captain James said into his radio and headed towards the truck himself because honestly he just wanted to get the hell out of here and to Skype with Molly so that he could tell her about everything but then he found someone and he stopped. He put his hand out because it was a little boy, he was about Adam's age and he looked like his son. It was scary.
"Bossman" the voice of Fingers came over the radio.
"No, it's okay stay here" he said and then turned his radio down so that he wouldn't scare the small boy "It's okay" he said with a smile and then slowly started to crouch down. All Charles could see was Adam and he wanted to get him the hell out of here. No one should have to live here.
He knew that the time was running out but he couldn't leave the boy and as Charles started to stand up and walked towards him the small boy ran off in the direction of what he guessed was his home. "No, wait" he said and then went to go after him but there was a pull on his arm and he looked to the owner of the hand and found that it was Fingers.
"We have to go Bossman" he said and nudged his head towards the truck where the others were waiting.
"We have to get that boy out of here, Fingers" Captain James said and looked in the direction of where the boy had disappeared too.
Fingers looked in the direction of where his captain was looking and didn't see anyone. "There's no one there, Boss, we have to go before those bombs start hitting this area, you know that we have a certain amount of time and we're running out of it"
Captain James put his hands on Fingers' arms before looking at him in the face "I have to get that boy out of here and you and the team are going to get out of here and back to base"
"And what the hell do we tell Molly if you get killed?" Fingers put his own hands on his captain's arms too. "You have a kid at home with the woman you love, don't get killed over something we can't change, Bossman we have to go" he tried again and this time done something that he's never done before and actually grabbed hold of his boss and pulled him in the direction of the truck.
The rest of 2 section was waiting for them outside of the truck
But it was too late because there were the sound of jets and then someone yelling the words "INCOMING" and then the loud bang that was pretty near them and then they were all being thrown by the blast.
Hitting things that knocked both them and their communications out.
2 section were now in the very hot danger zone and it would be a few days before anyone found them.
-.-
Captain James couldn't say how long he had been out because of the fact it was dark, now he couldn't say if it was evening or early in the morning but his head was aching, hell everything seemed to be aching.
"Fingers" he said because of the fact that Fingers had been near him. "Brains?"
It hurt him to move and be wasn't sure what was hurt or in honesty if he had any limbs left but there was definitely pain coming from all over his body.
There was no response from him calling out for Fingers or Brains but there was a noise to his right side and he gently moved his head in that direction. They were easy targets for anyone who was still here and of course everyone knows how they would love to get their hands on a British Soldier.
He tried reaching for his gun but it wasn't anywhere near him and then a light came on and there was the face of their Medic and he has never been so glad to see Emma Daniels as he was right now. "Are you hurt?" he asked quickly.
"No, Boss but Fingers and Brains are pretty banged up though and we will need to get them out of here"
"What about the others?"
"There's some cuts and maybe bruises but honestly they fared better than they probably should have and definitely better than Brains and Fingers and they are trying to get back to command but it's not looking good right now"
Charles let out a breath and wish that he hadn't because it hurt. "Well we'll have to keep trying and they definitely won't leave us out of here"
"Unless they think we're dead..." she said and looked down at him.
"Even then they won't leave us behind" He said and looked up at her "We're getting out of this Emma, trust me on that" Charles gave her a smile.
This was his fault.
For the first time in his life he has fucked up and it had hurt his own team and may cause two of that team to die.
Emma checked him over and was sure that nothing was broken but she knew that he was going to be in pain for a little bit with how hard they had all been thrown. "I'm going to keep an eye on you though and if anything changes then you're going to have to tell me" she was adamant on that and was going to check up on him every twenty minutes or so.
Charles sat up but he felt like he had been knocked down with their truck. "We have to move because of the fact we're sitting ducks here for anyone who wants to take a walk out"
Emma looked over at him "Why would there be anyone still here?" she had asked a familiar question earlier.
"If this place was bombed then it was bombed for a reason and there are people still here" he looked in the direction of where he had seen the boy and felt guilty for all of it. For not getting the boy, if there had been one in the first place, and for still being here when the bombs fell.
"We've found a place to go" A new recruit spoke and his nickname was Prof.
Emma looked down at Captain James and said "Moving Brains and Fingers could be risky but unfortunately I think it's something we need to do if we have to get somewhere safe"
Charles nodded once "Let's get them in" he then carefully stood up even though his body was screaming at him to sit back down but he pushed passed the pain and helped with Fingers and then waited with him while the others went back for Brains and for now they would have to be safe here but they didn't have a lot of ammo if anyone decided to come calling for them.
They would have to keep trying for the base so that they could send another team out to find them.
Charles sat down on some rubble and waited the night out.
-.-
It was slowly starting to get lighter and his thoughts were on Molly when she found out that he and his team were stuck in one of the places that had been bombed. She would be getting that knock on the door and his heart ached at the fact she would probably be thinking that he was dead.
Emma came down and sat next to him "How you feeling, Bossman?" she asked and checked him over once more.
"Why were you drafted in to this, Daniels?" he asked and looked over at her.
She had blonde hair and he was sure that he could see green in her eyes and Charles was sure that any man or woman would be lucky to have her but he had his own medic at home that he wanted to get back to. "Well the other guy broke his ankle and in came me" she said and watched him. "But the team hasn't been so bad, I even kicked Fingers' butt at poker the other night, he didn't like it"
That made Charles grin and he looked down "Just don't get Brains to play against you because then you really will lose" He then took a deep breath which really hurt before looking back up at her. "How are they doing?"
"They are still out and we need to get them back to base as soon as we can but we can't talk to the others"
Even their truck had been taken out and there was no way they could get back to their base or even radio in to say that they were okay and needed to be evacuated by helicopter because that was the fastest way to get them out of there.
-.-
The waiting was hell, they would try their radios and then wait and then try again but nothing. They could probably walk faster than this but there were people injured and two of them were criticially and there was nothing that they could really do but wait and pray that the Army would find them before their enemies did.
And it was on the evening of the second day of waiting that Charles finally spoke to Emma and asked her if there was anyone waiting at home for her.
"What made you join the Army?" Charles asked Emma after a moment of quiet.
"I wanted to make a difference and help out people I wouldn't be able to help out while sitting in an office"
"Well yeah you won't find this in a 9 to 5 job"
Emma smiled and looked down "That's for damn sure"
Emma was down to earth and he liked that, she wasn't fazed at the fact they were stuck here, in fact she was a lot calmer than some people he's worked with.
"Anyone be worried about you back home?" he asked and watched her when she was looking down.
"Parents, siblings but no one else, what about you Bossman?"
Charles took a deep breath which hurt and even talking hurt but if he didn't talk then he would be going out of his own mind and that was the last thing he wanted right now. "I have someone or at least I hope I do, we broke up and got a divorce but I just want to be with her, I have two sons too"
"What's her name?"
"Molly, she was a medic and I met her on her first tour of Afghanistan" Charles could see it. He could remember how worried he had been when she had gone in to that minefield to rescue Smurf, he remembered holding on to her at the hospital when she cried after finding out that one of their ANA was attacked because he wouldn't kill her. He remembered the date in Bath. He just wanted to be at home with her and his two sons.
"Well then we best get you back to Molly because I don't want her to come after me if I don't keep an eye on you" Emma just wanted to get back to the base at the moment and away from this place.
Charles let a soft laugh out "She would probably want to rip your hair out" he was teasing her because Molly had told him how she used to be but she's definitely calmed down since joining the Army.
"Boss there's something going on in the building a few doors down, not that it's got any doors" Monk spoke over to Captain James. They were keeping look out for anyone who would discover where they were and it seems as if there were people who had been looking for either them or for something else and would come across them if they continued on down this road.
Charles stood up and held on to his side before he walked over to where Monk was and then looked down the end where he had said there was movement and honestly hoped that they didn't come across them because they wouldn't be able to hold off on the amount of ammo they had.
"They are looking for someone" Monk whispered to Charles and watched as they were going from building to building.
"They know someone's here but they can't seem to find them" Charles replied and for the first time he was scared. He just wanted to go home to his family, he wanted to be back with Molly, hell he even wanted to see his mother. He also wanted to get his team back in one piece and with two of them down it felt like he was going to fail this mission and it was all his own fault but he was damn well going to make sure that the baddies didn't take them without a fight. "Keep quiet guys" he said softly to those behind him.
His eyes stayed on those that were going from the buildings, they had a shit load of weapons and even an RPG. They were sitting ducks here and for the first time he wondered if he would be able to go home to his family, to get his team back. For him to walk off the plane at Brize Norton and thank God that he was home because it doesn't feel like it right now.
For the first time he felt like he was losing faith in those above him.
"They are almost here, Boss, what do we do?" Monk asked.
Charles looked down at his gun and the ammo that he had on him, it wasn't very much but if they had to then they would have to split up Fingers and Brains ammo and pray that the enemy would tire before they ran out of ammo but he knew that that wasn't very likely.
"Daniels, stay with Brains and Fingers, the rest... on me" he said and then took a deep breath which hurt like hell.
They were in the next building and knew that they would be on them soon enough. They needed to take control of the situation for as long as they could.
It was the silence of where they were that made his ears pick up when he heard the sound of a drone but unfortunately they had nothing that they could signal to it with them so while they were looking for them there was nothing they could do and if they moved out of this place then they were likely to be shot.
He really hoped that whoever was watching the screen would be able to know it was them before any shots were exchanged.
Then the moment they had been waiting for but dreaded was upon them when the enemy moved from the next building and was heading towards theirs. Charles actually said goodbye to Molly and Sam and Adam. He said goodbye to them softly before one of the men made it to the doorway and then he shot him.
Now it would bring hell down on them.
They managed to take some of them down and then out of nowhere there was this rumbling and he heard the shots but they continued on with their own until there was no one left.
The sound of the helicopter moved away from them and Charles knew that they had to find somewhere to land if it was who he thought it was. There were only one group who would come in guns blazing and that was Special Forces.
"Boss there's someone coming" Prof spoke keeping his eyes on the way in front of him.
Charles checked his rounds and he was really low in fact his side arm was literally the only thing he had. He pulled it out of his thigh holster and took the safety off before pointing it towards the doorway.
"Friendlies!" a familiar voice called out and Charles sighed under his breath but he kept his gun up anyway until a familiar face appeared in the doorway.
"Oh, I am so glad to see you" Charles smiled at him and put the safety back on his hand gun and pushed it back into his thigh holster.
"I'm pretty sure that's the first time you have ever said that, Charlie" Elvis said with a grin before looking around the room at the team. "Anyone hurt?"
"Two, Fingers and Brains, they're in the back with the medic... don't fall in love with this one"
"Hey, I'm not the only one" Elvis replied before walking into the back room. He saw the blonde standing up with her gun. "It's okay we're getting you guys out of here" he smiled at her and nudged his head towards the two that looked pretty banged up. "What's the situation?"
"They need to get out of here, after the blast hit and knocked everyone out they seemed to be the two that got it worse and need to get back to base camp"
Elvis nodded and bit on his lip "Well that's why we're here" he smiled before walking out the room. "Oh, Charlie just to warn you..." he didn't finish that sentence because Bones walked in and he saw Charlie's face fall. "Yep, Bones" he muttered.
They managed to get Brains and Fingers out of the building and to the two choppers that were waiting for them, it meant that the team was split in two and Elvis and Bones with the rest of the SF team went in one and 2 Section including the injured Brains and Fingers went in the other and Charles was just glad to into the chopper in the first place.
The rushing of the wind hit his face as they raced through the air and it felt so much better than sitting in a building waiting to die when the enemy actually found them.
-.-
The two helicopters finally landed where they were staying and those that could walk got off first before Brains and Fingers were carried off and they were both rushed to the hospital that they had and Charles took his helmet off and chewed on his lip. He would end up in the hospital too but at the moment he just wanted to have some quiet time to himself.
Charles couldn't tell how many days they were out there but it was pretty rough.
He felt a tap on the shoulder and then looked over to see Elvis walking beside him. "I am so glad that you finally got us, how did Georgie take it to you coming here?"
"She said that if I didn't go then she would definitely divorce me so I had no choice but to come"
Charles wanted to laugh but he ached. "Did you have to sell your soul to the devil to get Bones to let you come?"
"Pretty much" Elvis admitted "But at least it ended up good, we found you and kicked some ass"
"What would your parents say about this?"
"Still disappointed no doubt"
Charles looked forward this time with a smile and saw Bones who was walking ahead of them this time. "I guess I should thank him for saving my ass"
"I'm not getting involved with this" Elvis held up his hands and moved away from Charles' side and then walked in the other direction. This had nothing to do with him, he was staying well clear of all the drama that came with Bones and Molly and Charlie.
"McClyde" Charles called out and then watched as he stopped and that meant he could catch up with him. "I just want to say-" he was cut off.
"Don't" Bones said and shook his head. "What the hell are you even doing out here anyway, James?"
"I'm doing my job" he retorted before raising an eyebrow. Who the hell was he to criticize him for doing exactly the same thing as him. Well Charles wasn't SF but he was Army and pretty much doing the same thing.
"Your job?" Bones scoffed at him and looked away from Captain James for a moment.
"Is this about Molly?" Charles asked him and that had Bones looking back at him. "It is, aint it? You don't like me because of Molly"
"She never told me the name of the guy but I knew that she had been hurt; for Christ Sake stop putting her through so much and go home" with that he walked towards the door he had been hoping to walk through.
"You love her" Charles called out to him.
"Go home Captain, to your family" he opened the door and walked in to the building leaving Charles out on the tarmac.
-.-
Molly sat on the sofa with tears in her eyes as she listened to what Charles had just told her. What she didn't know was that he was hiding the last part from her about Bones.
"I screwed up big time, Molly and I will face whatever comes my way but I definitely want to leave the Army to be here with you and my two boys"
Molly got off the sofa and walked over to the chair where Charles was sitting and got down onto her knees in front of him. "Whatever comes our way, we will face it together" she said softly.
Charles put his hands on her cheeks and used his thumbs to wipe away the tears that had been falling from her eyes. "I know we will, I know" he put his forehead against hers and knew exactly why Bones had fallen in love with her... because his Molly had a good heart.