Finish the Course (The Barnes Family Book 1) (3 page)

CHAPTER FIVE

Hall had to slow down to avoid some substantial holes in the road.

“So, you would prefer to be called ‘Miss Hanbali?” Porter didn’t look down at the woman next to him.

“My name is Khayriya Haniyyah Hanbali, but my English-speaking friends call me Riya.”

Hall shot a look of surprise to Slater.

“Fine, Riya,” Slater began, “do you have any idea what happened to the third vehicle in this convoy?”

“They were behind us,” she began, “but we kept getting further and further ahead. I do not know why.”

“How fast were you travelling?” Slater could guess by how long it took them to reach Muzzafarabad, but some portions of the road were better than others, and he didn’t know if they stopped at night.

“Very slowly,” she said after a few minutes of consideration. “Certainly slower than Mr. Hall is now going.”

Hall beamed at her implied complaint.

“Sergeant Hall is anxious to be done with this mission, so he can go home and get married.”

Riya smiled, “How lovely for you. Is your intended in the military as well?”

Hall laughed at that, “He. . .ck, no. She’s a dance teacher.”

“Very nice. It must be something akin to beauty and the beast.”

The whole car laughed at that.

“You’ve got him pegged,” Porter laughed.

“Oh,” Hall swore under his breath.

Slater looked ahead. There was a manned roadblock in front of them.

Each man in the car rested a hand on his sidearm.

“Hanbali,” Slater warned her, “get down as low as you can. Stay behind the men.”

Hall slowed, but remained ready to gun it if necessary.

In the silence of the vehicle, six clicks could be heard. Six hands gripped cold steel, ready for a single word.

Slater opened his window. The man on the other side spoke in Hindi.

Slater responded in Punjabi, knowing some people spoke both.

The guard frowned and repeated his initial command.

“Who speaks Hindi here?” Slater shouted back. “Chung?”

“A little. He told us to get out of the car.”

“Like heck we will,” Slater growled.

The guard didn’t look happy.

The situation was drawing the attention of more men outside the vehicle. The other guards stepped up to the doors as the first guard repeated the order.

Hall rolled down the remaining windows in the vehicle.

The men on the outside adjusted their AK 47’s just slightly.

Slater’s tone was low, “On my command, men,” he inhaled. “No survivors.”

“One,” his whisper was barely discernible.

“Two,” the Indian men moved their hands to their own rifles.

Before Slater could say three, Hanbali began speaking rapidly in Hindi.

The guard dropped his hand from his weapon.

One of the men by a back door asked a question.

She responded rapidly.

Every man stepped back from the vehicle. Then stepped back again.

She spoke to the guard without ever showing her face. He looked startled and stepped back from the vehicle a bit.

“What did you say?” Porter asked.

The guard barked at them again, so she did not have time to answer Porter.

She spoke to Slater, “He says we may go.”

The men did not remove their hands from their weapons until they were miles from the blockade.

Chung chuckled from the backseat.

“What’d she say, Chung?” Garret eyed him speculatively.

“She begged them to allow us to take her to her father.”

Riya laughed, “Your Hindi is very good, Sergeant Chung.”

“I’m afraid I understand it better than I speak it. What was that about the sickness?”

“I simply told them I would not like to die from my illness before making peace with him.”

Porter leaned away from her, “What illness would that be?”

“Any illness, of course,” she batted her dark eyes at him.

They drove for twenty minutes, all of them alert despite the lack of sleep over the past couple days. Slater tried to convince their guest to sleep, but she would have none of it.

“Porter,” Slater rubbed his hands over his eyes, “can we contact command while we are driving?”

“Not likely, Chief. It would be better if we could stop.”

Slater wasn’t pleased about having to make that decision.

“Fine,” he knew the men needed a break even if they were unaware of the fact, “Hall, pull over.”

“Porter, get through as quickly as possible. Tell them we’re nearly to Ghori, we have the package, get us out.”

Porter began the attempt as soon as the vehicle was stationary.

“The rest of you, take care of your needs. Keep alert.”

“Riya,” he waited for her to exit the vehicle, “this is likely the last stop for many hours. Do you need to utilize it?”

She smiled, “Thank you. I will.”

He swallowed his sigh, “I need to come with you.”

She shrugged.

They did not step more than ten feet from the vehicle to do what they needed. They returned quickly to their positions inside.

“Did you reach them?” Slater waited to get in until he was sure everyone was accounted for.

“Command’s located us and is tracking our movement. They’ll have a chopper here by daybreak.”

Slater looked behind them and saw headlights, “Get in,” Slater ordered. “Drive, Hall.”

Hall didn’t wait to be told a second time. They soon lost the other vehicle. It was anybody’s guess as to whether that was because the people in it had no interest in catching the Range Rover or if it was because the driver of the trailing car wasn’t as insane as the driver of the Rover.

“Where are they picking us up, Porter?”

“East of Ghori two miles.”

“We’ll get there before daybreak. Chung and Porter, try to get some sleep.”

The men knew it was a command and did their best to comply.

Slater and the others did their best to not think about their team mates sleeping.

Ghori was hardly worth mentioning on the map. They reached it by four in the morning. Slater told Turner to wake Porter and Chung.

“Stay awake and watch. Turner and Garret, try to sleep.”

“Couldja quit talking about sleep,” Hall griped, “I got the feeling we’re not gonna get any.”

Slater clapped his buddy on the shoulder, “Patience, man. Your time is coming.”

Hall shook his head to wake himself up, “Porter, we got any landmarks?”

“They had a satellite picture of a quonset or some other large building.”

Slater blinked, “I’m not positive,” he pointed, “but that appears to be a Chinook coming in right there.”

Garret craned his neck around backward, “That’s just your imagination, Chief. Like someone travelling through the desert sees water.”

Slater yawned, “Well, I’m getting on board that mirage. You can stay here if you like.”

The chopper landed as Hall parked.

“Good timing,” Garret yawned, never having had the opportunity to actually fall asleep.

Chung spoke into the radio, “Alpha team ready for pickup.”

“Flight team waiting,” came the other end.

The men gathered their gear as they moved toward the waiting chopper, “Who’s our captain today?” Hall asked the voice on the other end.

“Captain Barnes.”

The men looked at each other, sighed and resumed walking toward the vehicle.

“Something wrong with Captain Barnes?” Riya asked Porter.

“Nope,” he opened the door to allow her to enter ahead of him, “nothing at all.”

CHAPTER SIX

“Captain Barnes,” Slater greeted the pilot before taking his seat, “I appreciate the pickup.”

“Have a seat, Reed,” she ordered. “We’ll see if we can make the next landing a little smoother than the last.”

The men and their guest all slept during the nine hour flight back to the base.

Slater woke first, about seven hours into it. He was not too surprised to see the pilot had left post to her co-pilot for the purpose of checking on the men. He was a bit surprised to see her studying him.

“Well, Captain Barnes,” he twisted his head around to crack his neck, “I assume we are nearly out of danger now.”

“Nearly,” she agreed. “Of course, there is no guarantee of anything. If God had wanted men to fly, he would have given them wings.”

Slater snorted at the old joke, “If God hadn’t wanted us to fly, we wouldn’t be doing it.”

She rose from her crouched position, “I take that to mean you believe there is a God who controls what is going on.”

He frowned a little, “I’d be a fool not to.”

She gave him half a grin, “I’d love to debate that with you, but I should get back to my job,” she started to walk away but turned back, “I’m glad you made it out okay.”

Slater nodded at her, “Thanks.”

He didn’t consider they had made it out okay. They had lost five men – five members of their team – friends. Brothers.

They had been together for more than three years. Some of them had worked together for eight. The team had fallen, and that wasn’t okay.

Colonel Ryan met them at the landing strip and led him into his office for immediate debriefing.

“I assume Captain Barnes of the Air Force informed you she facilitated the removal of your men.”

Slater looked around and his team. They were as confused as he was.

“Not these men,” Ryan’s lips pressed together, “the fallen.”

Slater shook his head, “I wasn’t aware.”

Ryan met his eyes, “Major Hanes said it took both fire extinguishers to reduce the flames enough for them to drag the men out.”

Slater’s opinion of the woman multiplied.

Ryan didn’t allow him to dwell on it, “Were you able to identify any of the men you disposed of in taking Hanbali?”

Slater answered all the questions to the best of his ability, and the squad was soon dismissed.

The colonel had a few more questions and instructions for the chief, so Slater had to remain. However, it didn’t take long.

“Captain Reed,” Ryan said as the younger man prepared to leave, “I am sorry for your loss.”

Slater swallowed, “Thank you, sir.”

“I assume you plan to return personal effects to the families yourself?”

Slater nodded, “Yes, sir. We’re all due for a trip home now anyway.”

“You’ll go home with all your team,” Ryan looked down at the paper before him, “one last time.”

Slater went to find his men, to tell them the plan.

“When do we leave?” Porter had just stepped out of the shower when Slater tracked them down.

“Tomorrow at six hundred. Please shave before we go.”

Hall scratched as his beard, “I was just getting used to the mountain man look.”

Slater allowed a small chuckle to escape, “Anyone see DeWitt yet?”

Chung was already repacking his bag, “I tried, but he was in therapy. Said to try back in an hour.”

Slater noticed all his men had showered. He longed to do the same, but knew it would have to wait until he saw to DeWitt.

“I’ll be back.”

The infirmary was nearly empty.

“You ready to go tomorrow?” he asked the man in the bed.

“I’m surprised they’re letting us out so fast,” the other man admitted. “Last time, we had to stick around for two weeks to sort it all out.”

“Last time was different,” Slater spoke without thinking, “I mean, we weren’t so overdue for home.”

DeWitt shot him a look of annoyance, “I know what you meant.”

Slater looked down at the ground, “You need anything before we leave?”

“No, thanks, Reed. I’m all set.”

Slater finally made it to the showers.

“It’s about time,” Hall was in the latrine taking care of his beard. “I was thinking we could send you into the enemy and they would scatter just from your smell.”

Slater stood under the spray. It wasn’t much more than a trickle today, and it was cold, but it would do the job.

“Just once, I’d like to arrive stateside with my beard still in place,” Hall commented on the situation.

“The families don’t need to see us looking like we just crawled out of a hole,” he scrubbed at the grit covering his neck, “Why did we have to shave last time?”

“We met with those Senators at landing.”

“Oh, yeah.”

“They sending DeWitt to the CSH?”

Slater ran his fingers through his beard, “I don’t think so. He’s pretty mobile.”

“Say, you aren’t getting those stitches wet, are you?”

Slater didn’t answer.

Hall came and pulled back the curtain, “Lemme see.”

Slater grabbed the thin plastic veil and gave Hall a little shove, “No peeking. I know you’re jealous, but deal with it.”

Hall laughed as he went to wipe the shaving cream from his face, “Jealous of what?”

Slater shut off the water and wrapped a towel around himself.

“I think I opened them up again,” he admitted as he went to stand beside his medical officer.

Hall looked down, “I doubt that was just the water. You’re a mess.”

Slater touched the edge, “Hurts too.”

“I’ll bet. Get some clothes on and meet me at the infirmary.”

Slater grabbed his clean t-shirt and pulled it over his still-wet torso, “Fine, but if you have a nurse to come over and assist you this time, I’m telling Cheryl you’re afraid of heights.”

“I wasn’t afraid,” Hall packed up his gear, “I was just surprised at waking up like that. And I only called the nurse over because I needed some help.”

“You screamed like a little girl,” Slater pulled his pants on. “And you didn’t seem to need help getting the bullet from my shoulder last year. No. It was just when I got it in the pants that you had to have help.”

Hall snickered, “Good you finally learned to keep your butt down.”

Slater glared at the man’s back.

Slater beat Hall to the infirmary.

“You forget something the last time, Captain?” Major Rowney scowled up from his seat at the desk.

“No thank you, sir. Hall wanted to check my stitches.”

The PA shrugged and went back to his paperwork.

“Hey, Major,” Hall came in and greeted Rowney, “I’m gonna go sew a new seam in the captain. He tore the last one out.”

Rowney nodded his head without looking up.

“You’re gonna have a scar with this one, Slater.”

Slater didn’t comment on the use of his first name, “I’m going for the record.”

“You and Emerson,” Hall laughed before sobering quickly. Obviously, Emerson wouldn’t be scarring anymore.

“Thankfully,” Hall pulled out a syringe, “we have plenty of access to drugs here. You won’t feel the stitches this time.”

Slater clenched his teeth to avoid grunting when Hall injected his side with some kind of numbing agent.

Hall took a little longer this time. This was in part because he had that luxury but also because Slater had made a bigger mess of his side and hip by crawling all over it.

“That oughta hold, but go have someone look at it next week.”

Slater grunted, and Hall knew that meant he had no intention of seeing a doctor once he got back to the US. Hall didn’t bother arguing; Slater had certainly taken out his own stitches before.

At oh six hundred, Slater watched the bodies of his former team mates, along with the pilot, flight engineer, and crew chief, being loaded into the plane. He was about to climb on the plane himself, but a hand on his shoulder stopped him.

“Captain Reed.”

Slater turned to look at Colonel Olson

“We’re sending Hanbali with you.”

Slater blinked, “Sir?”

It was as close he had ever come to questioning an order.

“She’s booked on a commercial flight, but we want her out of here before then.”

Slater did not want to babysit.

“What am I supposed to do with her when we get to DC?”

Olson handed him a file.

Slater bit back a groan.

“Have a good flight, Captain.”

Slater grimaced and boarded the jet.

He saw Riya Hanbali had managed to get on before him.

He sat down next to her, “Miss Hanbali, what an unexpected surprise.”

She smirked at him, “It would not be a surprise, were it expected, Captain Reed.”

He didn’t respond.

“Do you need to go find your men?”

He shook his head, “I’m sure they can manage to find their seats without my assistance.”

She laughed softly, “I did try to explain I would be fine without a shepherd, but the brass, as you would call them, felt it necessary.”

“I apologize, Miss Hanbali,” he shifted his foot slightly, “I did not mean to imply you were a bother.”

She opened her mouth to answer, but was interrupted by a voice from the other side.

“Captain Reed,” Captain Barnes spoke as she took the seat next to Hanbali, “I’ve been ordered to come with you and Miss Hanbali.”

Slater pinched the bridge of his nose, and Hanbali laughed, “Saddled with not one, but two women, Captain.”

Barnes forced back a smile. He did look rather put-upon.

“I beg your pardon, Miss Hanbali, Captain. It is not your gender that upsets me. It’s the thought that it is only oh seven hundred, and I have been surprised twice. It makes me wonder what is next.”

“Learn to like surprises, Reed,” Anna suggested.

Hanbali grinned up at the other woman, “Life is so uncertain that those words hold some wisdom.”

Captain Barnes smiled back, but she used the moment to consider the woman sitting next to her. Nobody was about to tell mere captains why this woman was so important to the United States government, so she tried to quell her curiosity regarding that.

Anna admitted to herself, though, that she felt like a lumbering giant next to the petite lady. Miss Hanbali probably had to wear shoes to accomplish five feet. The Afghani woman also had a beautiful complexion and neatly styled hair. Even upon their first meeting in Ghori, Hanbali looked as though she had recently combed through her straight locks.

Anna, in contrast, had nine inches on Hanbali. Her hair often resembled an old rag mop, her skin was sunburnt, and she moved like a man. Even now, the smaller woman fit neatly into her seat while Anna had to turn slightly to make her long legs fit.

If a man happened to look beyond the physical aspects, he would still see that Hanbali had a ready wit and an easy smile. She could converse on many topics and had been educated at Harvard and Oxford.

Anna had never conversed easily with any stranger, particularly men. Anna earned her degree at the state college because they had a good ROTC program, but she didn’t socialize much because she had lived with her grandmother. In retrospect, Anna believed she would have gained a few more life skills – such as conversation and flirting – had she been made to live in dorms. The only topic in which she could hold her own was sports, and that hardly seemed like a point of attraction.

Anna reminded herself that she wasn’t trying to catch any man’s attention, but it was hard to convince herself with one man in particular sitting just two seats over.

Captain Barnes lay her head back against the seat, “Have you ridden in a military transport, Miss Hanbali?”

“No,” the little woman replied, “but I have ridden in many jets, and this setup is not much different.”

“Maybe not,” Anna opened one eye, “but takeoff is different.”

“How?”

Reed answered that one, “It’s going to be a little faster. More straight up.”

“Oh,” she sounded like she was frowning, but Anna didn’t open her eyes to look, “Why?”

“To avoid getting shot at or hit with an RPG.”

Hanbali shuddered.

The flight was to take nearly fifteen hours. Most of the men slept in the beginning and then played cards. Slater read after waking from his nap.

“I suppose those are directions for my care,” Hanbali quipped.

Reed shook his head and held up a small black book, “Directions for my own life, actually.”

Anna recognized a Bible when she saw one.

“Are you a devout man, Captain Reed?” Hanbali pursued the topic.

“About my relationship with Christ I am.”

Anna had read Hanbali’s file, and she could probably guess the woman’s religious views, but she asked anyway.