The Heart of War: Book Seven of the What's Left of My World Series

by C. A. Rudolph

  Sasha listened with only half her attention to Kat’s monologue. She wanted out of here, sure, but now she wanted that and a cigarette. “No, Kat. It doesn’t look good for you or me or anyone else caught up in this crap.” She sighed. “And I’m so done with all of it. I’m really, truly just done. I wish they would come in here, yank me away to wherever, and get whatever they intend to do over with. I’ve been waiting for my day to come. I’m ready for it.”

  “Well, I’m not!” Kat barked. “You can give up if you want, but I’m not going to! I want out of this metal thing so I can fight! I want to kick some butt, find Mrs. G, and break out of this camp!”

  “Kat…that’s admirable, but…”

  “No! Sasha, listen to me. We can’t just give up!”

  “I never said I planned to.”

  “You didn’t?”

  “No,” Sasha moaned. “It’s not in me to give up. Accept my fate? Accept what I know is coming to me? Sure, I’m no idiot. But give up? Kneel before a person calling himself my master and lick the boot? It’s not happening, not a goddamn chance. I will never go down without a fight.”

  Kat sniffled, the conversation having brought her to tears. “Mrs. G would like you. She wouldn’t dig your blasphemes, but she would like you. You sound a lot like her, just cruder and less…grown up.”

  “That’s sweet, Kat,” Sasha crooned. “Mrs. G sounds like a decent lady. I hope to meet her someday.”

  Chapter 41

  Several minutes into his account while evoking times past, Dave took a long, almost meditative pull from his coffee. “My first encounter with Janey materialized on her sixteenth birthday,” he said, setting the mug down and rubbing his chin whiskers. “Alan had signed her up for Point Blank’s Intermediate Operator Course, having pledged to us well beforehand that his daughter was no novice.” He chuckled slightly. “Of course, most of us had heard that line a profusion of instances beforehand, but as it’d turned out, he hadn’t exaggerated nor misrepresented. She was nothing of the sort. Impressed all of us right from the start. She had a stout chip on her shoulder, but it was a good chip, something we could work with. She wasn’t arrogant or cocky, she was confident; good at almost everything she took a crack at because she believed in herself. If she couldn’t figure something out, she’d set her mind to it, work through it, and get it done. That problem-solving trait is damn hard to come by, even more so now.”

  Dave continued, touching on the unit’s involvement, FTEs, unit tactics, infantry and survival training, and some of the advanced one-on-one modules as imparted by his upper echelon. “Janey excelled at practically everything we threw at her. She showed up a very bright, very knowledgeable, very capable young lady who knew plenty from the start before ever engaging with the likes of us. But what she gained knowledge of in that condensed amount of time cultivated her into one abundantly formidable somebody.” He leaned back in his chair, crossed his legs, and allowed his posture to sag. “That’s pretty much it in a nutshell. Finer details do exist, of course, but I’m optimistic that what’s been disclosed thus far serves as adequate.”

  With widened eyes, Michelle brought her coffee mug to her lips and took a sip before setting it down. She didn’t say anything at first, benumbed by the synopsis of events, all of which had occurred unbeknownst to her. She tapped her fingertips in succession on her mug and sent Alan an accusatory stare. “I don’t think I’ve ever been so blindsided by anything in all my life.”

  “That makes two of us,” Alan said, not missing a beat, looking lost in the moment.

  Michelle expelled a faint sigh. “God! This is so frustrating. This is why the two of you were always gone? You weren’t just driving around, looking for a waterfall or scenic overlook, camping or backpacking, hiking or something? You were taking our daughter to a tactical shooting range and having her trained to kill? By these men? By soldiers? Damn you, Alan. This is so much like you. Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “Michelle, how many times do I have to say this? I don’t know,” countered Alan. “I don’t know why because I can’t remember. And I would think that you’d know that by now! I swear—amnesia is like the worst possible kind of plausible deniability.”

  “I know you can’t remember. And I know I shouldn’t hold that against you. But you were there. You made those decisions, you went to those places and did those things—and Lauren was your co-conspirator. You two had secrets that you kept from me. I knew you spent a lot of time together away from me, but I never once thought it to be anything like this. God! If I would’ve known this a long time ago, it would’ve been so much easier to figure her out. I could’ve understood who she was becoming.”

  “If it makes you feel any better, hold me accountable, because Lord knows legitimate refutation won’t diminish my culpability.”

  Michelle relayed an irascible stare. “You’re right, it won’t. I do hold you accountable. And…I’m irritated—highly. Finding out about this—all this, now? After so long? After witnessing Lauren’s behavior transform like it has? And having zero context or explanation as to why?” She sighed again, her skin turning pale this time. “I’m not angry with you. I’m just irritated. And…really, really dumbstruck.” She regarded Dave. “So…why her? Why my daughter? There had to’ve been a thousand others out there waiting in line for an opportunity like the one you were offering. Why Lauren?”

  Dave gnashed his teeth a bit. “No invitations were ever mailed out for any one of our field training exercises. And I don’t recall ever holding one single open enrollment. So, insofar as opportunities being offered, there weren’t any. As I said, your husband came to us. It took time for Alan and Janey to acquire the skills they learned, but after doing so, they both reaped a great degree of hard-earned respect from a gang of characters stereotypically disinclined to sow it. Without that regard, my unit would never have allowed them to train outside the system with us.” A pause. “During my career, I’ve had the pleasure of serving alongside the cream of the crop, the best of the best. And I can forthrightly say that I have never, not once, met anyone so tenaciously dedicated to what she believes in as your daughter.

  “She’s one of the fastest learners I’ve ever encountered; prone to mistakes, of course, but all young people fight those demons. I’ve watched her absorb, understand, and execute tactics more efficiently than most phase-two special forces trainees in their second weeks of qualification. Janey is exceptional in every sense of the word. She’s as genuine as they come and has a temperament that tends to grow on a man. I didn’t have much faith in her when we first locked eyes, but she flipped me, something very few people in the world have been able to accomplish. She gave me basis to have faith in a faithless generation, and, to this minute, holds a chunk of my heart in the palm of her hand, and that’s not entirely her fault.” Dave leaned over the table and interlaced his fingers. “Now, I hate to even pose this question, but I know something’s afoot here. Where is she? And what sort of trouble is she in?”

  Michelle and Alan both took turns explaining what they knew and, as well, what they didn’t. Afterward, Dave leaned back again and finished his coffee while his expression congealed and his eyes folded into slits.

  A rap of knuckles on the door broke the stint of unnerving silence.

  “Come in, please. It’s open,” Alan called.

  The door flew ajar, and Jean stomped inside, sweat beading on her face and forehead. “Mornin’, sorry to barge in like this,” she said. “I just ran all the way here from the infirmary over yonder. Doc Vincent told me to come, said Grace is awake and she’s askin’ for Lauren.”

  “You’re kidding,” Michelle said with revived energy, then looked to her husband for counsel.

  “Go,” Alan hinted. “Go, be with her. I’ll stay and figure this out.”

  Michelle nodded, rose and kissed him. “Don’t go anywhere.” She then ran to the door and started off behind Jean, but as she pulled the door closed, nearly ran head-on into a trio of successive visitors.
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br />   Woo Tang entered first through the open door along with Will Sharp. Jade brought up the rear, her guarded stare falling immediately on Alan.

  Dave Graham alerted straightaway, both to the unanticipated company and the looks on their faces. “Tang, Will? Everything hunky-dory?”

  “In a word, LT,” Woo Tang began, “no.”

  “Dammit.” Dave sighed, staring at his empty mug. “Looks like that refill of jitter juice might become a requirement after all.”

  Alan slid his mug across the table. “You can have mine. For some reason, I’m not feeling it anymore.”

  “Very generous of you.” Dave took possession with a nod. “It won’t go to waste.” He took several long gulps before setting it down and wiping his lips. “All right, I’m primed. Spin that record.”

  “Aye, aye,” said Woo Tang. “It appears that some…items have come up missing.”

  Dave only stared at him.

  “Some random gear and about a week’s worth of rations, primarily,” Will filled in, looking at Jade sideways for a split second. “Then there’s the tactical variety stuff, ammunition mostly. And a few firearms we’ve recently learned about.”

  Dave raised a brow. “You’re certain of this? Said items weren’t misplaced or miscounted?”

  “No way, LT. I personally keep inventory. I might miss a few rounds here and there, but cases? No way.”

  Jade stepped forward, her regard to Dave Graham first, then to Alan. “I learned this morning that two duffels were taken from my APC, and I know that inventory like the back of my hand. An H&K416, a dozen full mags, and close to five hundred rounds of 5.56 is gone. A Vanquish Arms bolt-action sniper rifle was in one of those duffels. It’s gone too, together with two hundred rounds of match grade ammo. A set of NVDs and a FLIR thermal monocular have also vanished, let alone my plate carrier.”

  Alan clued in on Jade’s analysis, recalling those items she’d retained for as far back as he could recollect, alongside those provided courtesy of Butch.

  She bit her lip, watching his demeanor take a nosedive. “No one here is dishonest enough to just help themselves to that brand of hardware. And no one, aside from Alan, Ken, and me, had knowledge of it being there, until recently.”

  “Until recently, the lady professes,” Dave remarked. “That more or less foretells the supreme likelihood of an inbound punch line.”

  The room went soundless as a look of marked concern washed over Alan. “It’s Lauren, isn’t it?”

  Jade halfheartedly nodded.

  “Jesus,” Alan expelled, “what is she doing?”

  “There is only one way of knowing for certain,” said Woo Tang. “But pilfering of the aforesaid leads to a single surmisable conclusion.”

  Will brought the thought to an end. “Retaliation.”

  Woo Tang bobbed his head. “Indeed.”

  Alan sent the young man an indignant look, then sent something of the same to the shorter, stockier former frogman. “What? No way—that doesn’t make any sense. How? Why would she do that? She doesn’t know what she’s up against.”

  “I’m not disagreeing nor denying any of that, sir. But I don’t think it matters to her,” Will said. “I saw the look on her face after the attack, and saw it again after she…well…saw what she saw or, rather, who. It changed her.”

  Alan stood, exhaled, and trembled a moment, taking into account everything he’d heard this morning before streaking towards the door. “Damn this. I can’t sit here. I have to go. I have to find her and stop her before she gets herself killed.”

  “Hey, slow down,” said Jade, moving to stand in his way, doing her best to reassure him. “We’ll put something together solid and find her, okay?”

  “Sure, Jade. But when? How long will that take?” Alan strong-armed past her and bolted through the exit. “And what if it’s not good enough?”

  Everyone departed the cabin and filed out behind him, even Dave Graham, who seldom tagged along, followed, or pursued anyone.

  With eyes fixed dead ahead of him, Alan bumped into Ken on his way off the porch, inadvertently shoulder-checking and knocking the Marine into the cabin’s outer wall.

  “Well, excuse the shit out of me, Mr. Russell, sir,” Ken griped. “Next time I’ll watch where the hell I’m going.” He sent a questioning look to Jade over the incident. “What’s up his ass?”

  “Not now, Ken,” Jade said, speeding past him. “Not now.”

  Ken threw up his hands. “Okay, what’s up your ass?”

  Alan trotted in a circular pattern beginning at the porch’s edge, past an idle JLTV, around the driveway, and back again.

  “What are you looking for?” Jade queried him.

  “I don’t know—a car, truck, a bicycle…something drivable I can take to look for her.” He came to a halt when the Marauder came into view. “Are the keys in that thing?”

  “Yes,” Jade said, catching up to him. “But you don’t know where she went or where she is now. You don’t even know where to begin.”

  “Making me no different than any one of us,” Alan shot back, “except I’m doing something about it now.”

  Alan and Jade bickered like two siblings for a stint as their audience increased in numbers. Ken, who had originally planned on going inside, remained on the porch to listen in with Will Sharp, who wasn’t sure where best to go at this point. Before long, the commotion roused Lee, who vacated his room and eventually took a seat on the porch swing.

  Woo Tang and Dave Graham lingered in tight formation to observe from a distance. Each man detected the pull of his duty, both having taken on responsibility for Lauren in some form or fashion during Alan’s absence, and perhaps on behalf of it. Cognizant of what needed to be done, they were priming themselves to make whatever moves were needed, but both men held at the line. Her father was home now, and neither yearned to overstep or offset the family balance until or unless called upon.

  The sound of a high revving approaching engine put all parties on alert, increasing in volume as a speeding black four-door SUV became visible through the trees. Barely braking, it banked hard right off Trout Run Road and fishtailed the corner into the driveway while its headlights flashed back and forth between high and low beam.

  Having left her rifle in the Marauder, Jade drew her service weapon in a flash and manhandled Alan until she was situated between him and the onrushing vehicle.

  He rotated and peered above her as she sidestepped with him toward the APC for cover. “What the hell is this about? That looks like one of those—”

  “It is,” Jade responded, her left arm horizontal and rigid to keep Alan at bay. “That’s a DHS vehicle. Stay behind me.”

  “Should I cover you? Or…”

  “Just stay behind me.”

  Alan reached for and drew his Glock in tentative fashion, keeping the muzzle parallel to his leg as the SUV closed in at speed.

  Traversing the driveway’s length in little time, the vehicle’s wheels locked suddenly, and it skidded to a stop just as Woo Tang, Dave Graham, and Will Sharp went weapons hot and converged on it. Rifles pulled tight and locked on target, they sprinted to and surrounded the truck, then shouted orders to withdraw while preparing to fire.

  Ken leapt from the porch and sauntered behind, unarmed and in no real hurry. “Hey, wait! Don’t kill them all! I got a bone to pick with those waste cadets! A big one, the size of a femur.”

  With Will Sharp flanking the passenger side and Dave on his six providing cover, Woo Tang pulled the door open and ordered the driver out, his disposition shifting full scale upon seeing who it was. “Check fire!” he shouted, hand in motion above his head. “We have a friendly! Mind your muzzles.”

  “Do as he says, please. Don’t shoot us.” Christian slid from the truck, hands high in the air.

  Dave lowered his rifle and neared the door behind the driver, peering through the window. “Correction—multiple friendlies. Good gracious me.” He wasted no time pulling the door ajar. “Welcome home, lad
ies. Vacate the vehicle carefully, please. Everything’s going to be okay. You’re all safe now.”

  At his behest, a trio of young girls, some jabbering, some whimpering, the sounds melding into a puerile melody, poured one by one from the backseat. A moment after, the rear hatch popped aloft, and Brooke Schmidt turned the corner upon departure, eyes wide at the welcoming party of stone-faced men with guns at the ready.

  “You literally dodged a bullet. I almost did not recognize you.” Woo Tang put a gloved hand to Christian’s chin and gently rotated his head to examine the harm done to his face. “Do you require medical attention?”

  “Probably, but I’m okay. It can wait.”

  With every eye on the newest arrivals and the impromptu delivery of priceless cargo, all and sundry came together near the SUV’s anterior. Lee jogged over from his spot on the porch swing, motioning to and inviting Brooke and the girls inside the cabin and away from the spectacle.

  Jade’s eyes shifted from the female foursome en route to Lee, back to Christian as she advanced with Alan in tow. “How did you find them?”

  “I didn’t.” Christian meekly chuckled. “I didn’t even find me.”

  “You’re going to have to explain what that means,” Alan said, then looked to where Will Sharp was now inching closer to the passenger door with his rifle levelling. “Who’s that in the front seat?”

  Jade snapped left and went in motion, hurdling the SUV’s hood with her Glock leading the way. Will moved aside to let her by and reached for the door handle, then glanced at her to confirm she was set to move in tandem with him. He then pulled and flung the door open.

  Jade closed the distance in a split second, her pistol’s muzzle finding the man’s temple while she noted his uniform and restraints. “Out of the truck! Now!”