This is Prompt No. 68-Refuse
"Absolutely not!" Shane bellowed, his enraged voice ringing out in the small room, causing the others in the room to recoil slightly. The general, however, sat calmly in his seat, staring at one of his best men in his organization.
"I realize that this will be difficult for you, Shane," the commander said understandingly, "but this is the only way plausible. Can you think of another option?"
Shane scowled, knowing that there was no other option. If there had been, the general would not have suggested this idea of his in the first place. "No," he admitted sullenly.
Caitlyn spoke up. "There must be some other way," she tried, looking desperately at her husband. Nate, in return, just shrugged.
"I can't think of anything," Nate admitted.
"Which is why it must be done," the general told them. He turned to Jason, who had sat down and was nervously gripping the table ledge in order not to pace like Shane was doing. "You'll be the one to do it," he said.
"No!" Jason cried, jumping from his chair. "I refuse!"
"I refuse to let him!" Shane shouted at the same time.
"Gentlemen!" the general called, demanding control of the group. "There is no other choice. Jason is the best shot we've found. He can hit anything right where he wants to. Your Mitchie will be safe as long as he takes his time and thinks."
"That's too much pressure!" Jason argued, glancing nervously at his friend. Shane looked like he was ready to strangle someone. "I-what if I hurt her?"
The general smiled. "You'll have to hurt her to save her. Just don't fatally wound her and you'll be fine." He turned to Shane. "We'll have to inform Commanding General Scott that we need to push the camp into action. We need a surprise attack that will allow us to carry out our plan." The general stroked his bearded chin and said, "The only question is, how in the world do we keep our men from getting killed while we do this?"
Jason spoke almost instantly, completely familiar with the camp and its surrounding areas. "If a small army advanced from the woods under the cover of darkness, you might stand a chance. Although our army hasn't been trained, the camp does rest on a hill, giving us the advantage, but if you could sneak up, you might get in and out quickly."
"I'll pass that along," the general promised, nodding. "Good work, Jason." He nodded to Shane. "It was a good idea to put him in there, Shane."
Shane just gave a barely perceptible nod to indicate that he had heard and looked up at his friend. "How are you going to do it?" he asked.
Jason responded carefully as though he had really thought about it, which he had. "I think the best way to do it is to get on the opposite side of where Mitchie is and then shoot from there. I'll shoot her in the arm, probably the shoulder, where I can do the least damage. For all her bravery, I have a feeling that she won't be able to handle that sort of pain. She'll faint, giving the impression that she's dead, and then we can get her and be gone."
"What if someone takes a shot at her?" Shane asked.
Jason paused for a moment, unsure of how to answer that one. The general saved him from answering, though, by answering the question for him. "We'll inform the men that they are not to shoot in the region where Mitchie should be. Chances are, she's going to stay close to her tent and not move. We'll keep them away from her, don't worry."
Shane nodded, not completely satisfied, but unwilling to rebut again. "So be it," he said, "but we must have medical staff here for when we bring her back."
"Agreed," Caitlyn spoke up. Everyone in the room turned to look at her, having forgotten that she was still in the room. "I'll get a team gathered right away." She placed a hand on Shane's shoulder and smiled. "Don't worry, Shane. She'll be fine. We'll take good care of her."
Shane smiled weakly at his sister-in-law and nodded. "Thanks," he said.
The general pushed back his chair and stood, straightening his vest as he did so. "I do believe that this meeting is then adjourned. I'll contact Commanding General Scott and let him know that his forces must press the camp in two weeks." He turned to Jason and asked, "That gives them enough time to get here, but does it give you enough time to practice?"
Jason nodded and answered, "Yes, sir."
The general nodded once again. "Good. Now, would you be kind enough to give Jason a ride back to camp?" he asked a rather disgruntled Shane.
"Yes, sir," Shane responded sullenly and he stood, motioning for Jason to follow him. He squeezed Caitlyn's arm as he passed, his own way of saying goodbye, and then they were off, walking briskly through the many tunnels of the underground headquarters. Jason knew better than to speak to his friend at the moment and wisely kept silent.
They rode through the woods on Shane's powerful mount, a three year old stallion that he had trained by himself. Shane was quiet, but Jason could see that his fingers were gripping the reins in a painfully tight hold, causing his knuckles to turn white, and then red. As they came to just inside the edge of the forest, Shane reined in his horse and gave Jason a hand down.
Jason turned to go, prepared to walk back into camp with an innocent smile on his face as though he had simply taken a long walk once again, but Shane's soft voice called him back. He turned around and saw that Shane had already wheeled his horse around, preparing to ride back. "Yes?" he asked quietly.
"If you hurt her-" Shane began, but Jason cut him off.
"I wouldn't dream of it."
A/N: Comment please! I hope you liked it!
