Page 60 of Signed, SEALed, Delivered

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

Zach

Kennedy was due home any minute. She had been invited by her father’s office manager to a baby shower for Lauren, one of the partner’s daughters, who found herself pregnant. The father of the baby, William Vale, a beady-eyed geek who Claudia tried to push her into marrying. According to Kennedy, this Vale guy was somehow related to the presidential family she was named after. Following a series of bad investments, which landed his family in debt, he had been selling off most of the inherited possessions. When John and Claudia divorced, he had a historical curator come in and take all of the furnishings his ex-wife had purchased from the Vales, giving them to several museums. Claudia had not been happy.

I’d promised my girl I’d make her favorite meal for dinner, with a bottle of wine chilled and ready when she got home. With the steaks sitting in a homemade marinade, I cracked open a beer, and waited for her to arrive.

Sliding onto a bar stool with the remote for the television in my right hand, I’m just about to hit the power button when the computer on my left comes to life. Turning the screen to face me, I enter my password to open the program. With everything we went through with Virginia Greyson and Ethan Porter, all of our electronics had iron clad firewalls and resetting passwords.

Doc’s somber face greets me as I click on the icon. My heart falls to my stomach as I take in his face. “Doc?”

“Viper let me get everyone on before I tell you what has happened.” Nodding in understanding, I take a pull of my beer as we wait for the rest of the team to login. This can’t be good, and I hope whatever it is, has nothing to do with my team. The sound of the back door opening filters through to the kitchen before Kennedy’s tired face comes around the edge of the door.

“Hey,” she calls out, eyes going wide as she notices the computer and Doc’s tired face. “Sorry, I’ll just go upstairs.” She whispers, pointing to the ceiling. Having Kennedy living with me has been a double-edged sword. While I loved having her around, sex on the couch being an added bonus, the proverb of not knowing someone until you live with them, is incredibly true. Kennedy has a head full of long, beautiful hair, which clogs up the sink and shower...all the fucking time.

“No, Kennedy,” pulling out the barstool beside me, I motion her over. “I want you here to listen to what Doc has to tell us.” When she met the guys, and chose to stay by my side, she also became a part of the team. While her part will consist of keeping the home fires burning, it is a vital role in my world.

“Hey, Kennedy. How are you doing?” Claire Morgan, Diesel's sister-in-law, and Kennedy have spoken several times over the past few weeks. They discovered similarities in their childhoods, forming a similar bond to the one I have with my team.

Kennedy tells her about the events of the office baby shower, including the uninvited guest who claims her baby was also fathered by William and is due within days of Lauren. While no fight broke out, John Forrester was called into the office to have a talk with William Vale.

“I thank God everyday I found a good guy in Dylan.”

A smile forms on my girl’s face as she turns to grab my chin. “I know what you mean, Zach is my personal hero.” Her eyes gleam, colored in the truth of what she is saying.

“Ladies, as much as I’d love to hear about how you are the luckiest women on the planet, I do have some sad news to pass.” Doc’s voice pulled us both back to the screen, the faces of my team sectioned off into squares.

"Ramsey was stabbed to death on patrol last night. Captain said he had been playing with a scorpion, trying to get it to attack him when the lady came out of the shadows. She managed to stab him more than ten times before they got her off him."

The memory of the lady who did the damage to my arm came rushing back. Ramsey had wanted to see some action, experience real combat, I doubt he imagined it would be in the form of a female and the sharp end of her blade.

“Ramsey's only relative is his younger brother who is currently a guest in the Arkansas State prison system. The Red Cross got in touch with him, but his brother still has several years to serve out of his sentence and wouldn't be allowed to attend his brother's funeral.”

A silence fell across us; the miles apart meant nothing at the moment. “Kevin Ramsey will be buried in Arlington, by men and women he didn't know. No girlfriend will stand alone and cry for her loss, no mother is left behind to remember her son as one of the fallen.”

Mentally, I’m packing my bag and calling the airlines to book a flight. I look to Kennedy, who has her phone out, sending a text message to my aunt of a family emergency.

“I’ve gotten new orders and will come to Arlington to attend his funeral and house hunt.” Doc added the last in a reverent whisper. “Viper, I know you found Ramsey to be a pain in your ass, but you should know, his orders to go to Coronado came this morning.” Ramsey would never know he had gotten his chance to become one of us.

“You’re right, Doc. He deserves a proper funeral. I’ll book my flight and meet you in Washington.” My heart felt heavy, sadness gripping me like a vice. Based on the man I knew Ramsey to be, he wouldn’t have lasted beyond the first day of training, but he had passed everything else required to get in. I owed him, as his mentor and friend, to give him a SEAL’s funeral.

“Lindsey has an interview with CNN this week, I had planned on surprising her, do a little celebrating.” Ghost mentioned as I watched Kennedy booking flights from Atlanta to DC. “I can join you two and give her time to finish up.” Lindsey Jennings, one of the country's up and coming journalists, was as beautiful as she was smart. She and Ryan had met during an interview gone wrong. Lindsey came to the Korengal Valley to talk with the locals on their views of how the military interfered with their poppy harvests. She assumed since she was a beautiful female, the locals would respond with open arms. She was wrong.

When the shit hit the fan, Ghost came out of the shadows, scooped her up and got her to safety. For him, it was love at first sight. For her, in my opinion, it was an opportunity to launch herself to stardom. And it worked. She went from weekend reporter to co-anchor of a national station in the blink of an eye. He has caught her many times, with numerous news executives, always with an excuse and night of incredible sex. No matter what we tell him, he is convinced she is the one for him. We are all waiting for the right girl to fall into his lap.

“Count me in,” Chief's voice full of reverence, his eyes fixed on his folded hands. “I’ll see if Rachel can come with me.” He didn't say much about the nurse he had been seeing. Long distance relationships can be difficult, especially as a SEAL, where you can go for months and not be able to tell anyone where you are.

“Rayne and I will be there,” Reaper’s deep voice added, his eyes blank with sadness. He was a hard man, but deep inside was a heart bigger than his body. Kennedy and Rayne had kept in touch, she shared how Matt continued to surprise her in the gentleness he showed her, despite his massive size.

“My brothers and I would like to join. While they didn’t know Ramsey, they want to express their condolences as a part of this team.” Diesel sat beside two other men, their matching blue eyes sharing the brotherly bond they had developed over the years.

“I’ll be there too. It will get me out of meeting yet another girl my mother wants to set me up with.” Despite the seriousness of the moment, laughter filled the room. Havoc’s mother would never rest until she had him married with ten kids.

***

Bright sunshine rested in the center of the clear blue sky. A slight breeze tickled the blades of green grass, creating a symphony of sounds as it billowed through the leaves of the maple trees, reflecting the somberness of the day. Seven Honor Guard Marines stood in formation, the infamous gold stripe vertical down their legs, rifles in their white-gloved hands.

The six of us stood at attention, waiting for the twenty-one-gun salute to begin. As guns were raised and with the sounds of my medals clicking as the wind danced around them, I chance a glance at Kennedy. This morning, as I donned my uniform, she commented on how her reaction to me would have been different if I had shown up in my dress whites, instead of the camo’s I’d worn home on the plane. When I sat my cover on the top of my head, she tucked her lip between her teeth, letting me know I affected her just as she did me every time I looked at her.

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