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Chapter 12
if you
Ostrava, Czech Republic (UTC+1)
14th of March 2023, 1723 hrs
"Bruno." the voice pulled him out of his thoughts.
Opening his eyes, he got blinded by bright light coming from the sun, which hung at the horizon, peeking out from the line of trees playfully. He had to fall asleep. Quite a long nap, considering that it was already a sunset.
He slowly picked himself up from the chair, looking at his wife. The man couldn't help but feel a warm feeling spreading inside his heart seeing her so beautiful. Surrounded by her beloved flowers, the long, messy braid flowing down her body and wearing, though covered in dust and dirt, still adorable dungarees. And those beautiful hazel eyes, now- staring right at him.
"Talk to me, Bruno." she stopped him from waking up from the chair. "Please, talk to me."
Dobromila kneeled on the grass in front of him, putting her hands on the man's knees and rested her head on top of them. From this perspective her eyes started reflecting the rays of sun, making them look like two ambers.
He bought her an amber once. When they were visiting Gdynia on their summer trip in Poland. How long ago it was? Twelve years? Maybe even thirteen? Although all the time had passed he still could feel the cold water of the Baltic's sea and the golden sand covering the whole beach…
"What happened, miláček?" Bruno started slowly stroking her hair.
"You've been different ever since your resignation. What's on your mind?"
The question hung in the air for a few seconds, before he let out a long, heavy sigh. He should tell her about everything. She deserved to know.
"It's…" Bruno went quiet again. It was harder than he thought it would be. "You remember when a year ago I got my own team to take care of, right? Small task force, mostly complete kids. In the military standards, obviously. There were those Turkish siblings, absolute smartasses and geniuses when it came to engineering. The Pole, also a good guy. He was more of a silent type of man, with exceptions when you caught him alone or drunk." he laughed briefly.
Dobromila just listened, with a big smile painted on her bright face. That was one of the reasons why he loved her. Whenever he needed she was always ready to sit down and listen. Now she was looking at him like he was saying the most interesting thing in the world.
"Next person was Dima…" he continued. "... boy from Moldavia. Funny guy, knew how to make a good entrance, no wonder why he was our demolition expert. Obviously, Léja was on board too. She made amazing progress, it's great to see her skills develop. There was also the Latin American, Garcia. We all loved him, the type of person to bring a great atmosphere to the team, you know. And…" he hesitated. "There was also this annoying, short, gay Brit. Our medic named Del. Clumsiness and chaos at its finest. They always teased the shit out of each other with Léja. You know how she is, never lets anything slide." he shook his head, chuckling.
"Sounds like good kids." The woman joined him laughing.
"They are. All of them. Even this walking mess Lawson. But… I've made a wrong call. It led to one of the team members going MIA. Missing in action." he quickly added, seeing that his wife doesn't really understand.
"What happened next?"
He raised his hand to rub his face. The image of terrified eyes staring right at him imprinted in his memory didn't let him sleep for the past few weeks. He still remembered how he wanted to stop him, pull him up the fence, beg him to stay. Why didn't he do it?
"We carried out a search and rescue operation but during another action another team found the dogtags of the soldier who was MIA. They took it as a sign that he's dead or captured. Both scenarios are terrible and knowing the enemy… even if the kid is alive, we won't get him back. I feel like a monster saying that, but I wish for the kid to just be dead. He didn't deserve all those tortures that he is going through if he's held hostage."
"Good God…" she whispered, standing up and walking a few steps back.
"It's been on my mind for some time. It's the first time that I lost a soldier under my command. I took all the responsibility on me for the action, got suspended and then decided that it will be better if I retire now."
The woman nodded quietly, trying to process the whole situation. She obviously expected some tragic military story behind her husband's resignation, but that? She didn't want to show it, but her mind screamed the word "coward" louder with every second she was looking at Bruno.
"You're not continuing the search?" keeping her voice calm and steady Dobromila tucked a single strand of her hair behind her ear.
"Yes. His status is still missing, but… I think that everybody made their peace with the thought that… he won't be back."
"But you don't know if he's dead."
Bruno raised his glance. It didn't sound like a question, rather like a statement. Like a sentence said by a judge.
"No, we didn't find the body."
"Then why did you stop that goddammit search operation?" her voice wavered for the first time.
"Because we found his dogta-..."
"This is what you said to his parents? To his family?"
Dobromila's eyes shined, filling with tears. Something in her heart broke, when she heard that. It wasn't just about Bruno leaving when his team needed him. She just… couldn't imagine how the boy's mother felt when they stopped looking for him, even though they didn't have actual proof that he was dead.
The man remained quiet, visibly ashamed and sorrowful. He hated to admit that, but the call he had with Isabella Lawson was one of the reasons why he decided that it will be better if he leaves.
"I see that you're out of words. Great. Tell me, Bruno. How old was he?"
"Del would be turning thirty this year…" he whispered.
"God, he's younger than our kids." a silent sob escaped her mouth. "Is this why you left?"
"No." a word came out so quickly, as if he was afraid of being accused of a lie. "I took the consequences of my actions on me, so the other members of the team wouldn't be charged."
In theory it wasn't a lie. Just a half-truth. Not entirely a lie.
Dobromila held her breath as if she was testing him. Would he say the truth? Say anything? Say the things that have been tormenting his head for almost a whole month now? But Bruno remained unchanged.
Biting her lip, the woman stood up and took a step back. For the first time in her life she felt so… disappointed with her husband.
"Dinner is waiting." she said simply, before heading back home.
"Fucking hell…"
The sun hung over the horizon, when Bruno kept rocking on the chair. He made a damn mistake. He shouldn't have left the team right when they needed him the most. Taking out the phone he stared at the screen, squinting his eyes.
17:32
Ottawa, temperature 16 Celsius degrees
Four unanswered calls from Ambrózy.
With two taps, he quickly called his son back. Four calls in a row meant something really fucking important- that was for sure. The kid rarely called him, neither of them liked to talk on the phone, which made the situation even more concerning. What could be so important…?
"Dad, God, did you watch the news?!"
Before the Czech could even open his mouth to say anything, the phone speaker blew up with the screams of the man.
"How could they let that happen?! Was Léja and mister Matis there?!"
"Léja? Slow down, Ambrózy, slow down… What on Earth are you talking about…?"
"Dad, they blew up the dam in Kaunas. Didn't you watch the damn news?!"
Bruno's heart skipped a beat, when he jumped off the chair.
He needed to go back there. Right fucking now.
Hannover, Germany (UTC+1)
16th of March 2023, 1634 hrs
"I need to get out of here." Eliza sighed, looking out of the window. "Why didn't you tell me about it earlier?"
The silence felt like knives held against their throats. A good question- why didn't they tell her earlier? Such an important thing as the disappearance of their team member was something that she should have been informed earlier.
"You know how Oryx is…" Jalal hesitated. "He sometimes had his quiet days, let's call it this way. We were sure that sooner or later he'll come back. But it has been over a month now, still no sign of life."
The sigh leaving her mouth was expressing her sorrows and concerns more than any words. The weight that has been put on Eliza's shoulders was more burden that any person could carry on their own. Although she was not the leader of Team Rainbow for quite a long time, she still cared about the unit, about every single person that had been a part of it. That wasn't something she could let go of so quickly. Not without the fight.
"Okay. We'll fix that somehow. Kaid, head back to the Fortress. The White Masks' attacks were a perfect opportunity to destabilize the political situation and let other terrorist groups expand their influences. We can't let that happen. At the same time keep searching for Oryx, he couldn't just disappear without a reason."
The Moroccan nodded slowly. His intimidating posture seemed to shrank, the beard gained more white hair here and there. The great commander Jalal El Fassi lost the powerful shine in his eyes. The shine that was making him the great commander. Al Kaid.
It took Ash a while to realize how much of a binder Harry was for them. Keeping them together, solving the conflicts, making them bond with each other… With so many different personalities, cultural backgrounds and preferences it was impossible to make them work as a team, but doctor Pandey still managed to do it. Like a conductor synchronizing the whole orchestra, making them create a true masterpiece.
With him gone, Eliza felt helpless. Lost, weak, meaningless. How could she protect others, the people she cared about, if she couldn't even protect herself?
"C'mon Eliza, mi amiga. It's not your fault." Flores made a step closer, tapping the soldier on her shoulder. "I can see you blaming yourself…"
"I should have stopped Harry right at the start. Right when he wanted to introduce Nighthaven to Rainbow." She shook her head. "We wouldn't be here if I did it."
"Ash, let me tell you. If you're at fault, so am I. Harry made a mistake, we made a mistake. As we say in arabic- alkhata almaelum khayr min alhaqiqat almajhulati, a known mistake is better than unknown truth."
Jalal wanted to continue on his speech, but the door opened, making both him and Santiago reach their hands to the holsters.
"Shit, calm down, grandpa." The man standing in the doorframe raised his hands as a sign of no hostility.
"Sir." The Argenitnian sighed, lowering his gun. "You've mistaken the roo-..."
"Oh, I don't think so. My name is Kyle Myers." making a step inside, the man closed the door behind him, ignoring completely what Flores said. "Eliza Cohen, I'm assuming?"
Tucking her red hair behind her ear, Ash's glare finally shifted from the window to look at the man.
"Depends who's asking."
"Well, I'd answer if I were you, since I am the new Director Six."
Kaunas, Lithuania (UTC+1)
14th March 2023, 1802 hrs
People walking past him were giving him weird stares. Even those who were rushing, took their sweet time to stop and eye him down in an annoyed manner. The view was truly unusual for a typical civilian. Clothes covered in blood and dust, the ripped material on the shoulder revealing the pale skin of the man. Though it probably would be much worse if not the fact that he left the rifle in the security office. As the guard claimed- he couldn't carry such things around, not only because of the security measures but also to not scare the shit out of the patients. But the Pole never cared less about what people thought about him. Not in such a situation.
"Sir." The voice pulled him out of his thoughts, as he slowly opened his eyes. "The surgery has ended."
Did he fall asleep? Probably. The exhaustion crushed him not only mentally but also physically. He was sure that if not for the fact that adrenaline kept him going in that damn power plant, he'd be dead by now. Ripped apart by the explosion. Crushed down under the tones of concrete. His body taken away by the powerful wave of water, escaping through the cracks.
Looking at the doctor with a blunt expression, Artyom nodded slowly, processing the information. Sitting on the plastic chair, his tired face was slightly illuminated by the dim corridor's lights which flickered from time to time.
"He lost a lot of blood, but he's stable. Unfortunately, although he's freshly after the surgery we'll have to transport him to the other hospital, in Vilnius. The water has already got to the basement and it's just a matter of time before they'll stop working." the medic sighed.
"Can I see him before that?" Skowron's voice was rash, croaky. He still could feel the burning pain with every breath he took.
"No. He's getting prepared for the transport. You should go, sir. I've already overused my power by letting you stay here during the evacuation."
Without answering, he stood up and walked away. No thank you, no goodbye, no complaints. It felt as if somebody ripped emotions out of his soul, turning him into a cold, lifeless stone. Going through the empty corridor, he kept staring forward, making step after step. All those hours of sitting motionlessly in front of the operating theater his muscles felt numb, but still tensed like strings of the guitar, ready to snap at any moment. He could barely feel his feet touching the floor.
What should he do now? The captain of his team was laying unconscious in a hospital bed, being on the verge of dying. Who was in charge? Was there anybody to tell him what to do?
"Artem…"
A whisper sent shivers down his spine. Or maybe it was the cold wind caressing his body? How did he find himself outside of the building? The humid air irritated his nostrils, burning the lungs like a wildfire.
"Selin…"
He turned around, looking at the woman. Her brown eyes shone slightly in the neon light of the hospital's signboard.
"I…" he wasn't sure what he wanted to say. If he wanted to say anything at all. Thank you? Maybe I'm sorry? Or should he leave just as he did in front of the operating theater. His hands were shaking, making him unable to light up the cigarette. When did he take out the cigarettes?
"Artem…" the Turk called him again, like she was making sure that he really was here. "I'm so glad to see you alive…" her voice broke, when she grabbed him by his jacket and pulled the man closer. "When it all blew up…" she sobbed, burying her face in the shoulder of her teammate.
Skowron's heart skipped a beat, when it happened. He stood there, surprised, confused. He wasn't sure if he should but… he returned the hug, clinging to her as if he was afraid that she was going to disappear into the cold night. His whole body tensed, ready to do anything to protect his friend at that moment, although he felt so weak and helpless.
The same way that he felt when he was dragging the unconscious body of her brother up the dam stairs. Maybe it was because of his prayers, God sent him Beartice to lead him out of that hell, or maybe it was the adrenaline that kept him running until his lungs filled with the fresh air of the outside. His memory of the past few hours was blurred, put behind the frosted glass. He wanted to remember, he needed to remember. There had to be something before he ended up sitting on the hospital chair, staring at his gloves covered with the blood of his friend.
"Shhh… It's all good. We made it, Selin." letting out a long sigh. He rested his head on her shoulder. closing his eyes. Feeling her body heat, her heavy breathing, the silent tears flowing down her cheeks, it felt like somebody took enormous weight off Artyom's shoulders, finally bringing peace for the man's soul.
"Is.. is he okay?" her whisper gently wrapped around his neck, causing a lump to stuck in the Pole's throat. Batu… how could he forget for a brief moment about him?
"They finished the surgery. As they said he lost a lot of blood, but he should be fine."
"God! I c-can, I can donate my blood if that's necessary!"
"Sel, Sel, please, calm down. I already did that." Artyom stopped her. "I have B Negative. Don't worry. They are currently transporting him to another hospital, since this is being evacuated due to the flood."
The soldiers finally broke the embrace, but neither of them dared to make more than half a step back, keeping close to each other. There was no force now that could pull them apart, no power in this world strong enough to do that. Selin nodded slowly, looking at the dark city, its air filled with the howling of police sirens. Standing on the entrance platform, the water hadn't reached them yet, but it was creeping its way up the small stairs.
"We should report back to base.' the Pole muttered, breaking an awkward silence between them, staring down at his reflection in the water.
"Already did. They'll send somebody to take us to Hereford." Laying her hand on the man's shoulder. "Artem? It's been hard for all of us… but you've seemed different since Harry died. I'm worried."
"I'm fine."
An obvious lie.
He could see in Çağlarr's eyes that she knew that it was nothing more than a blunt lie. But at the same time she didn't get angry… Just stared at him with the tint of disappointment in her glare.
"This shit has been overwhelming for me, you know?" Artyom shook his head, finally breaking. "Losing Six was like losing a guide in some forgotten by God shithole. I might have not agreed with him about all the stuff, but… he was a good guy. Didn't deserve such an end. When Doc called me that evening… I thought about resigning. I know, I know. It sounds stupid, but I was so afraid for my family. And then Seattle happened. Betrayal came from our own teammate. Bruno knew that I'd never agree to an operation like this. He knew. That's why they didn't choose me or you. And now… Del is dead, the city is flooded." lowering his head, he made a step closer to the water, searching for the lighter he got from Harry in the pocket. "Reminds me about home."
"Home?" Selin raised her eyebrows.
"Yeah." he hesitated. The thoughts rumbling in his head got so unbearable, that he couldn't hold them anymore. He wasn't really the type of the guy who'd yap about his emotions for the whole day. Not as if he was worried about being seen as weak, but there was something in his head blocking him off. "Wrocław was flooded in 1997. The biggest flood Poland has seen for the last century. And… It just brought some memories back."
The kid's wet hand sliding on Kajetan's forearm, when the water stream knocked him to his knees, throwing him down the basement stairs. His head got under the surface of cold, stinky liquid which brutally stormed inside of his mouth. Young Artyom couldn't understand what and why was going on. It was so surreal and not comprehensible for the child's mind. A normal day, exactly the same as the other days. Maybe his mother was a little nervous that morning, not letting him and Kajetan play outside. But how did it come to this? The boy's lungs burned with fire when instead of air they were being filled with water.
"Artem, I'm so sorry." her voice mixed with the unreal scream of his childhood friend. Finally, he could snap out of that nightmare, his glare meeting with Selin's brown eyes. "You're hurt…"
"I'm fine. It's been a while."
"No, no. You're hurt." gently laying her hand on the man's cheek, Selin slowly ran her finger tips on the scratches covering the Pole's face. "Somebody should take a look at this."
"Sel, it's fine, really."
Her breath trembled, as she reached, pulling the collar of his uniform down. A silent "God!" escaped her mouth as she saw the purple bruising dying his skin.
"You need to see a doctor. Now." The Turk's thumb was gently rubbing the injuries, shaking her head in shock.
"I…"
"No, no, I don't even want to hear that. It looks bad, I don't wanna risk your health. We're going. Now."
Before Artyom could react, he was pulled by her towards the entrance of the hospital. The lighter slipped out of his hand, dropping into the water.
"Selin, please, I…!"
She didn't listen. Her touch made Skowron's cheeks turn all red, as he followed her, taking the last look at the city.
Undetermined localisation
Undetermined time
His breath was heavy. Spinning in his head was getting more and more tiring with every step he took. Tired, wounded, hungry and thirsty. At this point he just wanted to die. Being completely lost for God knows how long and God knows where, the man was ready to give up. Ready to lay down on the ground and let some wild animal tear him apart. It looked like the only reasonable option.
The wound on his arm opened up again, dying the makeshift bandage crimson. He was sure that the wound infection had already spread throughout his whole body. So that was the end. That was how he was going to die. Quite a miserable ending, he couldn't lie.
At this point he couldn't even cry. Yes, he cried a lot the first night. Scared, in tremendous pain, feeling left out. He cried not only because of that. The frustration building up inside of him was even worse. Swearing how much of an idiot he was. He wanted to be a hero? Well, he definitely became one. And that meant dealing with the consequences of his actions.
Dying in the middle of some random forest from injuries or the infection. If hunger or dehydration wouldn't be the first thing to kill him. A thought of an empty coffin buried 6 feet under the ground made a shiver go down his spine. What were the chances that somebody will find his body? He was never a math guy, but even without that, he knew the answer. Round, beautiful zero.
Hating every single choice that he had made in his life, he leaned against the tree, trying to catch his breath.
"God fucking damnit." he whispered. His voice felt dry, harsh, as never before. The sound of it terrified him. For a second he was sure they found him. It just couldn't be his voice. Somebody else had to be around.
Sliding down, he felt the rough surface of the tree scratching his hands, but he didn't pay attention to this. Not anymore.
His eyes closed slowly, but he fought with himself to open them again. The scenery changed so quickly, in a split second. The sky was dark, lit up by stars. He didn't even realize that he fell asleep. The exhaustion totally knocked him out. The only thing he could do now was to curse at his own stupidity. Walking around during the night was even more pointless.
"What are you looking at, Cheet?" The Lithuanian's voice came from nowhere.
"The stars…" he whispered.
"Any in particular or just admiring the view?"
The answer stuck in his throat, as he started looking around for the source of the voice. The darkness and cold wind were caressing him, bringing him down to that void of that insanity.
"Dumbass." she laughed, the sound echoing between the trees. "You won't find me. I'm not real."
"I know." he sighed.
"Then why did you answer?"
"I don't know."
"So you don't know or you know? Decide, Del-Del."
The nickname froze the blood in his veins. The last time he heard that… It was years ago. Probably when his dad was still alive. Or maybe after he died. When did he die?
"Today. You're going to die today." his invisible and imaginary friend snickered, as she always did when she said something funny.
"Stop fucking with my mind."
"The problem is that I am your mind."
"Why Léja's voice? She has the most annoying voice out of all the people I know."
"You have your answer."
"Fuck you." he swallowed the saliva, the back of his throat immediately got on fire, as if he drank acid.
"You're dehydrated, Del-Del."
"I know."
Standing up, he rubbed his face. The skin covered in small scratches and bruises burned with pain even when he didn't touch it.
He should find some water. The last stream he had passed was some time ago. Maybe a week? No, it couldn't be a week, he couldn't have survived for so long without water. Maybe three days then. He tried to keep track of the time, he really tried, but after the first twenty four hours he was sure that he'd go crazy if he kept counting.
Where was he heading? He had absolutely no idea. No matter where he turned all he was seeing was fucking forest. Trying to go in one direction ended up getting stuck in a long valley between two mountains. He tried to find some trail or anything that could be helpful to find his way, but being half conscious made his task pretty tough. Wandering like a zombie though that dense forest, trying to find any reference point, he was getting weaker and weaker.
The stars helped him to determine the directions, but it didn't make him any less confused. He could be going in an entirely wrong direction anyways. He couldn't tell if he crossed the river that should be located on the east. Without knowing that he couldn't be sure if he didn't miss the point where he was heading. His mind was foggy most of the time, but there were nights when he would be waking up in a completely different place than where he was earlier. The fever accompanying him most of the time was probably a reason behind his memory loss. Or maybe it was just exhaustion.
"You stopped humming." The voice spoke up again.
"I stopped what?"
"Humming."
A long sigh left his mouth, when he realized what that was about. Maybe that's why he started hearing the voice? Because he stopped humming and thinking about the music? The silence was killing him from inside, being worse than pain, lack of water and food. The idea of being alone in the whole damn forest scared him. It was a miracle that he didn't meet any bear or mountain lion yet.
Losing his balance, snapped him out of his thoughts. Before he could even react, he rolled down the hill. Hitting his back against the ground, branches catching on his clothes. Landing in the tall grass, he whimpered.
"Just kill me already, stop this fucking torture!" the man mumbled, looking at the sky. "I'm sorry, alright?! I've never been a good person, I fucking know it! But do I deserve it all?! I just… I just wanted to save my friends. Do I deserve that?! Answer me!" he cried, calling out to… nobody. "I hate myself… but did I really deserve to die like this…? If you're there, listen to me… Dear God, I'm so sorry. I never wanted things to go this way. I just want to go home, I'm so scared… If you don't kill me, I'll go crazy." he closed his eyes, covering face with one hand.
The minutes passed, but the man didn't move. Every single part of his body trembled with pain, making him unable to even think clearly. Something
But his ears caught something else. A weird sound, so distinctive from the normal forest sounds. Waking up slowly, he looked around, squinting his eyes. Was he hallucinating? It happened a few times earlier, so it was a quite possible option.
With the steps he took, the sound was becoming louder and more real. He wasn't roar of the car engine was the only thing he could focus on.
Breaking through the bushes his eyes met with the bright moon hanging high in the sky. As soon as his foot touched the black concrete, his heart skipped a beat. He found himself on the road. A fucking road.
A silent giggle escaped his mouth, as he looked around. The place was surprisingly bright. There had to be some other source of light than just the moon.
"Bloody hell…" he muttered.
The squeak of the brakes and tires on the rod made him immediately turn around, making a step back. A black Sedan stopped barely a few feet in front of him. The blinding light from the vehicle made his pupils narrow, as he covered his face.
"In the name of Christ, young man, what are you doing here?!" The voice felt weirdly distant although the driver appeared right in front of him. Shaking him by his shoulders, he kept talking, asking questions. "Son, please answer me, what happened?"
But the man didn't listen. He fell unconsciously into the driver's arms.
