The man wasn’t sexist, unlike Thompson or Clements. He despised the idea of bringing such a beautiful young woman into a possible engagement. The thought of this pretty woman’s death didn’t sit well with the man — it just wouldn’t be right.
“She’s going,” Elizabeth insisted.
“Makes no sense,” Dale fired back. “If she knows vital information, she can just tell us. What sort of debriefing is this? Let’s get to the mission and get on with it. But babysitting isn’t my thing,” he said.
“I’ll babysit her,” Thompson said, giving her a nod and the flashy smile that got the man laid many times over.
Svetlana glared at Thompson. “My eyes are a bit higher,” she said.
“Oh, shit! I forgot she speaks English,” Thompson said, laughing.
Clements chuckled with him. “Busted,” he said.
“Whatever. She’s hot,” Thompson said, his voice loud enough for Svetlana to hear him.
“Makes no difference,” Dale said, returning to the subject at hand. “No offense,” he said to Svetlana, “but it’s a man’s world in Khost. It’s best you stay, unless you can convince me otherwise. Call me old fashioned, but I can’t be held responsible for you. I need to focus on my mission, and with you here, I can’t. Neither can my men,” Dale said.
Elizabeth chimed in, saying, “Lieutenant Rivers will be responsible for Svetlana’s well-being. Sergeant Comstock, your men will hold no worry over her safety. Svetlana knows what she’s getting herself into. She understands the risks, and she’ll do as she’s told. I understand your concerns, but Sergeant, there’s no other option. My superiors have given this order. If you want to remain team leader, I suggest you accept it,” Elizabeth said to Dale.
Dale took in a deep breath, muttering, “Fine.”
“Fucking great, Dale,” Clements moaned. “We have to bring a SEAL and a woman?”
“Sure looks like it,” Dale replied, unhappy.
“That’s like bringing two women,” Clements added, looking to Rivers in amusement.
“Go to hell, Country Fuck!” Rivers replied.
59
To interrupt the ego-fest, Elizabeth turned, motioning to Michael. A pop of static and the giant television screen flickered.
Clements and Rivers stopped bickering.
Instead, everyone in the room watched the sequence of video clips, lasting nearly twenty minutes.
The first session.
Many sessions.
The interrogation of Sergeant C. York.
And they saw the beatings, the emotional distress, the turmoil this man was in.
They watched in horror.
“What the fuck was that?” Jefferson bellowed after the video ceased and the lights brightened in the room once more. A vein bulged from his shaved head, his mouth widened, his thick beard prevalent in the light. He was normally quiet, a man who took his work quite serious. “What the fuck are they doing to him?”
“Calm down,” Elizabeth said.
“Fuck you, bitch!” he shouted, standing up.
“Hey,” Dale said, standing up and staring at Jefferson. “Relax, man. Let her explain.”
“There’s no explanation for this!” Jefferson boomed. “He’s Delta. One of us, right? What the fuck they doing to him?”
“Sergeant, I understand this is hard to watch, and I understand your anger,” Elizabeth started.
“Bullshit you do. You ain’t been in the same sand as a guy like him.”
“Do you know him?” Dale asked.
“I’ve met him. Pulled Saddam out of a hole with the guy. The brother knows how to fight. But this is fucking torture.”
“Let her explain,” Dale said, looking back to Elizabeth. He, too, was angry. It was unheard of to black-bag a Delta member. The video showed a wide array of bruises and cuts. The man was chained down, the guards using a bit too much force keeping him still.
“Listen, I didn’t do this,” Elizabeth. “This was three weeks ago, before my arrival.”
“We’ll take names,” Thompson said.
“Sure will,” Jefferson agreed. “Don’t give a fuck who they are, I’ll make sure to get the guy some payback.”
“Well, thankfully you’ll never know who. May I go on or are your guys going to waste more of my time?” Elizabeth asked Comstock.
“Sit down,” Dale said to his men.
Jefferson sat down reluctantly.
“Now, I’ll continue,” Elizabeth began. “This is Sergeant York. And yes, he was part of Task Force 121. While most of you were taking out his sons, he helped find Saddam. Been an Operator for years and he’s the sole survivor of the Delta group that went… missing.”
“What’s his story?” Dale asked. “He seems a bit… off.”
“He’s suffered massive post traumatic stress,” Elizabeth answered.
“’Cause he watched them all die,” Rivers said.
“Yes. Watched as his men were slaughtered. Sergeant York reported they were all killed. He was fortunate, if you can call his emotional state such.”
“The guy’s trained for such things. Part of the job. You’re telling me the death of his men made him like this? I just don’t see that happening,” Dale said.
“You’re right, Sergeant Comstock. York has suffered something far worse than you know. He fully broke down. Took a dozen Marines to subdue him. He had to be sedated and chained every time they interviewed him.”
“You mean interrogated,” Dale countered.
“Either way, as you can tell he’s undergone much stress. Originally, they assumed two things. First, that he was under the influence of something. His blood samples are negative, just as I thought. Secondly, they assumed he was simply delusional. I know the psych evaluations are pretty heavy, but you guys know spending years out here can mess you up. Once in awhile, a guy goes off the reservation, as they say.”
“Is that what happened?” Rivers then asked, curious. He was angry too, though kept his feelings on the issue reserved.
“No. I took him off the medications the moment I first spoke with him. He’s calmed down. I agree, their tactics were wrong, but the military brass and their bosses at the DOD couldn’t figure it out. They just couldn’t accept his story. It made no sense to them, so they assumed he had cracked. And I suppose in some ways he has, though he’s far more lucid and aware at the moment. Still, his story hasn’t changed. And this causes me…”
“His story… you actually believe it?” Dale asked, bewildered.
“I do.”
“Now wait a fucking second,” Jefferson said, beginning to stand once more, thinking twice when Dale glared at him. “You’re saying… you’re saying his team fought monsters? Is this some kind of joke?”
“No, Sergeant, this is no joke.”
“Monsters?” Rivers laughed out loud. “Lizzy, what the hell are you talking about? That’s bullshit. Look, his Delta team got caught. It happens. Probably overcommitted or some shit and he’s trying to cover for them. Or hey, maybe he did snap. Maybe he took his team out. What’s the real story, Lizzy?”
“What you just heard is all true,” Elizabeth said, glaring at Rivers. Then she turned back to the group, saying, “You’ll all learn soon enough. Gentlemen, this is why Svetlana is here. She has the expertise on such matters, and even more importantly, personal information that might help you. Now, if you’ll listen to her, maybe you’ll learn what’s really going on down there,” Elizabeth said. “This is a delicate situation, and she’ll better explain what you’re up against.”
All eyes shifted as the Russian woman, her voice meek and quiet, began.