The Sleeping Beauty Raid-Chapter 2
The next day found the squad sitting around camp speculating about the extra gear.
"We probably have some new replacements coming in. Sarge can't carry all those packs by himself." Billy Nelson suggested.
"Replacements bring their own gear." Littlejohn scoffed. "When did Sarge ever get any gear for the new guys?"
"It could be replacements." Billy insisted. "You usually know what's going on Cage."
Cage just waved a hand at them. "Don't drag me into this. Sarge will tell us when we need to know."
"Don't you want to know?" Billy peered at age from his seat beside Littlejohn. "Aren't you even a little bit curious?"
"Nope." Cage lied. "I've found that where the army is concerned, it's usually better not to know."
"Now you sound like Kirby." Sawyer joined the conversation. "Maybe you're right though. Maybe we're better off not knowing."
"We're going to find out sooner or later. Me, I prefer to know sooner." Kirby was impatient with the others. "Don't any of you care?"
"You care so much, you go ask the Sarge." Cage told his friend. "Me, I think I'll wait until he's ready to tell us."
They watched as Saunders got up and left the camp. He returned a short time later with more supplies which he stashed in his own pack. He looked up at everyone watching him.
"Did everyone restock their supplies?"
They all nodded.
"Then relax." The sargent suggested. "There's a truck coming in later today. We've got four more men joining us on this assignment. It may be a tough one so get all the rest you can."
"I have a bad feeling about this." Kirby grumbled as Saunders left them with even more unanswered questions. "It just keeps getting stranger and stranger."
No one could refute his observation so they allowed him to get in the last word. Most of them spent the better part of the day going over their gear and napping.
They were all on their feet and standing together later that afternoon when the truck arrived.
Gil Hanley climbed out of the passenger seat and walked around the back as Chip Saunders crawled over the tail gate.
"What did you bring us L.T.?" Kirby called.
"Didn't the sargent tell you?" The lieutenant looked at the sargent in surprise.
"Nope. I didn't want to spoil the surprise." The sargent was smiling. "We brought the new men." He turned to his squad and watched their faces.
"Where are they?" Littlejohn ask when no one appeared.
"Sleeping. They had a long trip." Saunders answered.
"Jeez Sarge! How is it that every time HQ sends us new men, they're sleeping?" He looked at his friends for support. "Remember those last guys they sent us? They were asleep when they arrived too. How come we don't get to sleep?"
"You had all last night and today to sleep Kirby. If you're still tired, go back to sleep. We leave tomorrow morning." Saunders pulled the canvas aside.
"I wonder how those guys are doing?" Cage spoke in a quiet voice.
"Why don't you ask them?"
Sargent Sam Troy appeared aat the tail gate. He grinned down at the squad before he jumped to the ground. "For your information private," he eyed Kirby, "my men are awake. I think you woke them." His tone didn't suggest that he had taken any offense at Kirbys' words. "So no one told you we were coming?" He laughed. "That's alright, we like to surprise everyone." He turned to Saunders. "Don't tell me, they don't want to work with us again."
Saunders shrugged. "I didn't ask them." He glanced over at his men. "But they don't look too upset at the idea."
"You're right, they do look friendly." Troy called into the back of the truck. "You can come out now."
Sargent Moffitt appeared next. "Sam's right. They do appear friendly. At least he doesn't appear to have any new holes in him." His eyes twinkled with pleasure as he surveyed the group of men. There was the sound of something heavy being pushed across the floor of the truck. Moffitt followed Troy to the ground and turned to reach for something behind him. He retrieved a package and stepped out of the way as another form appeared out of the gloom of the truck. Hitchcock slid out onto the ground behind Moffitt.
"Do you guys ever do anything besides sleep?" Cage called with a smile.
"Well, now that you ask, we do get drunk now and then." The squad laughed as he turned to pull a heavy box off the tail gate. "But this time we come bearing gifts." He swung the box around so that they could see the bottles of beer packed inside. Tully pushed a second box to the edge and jumped down.
Kirby laughed at the sight. "If you're trying to get us drunk enough to want to work with you again…." Kirby took the box from the blond, "I'd say you're off to a good start."
Saunders grinned at Troy. "It's a start."
"Well," Moffitt smiled as he opened the package in his hands, "maybe these will help." He held up two unopened bottles of Scotch.
"It doesn't hurt." Saunders laughed again as Hanley nodded his head.