Special Operations

by TD Webb

  “Base, this is Alpha 1 and Alpha 2, come in. We’re taking fire, we need back up. We’re ten miles out from the base and we’re running low on ammunition.”

  “Alpha 1, this is control tower. We’re sending a chopper, it should be there in three minutes, hold tight.”

  “Base, this is Alpha 1, over and out.”

  Three minutes later, a gunship opened fire at the insurgents.

  Twenty minutes later, Tom and JC entered the base and proceeded to the trauma unit, to see how Reggie was. As Reggie and Tom walked towards the tent, Linley walked out.

  “Guys, can I have your rifles, please?”

  “Sure, Linley,” they both answered, handing their rifles to the Warrant Officer. Just then, Linley shouted at both of them to hit the dirt. Around the corner, came 12 DEA Agents with guns drawn. They stopped in front of Linley as JC and Tom got up.

  “We’re looking for Master Corporal Mackenzie.”

  Standing tall, JC identified herself, “I’m Master Corporal Mackenzie, what can I do for you?”

  “Master Corporal, did you shoot Agent Whyte in the back?”

  “No, Sir I didn’t. I tapped the fucking coward twice in the back of the head. He was a Traitor to both of our countries.”

  “Master Corporal Mackenzie, we are placing you under arrest for the murder of DEA Agent Whyte.”

  “Like fuck you are, Agent. You’re on Canadian soil and have no authority here and we also have proof that what the Master Corporal is saying, is the truth. So stand down, or you will be shot for pulling a weapon on a Canadian soldier on Canadian soil. Do I make myself clear?” Warrant officer Stone shouted. She was pissed.

  None of them saw a dozen security personnel take position in behind the DEA agents, or Colonel Parent exit the hospital tent.

  “Now, if you want, two of you can come with me and see the proof we have, and we will be forwarding a copy to the President of the United States.”

  “Yes, Warrant Officer Stone, let’s go look at your proof,” one agent said, quite rudely.

  “JC, go over to the trauma unit and see Reggie. She’s been asking for you,” the Colonel told her, as he followed the Americans.

  JC entered the tent. Her dad was there. She ran up to him and hugged him, saying, “How is she doing, dad?”

  “She’s going to be fine, JC. She’s pretty beat up. Four broken ribs on the left, a broken left wrist, dislocated right shoulder and a broken nose, plus lots of cuts and bruises. Go see her, JC, she wants you in there. She won’t let them touch her, till you get back.”

  JC walked into the next area.

  When Reggie saw her, she smiled. “God baby I’m so glad you’re okay?”

  “I’m perfectly fine now, Reggie. Just seeing you alive and breathing, makes everything worthwhile.”

  “I was praying you would get out of there. They told me what you did. I’m so proud of you.”

  JC looked at Reggie’s face and cried. “Honey, I don’t even know where to kiss you. You look awful and where are you not hurt?”

  Reggie smiled and pointed to her forehead. “Lay one here, baby, please.”

  JC leaned over to her and kissed her on her forehead. “I’m so glad we got you out of there. Now why don’t you get some rest and let the doctor take care of you? I’ll be back after I shower and get debriefed, okay, love.” Kissing her again after Reggie agreed to allow the doctor’s to help her.

  After Reggie was put under, JC went back out to talk to her father.

  “JC, can you tell me what was all the shouting going on out there before you came in?”

  “The DEA agents tried to arrest me for murdering Agent Whyte.”

  “What?” he shouted. “Are they fucking nuts? That man was a coward and a traitor. If it wasn’t for him, Reggie wouldn’t even be here, she would be on a plane home. I’d shoot the bastard myself, if given the chance. What did you do anyway?”

  “Well, dad, I kind of tapped the bastard in the back of his head twice, at over 1700 yards, while he was running away.”

  “You took him out at over 1700 yards?”

  “Yeah but I might be in trouble, cause Linley kind of ordered me to stand down but I knew I could make the shot, so I don’t know what’s going to happen. I’ll need to go see Bill when I’m done here. That’s where I’m going now.”

  “Wait, JC. What were her exact words that she used?”

  “She said that I couldn’t make a shot that far, so I took the shot.”

  “”JC, you have nothing to worry about. She never said not to shoot.”

  “Dad, would you want to come with me to see the Colonel?”

  “Sure, honey, you’re not going to face this alone. I’ll stand by you all the way,”

  “Thanks, dad.”

  “You’re welcome, JC. I would do it for any of my kids,” he laughed along with JC.

  “Dad I’m your only kid unless you have something to tell me.” They were both laughing as they walked arm in arm over to Colonel Parent’s tent.

  “Permission to enter, Sir,” JC asked.

  “Enter, Master Corporal,” the Colonel said.

  JC walked in and the whole team was in there waiting for her.

  “Have a seat, JC. You deserve to take a load off. JC, do you have anything to say to us?”

  “Yes, Sir, Warrant Officer Stone. I’m sorry I disobeyed your order but I knew I could hit that range.”

  “JC, you didn’t disobey my orders. What were the first orders I gave you?”

  “Well, my orders were to shoot to kill anyone not in a Canadian Forces uniform.”

  “Was Agent Whyte wearing a Canadian uniform?”

  “No, Warrant.”

  “Also, if you remember, I never said not to fire. All I said, was you couldn’t hit that range. So you didn’t disobey me, right, Colonel?”

  “That is correct, Warrant Officer Stone. She didn’t disobey any orders, if anything she proved you wrong because she did hit that range.”

  Doug looked at JC and winked at her. JC suspected he knew all the time what was going to happen.

  “What about the murder charge, Sir?”

  “Well, JC, after the DEA saw the tape from your rifle, all charges were dropped and we have informed the Prime Minster, and he will inform the President of our findings and send a copy of the tape to him. And by the way, we have a couple of promotions to get done. Tom, you are now a Master Corporal and, JC, congratulations, you can now be called Sergeant Mackenzie, your promotion came in also. We will now have two Sergeants’ in the unit, with Turner being senior, unless his promotion comes in also. Oh, guys, here’s your new ID’s. Give me the old ones, they have already been registered with the Toronto police and, Tom, when we get back, you will get your side arms and you have to register them yourself with the police. Chris, will you take care of that when you get back?”

  “Yes, Sir, I will.”

  “Well, looks like the beers are on JC and Tom tonight.”

  Everyone was dismissed, except JC, Chris and Linley.

  “See you guys in the officer’s tent at 1800 hours,” JC told them.

  “Linley, I have a favor to ask you,” the Colonel asked.

  “What’s that, Sir?”

  “Well, I talked to your supervisor at the RCMP office in Calgary and I was wondering, would you stay attached to us, until Reggie is back on her feet and can come back to work full time. They left it up to you and your position will still be there when you return.”

  “Can I talk to Reggie first? I’ll need a place to stay, while I’m in Toronto.”

  “Linley, you can have my place, since I’m going to be staying at Reggie’s, until she is back to normal. We live in the same building, so you will be close by. Only three floors up and it’s the penthouse.”

  “Well, would you mind if my girlfriend stays there too?”

  “No problem, Linley, the more the merrier.”

  “Well, Sir, looks like my answer is yes, I’ll be staying.”

  “I
t’s good to have you aboard, Linley, and please, call me Bill. Once we get back, your team is on a month’s leave, got that, Master Warrant Officer,” he said, as he handed her the new identification card.

  “Yes, Sir. Wait. What do you mean Master Warrant Officer?”

  “Part of the agreement with the RCMP was a pay raise to match your salary there and the only way to do that was to promote you. But no worries, Linley, you were due one anyway, it’s just a few months early.”

  “Well, guys, its 1300 hours now. I’ll see you all at 1800 hours in the officer’s tent. Linley, you know where to go, right?”

  “Yes, Sir, I do.”

  “JC, are you going to go see Reggie before you go shower?”

  “Yes, Linley. I think I will and then I will go back later tonight and stay with her after I leave the bar.” She ran to the trauma tent to see how Reggie was doing. She entered the tent. Reggie looked at her smiling, “Reggie, I got a surprise for you.”

  “What’s that, honey?”

  “Well, you are not allowed to call me Master Corporal anymore, it’s Sergeant Mackenzie now and Tom got his Master Corporal’s, so we have to buy the beer tonight at the officer’s mess.”

  “Way to go, JC, congratulations. We will have to celebrate when I get out of here. I’ll take you out to dinner when we get back, my treat.”

  “Reggie, can I ask you something?”

  “JC, you can ask me anything, I don’t know if I’ll be able answer but I’ll try.”

  “Why did you change your next of kin to me and not leave it for Linley?”

  “Have a seat, JC. This could take a while. A few years ago, I lost someone very dear to my heart and because of that, I was going to break up with you. But I realized when we got to Calgary that I had fallen in love with you and I didn’t want to live my life without you in it. So when I got the call to come here, I knew that if something happened to me, I wanted you to at least have something of me. I know this sounds cheesy but I didn’t know what to do when I lost Debbie. I didn’t even get the flag and we were together for three years. Neither of us thought about the future, so this time I knew what it did to me and I wanted you to at least be recognized as my partner, not just someone I worked with.”

  “So, the answer to your question is, I did it because I love you, JC, and that’s the only reason.”

  “Reggie, that is so beautiful but I think you will need to explain that to Linley and, Reggie, you do know Linley is going to take over the unit until you are back on your feet? So I gave her my apartment and I was wondering if I can stay with you?”

  “I would love it if you moved in with me. Why does Linley need her own place anyway?”

  “Well, she asked me if she could take her girlfriend with her. I said yes.”

  “JC, what do you mean Linley has a girlfriend?”

  “I don’t know, Reggie. I really got no idea who it could be. Maybe it was that woman who she was dancing with a few weeks ago at the bar. They did seem to be rather close.”

  “Maybe that’s who it is. I’ll make a point of asking her tonight.”

  “You do that love. Can you stay and sit with me, till I fall asleep?”

  “Yes, Reggie, I’ll stay as long as you want me to.”

  After Reggie fell asleep, JC went looking for the doctor, to find out exactly what injuries Reggie had. She had four broken ribs on one side and the other side was all bruised. The doctor said she had taken one hell of a beating. So far, they hadn’t found any internal injuries but they were keeping an eye on her. They had set her broken nose and her wrist.

  When JC left the hospital tent she was raging mad. If she could shoot agent Whyte again, she would make it more painful for him, instead of two to the head. She went over to the officer’s mess. She needed a drink and she wanted a strong one.

  Chapter Twelve

  JC detoured from the officer mess. She needed a shower bad, so she ran back to hers and Linley’s tent, to get ready for the officer’s mess. Arriving at her tent, she found Linley asleep.

  She shook her shoulder. “Linley, come on, get up, it’s after 1700 hours already,”

  Linley stirred. “I’m up, I’m up.” She swung her legs off her cot. “I need a shower to wake up. JC, where have you been, I waited for you but fell asleep?”

  “I spent some time with Reggie, until she fell asleep she was loopy but still wanted to talk, then I went to find the doctor, to find out what exactly happened to her and what her injuries were.”

  “Okay, you can fill me in later. Let’s hit the showers.”

  They grabbed their shower gear and change of uniform, which JC noticed was new and it hand her new rank on it.

  At 1750 hours, both women were on their way into the officer’s mess. When they entered, everyone was already waiting for them. As they sat down, a waiter came over to take their order. JC gave the waiter her platinum card and told him, “Put the entire table on this card for the rest of the night.”

  “Yes, Ma’am, not a problem, I will take care of this for you.”

  At 2200 hours, Bill excused himself and headed back to his tent, a tad bit drunk, thanking the women as he left. Once he was out of the door, the party really got started. The music was cranked up and everyone watched when Linley and JC got up to show the guys the proper way to dance, since they kept telling both of them that neither one could dance. When they got on the dance floor, JC leaned over to Linley and they agreed that they would put a show on for the guys. Before the next song started, JC called the waiter over and told him to give the house a round on her card. She also informed him that if she disappeared, she would be in tomorrow to sign the bill. The waiter told her that there wouldn’t be a problem, because Colonel Parent told them that she and Master Warrant Officer Stone were good for it. The song started and as they came together on the dance floor, all the guys were hooting and hollering. The more they grinded to the beat of the music, the louder the guys got. The song ended and they both went back to the table, Linley ordered another round of shooters, as a group of American soldiers walked over to their table. The one Staff Sergeant got into JC’s face and started running his lips off about how to get promoted in the Canadian Armed Forces, was to shoot an American in the back.

  JC, not one to take things lightly, and the fact that she was drunk, got right back in his face.

  “I didn’t shoot the asshole in the face, I shot the fucker in the head twice, as he was running away.”

  The Staff Sergeant pulled his fist back to slug JC but he didn’t get the chance. The club was full of Canadians and they all moved around JC to protect her.

  Chris pushed his way to the front of the pack. “There are other ways to handle this without any of us thrown in the brig for fighting.”

  “What do you have in mind, Sergeant?”

  “Well, Staff Sergeant, what seems to be the real reason you have a problem with Sergeant Mackenzie?”

  “Well, to be honest, I think she lied about how far away the agent was when she shot him. I don’t believe she could even come close to hitting a target that far, let alone a running man.”

  “Well, how about this, Staff Sergeant. We have a little competition then. You on the range against Sergeant Mackenzie, and the best woman will win,” Chris said, as he turned around and headed back to his table.

  Both sides left it up to their units to make the arrangements for the range and would notify the others when they had a date and time. JC, staggering, left the mess and headed for Reggie in the hospital tent. JC never noticed the man following her, the Major had made arrangements for the entire team to have escorts for the night since he knew they would all be a bit under the weather and he didn’t trust some of the Americans to try and do something since one of their own was killed.

  A nurse watched her come in. “Looks like she really tied one on tonight.”

  JC stripped down to her boxers and a tank top and climbed into bed with Reggie. The nurse smiled when Reggie winked at her, as she pulled JC in and w
rapped her arm around her. JC was out like a light once her head landed on Reggie’s shoulder.

  “Are you going to be okay with her sleeping like that, Chief?” the nurse asked.

  “Yes, Ma’am, I’ll be fine but I don’t think she will be in the morning.”

  “I heard your whole team, including the Colonel, really tied one on in the mess. I was there before I came on duty and she and another woman who looks like you, had everyone up dancing most of the night. Then some Americans came in, giving her a hard time. The whole mess came to her aid to make sure nothing happened. I left then, so I don’t know what the outcome was.”

  “The one that looks like me is my cousin and I’ll find out in the morning what went on tonight.” She snuggled harder into JC, as the nurse dimmed the lights and drifted off to sleep herself with a smile on her face.

  The next morning, Reggie woke up feeling a hand stroking her inner thigh. Knowing where she was and who was in bed with her, she opened her eyes, looking down at a still sleeping JC. “Honey, wake up. Honey, come on, we’re not alone and if you keep that up we’re both going to be in a lot of trouble. JC, stop that. I hurt too much to even think about doing anything right now, come on, JC, will you wake up.”

  JC opened her eyes when she felt Reggie grab her hand and move it away from her. Finally focused, she realized where she was. “Oh my god, Reggie, I’m so sorry.” Sitting up, the sheet fell away and JC noticed she at least had clothes on. She didn’t even remember leaving the mess last night. “Reggie why didn’t you stop me from climbing into bed with you? You should have just sent me back to my tent?”

  “Well, honey, me and the nurse were enjoying the show,” she giggled. “You came staggering in here and stripped down to what you see and just climbed into bed. I didn’t have the heart to throw you out. How was it last night anyway?”

  “I don’t remember too much after me and Linley were up dancing. We did get pretty drunk. Reggie, where’s my clothes, I need to get dressed before the doctor comes in?”