by C. C. Brown
“Thanks, Dalton. You know I appreciate you so much.”
“I know.”
The door swung open, and my doctor and nurse walked in. “Pfc. Bennett, we will be discharging you later this evening. We spoke to First Sergeant O’Hara, and he will be sending Staff Sergeant Mitchell over to pick you up,” Doctor Copeland informed in a very formal and curt tone.
For some reason, it put me on edge and made me nervous. After what I’d to say to First Sergeant O’Hara earlier, I was confident that he wasn’t preparing to welcome me home. I was sure he was ready to lay his crusade at my feet, and I had to get myself mentally prepared for it.
I nodded my head. “Thank you, Doctor Copeland.”
He nodded. “Lieutenant Pearson will give you all of your medications and discharge instructions. Take care of yourself, Pfc. Bennett. Best of luck to you.”
His words carried a cryptic undertone. I wasn’t privy to whatever First Sergeant O’Hara had said to him, but whatever it was, it didn’t look good for me. I decided that the stone face would come out. When I saw the pit bull, I’d be ready. There was no way he was going to intimidate me and get the pleasure of witnessing it.
Dr. Copeland walked out, but Lieutenant Pearson stayed behind, giving me a sympathetic smile.
“I’ll be back in a while with your meds and discharge papers. Take care of yourself, Pfc. Bennett.”
“Thank you, ma’am.”
She held a tight smile, then turned and walked out of the room, leaving Dalton and me looking confused. The air was stale, and I could feel a storm brewing. Whatever was coming my way, I was slowly, mentally preparing myself with every second. As strong as I thought I had become, I could tell I was going to have to dig deep and make myself that much stronger.
Chapter 3
Alex
The next day was another waste of time. I was sick and tired of fucking paper filing, paper shredding, and just paper all together—and I had the paper cuts to prove it. This was someone’s job in the Corps, sure, but it wasn’t mine.
Gunny Rawls watched me and checked in periodically. I knew he was under the command of First Sergeant O’Hara, so I tried hard to stifle my anger where he was concerned. He was only doing what he was told, and O’Hara was the dick that didn’t think I was fit to breathe on my own. In his eyes, I was a puppy, held on a tight leash, ready to run if given the opportunity. He couldn’t get it through his thick skull that even if he’d let me go—if he turned his back and dared me to run—it would be directly to Cassie.
Every day that passed by without her by my side was another step closer to what felt like death. I hadn’t smelled that deliciously sweet vanilla scent, stared into those sparkling emerald eyes, touched her satiny skin, or heard that pristine voice of hers. I couldn’t even bring myself to think about tasting her because that would have sent me into a full on fit. I missed the fuck out of my blondie, and there wasn’t a damn thing I could do about it.
As my thoughts began to wander during the work day and even after, I wondered what exactly it was that First Sergeant O’Hara was truly after. Was he hoping to have me fall to my knees and admit my wrongdoings by begging for mercy? Was he on an ego trip, hoping that I would grovel at his feet and agree with every vile word that he had to say about me? Would he back the fuck up if I did? It dawned on me that the more I stood firm, the more peeved he got. I wasn’t going to let him see me squirm because honestly, I wasn’t sorry. I couldn’t relegate myself to lying out of convenience. As far as I was concerned, he could go and fuck himself with a splintered stick.
I still hadn’t heard anything from Captain Hedlund, and the silence was beginning to wear on me. No news could be good news, but in my case it was fucking torture. I felt like I was caged off from the world, and when I was let out it was in such small increments laced with restrictions that the need to break free violently was beginning to grow overwhelming.
I needed to move forward, one way or another.
Gunnery Sergeant Moss was in charge of babysitting today, and I was unusually quiet when he came to get me. At the onset, I couldn’t figure out what had me so defeated. I was missing the hell out of Cassie, sure, but this was something different. It didn’t hit me until we got to the Admin building and I saw the students lining up for their graduation ceremony from Comm school. The ache that pierced my heart carried the sting of a thousand knives.
Those were my fucking students. That was my fucking class.
I wasn’t allowed near them. I wasn’t allowed to see my work head off into the world with my teachings stored in their back pockets. I wasn’t allowed to do shit except for file papers and continuously cut my goddamned fingers.
The build of missing Cassie, then seeing my hard work move on without me, was slowly driving me insane. I had a feeling that this was exactly what O’Hara wanted.
After lunch, a new stack of orders landed on my desk, and I angrily began filing them until I ran across a Pfc. Cassie Bennett. O’Hara had gotten her new orders in a hurry, and he had kept his word that he would be keeping her here at Twentynine. What I didn’t expect was that he would be sending her off to MWSS 374, which is where Ruiz had gone.
As much as the girl tried to make nice with Cassie after everything that had happened, I still didn’t like much of anything about her, and I certainly didn’t fucking trust her. My already agitated mood turned downright sour with that bit of news, and there was no one that I could vent that shit to. I was turning into a closed up volcano ready to erupt.
By the time the work day came to a close, I was so stuffed with anger and bitterness that I was sweating, and my hands were trembling. If O’Hara were playing mental games, I feared that he was beginning to win, even though I would never let him know that. He didn’t deserve the fucking dirt beneath my boots, so I surely wouldn’t stroke his ego by allowing him the satisfaction of knowing that he was slowly but surely shredding my heart by toying around with Cassie and me.
I walked out to the car where Gunny Moss sat, plopped down in the passenger seat, and greeted him. “Hey, Gunny. I’ll go straight to my room. I’m not hungry for chow.”
He eyed me curiously, seeing the defeat laced throughout my face. “I have orders to take you back to the room. Captain Hedlund is on his way there now.”
Finally. I didn’t know what I was hoping to hear from him, but anything would be better than nothing. If I were about to walk the fucking plank, I wanted to know it. I needed to know it because festering in my own mind was destroying me, and I didn’t want to rip myself to shreds.
“Do you know what he’s coming for?”
“None of my business. He just said he’d be over to see you.” There was nothing more to say. Gunny Moss was stern faced and made little eye contact. I knew even if he knew anything, he wasn’t about to share it with me.
We pulled up to the barracks building, and I hurried to my room, hoping that I could change out of my cammies before Hedlund got there. To my surprise, he was waiting for me when I arrived, standing outside and talking to the Staff Sergeant on duty.
I walked up and saluted him. “Captain Hedlund.”
“Sergeant Cruz. I need to speak with you.” He turned to the Staff Sergeant and waved him off, then followed me to my room.
My heart was pounding with each step I took. I wasn’t sure if he were coming with a bag of shit to throw at my feet, or if he were ready to lift me from my misery finally. Whatever it was, I wanted him to hurry up and get it out because the longer he held it in and my masochistic mind began fielding various scenarios, the more agitated I became. When I reached the door and turned the knob, my hands were slick with sweat, forcing me to grip tighter on the knob in order to get it open.
“You can take a seat, Captain,” I said, pulling out the lone desk chair in the room.
“This won’t take long. I spoke to First Sergeant O’Hara and asked why you were being held on barracks restriction since we know that you are not a risk to leave the area. He said you were labeled
as a predator on students, and he needed to make sure to keep you away from the students in the schoolhouse.”
If I had to hear that motherfucking word one more time, I thought I would rip someone’s fucking head off.
“I asked that he lift the barracks restriction, and he declined my request. I asked that you be allowed visitors, to which he once again declined, so I headed straight for Sergeant Major Thomas’ office.”
“Does First Sergeant know that you had gone over his head?”
“Doesn’t matter. Once he’d declined both requests, my business with him was over. I spoke with Sergeant Major Thomas, and she felt it was best to bring Colonel Davis into the meeting. After speaking to them both, and explaining your side of the story--the meeting, the relationship, the subsequent fallout—they at least listened to what I had to say.”
“And?”
“And, they declined it.”
Fuck. I wasn’t sure why he was here if he were just coming to tell me that I was going to sit and rot exactly where I was currently sitting.
“But after going through your files, I saw that you currently receive a housing allowance. Having you sit in the barracks would revoke your BAH because you would no longer rate it. I took this bit of information back to them, and they found that to be an easy fix. You’d just lose BAH and become a barracks resident. After digging a bit more, I found that you own your house out in town, and therefore, need to keep your BAH in order to make your monthly mortgage payments. That coupled with the task of having to move your household goods into storage, finally got their attention. The Corps does not like default of any kind, and often reprimand Marines for failure to live up to their financial obligations, so setting you up for default would be irresponsible and unnecessary. They finally agreed to free you from barracks restriction.”
A boulder sized lump dislodged from my throat as I finally got some news worth listening to. I exhaled loudly and relaxed my shoulders. “So I am free to go now?”
“Yes, you are free to go now.”
“What about Cassie? Am I allowed to see her?”
“That restriction has been removed as well. I wouldn’t parade her around base though. They are still adamantly pushing for your court-martial and will see that as a slap in the face and push even harder.”
I couldn’t contain the joy inside of me. Captain Hedlund’s words were music to my ears. Not only was I no longer bound to this barracks cell, but I was no longer torn away from my reason for breathing. I couldn’t get Captain Hedlund out of my room quickly enough.
“Do you know where Cassie is staying? Or if she’s even out of the hospital?”
“She was discharged this morning and is in the student barracks. I’m unsure which room.”
“I’ll find out.”
He pulled something out of his pocket and handed it over to me. “Your cell phone.”
My mouth dropped. I wasn’t sure how he had managed to finagle it away from O’Hara, but I was over the fucking moon to see it. If I would have had this during my restriction, it would have given me a slice of sanity. This tiny fucking device would have kept me from tinkering with a full blown meltdown. It would have allowed me to hold tight to Cassie, even when I couldn’t physically touch her.
“It dawned on me that your phone had been taken away unlawfully, so I was able to get it back. Whatever First Sergeant O’Hara and his people were able to pull from it is inadmissible in court, and Major Godinez is well aware of that.”
“I can’t thank you enough, Captain.”
“Don’t thank me. Thank an overzealous First Sergeant O’Hara for jumping the gun on this. There is still plenty that they have to take to court-martial, but at least this is one less piece of ammunition.”
I took the phone from his hand, then gave a firm, and appreciative handshake. What started out as just another day that I was hoping to soon forget, had turned into one of the best days that I’d had in quite some time.
“You are free to go, Sergeant. You need to report to work tomorrow, but you will need to come and see me first.”
“Okay, sir.” I couldn’t get him out fast enough.
“See you in the morning, Sergeant.”
I nodded my head, then turned and walked out. My phone felt like it was burning in my hands. When I powered it up, there was about ten percent battery left—just enough to make a quick call to Cassie.
I pressed the call button for her name waited, impatiently for her to answer. It rang a few times and my anxiety began to build. What if her phone had been confiscated as well? Just when my mind began wandering again, she answered.
“Alex!” Her voice was soft but anxious.
The sound of it was all I needed. My name coming from her mouth—her soft, melodic voice—gripped me and pulled me away from the cesspool that I had been wallowing in for what felt like an eternity.
“Blondie…”
“Oh my gosh, Alex. Where are you? How did you get your phone back?”
“None of that matters. Where are you? I need to see you.”
“Students barracks A in room one-zero-three.”
“Don’t move. I’m on my way.” I was out the door before I even finished speaking. “Hey, Cassie…”
“Yeah?”
“I love you.”
“I love you too.”
I hung up and tucked the phone into my pocket as I took off down the walkway that led to the student barracks. When Cassie’s door came into view, my heart beat so loudly that I could hear it against my ear drums.
I finally reached the door and gave three quick knocks, the wait for her to open the door killing me with every passing second. When she opened the door, all of my anxiety faded away. Her face was still bruised, and her wrists were still bandaged, but she was fucking perfect. I lunged for her, throwing my arms over her shoulders and pulling her tightly against me. The feel of her warm body up against mine gave me a sense of calm that had been noticeably absent since we’d been pulled apart. The feel of her skin against my hands, the scent of that cock twitching vanilla fragrance hitting my nostrils, took me back to the first time I had ever held her in my arms. Only this time, I knew I had her, and I knew that we weren’t in the wrong for it either.
“Alex…” she cried as tears trickled down her cheeks.
I held firmly to her as I walked us into the room, kicking the door shut on the way in. I softly kissed her lips, then pressed firmer, erasing all separation from us. She kissed me back, the hunger and need luring me even further. My hand glided up her head, as I tasted every inch of the beautiful mouth that I had been missing for much too long.
She slightly opened her mouth, giving me just enough to slide my tongue inside. Our tongues touching, swirling, shot off an explosion of rockets inside of me. As our kiss ended, Cassie sniffled a few times, trying to fight back tears.
“Shhh, Blondie. I’m here beautiful. I’m here.”
“How did you get here? Should I be worried?”
“No, Captain Hedlund is a damn good lawyer and got some things straightened out for me. I’m free to go home.”
She stepped back, her face lighting up like she’d hit the lottery. “So the court shit…all of that is over with?”
“Well, no. He isn’t that good.”
Her delight quickly turned into confusion.
“He got my phone back because apparently it had been confiscated illegally. And he got me off restriction thanks to our standing as a couple.”
“But you’re still getting court-martialed?”
“As far as I know, yes.”
Cassie started to pace, running her hands through her long blonde hair. “I don’t understand him. Why can’t O’Hara just leave us the hell alone?”
“We did break a long standing rule, Blondie. We knew what was at stake when we did it.”
She stopped pacing and turned to me, staring me intently in the eyes. “So you’re okay with them court-martialing you and destroying our careers?”
“I never
said that.”
“Then what are you saying?”
She was frustrated and seemingly exasperated. I didn’t want to add to it, but I wasn’t going to sugar coat shit either.
“Cassie, I knew what was on the line when I decided that I just had to have you. I don’t care that O’Hara is pressing for court-martial. What I do mind is how personal he is making it. Like I’ve fucked his daughter or something.”
Her nose wrinkled, probably disgusted by the mere visual. “He’s taking it very personal. And he’s not going to stop until he has your head hanging from the wall.”
“What do you mean by that?”
She went on to explain about the visit he’d paid her. How he’d tried to coax her into testifying against me in order to save herself. As much as I already loathed the man, I downright despised him now, and wanted to give him the same fucking treatment that I had given Private Allen.
“Alex, I don’t know how far he can take this. I don’t know if he’ll get you kicked out, or just busted down, or—“
“And it’s nothing for you to worry about. I put myself in this shit, and I’ll worry about it. You don’t need to.”
“Are you crazy? How can I not worry about it? What happens to you affects me too, remember?”
Her pitch was raising, anger showing on her face.
“You know what I mean, Cassie. I don’t want you worrying about shit that you have no control over.”
“Don’t shut me out, Alex. I’m in this shit just as deeply as you are.”
She wasn’t getting it and trying to further explain it to her was only going to bring out the hysterics, something I really didn’t need right now.
I pulled out my phone and pressed call for Riley.
“Hey, man. You break free or what?” he answered.
“I guess you could say that. Anyway, I’m at the student barracks with Cassie and we need a ride home.”
“Holy shit, man. Is everything good?”
“I can’t really explain it all right now, Riley. I just need you to come and get us.”