Defiance
Page 34
The last of the SEALs exited the chopper. When no on else appeared at the door, the deck crew of the Reagan, a mighty choir of three hundred, spontaneously broke out into the song that was the all-time favorite of the man for whom their ship was named.
"God bless America...
"Land that I love..."
Zack stared at the empty helicopter, unable to sing.
"Stand beside her, and guide her, through the night with the light from above..."
There was a stirring inside the chopper.
"From the mountains..."
A familiar face with strawberry-blonde hair.
"To the prairies..."
Shannon McGillvery stepped onto the flight deck.
"To the oceans... white with foam..."
Shannon turned, reached into the chopper. A feminine hand grasped Shannon's, and then a woman with red hair and green eyes stepped onto the deck of the USS Ronald Reagan.
Zack jumped over the rope, sprinted past the marines, rushed like a blitzing linebacker attacking a quarterback, and threw his arms around her.
"Thank God!" Those were the only words he could muster.
He looked in Diane's face. He couldn't take his eyes off her. She was painfully thin, almost skeletal, and her body felt feather-light in his arms. But she had never looked more beautiful, especially when her lips curved into a shaky smile. And as they always had, her green eyes held a soul-deep glow as bright as the rising sun cresting the eastern horizon.
She hugged him as tightly as her trembling arms would allow, and smiling through tears, she whispered with him the words of the chorus swelling from the flight deck:
"God bless America,
"My home sweet home.
"God bless America.
"My home sweet home."
"Promise me you'll never, ever leave me again." He drew her closer, and she buried her face in his chest. Locked in time. Transfixed in a sur-realistic moment of joy. A miracle from God.
"Never, ever again," she cried. "I never thought I'd see this day." "God is good," he whispered.
He felt a hand on his back. Through his tears, he saw Shannon standing next to them, wiping her eyes and smiling.
"Thank you," he tried to say, but his voice was gone.
Shannon stepped closer and wrapped her arms around them both. "Welcome home, Commander. Welcome home."
EPILOGUE
Navy Exchange
Naval Air Station North Island
Coronado, California
Twenty-four hours later
Captain Glen Rudy picked up the copy of the San Diego Union-Tribune and beamed with pride. "That's my boy," he said as he read the good news.
NAVY SEALS CAPTURE AL-AKHMA! RESCUE COLCERNIAN!
From Staff and Wire Reports
Washington -- In a stunning development that has rocked the world, President Mack Williams announced today that U.S. Navy SEALs launched a top-secret daring rescue raid that hauled into custody the world's number one terrorist, Hussein al-Akhma.
And in an equally stunning development, the SEALs rescued Navy JAG officer LCDR Diane Colcernian in the same raid.
The president gave special thanks to NCIS Agent Shannon McGill-very for her assistance in gathering the intelligence that helped in solving the case. The president also thanked LCDR Zack Brewer for his assistance.
For national security purposes, the president declined to give information on the location of the raid but did confirm that it involved the men and crew of the San Diego - based aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan and the Pearl Harbor - based attack submarine USS North Carolina.
Four terrorists died in the operation, the president said. There were several American injuries but no fatalities.
In a message to terrorists worldwide, the president said, "You know who you are. You know where we came and got your leader. And now you know that no matter where you go, Uncle Sam is right around the corner, waiting for you with the steel, clenched fist of the United States Navy.
"I suggest that you buy a spaceship and fly to the moon, because on this earth, when you mess around with the United States of America, you can run, but you can't hide."
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