He pulled a worn deck of cards from an end table’s drawer and began shuffling. He laid the cards out for Solitaire and began to work at it. From this pile to that one. Aces to kings. Black to red to black. Too much Solitaire lately. I need a girlfriend. Hanging out with Kate just isn’t getting it done.
Every nearby crash of metal on metal piqued his attention. Was this it? Then moments would pass and nothing. For nearly half an hour this cycle ran. Tired of the game, he stacked the cards and packed them up. Where the hell is this guy? He sighed. Screw it! I’m going to lay down for a couple hours. Never know if I’m going to be able to sleep tonight.
He pushed open the door to his bedroom and stripped down to his undergarments. Sounds of laughter pulled him toward the window overlooking the street below. The group of orphan girls from earlier had been allowed a break—snacking, playing in between bites. Good to see these kids having fun. Not having parents. I can’t even imagine being that young without parents. It makes sense that this place is home to the orphans. All these kids are the future. In order to keep them safe, it makes sense to have all the troops here training. The whole town works to inspire these kids to be good citizens to the S.A.—little patriots. He backed away from the window and crawled into bed. Just a little more sleep.
“Not too much longer.”
“You really believe that, James?”
“Our orders end in twenty-two days and a wake up. I’m fuckin’ sick and tired of riding around in a convoy every day doing route clearance. I could give a shit about this desert, Tommy. Let these people hit the damn bombs along this highway. I’m going home before the month’s over. I don’t care if I have to walk.”
“You’re crazy—“
“Quiet down, you two!”
“Yes, sir!”
“Everyone paying attention now? Good! Per the usual, keep your head on a swivel. We’ve been lucky so far, but this is still a war, so don’t get complacent with our string of fortune. We have about fifteen minutes until we roll out.”
“Hey, Sergeant Gates!”
“Yes, Private Mack.”
“ We gotta know. We keep hearing all this mess about Almawt. Any truth to that?”
“Rumors and more rumors. Folklore if you want to call it that. We haven’t had any confirmed cases among soldiers. It seems without direct exposure to the actual release of the agent it has no effect. So, as we continue through, and we continue to see these people suffering, know that we’re fine. Keep doing what you’re doing and get the mission done.”
“Yes, sir!”
“Pass me my bag, Tommy.”
“You know I hate when you call me that.”
“Alright, Tommy.”
“Get your own damn bag then.”
“You want me breathing in that nasty crap—dying?”
“You heard Sarge, we’re fine.”
“If you say so…”
Thomas rolled over.
“We’re about halfway out now, Tommy. Another half and then the full ride back.”
“I’m surprised you were able to put that together.”
“Shut up… What you got there? Nudie mag?”
“A book. Why do you care?”
“It got any sex in it?”
“Haven’t gotten to any.”
“You find some you let me know, alright?”
“Whatever you say.”
“What’re you going to do when you get home?”
“That bored, huh?”
“Seriously, what you gonna do when we get home?”
“Finish up school and hope we never come back to this place.”
“Yeah…”
“You?”
BOOM!
“Holy Shit!”
“What the…”
“Ambush!”
Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack!
“Get the fuck down!”
Crack! Crack! Crack! Boom!
“Where!”
“Get me some cover!”
Crack! Crack!
Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack!
“How many?”
“Three—no, four!”
Crack! Crack!
“Michelle!”
“She’s gone.”
Crack! Crack!
“We’re being overrun!”
Crack! Crack! Crack!
“Tommy, get to the town! We gotta hide! Now! Let’s go!”
Chapter Three
A knock on the door. He hurried over to answer, bringing the door inward.
“You’re the scout that’s assigned to me?”
“Don’t look too happy to see me.” James pushed past Thomas, let his rucksack and rifle drop to the floor, and plonked down in the recliner. He smacked the button that released the leg rest and leaned back. “You keep this warm for me?”
Thomas glared at him while James slipped his Army Zippo from a cargo pocket and flicked it on. “You got any extra fluid?” James asked.
“No such thing as extra.” Not a thing has changed. “You should probably get out of my chair.”
“That’s how it’s gonna be?” The chair snapped back into place as James popped off the seat and onto his boots. “You still got your unit lighter?”
“Yeah.” Thomas flashed his to James. “You gonna ask for that too?”
“Damn, Tommy. Still mad, huh?”
Thomas ignored the question, choosing instead to move forward with the conversation. “Where you been?”
“Scouting missions. Working out of downtown, mostly.”
“I meant this morning. Why weren’t you at the briefing?”
“Yeah, well…” James looked to the floor and took a long breath. “The thing about that is… They already told me I was on this mission, so”—he shrugged—“I slept in a bit.” James grinned then spit in his hand, pushing it through his shaggy, brown hair to keep it from his forehead.
That damn grin… He’s always smiling. They probably did let him skip the briefing, but who the hell knows? He’s always stretching the truth or completely ignoring it. Never can tell…
“From what I heard, you chose to do the same.” His grin stretched further. “Nobody’s thrilled you got this… except me of course.”
Thomas let this slight roll off his back as James took to flipping through a coloring book that Joseph kept on a small table.
“A regular Picasso here, huh?”
“You about finished?” Thomas’ face was beginning to feel hot, frustration building inside him.