Bracing for the Storm

by Matt Lincoln

  “Me too,” he replied with a grin as he tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear. “I wanted to say goodbye before I leave.”

  “You’re leaving?” The disappointment was plain in my voice. “Well, that’s a bummer!”

  “Yeah, it had to happen eventually.” He chuckled. “I’ll be back, though. I’m sure we will run into each other again someday.”

  “Hopefully,” I replied with a smile. “I’m sorry I’m not in better shape. We could have sent you guys off with a party or something.”

  “Nah.” Chris waved his arm in dismissal. “I’m kind of partied out after everything this summer. To be honest, I’m very much looking forward to going home and falling into my own bed.”

  “I can relate.” I smiled, and we drank our seltzers in silence for a bit before he stood up.

  “I’m going to head out,” Chris said as he put his seltzer down on my coffee table and ran a hand through his thick dark hair. “You have my number, though. Stay in touch. And get better quickly!”

  “I will.” I stood up and gave him a hug. “Have a safe flight, and thank you for the flowers and the wine.”

  He gently pulled me back by the shoulders and smiled. “Of course.” He reached up and put his hand on my cheek, bringing me in for a kiss. When he broke away, he grinned. “See ya around,” he said softly, and he walked out, taking one last glance behind him before closing the door. I gave him a small wave and a grin and then sighed to my empty apartment.

  “That was fun while it lasted,” I muttered to myself as I wandered back into the living room. I grabbed Chris’ empty seltzer can, tossed it in the recycling bin, and scooped up my phone on the way back to the couch. I saw a missed call from Jake and immediately scrambled to call him back.

  “What could you possibly be doing, aren’t you supposed to be resting at home?” Jake’s teasing kicked in right at the start of the phone call.

  “It’s hard to rest when your phone is ringing.” I laughed as I sat down on my couch. “How is it going out there? Is everything okay?”

  “Yeah, we’re good!” Jake’s voice was upbeat, which was promising. “We got Santiago Días. The Días cartel is officially dead.”

  “That is awesome!” I sat up straight on my couch at the news. “We did it?!”

  “We did it!” Jake replied cheerfully. “Xavier is going to be keeping an eye on his son in the States, but from what he has gathered, the son wanted nothing to do with his father or the family business. So we should be good.”

  I sat back and let out a breath I hadn’t realized I’d been holding in. “That’s amazing,” I breathed. I sat in the realization that we had accomplished our goal for a moment before expressing my concern.

  “This peace won’t last long, will it?” I asked hesitantly.

  “No,” he replied, his voice a bit more sullen. “There is a void that others will probably scramble to fill. We need to keep monitoring the situation so that we can put a stop to it before it escalates into war and more unnecessary violence. That’s on us, though, not you.”

  “If it’s an ongoing problem, do you think it was worth it?” I ran my thumb over my fingernails mindlessly, wondering if what I had risked my life and career for would actually benefit anyone.

  “Absolutely,” Jake assured me. “The cartel was known for their senseless violence. We have saved countless lives by putting a stop to it. Your dad would kill me, but I’m proud of you, and I’m glad you suckered me into this.” His buoyant laugh lifted my spirits.

  “The Sector CO came by asking questions,” I informed him. “CGIS is getting involved.”

  “You had to know that would happen,” Jake said softly.

  “Do you think I’ll get masted?” I chewed my bottom lip nervously.

  “Well, obviously, I hope not,” he replied, “but anything is possible. I guess it depends on your command.”

  I sighed. “I guess I’ll just have to wait and see.”

  “Let me know either way,” Jake stated firmly. “I don’t want it messing with my plans.”

  “What plans?” I didn’t recall him telling me of any plans.

  “Well, obviously, I’m going to come to see you as soon as you’re better,” he replied as if it were obvious.

  “Oh!” I was taken aback by that, as I hadn’t expected him to be able to visit so soon. “That’s so exciting! I can’t wait.”

  “Me neither.” I could hear his grin in his voice. “Listen, I sent you something, so keep an eye out, would you?”

  “What’d you send me?” I asked inquisitively.

  “Well, it’s supposed to be a surprise,” he said playfully. “But it’s a bouquet of roses and a bottle of coquito.”

  “Coquito?” I squealed. “You are my favorite person, Jake!”

  “Yeah, yeah,” he replied with a laugh. “You get better, alright?”

  “I will, Jakey,” I sang. “Love you!”

  “Love you too.” Jake hung up, and I pulled the phone away from my ear, holding it for a moment longer. I may be faced with uncertainty with my career, but we had accomplished what we set out to do, and Jake was coming to visit me.

  Despite my unclear future, I couldn’t help but smile.

  38

  Linda

  It had been eight weeks since my eventful day on the water, and I had finally been cleared by the doctor to resume normal activities. I texted Slade to let her know the great news, and an hour later, she was inviting me to her place on Saturday night.

  It’s not an invitation, it’s an order.

  That was the last text message I received. I wasn’t about to argue, though. It had been way too long since I had gotten out of my apartment and had a great night out, so I was very much looking forward to it.

  I opted to take my Harley out for my first excursion since I’d gotten shot, and she didn’t disappoint me. The engine started right up, and the steady rumble beneath my seat planted a smile firmly on my lips. As I weaved through traffic and inhaled the ocean air, I felt a freedom that I hadn’t felt in months. My hair whipped behind me as I leaned into the winding turns, and I found myself disappointed with how quickly I arrived at the foot of Slade’s driveway.

  Her carport was lit up, and it looked like the entire crew was there. As I walked up the driveway, everyone erupted into cheers, and Murphy stepped out of the crowd with his hands raised over his head in excitement.

  “Linda!” he shouted.

  “Murph!” I gave him a huge hug as I looked around at everyone. They were all there, including Jackson and Taylor, who both looked like they had recovered as well as Murphy had. Even Watson had shown up, and I knew he had never taken any of us up on an invitation before.

  Once the hectic entrance had died down, Slade’s voice cut through the crowd as she yelled for everyone’s attention.

  “I have an announcement!” she bellowed. Once the crowd simmered down, she corrected herself. “Or rather, CO Watson has an announcement.” Slade stepped off to the side and gestured to Watson, who stepped into the spot where she had just been standing before clearing his throat.

  “As you all know, we have been waiting not-so-patiently for Taylor, Jackson, Murphy, and Reyes to all recover.” A round of applause went up for all of us. “Now that they are all fit for full duty and ready to jump back in with both feet, I know I speak for all of us when I say we are glad to have you back.”

  Perez stepped up behind me and shoved a beer in my hand as everyone raised their drinks to us. Chatter began to pick up, but Watson redirected our attention back to him.

  “I have one other announcement!” he called out, causing the chatter to die back down. “As most of you are aware, CGIS has been investigating the entire scenario. I got word passed down today that they could not collect enough evidence or witness statements to hold against us, and therefore they are dropping their investigation.”

  The cheers that went up after that statement were so loud that I was sure the cops had been called on us. Watson smile
d at the chaos before him now, and I knew he was done speaking. Relief washed over me, extremely grateful that I was able to walk away from this with my career intact.

  For the rest of the night, people took turns coming up to me and asked me questions about what happened and how I felt. I didn’t drink anything outside of the few sips of beer, and after a while, I was ready to leave. I bid my goodbyes, promising to show up to work with donuts on Monday morning, and walked out to my Harley for the ride home.

  I went to bed at a decent time that night because I knew what awaited me the next morning. As the clock struck eight, I heard a knock on my door and swung it open to find a familiar pair of vivid green eyes smiling back at me.

  “Jake!” I screamed, jumping up into his embrace.

  “Hi,” he mumbled into my hair.

  I slid back down to plant my feet on the ground before wordlessly ushering him into my apartment.

  “Make yourself comfortable,” I demanded as I parked his bag in the corner of the living room. “The couch unfolds into a bed, although it’s broken now, so you have to give it a good kick to pop it open.”

  “Fancy,” he commented with a smirk.

  “Yeah, well, thank the movers.” I chuckled. “You want a drink? I held onto the coquito for us.”

  “You did?” Jake’s smile lit up the room. “I’m all about that.”

  “Good,” I said as I sauntered into the kitchen. I spent time shaking it up before pouring us both a glass. I carried the glasses into the living room and gestured to the couch.

  “Sit,” I demanded.

  Jake took his glass and sat down, looking around the room as he did so.

  “Nice little place you picked out,” he commented.

  “Yeah, it’s not bad.” I took a sip of my coquito and grinned. “Damn, this is good.”

  Jake eyed me as I drank before taking a sip of his own. “Oh, yes,” he replied, a satisfied smile on his face. “This is perfect.”

  “Have you been keeping tabs on Colombia?” I asked casually.

  “We have been,” he replied between sips. “Well, more specifically, Xavier has been. There was a small group forming down there in the wake of what we did, but we were able to stomp it out before it turned into anything meaningful. So far, there’s been nothing else going on.”

  “That’s a relief,” I admitted. “I have to admit, I think we worked really well together.”

  “We’ve always been a good team,” Jake confirmed over his glass.

  “We should do this again sometime,” I suggested before taking a sip of my own.

  Jake laughed, and then I realized how my statement had sounded.

  “No, I’m serious,” I corrected. “We should do this again. Work together as a team. Together, we can do anything.”

  “You’re right,” Jake said with a sigh. “We are good together, but your dad is already plotting against me from wherever he is. I can’t put you in more danger.”

  “I can handle myself, you know.” I narrowed my eyes at him.

  “Yeah, yeah, I know.” He shrugged.

  “We should go visit dad tomorrow,” I suggested.

  “I’d like that,” Jake replied. “I can ask him for forgiveness in advance for next time.”

  “Does that mean there will be a next time?” I squealed excitedly.

  Jake rolled his eyes. “When have I ever been able to say no to you?” he teased. “Besides, you’re right. We do work well together, and if we can make this much of an impact, why stop, right?”

  “Exactly!” I replied with a grin.

  Jake held out his glass. “To Carl Reyes. May he forgive me and look over us in our new adventures.”

  “To Carl Reyes!” I announced as we touched our glasses together and took simultaneous sips of his favorite drink.

  Epilogue

  As I navigated the RV into the truck stop parking area, I stole a glance over at my daughter. Her Starbucks cup was now empty, and a couple of empty Clif bar wrappers were on the floor. She was staring at me with an appreciative smirk on her face.

  “Damn, Mom, you were a badass!” she shouted as she tucked a section of her thick black hair behind her pierced ear.

  “Ehh, if you say so,” I said with a grin.

  “I mean, I always knew you were awesome at your job. You’ve got that whole wall full of accomplishments at home. Your ‘I love me’ wall.” Claire chuckled at the nickname that the wall had developed. “I never knew all of this, though. It’s so cool! I’d love to go to Puerto Rico with you.”

  “You know what?” I said as I killed the engine and tossed the keys in my hand. “Let’s make that a goal. Let’s go to Puerto Rico together.”

  Claire’s smile grew wider across her face at that comment, and together we hopped out of the RV, collecting our trash as we did so.

  As we headed into the truck stop for a break and some additional supplies, Claire continued to pepper me with questions.

  “So, did you ever do anything further with the cartels in Colombia? Did you ever get back on the Wraith? And whatever happened with… you know?” I looked over, and Claire winked at me dramatically. I rolled my eyes.

  “Hey, I told you that you get one story from me this road trip, and that’s it,” I reminded her.

  “Yeah, but the further into the story you got, the more questions I had!” Claire seemed adamant. “Did you ever get to visit Grandpa? Did you ever go back into the rainforest for more pasteles? I need to know these things!”

  We were in the truck stop by this point, and I turned to look at her, a playful smirk on my face.

  “Go,” I ordered. “Go pick out whatever you need for this next leg of the trip. We’ll meet at the register and get back on the road. We’re halfway to Phoenix, and I know that Luke Sanchez will be waiting for us on the other end. I want to make good time.”

  “Alright,” Claire conceded, turning to walk away. She stopped short. “Wait. Luke Sanchez. The chief in your story?”

  “Yep,” I replied with a smirk. “We spent a lot of time on the same cutter. He’s full of stories.”

  “Is he going to tell me if you guys had any more run-ins with any Colombian cartels?” she pressed.

  I rolled my eyes and walked away, leaving her to grab whatever she felt we would need for this next leg of our trip.

  All I really wanted was a few more water bottles in case we got thirsty in the middle of a stretch of road. We had enough snacks to last us a while, although a meal might be nice since we were here. I looked over at Claire, who had found the clothing section. Knowing she would be a while, I slipped away to the attached food court and ordered some chicken tenders and seasoned french fries. When I met Claire at the register, she had an armful of snacks and water bottles to complement my lunch choice.

  “Ooh, chicken tenders,” she gushed with a smile as she laid the snack collection down on the counter. Once everything had been bagged and paid for, we made our way back out to the RV.

  Claire buckled herself in before reaching for her bag of chicken tenders.

  “Thanks, Mom,” she grinned as she settled in with her food.

  “Of course!” I smiled as I set up my food for easy access as I drove. I shifted into drive and started heading back out onto the highway, reaching over for a chicken tender as I did so.

  “So, Luke Sanchez,” Claire pressed. “Were you guys stationed with each other the entire time you were in Puerto Rico?”

  “Yes, we were,” I replied after my first bite. “I’m sure he’ll have plenty to add about the whole Días cartel situation.”

  “He’ll be able to answer all of my lingering questions?” she teased around a mouthful of chicken tender.

  I let out a sharp laugh. “Yes, absolutely. He can answer all of your questions, but he’ll probably want to tell you about the time we took Wraith to the Dominican Republic.”

  “You went to the Dominican Republic? Why? What for? Why’d you take Wraith?” Claire fired the questions out excitedly, but I na
rrowed my eyes at her.

  “You ask too many questions!” I laughed as I reached for the auxiliary cord. “I’ll let Sanchez tell you why we went, and why we needed Wraith. For now, do what you promised, and let’s get this road trip playlist going.”

  I handed the auxiliary cord over to Claire, and she rolled her eyes as she accepted it.

  “You know, I need to start writing down these questions!” she yelled. “In all honesty, though, I’m excited. I love hearing about your adventures in the Coast Guard. I know you’ve done a lot of cool things, but I’ve never heard the detailed stories.”

  Claire plugged her phone in and began scrolling through to find her playlist. I looked over at her, her thick dark hair a curtain cascading down and covering her face as she searched. I was so glad that she was enjoying the trip so far, and was happy to share my stories with her. I wished I would have done this sooner.

  “Got it!” she exclaimed as she hit play. The Passenger by Iggy Pop filled the RV as she cranked the volume up.

  “Good choice!” I shouted with a wide grin as I grabbed a few french fries and took a bite.

  We jammed along to the music together for a minute, and then Claire turned the volume down a bit.

  “I’ll make a deal with you,” she announced.

  “Oh, yeah?” I smirked as I glanced over at her. “What’s that?”

  “I’ll stop overwhelming you with questions for now if you make sure Luke Sanchez tells the Dominican Republic story in detail.” Claire raised a playful eyebrow at me and popped a french fry in her mouth.

  “Deal,” I agreed, and we shook on it, my other hand keeping the steering wheel steady.

  Claire turned the dial back up and began swaying along to the music. Key West was a great story and one I knew that Claire would enjoy hearing, but for now, at this moment, with this music, life was perfect just as it was.

  A Note from the Author

  Hey, if you got here, I just want you to know that you’re awesome! I wrote this book just for someone like you, and if you want another one, it is super important that you leave a review.