The Peacekeepers. Books 7 - 9 (The Peacekeepers Boxset Book 3)

by Ricky Sides

  “Did your dad send word for you to meet him there?” asked Evan. He knew that Pete was in Washington, as was Jim.

  “No, and Mother has forbidden me to take the trip, but I have to go anyway,” she explained.

  “Why?” asked Evan. He was confused. Lisa never defied her parents, so for her to do so now was drastically out of character.

  Lisa hesitated to explain for a moment, but only for a moment. She told Evan about Pete’s heart condition. Evan paled as she related Maggie’s concerns that the stress of the looming war with the pirates could cause Pete to suffer a heart attack.

  When Lisa finished relating the reason she was going to Washington, Evan said, “Well, you’re not going alone. I’m going with you.”

  “Then you’re not going to try to talk me out of going?” Lisa asked.

  Shaking his head, Evan said, “No, Lisa. I won’t. I’d want to go if Dad were the one with the heart condition.”

  Lisa threw her arms around Evan and hugged him tight. “Thank you for understanding. If anything were to happen to Dad, I’d never forgive myself if I didn’t make this effort. I appreciate your support.”

  “How long do you have before your mom will miss you?” Evan asked.

  Lisa explained that Maggie was tied up in the infirmary, preparing to receive casualties after the fighting started, and that Maggie had said she would see her for breakfast the next morning.

  “Good, by the time she learns we’re gone, we should already be in Washington. The flight will take about eight or nine hours,” Evan said.

  “That’s what I thought as well, but Mom’s going to be really angry,” Lisa said.

  “Then why don’t you stay here and let me go?” suggested Evan. But Lisa shook her head in the negative. “You know how I feel about Pete. I could go alone. Dad hasn’t forbidden me to go.”

  “I think you’re overlooking something, Evan. If Dad doesn’t survive the battle due to his heart condition, this will be my last chance to see him alive. I can handle the heat from Mom. What I can’t handle is not seeing Dad again.”

  Evan nodded his understanding, and Lisa continued, “There are things I’ve always thought concerning Dad. Things I’ve never told him, but I will when I get to Washington.”

  “I understand. Finish packing your bag. I’ll run grab some stuff. I’ll only be a few minutes. Don’t you leave without me,” he said.

  “I won’t, Evan, and thank you,” Lisa said. She kissed him on the lips, but then hurriedly returned to her packing.

  “Have you thought of what you want to say to the men at the APC we try to board?” Evan asked twenty minutes later as they darted down the stairs to the large hangar bay.

  Lisa stopped for a moment and blushed. “Actually, no I haven’t stopped to consider that. I guess I’d have just said I needed a ride to Washington. What do you think I should say?” she asked.

  “I have a plan. Just follow my lead, but we have to go now. We can’t be spotted with our gear or it could ruin everything,” Evan explained.

  “Lead on,” Lisa said.

  The hangar bay was a beehive of activity. Everywhere she looked, Lisa saw peacekeepers loading supplies into the small fleet of APCs that would soon depart for Washington D.C.

  Evan paused for a moment and scanned the faces of the men working around the APCs. When he finally spotted the man he was looking for, Evan nudged Lisa’s arm with his elbow and said, “That’s the man we need to see.”

  Winking at Lisa, Evan said, “Remember to follow my lead. I’ll get us that ride.”

  Evan moved toward the man he had spotted. As he approached the pilot, the man noted his presence, and said, “Why, hello, Evan. It’s good of you to come down and see us off.”

  “Hello, Avery. Actually, I am looking for a transport to Washington. I need to take my dad his laptop. He needs some of the information it contains for the coming battle in the capital,” Evan explained.

  Avery stopped what he was doing and stared hard at Evan. He said, “Evan, does your dad want you to bring the laptop, or did you cook up this reason to get to go to Washington?”

  Evan laughed and asked, “Was it that apparent?” Lisa’s heart sank. She was certain that the pilot would turn them down now, and that he would probably warn the other pilots as well.

  “That’s what I thought,” Avery said with a serious expression on his face. Then he grinned and said, “I’ll be saying I believed that story. Who am I to question the Admiral’s son? You two get in before someone sees you and reports you to the brass. And stay out of sight,” Avery said as the two young people scrambled aboard the APC.

  “We’ll be leaving in about twenty minutes,” Avery said as he piled inside with them. He gestured to the bench seat on the starboard side of the APC. “Sit there in the corner. Stow your bags under the seat. Stay away from the door. Lisa is small. Put her in the corner. Evan, you sit close to her to block her from view. You never know who may poke their head in here before we leave. You two wore uniforms. That’s good.”

  Avery ducked back out and began tossing packages inside the APC.

  “Evan,” whispered Lisa. “What’s going on here? He knows we don’t have permission, so why is he helping us?” she asked.

  “Because he’s a Californian,” Evan explained with a smile.

  “Alright, so he’s a Californian. What difference does that make?” she asked.

  “After we shot down the missile aimed at Los Angeles, Avery came to me. He said that he owed us a huge favor for saving his hometown. He pointedly suggested I remember that when I needed a favor. Short of murder, he said he’d do anything he could to help us out.” Evan said with a grin. Then he frowned and added, “I told him I wouldn’t be claiming that favor, but he insisted I bear it in mind.”

  “He’s taking an awful risk to help us. Our dads may take it out on him,” Lisa observed.

  “I plan to protect him. I’ll tell them I made up the laptop story to get us there. I don’t like telling our folks a lie, but better that than get Avery in hot water for helping us.” Shrugging, Evan added, “Sometimes a man has to do what a man has to do.”

  “I’ll back that story then. I don’t want him to jeopardize his peacekeeper career to help us,” Lisa observed.

  “Thank you, Lisa. I wouldn’t have asked you to lie, but thank you for helping Avery. He’s really a nice guy,” Evan stated.

  Two peacekeepers entered the APC and began to stack and secure the packages that they were hauling to Washington. They had almost finished stowing the gear when a familiar voice sounded just outside the open door. “Don’t feed me that line of garbage, Avery Johnston, I know they are in there. Now step aside.”

  A moment later, Maggie stuck her head in the door. She glanced at Evan, and then she entered the APC. “Come out from behind Evan, Lisa.” Maggie said in a no nonsense manner.

  Lisa reluctantly got up and walked to face her mother. “You told the control room staff to watch for me boarding an APC, didn’t you, Mom?” Lisa asked.

  “Yes I did, and it’s a good thing I did, Lisa Damroyal. You knew I didn’t want you to go, but you did so regardless of my wishes. And you involved Evan in this crazy plot.”

  “I volunteered, Maggie. Lisa didn’t ask me to go,” Evan said. Then he spoke to Lisa, saying, “You stay here with your mom. I’ll go and handle this.”

  “We’re all going,” Maggie said.

  “But I thought you had to stay here for medical emergencies,” Lisa said in surprise.

  “Things have changed, honey. I’ll be catching a ride back to the base tomorrow afternoon with the Nevada. We all will,” she said pointedly.

  ***

  “I can’t believe you actually worked up the nerve to propose to Lina. I was beginning to think you’d never get around to it,” Pete said.

  “Actually, I’m still not sure my timing is right,” Jim replied. “I mean, here we are on the brink of war.”

  “That’s all the more reason to get married now. None
of us are guaranteed a tomorrow, Jim. It’s natural to get married at a time like this. There are always booms in weddings during a time of war, so I’m not surprised you asked her. Now Lina actually accepting, that’s another thing,” Pete said with a warm smile and a wink to let his friend know he was kidding.

  “I’m surprised she waited for me. From what I’ve heard, she could have had her pick of several eligible men,” Jim said as he glanced at his watch and then looked to the sky as if he could will the APCs there faster.

  “Are you nervous?” asked Pete.

  “Hell yes. Wouldn’t you be nervous if you were in my shoes?” Jim asked.

  “Yes. Yes, I think I would be nervous,” Pete answered with a smile. “I mean, Lina’s quite a dynamo. You might not be able to keep up, if you get my meaning,” Pete said. He threw his head back, roaring in laughter at his friend’s expense.

  Jim smiled at his friend’s bawdy humor. It had been days since he had seen Pete this relaxed, and seemingly at peace with himself. “You’re in rare form today. What’s changed?” Jim asked.

  “Have I been a pain in the butt lately?” Pete asked.

  “No. I wouldn’t say that. But you haven’t seemed quite yourself lately,” Jim pointed out.

  “I’m sorry about that, Jim. Look, Maggie’s probably going to tell you when she gets here, so I may as well tell you myself,” Pete said, and then he paused.

  Pete held the pause so long that Jim felt compelled to ask, “Tell me what, Pete?”

  With a sigh, Pete turned away from his friend and looked out over the field in front of the Washington Monument. Jim let his friend take his time. He knew from experience that when Pete was in this sort of mood, pushing him caused him to clam up. Venting one last sigh, Pete stated, “Last year, just before we found the citadel, I went for my yearly physical. You know that, but you don’t know what the doctors found.”

  Jim felt his blood run cold as he heard Pete explain that the doctors had found a heart condition, and had subsequently advised Pete to curtail all stressful activities. Pete explained that this was the reason Maggie had backed him in leaving the Peacekeeper and becoming the base commander at the citadel. Pete then explained that when he had gone for his yearly physical the previous month, the doctors determined that his condition had worsened over the course of the past year. They were now advising retirement from combat duty, and he had been advised to delegate responsibility for the bulk of the work as base commander, or risk a heart attack.

  “Maybe you should go back to the citadel with Maggie and the kids when they make the return flight this afternoon,” Jim suggested.

  “Maybe you should kiss my rear,” Pete responded angrily.

  “Pete, be reasonable,” Jim said.

  He would have said more, but Pete cut him off when he said, “This is me being reasonable. Damnit, Jim, this country is about to be invaded. We’ll be outnumbered hands down. We’ll be lucky if we can survive with half our people intact, and that despite our technological advantage. I’ll be damned if I’ll leave the younger peacekeepers and flee to safety while they fight and die to protect my ass.”

  “Now, Pete. Think about what you just said. Do you think the entire council should enter into this war? One in which you just expressed the opinion we could lose half our personnel. Who leads in our absence, Pete? How many more peacekeepers will die, due to inexperienced men trying to lead them? I was going to suggest you and Tim draw straws, and the short straw sits out the war, because I agree with your assessment, but not now. Now it makes sense for you to be the one to stay out of the fighting.”

  Pete said nothing. He just stood there breathing heavily. His face had turned red from the emotions brought on by the confrontation. When he finally spoke, he spoke in a low tone and with a calm voice as he said, “I’m going to forget you just said that to me. But Jim, never presume to dictate to me ever again.”

  “Hell, Pete. I just don’t want to lose you,” Jim explained. He didn’t like confronting Pete in this manner.

  “I know, and that’s why I’m willing to forget what you said,” Pete explained. He visibly relaxed then, but only for a moment. Then he stared deeply into Jim’s eyes as he said, “Jim, I don’t want to live another twenty or thirty years if it means having to live like an invalid. I’ll be damned if I’ll leave the fighting to the rest of you and run home to a rocker and a warm blanket. It’s my life. I think I have the right to choose how I live, and if it comes down to it, I also have the right to choose how I die,” Pete said.

  Leaning close to Jim, Pete said, “If the shoe were on the other foot, I’d probably be doing the same thing you’re doing right now because I love you like a brother, but what would you do Jim? Would you be able to fly back to safety, and leave Evan here fighting?”

  The expression on Jim’s face answered Pete’s question. “I didn’t think so. Yet, you ask me to leave you here. You and dozens of men I’ve personally trained. I can’t abandon men who wouldn’t be here today if they hadn’t followed me. I won’t. If I die, then I die. That’s my fault and no one else’s.”

  “I’m sorry, Pete. I guess I hadn’t thought of it from that perspective. You’re right. You do have the right to choose both how you live and how you die. But I just hope Maggie and Lisa figure into your thinking at some point.”

  “This conversation is over,” Pete stated angrily. “I’m going to walk over to the landing zone. The APCs will be arriving soon.” He took several steps away from Jim, but then he stopped and turned to face him. “I’m happy for you, Jim. You deserve Lina and she deserves you. You two will be good for each other. I’ll see you at the wedding in an hour.”

  “Thank you, Pete. I was afraid you’d be too mad to come to the wedding now.”

  “I’m mad that my heart is quitting on me before my mind is ready to sit down and enjoy the sedate life. I’m mad that I may falter physically during the war that is about to descend upon us. I’m furious that people I love will probably die during this war, but I’m not mad at you. You have my best interests at heart, but you don’t have the right to select how a man dies. No one does,” Pete said softly. Then he grinned and asked, “Oh, by the way, is Lina going to stand a line for kissing the bride?”

  “Get out of here, you clown,” Jim said with a laugh.

  “Well, if she is, tell her I said to save a place for me,” Pete said and then he walked away chuckling at his joke, knowing full well that even if she had such a line he’d never enter it. Pete was a brave man. He had fought and killed more men than he cared to remember. However, his courage had its limits, and he would not be so brave as to enter such a kissing line in front of Maggie.

  ***

  Evan and Pete stood beside Jim in front of the Washington Monument. They were waiting for Lina who would be accompanied by Maggie and Lisa. While they were waiting, Jim asked Evan, “Son, are you sure you’re ok with this wedding?”

  “I’m sure, Dad. I want you to be happy again, the way you used to be with Mom. I understand Lina is not taking mom’s place. She’s making her own place in your heart.”

  “That’s a mature way of looking at things, Evan. Thank you for understanding,” Jim said.

  “Pete has helped me understand a lot of things,” Evan explained.

  “Then we have that in common. It seems he’s always teaching us about life,” Jim said with a thoughtful expression on his face.

  “It’s getting warm in these suits. I hope the women arrive soon,” Pete stated. However, he wasn’t fooling Jim. Jim knew that Pete was looking forward to seeing Maggie in her dress.

  “They should be coming out of the ship any moment now,” Jim said.

  Inside the Valiant, the three women were putting the finishing touches to their appearance.

  Lina and Jim had decided on formal attire for the wedding. Jim’s strike team leader had procured the garments at a formal wear shop in the city. He’d had to take Lina back to the shop, because the dress he’d gotten her was two sizes too large.
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  “I can’t believe Sergeant Borden actually thought we’d be wearing body armor under our dresses. James is a good guy, but he has no sense of romance whatsoever,” Lina said as she brushed her hair into place.

  Her preparations complete, Lina turned to Maggie and said, “Maggie, I hope you aren’t upset with me for marrying Jim. I know Lacey was a dear friend.”

  Maggie stopping brushing her own hair and considered how she wanted to phrase what she was about to say. Finally, she said, “Lacey was the best friend I’ve ever had. Upon occasion, we shared secrets with one another that we shared with no one else. So when I tell you what I’m about to relate, I want you to understand that it came from intimate conversations with Lacey,” Maggie explained.

  Lina nodded her understanding.

  “Lacey knew Jim had feelings for you. She had seen that truth in his eyes the first time he mentioned your name, but she won his heart and they were married. When you came to Athens, Lacey was afraid she would lose Jim to you, but she later learned that her fears were groundless, because Jim’s a faithful spouse. Cheating is something he just wouldn’t ever contemplate and in addition to that, you had Robert,” Maggie stated.

  “I loved him dearly,” Lina said, and her eyes filled with tears.

  “Here now, Lina, don’t cry or your eyes will be all red for your wedding,” Maggie said. She gently wiped the bride’s eyes dry with a soft cotton rag. “There now, that’s better.”

  “I’m almost finished, Lina. I don’t think the rest will upset you,” Maggie said. “But if you like, we can finish this conversation another time.”

  “I’d like to hear the rest. I think it may be important,” Lina said.

  “It’s getting late,” said Maggie as she glanced at her wristwatch. ”I’ll give you the short version now. We can fill in details another time.”

  “During one of our intimate conversations, Lacey confided in me that if anything ever happened to her, she hoped that Jim would marry again. She found the thought of him living alone and unloved disturbing,” Maggie explained. Lina nodded her understanding, so Maggie continued, “I was being a bit flippant when I asked her who she had in mind. I was just teasing, you understand. I didn’t expect an answer, but she instantly gave me your name.”