AN1 Thanks for the feedback since my return. We're still in the third arc, which began in Chapter 21. The arc will continue until the conclusion of Lockdown, which still has a few chapters left in the tank. I'm thrilled that the battle was enjoyed in Ch33. The story will go a few chapters with little action now (a tiny bit in a few chapters' time). But then the hostilities will quickly resume as the team confronts emerging threats and challenges, which will occur in rapid succession after Lockdown's conclusion.
AN2 I understand that most Chuck readers are not interested in this fiction. It's a military story, written in the Queen's English, set in the United Kingdom, and most Chuck readers are from the United States. With all of that said, I know I won't pull outstanding numbers for this fiction. This is why it's important for those who do like the story to remain vocal about it with me.
Previously: "Let it all out," she commanded in a soothing whisper, "We're alone. I checked."
She soon felt his body tense against hers.
And then the floodgates opened once more.
"It's ok," she whispered to him as he cried into her frame.
She soon began to softly caress the back of his head with her hand, and she adjusted her head to plant the softest of kisses onto the side of his face. "I'll be here for you whenever you need me, Chuck. I promise that. We can overcome this together, beautiful..."
Who Dares Wins
Chapter Thirty-Five: Lockdown: Part Fourteen: AWOL: Part Two
Monday, 12 November, 2007
Stirling Lines
Hereford
United Kingdom
Sarah exited Chuck's room an hour after she had entered. Closing the door to his room after her, she was about to return to her room, but she paused because Cole Barker appeared in view, departing his own personal on-base accommodation.
"How is he?" Cole asked plainly, his tone was sombre, and his body language showed not a single upbeat nor happy vibe, just like hers.
Today had been a very long day for Red Team. For most of them, it had been the most intense day of their lives, and it would take some time for them to come to terms with and move on from everything that happened.
Sarah shook her head. "He's not good," she admitted. "It doesn't help that we're all stuck in lockdown. Because there's not much we can do for him while we're all caked up here."
Cole nodded. "I agree, lass. He needs to be away from the base for a few days," he said. "A lot of dutch courage wouldn't go amiss either."
"I agree," Sarah said as her gaze hit the floor, puffing out a long frustrated sigh. She needed to be anywhere but here, with Chuck at her side. "I could do with all of that and more right now too."
Cole crossed his arms as the teammates continued to share a glance. "Do you need to vent any of it?"
Sarah instantly shook her head. "Knowing everything that Chuck's going through puts everything in perspective. My difficulties from today's op are small arms fire. But Chuck's… they're nuclear," she said with concern.
"Be that as it may, my door is always open if that changes, and you need to get some of it off your chest. I know Chuck's been the go-to mate for you to speak your mind in your first month and a half, but we would have to be the most selfishly rotten pillocks going if we lumped him with any of our problems while he goes through this."
Sarah nodded. "I agree. He needs all of us right now. I just hope we can all help him understand that he was not responsible for any of this: they were," she said, her lips creasing in sadness in fear of failing the task.
"It won't be easy. Once something sets in his mind, it's hard to get him to come around," Cole replied.
Turning to look at Chuck's room once more, she said, "We'll just have to snap it out of him then, won't we?" spinning back to face Cole as she finished speaking.
A grin lit up Cole's face. "I couldn't have said it any better, nor could I agree any more, lass."
The teammates paused briefly until Sarah declared, "I'm going to go to my room and sleep for a week now."
Cole nodded in confirmation before fixing his glance at Room Six. "And I'm going to call on my best man…."
Tuesday, 13 November, 2007
Stirling Lines
Hereford
United Kingdom
08:00 hours
Chuck entered the cafeteria on base much later than he usually would have done today, considering most mornings for him had begun at 06:00 for his entire time in the army, which was eight long years.
Well, right now, at least, it felt like those eight years had been long.
Actually, for Chuck right now, eight years ago felt like a hundred lifetimes ago.
So much had happened in those eight years.
So much had happened yesterday in what had turned out to be by far the worst day of his life.
Not bothering to glance around at who was in attendance in the canteen, Chuck walked defeatedly—as though he had just been diagnosed with a terminal illness—to queue up in line in wait to be served, with his head stooped down looking at the floor of the facility as he waited.
Now in the queue, Chuck remained in pause for two minutes until he was alerted to someone calling, "Chuck?"
Chuck lifted his gaze and made eye contact with a much shorter man, nearly a foot shorter than Chuck, save from a few inches, and he had ginger hair.
"Hello, Ryan," he said back, nodding at Ryan Shawcross, Chuck's former comrade in the Grenadier Guards, but now a serving member of 22 Reg just like him.
Ryan had passed selection to 22 SAS simultaneously with Chuck. They were the only Grenadier Guards out of eight of that selection—consisting of two hundred and sixty overall candidates from every regiment—that had earned the coveted beige beret.
Chuck, being an expert in vehicles, was assigned to Mobility troop. While Ryan, a natural at all things climbing, was posted to Mountain troop. However, they were both serving G Squadron members, so they unfailingly deployed on squadron operations overseas together.
"I heard about your group being involved in that business yesterday, mate," Ryan said, nodding Chuck towards a different part of the canteen.
Chuck followed Ryan's glance towards a TV in the facility, which was playing out some kind of feed related to the aftermath of yesterday's mission of Chuck's team.
"Yeah…" Chuck said, instantly turning away from the TV to look back in Ryan's direction, but his gaze lowered towards the floor.
"Chuck, you did what you had to, mate. And I would have done the same thing. Their actions brought shame and disgrace to the Guards," Ryan said, sensing Chuck's present sorrow and deflated frame of mind.
Chuck raised his glance to look at Ryan again. "But they were our mates, Ryan. They were one of us," he protested, sighing. Although he knew a substantial portion of what Ryan had said was right.
"They're your mates now," Ryan said, nodding to another part of the room again, which Chuck followed, and his glance landed on most of Red Team, who were seated, and glancing back in his direction.
"And so are the rest of us," Ryan then said, which caused Chuck to look back at him again. "You did the right thing, mate. The only people responsible for yesterday are Ian, Sean, Ben, Andy, and the other morons who decided to join up with them, whoever they were."
Chuck processed Ryan's remarks, but remained silent, still in conflict and troubled by everything that happened yesterday. It was going to take him a long time for him to be able to cancel out what had happened, that was if he would ever at some point be able to.
"James Prescott has been texting and calling me trying to find out what's going on," Ryan declared, breaking the brief silence. "He said he's been trying to reach you as well, and 'cause he couldn't, Jay's pretty sure you were involved. Of course, I told him you were out training, but nobody ever believes that."
"I wouldn't believe it either," Chuck said, registering Ryan's comments, and he started to think about his longtime friend, James, who had now left the army.
Ryan nodded before holding his hand out at Chuck, which Chuck accepted.
"Don't let this bring you down," Ryan implored him during the handshake. "You worked your whole life getting to where you are today, mate. Don't lose sight of it or give up on it now just because four lads turned their backs on the uniform and dragged you into the shite because of it."
The longtime comrades shared a final glance for a few more seconds until Ryan released Chuck's hand and departed away from him, leaving Chuck to enter into deep thoughts once more…
A short while later
Chuck entered the barracks of his troop, and he hastily walked up the corridor as quickly as feasible to return to his room. Chuck didn't want to be around anyone right now, so the fewer people he saw, the better.
Entering his room, Chuck closed the door behind him.
Walking to the cabinet next to the room's bed, Chuck opened the cabinet drawer, took out his mobile phone, closed the drawer, and moved to sit on the bed.
With the mobile now in hand, he turned it on for the first time since he'd left it in his room when departing for Hinkley Point on Friday.
With the device booted up a short moment later, Chuck began reading the contents of the screen and soon became overwhelmed by what he had read because there were more than a dozen missed calls and a similar amount of unanswered text messages awaiting him.
Placing the device beside him briefly, he put his head in his hands, huffing out a long sigh to compose himself again.
Soon composed enough to continue the task, he picked up the phone and began to siphon through the device in search of who had attempted to contact him during his period of absence while on assignment.
Completing the task a minute later, he now knew that in his absence, Ellie Bartowski, Mary Bartowski, Hannah, and James Prescott had each attempted to call his cell phone and sent him numerous text messages.
Taking a moment in thought, Chuck began to navigate the device until arriving at the contact details of James Prescott.
Now gazing at the LCD screen containing the contact information of James Prescott, he paused for an extended moment until finally hitting call, and he placed the device up to his ear.
James answered the call after a few rings. "Alright?"
"I've just got back, Jay. Ryan told me you rang," Chuck said, ignoring the greeting of his friend, who he first met on his very first day in the army at ITC (Infantry Training Centre) Catterick. They'd been friends ever since, although Chuck had only seen James once since joining the SAS more than three years ago, which was a normal thing for 22 Reg members on passing selection.
"He said you were training, but that's always the line for you lads," James replied.
"You know how it is," Chuck replied instantly.
"Yeah…" James agreed as the longtime friends then entered a brief silence. "I can't believe what they've done, lad. I'm in shock."
Chuck tensed at the conversation leading to this. Still, he had to have known that it would have, considering that's why James had been ringing and texting him, trying to find out information about Sean, Ben, Andy, and Captain White.
"Neither can I," Chuck said simply after a long moment. And that was an understatement of the highest order.
"Were you on the op that's all over the news which stopped them?"
"I can't say," Chuck answered instantly.
James sighed into the phone. "I know. It's just… I can't get it out of my head, lad. Please just tell me that they didn't suffer? You can give me that at least."
"They didn't."
There was then a long pause in the conversation.
Maybe it wasn't the best idea for Chuck to have called James right now. They might have known each other for eight years, but to Chuck, it now felt like they were strangers, and if he was being honest with himself, it had felt that way to him whenever speaking to all former comrades he no longer served with. They each had moved on from one another, and despite James having been one of Chuck's best friends once upon a time, it was no different between him and Chuck now.
"I'm in the dark about funeral arrangements. With them now gone, I don't even know how to go about finding that out because I barely kept in touch with any of you since leaving," James soon said.
"Neither have I."
"If I can find out, would you be interested in going?" James asked.
"I can't," Chuck said instantly while gazing distantly at the wall ahead of him in this small-claustrophobic inducing room that he needed to be far away from at this moment.
James sighed into the phone. "As bad as their actions were, they were our mates, lad."
"I know," Chuck replied, this time being the one to sigh. "I just can't."
And it was true. Because even if Chuck could have faced attending the funerals, it would be impossible for him to attend because he was deployed on counter-terror and thus restricted and confined to the area of Hereford. While none of the three had lived within 100 miles of him.
"Fair enough. I can tell you're shattered, mate, so we'll leave it there. Keep in touch, yeah?" James said.
"Yeah…" Chuck replied before he soon disconnected the call…
A short while later
After his call with James concluded, Chuck spent a short period replying to his mother and Ellie's messages. He didn't have the strength nor energy for further phone conversations, so he'd texted them both, stating that he was fine, had been busy with work, was tired, and that he couldn't grasp nor accept the actions of his three friends, which is why his family members had attempted to contact him.
The only person Chuck hadn't replied to was Hannah, his ex-girlfriend and childhood sweetheart. However, Chuck had no further energy to use his mobile, at least right now.
He'd answer her later.
Well, if he had the strength to and could think of anything to say, considering they'd been broken up for nearly three years now…
Moving to stand, Chuck promptly placed the phone back into the drawer when he was disturbed by a knock on his door.
Chuck turned to face the door, where Jamie Hughes entered inside.
"Sorry to disturb you, mate, we have a debriefing," Jamie said.
Chuck nodded before following Jamie to head outside…
Staff Sergeant Chris MacDonald arrived outside the Commanding Officer of 22 Regiment's office. One of the Colonel's aides had informed the Red Team leader that the CO required his presence before the debriefing of yesterday's events and further developments in a few minutes.
Wasting no time, the SSgt knocked on the closed door.
"Come!" Colonel Wood instantly called out.
Chris promptly entered inside. "You wanted to see me, Boss?" he asked, stopping a few yards from the CO.
"Just a brief word before the debriefing, Chris, that's all," Colonel Wood stated.
Chris nodded.
"In your honest assessment, what is the present readiness capability of Red Team?" Colonel Wood inquired.
"The lads need a few days, Boss," Chris said instantaneously.
Colonel Wood quirked an eye at the Staff Sergeant's immediate declaration and the reply because Red Team was arguably the best unit in the Regiment. Nevertheless, the squad had been in the thick of it for the past six weeks, so the Colonel, on this matter, was happy to follow the team leader's assertions.
"Ok, light duties for the next three days and then I want you all sharp and your heads back in the game," the Colonel declared. "I will inform Richard that Red Team is to be stood down."
"Boss," Chris said, nodding...
A short while later
The full complement of Red Team was seated at a briefing room and awaiting the debriefing to start when Colonel Wood and Captain Wallace entered the room and speedily moved to the front.
With everyone now in place, the debriefing started.
"Ok, ladies and gentlemen, I see a lot of tired faces here, so I will tell you the bad news first. This debriefing will be extraordinarily long and will also contain further new developments on the issue of lockdown and the bugs on our cars," Colonel Wood stated.
Most of Red Team, minus Chuck, who was in no mood for moaning or groaning, and Chris, who was always composed, started to groan out in a complaint.
"And what's the good news, Boss?" Bryce asked.
Glancing around at the tired soldiers, Colonel Wood said, "At the conclusion of this debriefing, you're stood down with light duties only for the next three days."
Demeanours instantly picked up slightly within the team.
Each team member felt sure they would need every one of those three days.
"That's all well and good, Boss," Big Dan stated. "But unless the development on lockdown is that it's over, then we can't exactly do much with those three days anyway," he said, shaking his head in frustration, knowing that those three days off were likely going to be spent caked up and bored shitless on base. Big Dan would almost rather go straight out on another mission, though he knew he was not in the right mindset for that: just like the rest of the team.
"Are you meaning to tell me that there's nothing to do on this fine establishment, Corporal Thomas?" Colonel Wood joked.
Much quieter than usual laughter broke out slightly from just a few members of Red Team.
"Well, he's right, Boss, isn't he?" Jamie asked back.
"We'll have a swimming pool and nightclub installed ASAP on the facility, just for you," Colonel Wood joked further.
The Colonel's latest joke brought out a slightly more audible reaction from the team.
Once the brief laughter calmed, the Colonel continued, "Now, about the lockdown, it's bad news, I'm afraid-"
"Oh, shite, here we go," John Murray unexpectedly interrupted, shaking his head, anticipating further grim news.
The way the team's luck was going at the moment, none of them would have expected any less!
"Quite, Trooper Murray," Colonel Wood said. "During Trooper Walker's vehicle repairs, a third tracking device has been uncovered."
"Fucking hell!" Big Dan said, shaking his head. "This lot has more trackers than the lot of paparazzi following Paris fucking Hilton!"
Most of Red Team snorted to hold in immediate laughter. They found their teammate's comment to be highly more amusing than the ones the CO had attempted so far.
"Quite," Colonel Wood replied, nodding at Big Dan, with the briefest hint of a smirk from the 22 SAS CO.
"The device is identical to the previous two tracking devices discovered earlier on Sergeant Barker and Trooper Hughes's vehicles," Captain Wallace apprised the team.
Red Team, including Chuck, processed the update from their officers.
However, Chuck was undisputedly off his game and not displaying his usual high levels of concentration; he was far from that level of performance right now…
"I don't suppose there's any good news about that then, Boss?" Big Dan asked.
"Actually, Corporal Thomas, there is," Captain Wallace replied.
Red Team, minus Chuck, turned instantly excited in the hope that both the Regiment and the MI5 personnel working to track those behind planting the tracking devices may have located and neutralised the threat during Red Team's absence from the base.
"Does that mean you've found the buggers behind it, and all of us except for Speedy Gonzales, 'cause he lives on base anyway, can go home to our beds?" Jamie asked expectantly because surely the team had to have some good luck going for them eventually!
Captain Wallace and Colonel Wood shook their heads in sync, causing immediate groans from most of Red Team.
"Lockdown will continue for the foreseeable future until we find out the gentlemen responsible for planting the devices," Colonel Wood declared.
The groans amongst the team suddenly became much louder.
"Then what's the good news?" Sarah asked rather deflatedly.
"The good news is that we have repaired your car, and it's now back at base, Trooper Walker," Colonel Wood said.
Sarah's mood instantly perked up.
"She's got nowhere to go in it anyway, 'cause we're all stuck on here," Big Dan quickly stated.
Sarah's better mood instantly evaporated, and she arched forward to glance at Big Dan a few seats away. "Thanks for that!" she complained, glaring at him for ruining her mood.
The team, minus Chuck, and Bryce—who wanted to get back in Sarah's good books—suppressed laughter.
"Now, onto more pressing matters," Colonel Wood said, leading the briefing in a different direction. "Events of yesterday…."
Several minutes later
"A mobile phone believed to be a burner was discovered on the deceased plod outrider who turned sides. The phone had made numerous calls to another burner belonging to Captain White on the day of the ambush," Colonel Wood revealed.
Red Team processed the information.
"Extensive searches are ongoing at all known addresses of the deceased individuals who took part in the ambush," Captain Wallace declared.
"Just who were the three unknown hostiles, Boss?" Staff Sergeant MacDonald asked.
"They belonged to Far-Right movements, and we believe them to have gained contact with Captain White via Sergeant Lewis, who had hard links to similar entities," Captain Wallace apprised the team.
The team continued to process the information, and a silence ensued through the room for an extended moment, signalling the end of the debriefing of yesterday's events and the new report on the status of the tracking devices.
"Well, ladies and gentlemen, unless there are any questions, that concludes the debriefing," Colonel Wood said.
Red Team glanced at each other, and everyone remained silent.
The team then prepared to stand, but everyone quickly paused when Chuck said, "I have one."
Captain Wallace and Colonel Wood turned to look at Chuck.
"Very well?" Colonel Wood said.
"Why weren't we told that Sean Miller's fiancee's brother and his young son were killed in the attacks on London?" Chuck asked.
All of Chuck's teammates turned to look at him.
"To not impair or cloud any of your judgements by giving sympathy to the enemy, Corporal," Colonel Wood replied.
Chuck shook his head, feeling pissed off by that reply. "That's rubbish," he said with intense resentment, still shaking his head.
"Corporal," Chris cautioned.
Chuck turned to look at his team leader and jerked his head. "No, I'm sorry. It is rubbish, and I stand by that," he said, turning to look at the officers again.
"I take it you don't agree with that decision, Corporal Bartowski?" Colonel Wood asked, his posture relaxed.
"No, I don't. Because you didn't trust any of us to do our jobs despite possessing that information, which we would have done regardless of knowing it. So to me, it shows what you think of us, not treating us as people with real thoughts and feelings, and just paid assassins instead," Chuck said.
"Corporal," Captain Wallace warned sternly, giving Chuck the eyeball.
However, Colonel Wood instantly waved the junior officer's reprimand off. "No, Richard, it's fine. We allow them to say what they have to say in this regiment, and we always shall."
Colonel Wood then turned to look at Chuck once more. "You're right, Chuck," he said, nodding. "But that's how things are done in the Regiment. If you no longer agree with the way things are done here, Corporal, nobody here will think any less of you if you request a transfer back to your unit or dismissal from the army. Dismissed…"
Twenty minutes later
"Well, we have three days to sort our shit out and move on from yesterday," Jamie declared, glancing at the entire team, minus Chuck, in the hallway of their barracks.
"Yeah, and to get that wee fella in there back in sync with us because he's going soft on us," John Murray declared, nodding at Chuck's closed room.
"Wouldn't you with what he had to do?" Bryce asked, sticking up for his teammate. "I told you before we even left that I didn't sign up to shoot British soldiers, never mind my mates from the Fusiliers, which thank fuck I didn't have to do."
Big Dan suddenly narrowed his eyes at Bryce. "You had mates, fella?" he asked in shock.
"Fuck off!" Bryce instantly said back, shaking his head, but grinning.
Red Team erupted with light chuckles.
After a few seconds, Big Dan raised a thumb at Bryce and said, "I was only messing about, fella."
Bryce nodded in acceptance.
"Speedy Gonzales is right," Jamie soon said. "None of us signed up to shoot British soldiers, never mind our mates. But him in there has just had to do both. So if he wants to take a few days to himself to get his head around it, I'm fine with that."
Everyone nodded.
"We could at least make an effort right now to see if he wants to do something, though, because he is our mate, and I'm worried about him," Cole said.
"We all are," Chris stated.
Everyone nodded.
"If anyone has any ideas how to cheer him up a bit while we're all caked up on-base, I'm all ears," Jamie said.
The team took a moment in thought.
"On-base, I'm coming up with nothing, fella, but how about a curry?" Big Dan soon suggested.
The whole team turned to look at Big Dan, where they began to nod in sync.
"Right, let's go in and invite him then," Chris said, glancing around his team.
Six-eighths of Red Team nodded as they followed Chris to Room Six.
On arrival outside Chuck's door, Chris knocked, waited a brief moment, and then entered the room, with the rest of the team closely following behind.
"We're heading out for a curry," Chris declared, nodding at Chuck.
"Um, thanks, but no thanks. I'm gonna pass on that and stay here," Chuck said, forcing a smile at the group standing before him.
Groans instantly erupted throughout most of the team.
"Come on, fella, it will do you good," John Murray encouraged.
Chuck puffed out a sigh and became irritated. "Look, John, I'm not good company for any of you at the moment. My head's battered. And I'm not in the mood for a curry, yeah?"
"Suit yourself," Chris said instantaneously. "We won't ask a third time."
Turning away from Chuck, Chris looked through his team and said, "Go and fetch your sidearms, and then we'll be off."
And with that, Chris instantly departed the room.
The rest of Chuck's teammates spent an extended moment longer glancing at Chuck as most of them started to sigh before turning one by one and departed until it was just Sarah left.
Waiting until all of her teammates except Chuck were gone, Sarah walked closer to him, where she came to a stop.
"We all know what you're going through right now," she said, forcing a smile of her own. "But don't take it out on the team. We're all trying to help, but you're not making it easy for us to do that right now."
Chuck puffed out a prolonged sigh. "Sarah…look… I love all of them, yeah?" he paused briefly to ensure she could see he meant what he said. "But I just don't want them to see me like this, ok? I don't have anything to offer any of them right now except negative vibes. They deserve better than that, and so do you."
Sarah broke her gaze from him briefly as she collected her thoughts. Looking back at him, she said, "Chuck, we aren't in great spirits right now either. None of us. But we all help each other. We are a team. And right now, you're the only one that's missing from that team."
Chuck drew out another extended sigh. "Sarah, I get that. But this is just too much for my head right now, ok? I can't deal with it. And lockdown, too, which is just shit... I just need time to process this alone."
Sarah sighed for a long moment, feeling frustrated that Chuck was in distress and that he was clearly attempting to deal with it alone. "Nobody would be able to deal with this so quickly, Chuck, and if they could, they would be a monster or a robot."
"Maybe that would be better than the hurt and suffering I'm going through right now, Sarah," he suggested, sighing in despondence.
"I don't agree," she replied, shaking her head. "It shows you are human, and nobody should ever lose sight of that because then you become a paid assassin like you told Wood."
"We're not already paid assassins right now?" he asked, despite in his mind, already knowing the answer to that question. They were.
However, it appeared Sarah held a different view. "Not while we still hold our morality, and you truly know that inside, Chuck, or you wouldn't still be here."
With Sarah's reply said, they paused in silence until it was disturbed by Chris arriving back inside Chuck's room.
"Sarah, we're leaving," Chris said, pointing outside. "He's had his chance and would rather mope alone, which we'll respect, for now…."
And with that, Chris instantly departed the room once more.
Turning to look at Chuck again, her lips creased briefly before she pushed her features into a smile, showing no teeth.
"You should go," Chuck said, nodding outside the room. "He doesn't like people keeping him waiting."
"To be honest, I don't really want a curry anyway. It's a thing for the lads, but curry is one of my least favourite things," she admitted as a much better-developed smile broke out and enveloped her face.
Chuck shook his head at her, managing to suppress laughter also. "Oh, so you give me this," he said, opening and closing his hand to imitate a Pacman-like action. "About not wanting to go out for a curry, but you're the same!"
"Chuck, it was you who told me that I needed to make more of an effort to be around the team in my first weeks," she said as the teammates held a gaze. "I took that advice. And it looks like someone else needs to take that same advice now."
Chuck nodded.
Because Sarah was right.
He would be a hypocrite if he got on Sarah's back about needing to make more of an effort with the team off-duty and ignored that same advice she was now giving back to him.
"Point taken," he said, continuing to nod. "I just need a few days. Now go before I get you in trouble."
Sarah nodded in concession. "Ok…."
Later that night
Feeling tired of his activity of listening to music, Chuck took out his earbuds, and he unplugged the wire connecting them to his phone.
Discarding the earphones close to his person, he held his phone just in front of him, where he browsed through the device until he landed in the text messages section.
Hannah was the only person he'd not replied to of all the people who had called or texted Chuck while he was away on assignment.
And because Chuck had not been raised to be rude to anybody, whether she was his ex-girlfriend and someone he'd not spoken to for a few years or not, he'd decided to reply to her text to him, which had read:
Hey, Chuck. We haven't talked in a while, but I'm sorry about Sean, Ben, and Andy.
I hope you're coping with it ok because I know what they meant to you when we were together.
If you need to hear a friendly voice or want to catch up, you can ring me.
Hannah.
Taking a minute to decide what to say, Chuck started to compose his reply:
Hey, Hannah. I'm fine.
Yeah, it has been a while. I hope you're doing ok and that your family is well.
I've not seen any of you for a few years because I don't get up to Cheshire all that much.
Unable to think of anything further to say, he hit send. Chuck then spent the next few minutes idle, attempting to clear his head of yesterday's events without success, when he was alerted to his mobile phone beeping.
He took the device into his hand again. Hannah had replied.
I'm glad you're ok :)
Um, I'm doing great, Chuck. Very busy though, because I'm fresh home from Paris.
We just opened a new office out there. The firm wants me to lead it.
Oh, by the way, I saw your mother recently.
I'm surprised she still remembers me :P
Chuck suppressed a laugh, shaking his head before he composed his reply:
Who are you kidding? Of course, she will never forget you.
She gave me crap when we broke up, telling me she thought we were for life, considering how long we'd been together.
But as we both agreed at the time, some things are just not meant to be :)
Congrats on the Paris gig.
Will you take it?
Hannah soon replied:
I'm not sure. I want to, but I have a hard time leaving where we grew up.
I guess I'm afraid of change.
Are you still serving?
Smiling, Chuck replied back:
Yep, I'm still in. BTW, I don't blame you for not moving to Hereford with me when I asked back then, 'cause it's crap here :P
But you should seriously consider Paris.
It sounds like a great opportunity.
I'm sure you earned it.
A few minutes passed as Chuck awaited further reply from his childhood sweetheart until he got his latest text alert, which read:
Thank you, Chuck. I know I should take the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
Speaking with you right now, I feel the closest I have felt to accepting the job :)
I would have come with you…to Hereford. But you wanted a life in the army more than a life with me.
And I wasn't prepared to give up my life to become the second choice.
By the way, have you managed to visit Paris yet?
Chuck nodded at the first two paragraphs of his ex-girlfriend. He would never lie to anybody who meant something to him. What Hannah just said was entirely correct. Chuck had put the army before her.
He then smiled at the final line before he replied:
I haven't been yet, but one day soon…
And you're right. I did. But I never lied to you.
I told you my intentions and plans on the day we broke up.
I loved you, Hannah, a great deal, but I probably did love the army more.
It was all I wanted to be growing up.
And you knew that long before we expressed our feelings at that park all those years ago...
Hannah soon replied:
I know. It was your dream. Do you still love it as much?
Are you still as happy as when you walked into the recruiting office eight years ago?
Chuck took a long moment in pause to contemplate her question before he said:
I'm starting to see the ugly side of that dream now, Hannah.
Once Chuck hit send, he drew out a sigh as his mind lingered back on the loss of his former comrades and friends yesterday at his and his team's hands...
He snapped out of his thoughts after a few minutes once the latest text in their exchange came through:
Well, if your dreams change one day, and you decide that you want a life and a girl ahead of the army,
we could try again and maybe make things right because I would love to escort you around Paris on your first time.
I could probably get you a job too.
You would be MORE than qualified for it considering you were by far the smartest boy at school :)
Chuck grimaced for a long moment over Hannah's reply. Although he and Sarah had agreed that what they had was nothing more than having a good time while off-duty, he still had feelings for her.
Growing feelings.
And if Chuck was to ever leave the army, he would hope to remain in contact with Sarah and still see her.
Knowing it was time to end this conversation before it went further, Chuck replied:
Thanks for the offer. If those dreams change, I promise I'll consider it.
I have to go now, but thanks for the chat!
Please stay safe, and be well.
Wednesday, 14 November, 2007
Stirling Lines
Hereford
United Kingdom
11:00 hours
Big Dan departed his on-base accommodation and moved to link up with Jamie Hughes, waiting out in the hallway. The twenty-five-year-old Geordie was not in the best of moods today.
Big Dan was an army boy through and through. He'd signed up to join on his sixteenth birthday just as soon as he'd left school. Daniel Thomas been an underachiever at school, with lower than average grades. He had frequently been in the headmaster's or his tutor's office and told umpteen times that he should put less time into his friendships with his mates and instead focus on his education.
Big Dan hadn't listened to those remarks because for the larger-than-life Geordie, friendship was everything to him. In Big Dan's mind, joining the Paras (Parachute Regiment, British Army) was the first day of his life.
Nine years on, the now SAS Corporal knew what he always knew: that the British Army would be the making of him. Without the army, at best, he would have ended up in a dead-end job with no excitement, no comradeship, and minimal prospects.
However, despite how much Big Dan was driven by his need to be a soldier, there was nothing more he hated than feeling like he was a caged animal as part of that soldiering.
And because of the current lockdown situation, that's precisely how he was feeling, hence his cranky mood today.
"Fucking hell!" Big Dan complained, shaking his head as he stopped at Jamie's position. "I'm just about sick of this nightmare lockdown, fella, especially after the most intense op we've ever had!"
Jamie shook his own head. "Join the club, mate! Me head is about to explode with all of this! I need to get off the fucking base and go for a drive!"
Big Dan nodded, and he crossed his arms. "I couldn't agree more. If this isn't finished soon, fella, then there won't be enough paracetamol in all of Hereford to cover my needs, never mind the rest of us!"
Jamie snorted multiple times before laughter quickly broke through his attempts to hold it off.
The two teammates were soon joined by Chris MacDonald and John Murray, who entered the barracks from outside.
"Alright?" Chris asked, glancing at them both.
Big Dan and Jamie shook their heads in sync.
"Don't ask, fella," Big Dan said, still shaking his head.
John Murray suppressed a laugh as the four teammates linked up.
A few seconds later, Sarah soon departed her accommodation, and the four teammates already linked up shared a glance with her.
"We don't even need to ask how you are, mate," Jamie said, looking at her. "Because we can already tell, 'cause you've got a face on you looking like a slapped arse."
Big Dan, Chris and John Murray chuckled, while Sarah simply nodded affirmatively, and she puffed out a frustrated sigh.
"I need to get off this base before I lose the remaining hair that I still have left because I've been pulling most of it out," she declared while attempting to curb her frustrations.
"If Chris had any hair, he'd be joining you in pulling it out as well, Sarah!" Big Dan joked, snorting.
Jamie, Sarah and John quickly joined Big Dan in his attempts to hold in laughter.
While Chris turned and shot Big Dan a sharp stare.
"You cheeky bastard!" Chris exclaimed. "Any more comments like that, and I'll be putting a blow torch to your head to burn off yours."
"Fuck it, why not?" Big Dan replied, snorting. "It sounds more fun than this snoozefest that we're all locked in, fella."
The teammates briefly chuckled until Bryce and Cole joined their presence in the hallway.
"Alright, Speedy, fella?" Big Dan called out, glancing at Bryce entering the barracks.
Bryce nodded, while Sarah, Jamie, John Murray and Cole snorted at Big Dan's remark, as they each still found Chuck's chosen nickname for Bryce to be as hilarious as it was earned, when he successfully chased down the would-be suicide bombers in Manchester a month ago.
"He looks like the only one of us who isn't bored shitless," Jamie declared, eyeing Bryce up and down. "Which is no surprise 'cause he lives on here anyway."
Coming to a stop with Cole at the position of their teammates, Bryce shook his head and said, "Nah, mate, I want to be off the base myself right now and getting smashed off my head!"
Approving chuckles broke out within the team.
"Fucking hell!" Big Dan said, snorting, while pointing his teammates with his thumb sideways towards Bryce. "He must be taking lockdown bad, 'cause it's only eleven in the morning, and he wants on the ale already!"
The chuckles strongly intensified to more developed laughter, and the barracks' hallway turned loud.
Soon blowing out a sigh, Cole said, "What I wouldn't give for another lock-in at Jim's right now, chaps."
"Are me and Chuck going to be invited to this one?" Sarah asked instantly, while giving her teammates the eyeball over their actions thirteen days ago.
"Of course you are, mate," Jamie said, laughing. "That was a one-time thing."
"It had better be," Sarah warned, giving each of her teammate's a firm stare.
"Speaking of which, has anyone seen Chuck yet?" Bryce asked, nodding behind him at Chuck's closed room.
Most of the team shook their heads while John Murray said, "Nah, fella."
Big Dan suddenly became irritated, and he began to glance around his teammates. "Right, I'm getting seriously pissed off with this now, fellas!" he declared as he turned towards Chuck's room.
Cole and Bryce quickly moved out of Big Dan's way as he stepped through them, and he paced with a purpose to the closed-door room of his teammate.
Stopping at the door, Big Dan turned to face his teammates, with most of their eyes narrowed, and they were observing him in suspense, waiting for whatever he was about to do.
"I'm already on a short fuse because of this lockdown, and I've had enough of this!" Big Dan stated while pointing with his thumb sideways at Chuck's closed door to show what he'd had enough of. "I don't say this very often because it doesn't usually need to be said. But I fucking love that fella in there… And he's eating himself alone in there right now, while we're all stood out here like lemons. And I've had enough of it!"
Big Dan instantly turned, took hold of Chuck's door handle, pulled it down, and entered inside, with his teammates rushing to follow him behind.
"Right, Chuck, fella, that's enough of this! You're coming out with-"
Big Dan suddenly paused in place, glancing inside Chuck's room. "I don't fucking believe this!"
Big Dan's teammates rushed into Chuck's room to observe what Big Dan was looking at.
"He's not here!" Chris declared in shock, glancing at an empty room.
Chuck's seven teammates instantly puffed out long sighs in sync.
"Can anyone tell me where the fuck he's gone off to, fellas?" Big Dan asked, turning to look at each of his teammates.
While glancing back at Big Dan, Chris, Sarah, John Murray, and Bryce soon shook their heads, while Jamie and Cole, the closest friends of Chuck's on the team, were locked in deep thought.
"Ring him," Chris soon instructed.
Everyone nodded at their team leader's shout.
"Sarah, you do it," John Murray said.
Sarah nodded, and she took out her phone.
With her device in hand, she hit dial and held the phone to her ear.
The silence as the seven teammates waited for Chuck to answer was suddenly interrupted as the sound of a muted ringtone began to play out in the room.
Jamie, John Murray, Cole, and Chris began to rummage through Chuck's room until the noise became louder, and everyone in the room turned to look at Jamie, who was holding a vibrating phone in his hand.
"He left it here," John Murray declared.
Bringing her phone away from her ear, Sarah terminated the call.
"Right, I'm getting seriously worried about the fella now. Where the fuck is he?" Big Dan asked, glancing around at his teammates inside Chuck's room.
"Wherever he's gone," Chris said, getting the attention of his team members. "He needed his sidearm."
The team moved to Chris's position at Chuck's gear cabinet.
From their hunched-up positions close together, they each observed that all of Chuck's gear was in place, except for his sidearm.
"That means he's off the base then," Bryce soon declared.
Bryce's teammates turned to glance at him.
"And alone," Sarah quickly stated with concern.
Everyone quickly shot their glance at Sarah instead to query the latest comment.
"Is he AWOL?" John Murray asked after a few seconds.
Turning to look at John Murray, everyone started to ponder the Scotsman's suggestion.
"If he's gone off base without informing any of us, then it looks that way, fella," Big Dan said with concern.
Some heads started to nod.
"Then I have to report it."
Everyone turned to look at Chris MacDonald over his declaration, and the mood inside Chuck's room instantly tensed.
"Shouldn't we try to find him first?" Sarah asked, glancing at her team leader and then the rest of her teammates.
Everyone except for Chris contemplated her question while Chris said, "Sarah, if he's gone, then we can't waste time. He's out there alone, and the more people in the Regiment who know about it, the quicker we can find him. We're in lockdown, on a red alert. He can't be out alone, and he knows the score."
Everyone present considered their team leader's remarks before Cole soon said, "Actually, chaps, I should have said this a lot earlier. I saw him going out earlier this morning in his car. I spoke with him, actually. He told me he just needed to clear his head and would be back in a few hours."
Most of Cole's teammates turned uneasy, as they suspected him of lying to cover for his best mate.
"Cole, I know he's your best mate, but this is fucking important business, fella. He's out there on his own, and we need to bring him in incase something happens to him," Big Dan said.
Chris, John Murray, Bryce and Sarah nodded.
"I know that, Dan," Cole said. "But we can still go out in pairs looking for him in the most likely places that he would be before calling it in."
Chris suddenly began to point at Cole. "Tell me now, mate to mate, that you saw him this morning. No bullshit, mate to mate."
Holding Chris's glance, Cole said, "Man to man, mate to mate, I saw him this morning, Chris."
Chris held his glance onto Cole as he considered whether Cole was telling him the truth, while most of their teammates watched the exchange until it was disturbed by somebody declaring, "I think I know where he is…."
Everyone snapped their glance at Jamie to query the sudden declaration…
Next chapter: We find out what Jamie might know. If he was right. And much more!
Thoughts? Was Cole telling the truth when he covered for Chuck? Is there anything else you would like to leave a comment on?