In 2007, when four American reporters were taken prisoner at the Israel-Lebanon border, the president activated troops to the ready and many were sent to the Middle East where they were stationed in Israel, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan. Years earlier, former allies Kuwait and Saudi Arabia had refused American troops on their soil. Then came the April bombing. At first Middle East terrorists were suspected, only to find once again it was angry fellow Americans in retaliation for more of the governments iron-fisted ATF actions and IRS seizures.
All of this was on the same day as the Branch Davidian deaths in Waco, Texas. These things only added to the conflict and turmoil that had escalated in the United States.
The bombing occurred the same week a group of pilots and their families were granted a week’s leave in Rome. Ruben, Lieutenant Commander Thomas Sullivan, and Lieutenant Jack Warren were unable to make arrangements for the trip to Rome. Only Beau, Lieutenant Jimmy Galloway, and their families made the weekend excursion. All were close friends and pilots during Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Beau had what many called a perfect marriage and a six-year-old son, Shawn, who was a miniature version of him. Beau’s wife, Rebecca, was tall with long, soft blond hair. She had the most beautiful round brown eyes and an ability to smooth over the worst situations. To Rebecca, every day was new and wonderful. Her main desire was to make Beau and Shawn happy, which she did. Not only were she and Beau truly in love, but they were also the best of friends. They had it all, and who knew better than Ruben, because the four of them worked and played together. The trip to Cairo was the first time he could remember they had not been together.
Beau and Ruben would laugh and tease and were always up for a practical joke. All those things changed the day Beau’s wife and son were murdered. The Galloway’s and the Gex’s were shopping in a Roman market when Rebecca found some jewelry she wanted. She had left her purse in the rental car, but Beau refused to let her return for it, instead going himself. He made a dash from the building to retrieve the purse and her money, leaving his wife, son, and the Galloway’s behind. No sooner had Beau exited the building than an explosion tore the structure apart, hurtling him across the road, breaking his shoulder and wrist. Rebecca and Shawn died tragically at the hands of terrorists, along with Galloway and his wife in the brutal bombing.
A small Iraqi group claimed responsibility and said it was a fatwa in retaliation for Operation Iraqi Freedom. Immediately security increased for the remaining pilots of Desert Watch: Sullivan, Warren, Gex, and himself. Beau had almost died like his father had died in another fatwa in 1996.
But America was involved with terror of its own. Few had even heard of the tragedy, where it never made the front page of any major newspaper: just back-page filler as a possible gas explosion accident. The president and his wife were having problems of their own as the American economy was in the tank and added to that Cheney’s old company Halliburton had taken the seven billion for work in Iraq, built a worthless billion dollar embassy that had not been used and left the country for Dubai. America love it or leave and Halliburton had left. Bush’s popularity was down and he had to find a reason to attack someone if he intended to win the next election.
With the American bombing, on-going Israeli/Arab peace talks, and the delegate negotiations for the release of the two American prisoners, the president refused to take a stand. Most believed it was a gas pipeline accident and not the act of terrorists, even though they claimed responsibility. To wrongly accuse Arabs would only add to his already tattered image. The president ignored the issue. Besides, the president’s popularity increased two percent, which seemed to please his aides and advisors. The Rome bombing, or accident as it was called, was ignored.
After the bombing, Ruben never saw Beau shed a tear. Only once did he hear him speak about it, when his friend uttered the chilling words, “I’m going to kill all those God damn bastards, even if I have to do it myself!”
Ruben remembered those words as he pulled into the airport, and he could barely withhold a chuckle. “I bet those guys paid dearly,” he muttered to himself.
Beau had tried to get the commanders to retaliate against the terrorists. They refused, reasoning you can’t bomb countries just because a few people get killed. But the dead weren’t just a few people; they were his wife and son; they were his life. When they denied his request, Beau resigned in mid-2008 and immediately joined Israel’s air force, requesting combat.
The media twisted the story and made the most of it. “High Ranking Officer Turns Mercenary,” they said. The tabloids had a field day saying aliens took him around the world, while the Palestinians said he murdered children, and the Israelis decorated him for bravery. With more bombings, riots, and financial strife within the United States, and a new President who promised to bring “hope and change,” Beau Gex was soon forgotten.
Ruben received only a half dozen letters. None divulged information as to Beau’s activities. Only one thing he asked; it was always the same request: put flowers on Rebecca and Shawn’s graves. Now Beau was back and the United States had mysteriously dropped charges against him. Ruben knew something was happening but what? As he swung along the passenger pick-up lane, he recognized Beau and pulled to a stop. He sounded the horn and then jumped from the Jeep to greet his old friend. He yelled, waved his arms, and moved toward Beau.
There was no mistaking him, even in the uniform and dark glasses. Beau dropped the duffel bag to the pavement and the two men clasped in what was more than friendship, for they were best friends. Together, they had lived with and cheated death
Beau held Ruben at arm’s length. His friend was almost a head shorter, but what he lacked in stature, he more than made up for in spirit. “Boy, you’re a sight for sore eyes. I’ll be honest; I never thought I’d live to see ya again.”
Ruben noted Beau’s brown skin. “Hell, you’re almost darker than me. At least you got time to soak up the rays while you were gone.
“Yep, I did do that.”
“Makes a guy like me jealous.” The pink finger on the right hand stood out from the tanned body. Ruben pointed and grinned, “Beau you gotta quit chewing your fingernails. That is beyond the quick.”
Raising his hand Beau looked at the stub and managed a smile. “Nasty habit huh?”
“Is that what the guy did?” Ruben asked. With a nod of his head Beau confirmed Ruben’s question. “What was his name, Abdul Walley Walley?”
This brought a small chuckle, “Sharafan.”
“Nice guy.”
“He’s evil.”
For a moment Beau reflected on Sharafan, but Ruben quickly pulled him back when he slapped his hands together and said, “Okay, let’s get your bags and get outta here.”
Beau took off his pilot’s sunglasses and held up the duffel bag. “This is it my friend. Everything I own is in here.” The lines around his eyes revealed age far beyond his years — a lifetime of experience and grief. “Say, how’s Sunday?”
Sunday was the nickname Ruben’s wife, Maria, had been unable to shake since high school. With the last name of Domingo, Ruben had made so much fun calling her Sunday, the name stuck. Now only a few close friends called her by her nickname. Beau was one of those people.
“She’s fine.”
“Y’all doing okay?”
“Yeah, sure, but the military doesn’t give an off base allowance for living anymore. Obama tried to tighten the budget but it didn’t help. Like you always used to say, ‘tax and spend,’ and it’s only getting worse. We haven’t been paid in three months. Men are quitting in droves. We don’t really have a military any more. Hell, the country is so deep in debt we’ll never make it out of this. For the first time we have double digit inflation.”