Page 96 of Stone

He peered a little closer and drawled, “Perfect C, I reckon.”

Despite myself, I snorted a laugh.

These boys were assholes, but we were in this together, and at least they weren’t miserable fucks like some of the guys. Conditions at the base camp were dire. Things had gotten to the stage where we wanted to patrol because it got us some clean air. As stifling as the air was, it still smelled better than our living quarters.

Duggan waved the photo. “Can I keep this?” he asked, grinning cockily.

“Fuck off,” I retorted, snatching it back.

“Only jokin’.” His eyes slid to Spence. “What about your girl? Can I see her pic?”

Spence’s face blanked. “Ain’t gotta girl.”

I shot my buddy a smile that I hoped he recognized as a show of support.

Ally had Dear John’d Spence the week before. She wrote that she couldn’t handle him being away all the time and him being at war was fucking with her head.

I couldn’t believe it, fucking withherhead? She was safe and warm in the comfort of the California sunshine while Spencelived in a damned warehouse that we called the Devil’s Armpit. Nothing fucked with heads more than going to sleep and not knowing if the building would be bombed during the night. Of having to take pills that would ease the effects of a chemical weapons attack, you know, just in case. Or the people you were sent away to protect hating your guts more than the enemy.

But poor fucking Ally, right?

Boo fucking hoo.

It was November now, and a lot of shit had gone down back at home.

Honestly, I had to bury it. There was nothing I could do for Elise here, and if I thought about her dad’s passing too much, it would’ve driven me insane. I was a Marine sniper, I worked out, and I was strong and fit, both physically and mentally, but when it came to Elise, I was goddamned helpless.

Instead, I saved it for my letters. It was through them I poured my heart out. At all other times, I had to stay sharp and alert, but I couldn’t do that if my mind got caught in a whirlpool of guilt because I couldn’t damned well be there for my ol’ lady when she needed me the most.

My dad had also been ill. He had prostate cancer. His diagnosis came through just before Jerome passed.

They caught it early, and he’d had surgery—can you believe on the day of the funeral? He’d kept it hush-hush because he was a tough-guy biker. The only people who knew were me, Mom, and Abe. God forbid he showed any weakness, especially to the brothers.

I couldn’t tell Elise, not by letter anyway, but I read between the lines and knew she was hurt that he hadn’t been there for her. But Dad would rather look like an asshole than show any vulnerability, so it was up to me to explain, which I would do one day, but face-to-face.

The rumble of a Humvee sounded in the distance, and I turned to watch it approach. It seemed a little early for transport, but time out here seemed so fractured it wasn’t a big shock.

It was only when I caught sight of the vehicle that I realized it wasn’t a Humvee. It was black and low-slung.

My gut jerked. “Fuck. Have they seen us?”

“I’m not stickin’ around to find out. We need to take cover!” Duggan roared.

“Where?” Spence demanded. “There’s nowhere. It’s all fuckin’ sand.”

“If we can make it to those caves, we may get lucky,” Lou said, pointing toward a rock formation looming a few hundred meters to our left.

“It’ll take us out of range of the base,” I warned them. “Our comms probably won’t work.”

“I’ll radio in our position now,” Spence muttered. “They’ll find us. We just need to take cover and ride it out until the cavalry gets here.” He got on the radio and began to speak urgently as he relayed our coordinates before muttering, “Over and out.”

A feeling of impending doom began to spread through my gut. Turning toward the caves, we began to run after the others. I craned my neck, checking the proximity of the vehicle before I turned back and gathered speed. The car was a black sedan, a type used by both Iraqis and Kuwaiti people.

“That ride definitely ain’t USMC,” I shouted.

“How much firepower have we got?” Duggan yelled, his panicked breath sawing in and out as I sprinted up beside him.

“We’re okay,” Spence huffed out, arms pumping at his sides as he kept pace. “But it depends if they’re friend or foe and if they’ve got more ammo than us. The last man standing’s the one with the most bullets.”

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