by Saxon Andrew
AG turned and walked away.
Robert sat down and thought about what AG had said. He was afraid of being injured by Muldoon. He was larger, faster, and stronger this year and he had mauled him in their last game the year before. He felt the bruises for months. His father had suggested to him that he shouldn’t take a risk of being injured. It would hurt his chances of a scholarship if he made a poor showing. He watched Chip trying to run the offense and saw him fumble another snap from the center. He winced but he just didn’t want to get hurt.
• • •
AG sat on the sidelines and watched Cynthia lead the cheers. She was amazing and so beautiful. The home team didn’t have much to cheer about. It was halftime and Muldoon had done his magic. The score was 13-0 and should have been much higher. Central didn’t have that great an offense and two fumbles had kept it reasonably close. The stadium was full and the fans were frustrated. It looked like another loss. The teams were back on the field and AG saw Robert sitting on the bench away from his teammates. He still had the sling on and kept his head down to avoid seeing the contemptuous stares from his offensive teammates.
AG got up and walked over and sat down beside Robert. He looked up and AG said, “That Muldoon is a beast.”
“Yes he is.”
“He’s about six foot two isn’t he?” Robert looked across at the other sideline and nodded. “He weighs about two hundred and twenty.”
“The program says two fifteen.”
“So you’re bigger.”
Robert’s head jerked up as he looked at Muldoon again.
“You’re also faster. I suspect he wouldn’t want someone your size hitting him head on.” Robert looked at AG and heard, “It’s time, Robert.”
He looked across the field again and stood up and left the sidelines.
Cynthia saw AG come back and raised her eyebrows.
AG smiled, “Everyone needs encouragement.”
“Not him. He’s worthless.”
• • •
Central received the second half kickoff and started a ten play drive that sputtered on the fifty yard line. As the punter went in Robert walked up in uniform and put his hand on Chip’s shoulder, “It’s my turn.”
Chip looked bewildered but then Robert’s father came running up and started yelling, “What do you think you’re doing! Get back in that locker room and get out of that uniform.”
Robert turned, walked up to his father, and put his face two inches in front of his, “If you don’t get off this sideline I am going to drag you out of this stadium.” He grabbed his father’s shirt and pushed him backwards. His father fell on his backside and Robert stood over him, “Do you want me to do it.”
His father crabbed backward and got up and hurried toward the stands. Robert saw the offense on the field staring at him. He ran on to the field and quickly said in the huddle, “Quarterback sneak on one. Go!”
Tim stared at Robert like he was crazy but they were running out of time to get the play off. Muldoon was going to kill him. The team rushed up to the line and Robert barked the signals. Tim snapped the ball and went for Muldoon who just threw him aside.
Robert took one step back and then turned and looked for Muldoon. He found him throwing Tim aside and he accelerated at full speed toward the huge linebacker. Muldoon lowered his shoulder and Robert hit him and bowled him over. Robert then turned to his right and found the safety bearing down on him. He faked a move to the left and then slammed into the safety, knocking him off his feet. He broke into the clear and seventy yards later, he crossed the goal line.
Cynthia watched the play and immediately turned to AG with amazement on her face. AG smiled and shrugged. The game had now changed. The fans knew it and Central knew it as well. The final score was 48-13 and Robert had made the difference. He had accounted for two hundred yards rushing and two hundred and forty seven passing. Muldoon was injured attempting to tackle Robert at the end of the third quarter and did not return to the game.
• • •
Cynthia watched the time run out and turned to AG, “What did you say to him?”
“Nothing really; I just pointed out that he was bigger than Muldoon. He figured out the rest by himself.”
AG felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to find Robert standing there. He looked at Cynthia and said, “I should have defended you that night. I still have nightmares about what could have happened. I’m sorry. I’m truly sorry.” He turned to AG and said, “If you ever need my help on anything…I’ll be there.” He stuck out his hand.
AG shook his hand and smiled, “How do you feel?”
Robert smiled like he had never smiled before and said, “Free.” He handed AG the game ball just as his teammates arrived and carried him away.
Cynthia watched him disappear in the crowd and then looked at AG. “You were there to save three people that night.”
“Yeah, but would you have believed me if I told you?”
Cynthia looked back at the celebrating crowd again and said, “No.” She looked at AG again and he smiled and shrugged. She came into his arms and he hugged her tightly, “I’m going to miss you so much.”
AG closed his eyes and said, “I know, my love; I know.”
• • •
Lydia watched them holding each other and felt her tears. She was so happy for them but her heart was breaking. She picked up her pom-poms and left for the parking lot. She was going to miss him more than he would ever know.
AG opened his eyes and saw Lydia walking away. He nodded slowly and saw a face in his mind. He closed his eyes again and took a deep breath. The future shouldn’t be rushed. It would diminish the value of the present.
• • •
AG sat on the bus and thought about Cynthia. Leaving was the hardest thing he had ever done and he felt his arms tingle where he had held her when she said good-bye. He closed his eyes and thought about staying and knew that it would have been the wrong thing to do. Something waited for him in the future and he didn’t know what it was. He did know that being on this bus was moving him toward that destiny. He looked out at the farmland and saw the land was bare. Winter was coming and soon the chill would become cold and the seasons would change. The world was a dichotomy of life and death each yielding to the other as time passed.
He thought about Robert and was happy he had found his courage. He was being recruited by most of the major colleges now. His performance in the State Championship had not gone unnoticed and even his father had come around. Robert Sr. had tried to get AG’s forced induction into the service overturned but had failed. He met the bus with Robert in tow and he apologized for his stupidity. AG told him that sometimes things just happen.
He saw Cynthia’s face again and closed his eyes. Fort Benning was still a day away and the task of basic training awaited him. It was time to learn the disciplines of combat. It was time to grow. First he would learn their weapons and then he would master his. He smiled and fell asleep.
• • •
The next morning he awoke as the bus pulled in to the Greyhound Station in Hickory, North Carolina. AG went inside and washed his face and took a short break while the bus was being refueled. He bought a breakfast sandwich and saw a young man being lectured by his mother just outside the front door.
“You shouldn’t have joined, Charlie. I can’t bear the thought of losing you.”
“Mom, I’ll be ok.”
“Your father said the same thing and look what happened.”
“I know, I know, but some things are worth fighting for and our family has always answered the call. I will not dishonor their memory. This is what I have to do to honor his death.”
AG watched the woman wrap her arms around the young man and cry. He walked back to his seat and watched her hold her son tight until he had to board the bus. The young man walked down the aisle and AG nodded toward the empty seat beside him, “No one’s sitting here.”
“Thanks, my name is Charles Weston.”
&n
bsp; “I’m Anthony Gardner but you can call me AG.”
“I use Charlie. Where are you headed?”
“Fort Benning.”
Charlie’s eyes grew wide and he smiled, “So am I. Basic training?”
“Yes.”
“Great, maybe we’ll end up in the same platoon. Did you volunteer?”
“No, I was drafted.”
“That’s ok; it’s not how you fly; it’s how you land.”
AG smiled and listened to Charlie talk all the way to their destination. Charlie’s family was military as far back as ten generations. AG thought that some of their enemies were talked to death. Still, it was interesting and it helped keep his mind off missing Cyn.
They arrived at Ft. Benning and the wild ride of army induction started and didn’t let up for forty eight hours. AG followed instructions without questions and kept a low profile. Charlie had already done a hundred pushups and AG smiled at the garrulous young man’s struggles. He just couldn’t help himself; he had to talk. AG stood in the back ranks and managed to go unnoticed.
• • •
Sargent Frank Weber sat in his office looking over his platoon’s personnel documents. He saw more than thirty percent of the new draftees were sent by various courts. He started looking to see their crimes and found one with a note from a Captain Green attached with a telephone number. He shrugged and dialed the number.
“Captain Green.”
“Sir, I’m Sargent Weber and I’ve just found your note on…” He looked over and picked up the file, “Anthony Gardner’s file.”
“Is he assigned to you?”
“Yes Sir, he is.”
“Sargent, I am being shipped out to Vietnam in three weeks because of that young man.”
Frank grew nervous, “What did he do to you?”
“It’s what I did to him that’s getting me shipped out. He was accused of a crime he didn’t commit. The ones accusing him lied about what happened and the judge forced him to join the Army. I discovered when the mistake was uncovered that he made a perfect score on the SAT and was a 4.0 student. The principal of his school insisted he was the school’s smartest student.”
Frank hesitated and said, “You didn’t release him?”
“No, I did not. After the fact, I would have if I had known the brouhaha I started.”
“Why didn’t you do it?”
“I’ve asked myself that question every day since. I guess I was tired of taking the trash out and now I had a soldier that was superior to everyone I’ve ever enlisted. I just couldn’t make myself do it.”
“I imagine the boy fought tooth and nail not to go?”
“I was surprised by his reaction. It was almost as if he expected it. He did not put up a fight.” Green paused and said, “There’s something about that young man that is different. I don’t know what it is but I can sense it.”
“I’ll keep an eye on him, Sir.”
“I’m not worried about him, Sargent. I just want you to make sure that you notify me on the completion of his training so I can make sure he is assigned to my company. Will you do that for me?”
Frank shook his head. This was the first time this had ever happened. “I will, Captain.”
“Thanks; if I’m going to be punished for not releasing him, I should get the benefit of having him assigned to me. Thank you, Sargent.”
“Good night, Sir.” Frank looked at the document and saw that there were no corrections to the charges that were filed against Gardner. The soldier would not be slated for advancement unless this document was corrected. Frank saw that Captain Green was trying hard to prevent this recruit from being noticed…or wanted by any other officer. He put the file aside and decided to watch Gardner closely and see what was going on. He leaned back in his chair and tried to visualize the man and couldn’t. That was unusual. He was always able to store the faces of the new soldiers in his mind. He could not remember ever seeing this Gardner. Somehow he had avoided being seen. Now that was not easily done. He would have to check that out the next morning.
• • •
Frank stood in front of the platoon the next morning before he took them out on a five mile run. He looked down the ranks of his four squads and looked for Gardner. He didn’t see him. He looked at the current corporal and said, “Has roll been called?”
“Sir, yes Sir; all present and accounted for, Sir.”
He looked and saw that all the squads were equal length so all forty were present; but he could not pick Gardner out. What’s wrong with this? Where was he? He just couldn’t find him. “Lead em out corporal.”
“Sir, yes Sir. Right face. At double time, forwaarrrd, march.”
The platoon moved out and Frank followed them out. He searched the faces of the running soldiers but could not find Gardner. The platoon sang out their cadence in various verses and wondered why Sarge wasn’t yelling at them in his normal fashion. Frank finally decided to solve this mystery. He shouted, “Platooooooon, Halt.”
The Platoon halted and stood in ranks. He looked at the troops and said, “Gardner, front and center.”
“Oh crap. What have I done?” AG ran out of ranks and to the front of the platoon. Frank saw him leave his place in the third squad and could not understand how he had not seen him. “Corporal Clarke, take his position.”
Clarke looked disappointed and gave AG a stare as he moved into ranks that would have melted an iceberg. Frank stared at Gardner and saw that he was about six feet tall and well built. “Finish the run, Gardner.”
Frank watched the other members and saw they appeared to have more energy when Clarke was replaced. Gardner said, “Platoooon, at double time, forwaaarrrrddddd, march.” The platoon actually ran faster and sang louder with Gardner leading. They recognized him as a leader. Clarke did not command the same respect.
Frank knew that Clarke was going to confront this new leader shortly and he thought about heading it off but decided to wait and see what happened. He would keep the curtains slightly open and watch what happened from his office at the front of the barracks. He’d step in if it got out of hand but his curiosity was up. He was curious to see if Clarke had any more success at finding Gardner than he did.
• • •
AG avoided Clarke easily. He just went where he wasn’t looking. The big Scotsman had a mean temper and was the barracks bully. He intimidated most of the members of the platoon and demonstrated he possessed great physical strength. AG knew that if a confrontation occurred he would lose the ability to maintain a low profile so he just avoided Clarke.
Clarke for his part was getting frustrated and his anger was high. After searching the barracks he decided to take his anger out on Jimmy Chen. Jimmy inadvertently stepped into Clarke’s path and accidently bumped him. Clarke grabbed the small Chen and lifted him off the floor and held him at eye level. Chen was left hanging in front of Clarke and knew he was about to be punched. Clarke sneered, “You need to watch where you’re going punk.”
AG sighed and knew it just wasn’t right to have Chen pay the price for his selection. He stepped out from his bunk and said, “He told you he was sorry. Shouldn’t that be enough?”
Clarke saw AG and immediately forgot Chen. He tossed him aside and rapidly walked toward AG. Clarke was six inches taller than AG and sixty pounds heavier. “You have a way of butting into other’s business. You should learn that will get you in trouble.”
AG slowly shook his head and sighed, “Do you really want to do this?” Clarke’s anger exploded. He rushed forward and launched a haymaker at AG’s head.
Frank Weber saw the exchange and started to get up but knew he couldn’t arrive before Gardner was hit. When AG leaned back and let the blow go by in front of his face and then step around Clarke, Frank sat back down. Gardner moved faster than anyone he had ever seen.
AG said, “You need to just walk away, Clarke. I won’t ask you again.”
Clarke couldn’t think straight he was so angry. He turned and rushed AG inten
ding to wrap him up in a bear hug. AG watched him come and just as he arrived he delivered a short quick punch into Clarke’s chest just below his sternum. Clarke froze with his arms spread and couldn’t move or breathe. The pain radiating out of his chest was unbearable and he couldn’t move. He started falling and AG grabbed him before he hit the floor, turned him over on his back, and said where only he could hear, “You will never be a warrior. You are just a mere fighter and you will always be less for it.” Clarke was starting to feel panic; he couldn’t breathe. AG delivered a quick hit on his chest and his lungs started working again.
AG looked at Chen and said, “Help me get him to his bunk.”
Chen and three others came over and lifted Clarke and put him on his bed and then stepped away. AG massaged the area on Clarke’s chest where he had hit him until he could talk.
“What did you do?”
AG said quietly, “Stopped you from being a thug. Don’t continue to bully our teammates; I don’t want to have to do this again. Nod if you understand.”
Clarke nodded and knew the pain he felt was the worst he had ever experienced. He decided that he wasn’t going to do anything to anger this smaller man again.
Frank decided it was time for him to come in, “What’s all this noise? It’s time for lights out now, get in your bunk and pretend you’re sleeping.”
The forty trainees ran to their beds and jumped in. AG could hear them murmuring among themselves and knew he had given up some of his privacy. He also knew the Sargent had seen what happened. That was not a good thing. He closed his eyes and thought about Cynthia. He fell asleep with her face in his mind.
Chapter Eight
The next morning as the platoon lined up for their morning calisthenics, Frank noticed that no one was in front of the Platoon. Clarke refused to take the position. He was still embarrassed from the night before and chose to remain in ranks. AG was not going to move out front. Frank looked over the group and found he couldn’t see Gardner again. How in the heck does he do that? “Gardner, get up here!”