Page 1 of Salvaging My Heart
CHAPTER ONE
Second Tuesday in October
“Join the Navy they said. See the world they said. Tropical places they said. If I ever run into they—” Chief Warrant Officer Leif Hansen was griping to himself as he looked down his body. Even after climbing out of the water, he was covered in mud, from shoulders to feet. Salvaging the sunk yacht to gain access to the port again was going to be a challenge. Yes, it was a joint exercise with the UCTs but it was still an important mission. With the push to have the underwater construction teams and the mobile diving and salvage units working together to facilitate faster responses with less logistical hassle, this exercise needed to be executed flawlessly. He needed to go find the chief warrant officer for the UCT and discuss the next steps. Yes, they used the same equipment and safety procedures but salvage was MDSU territory – now if they were building something? All yours, Seabees.
Leif peeled off his gloves and dropped them where he stood. He’d collect his wet suit after he got the mud from places where there shouldn’t be mud. Maybe he could convince one of the sailors to put it all in his net bag for cleaning. Oooh, that sounded like a better idea.
“Chief Hansen?” a timid voice sounded behind Leif, causing him to turn with his wetsuit hanging on his hips. When he looked toward the voice, Leif had a hard time not laughing. The petty officer standing there looked as green as the Mediterranean Sea. What he wouldn’t give for this yacht to have sank down there instead of the Baltic. Diving this far north in the fall? Not Leif’s idea of fun.
“Yes,” Leif finally answered.
“Commander Palway needs to see you,” the man said.
“Seriously? Did he miss the part where we’re trying to clear a yacht from the bottom of the bay so the berths are usable again?” Leif was due to take his shift as officer of the deck as soon as he got changed. There was no way that they were going to make the mission deadline if they all didn’t do their parts. Being pulled away to talk to Palway was going to put them behind. Each team needed to have a supervisor on the dock and Miller had been on duty long enough.
“Umm, I don’t think so? Chief, all I know is the commander got a phone call, slammed the phone down and then yelled at me to find you and get you to him yesterday.” Leif kicked his wetsuit booty off and it landed at the petty officer’s feet, splattering mud onto his boots. He honestly didn’t think the petty officer could have turned greener but he did. How could he be so squeamish and be around the unit?
Leif looked over at the gathering of divers waiting for him to tell them what was what. After checking the time on his dive watch, Leif met Fuzzy’s gaze. “Get the others out of the water. Bottom time is about up. Clean up the equipment and then call it a night.”
He could see the confusion cross the chief petty officer’s face, but he didn’t question the orders. The trust in the unit was as tight as that of the SEALs. Yes, the MDSU divers weren’t as glamourous and idol worship wasn’t there but Leif wouldn’t change jobs.
“Aye, aye. You heard the man. We’ve got divers down below,” Fuzzy said. “Drop your gear where you’re standing, Chief, and I’ll make sure it’s cleaned and stowed. Rogers, put the call out on comms for Sparks and Williams to wrap it up for today.”
Leif turned back to the petty officer. “Tell the commander that I’m on my way. Just need to get out of my trunks and pull on utilities. I’ll be there within twenty.” Guess finding the UCT warrant officer was on hold for now.
Two hours later Leif found himself signing out from the command center and heading to the states. Holy fuck. He needed to get to the Odessa airport ASAP.
“Chief, everything okay?” Fuzzy’s voice came from the doorway. “What can I do?” Leif stood there blinking at his friend, not knowing what to say. “Come on, diver, snap out of it.” The tone of Fuzzy’s voice, clicked in his head.
“Fuzzy, I’ve got to get to the airport, now. There’s been an accident back home and the Red Cross contacted command. My mother and sister were in a car accident. Both of them are in the hospital and Nick is staying with friends until I can get there. There’s no one else to watch him.” Leif hadn’t seen his family in about two years so hopefully, the weekly Skype and Facetiming would help Nick remember him.
“Are they going to be okay?” Fuzzy asked as he guided Leif down the stairs and over to one of the vans.
“Palway didn’t have a lot of information just that they were both critical and I needed to get home.” He was going to hold it together. He was going to get to Bluff Point and take care of his family. Maybe this was the sign he’d been looking for about retiring. Leif shook his head. Wasn’t the time to make life decisions. Action was needed now. He could think on the plane. Lord knew he was going to be in the air forever.
Aaron pulled his truck into the garage and threw it into park. Looking down at his clothes, he could only shake his head. Climbing into the dumpster when he’d heard the pitiful sounds might have been the humane thing to do but it definitely left him covered in… yeah, he didn’t want to think of what was on him. The kittens were so small; they had barely filled his hands. Luckily his coworker, Ben, offered to take them to the shelter before Aaron had done something stupid and volunteered to bring them home with him. There was no way, even being single, that he had the time or energy to hand feed three kittens.
Good thing he’d bought theRun’s Donetowel seat cover when it “appeared” on his Facebook feed. How Facebook came up with him on that algorithm, he wasn’t sure but he was thankful for it.
Glancing at his clothes again, Aaron left the windows open to air the truck out. No way he wanted to smell… rotten… tomato sauce and seafood? Or whatever the combination was much longer. He turned the key and shut off the ignition. Shifting out, he glanced at the seat and shrugged before pulling the harness to release the towel. He’d throw it in the wash with his clothes.
Walking to the door into the house, he stopped to kick off his boots. Stepping into the entry way, Aaron was glad that the laundry room was between the garage and kitchen. He placed his wallet, keys and phone on the dryer before stripping and tossing it all in then loaded up the detergent and sanitizer — best invention ever. No worries that whatever was living in the gunk would survive the wash cycle. He’d start it on his way out.
Aaron had about an hour before he needed to leave for football practice, plenty of time to shower and eat something. One of the benefits of living alone— he didn’t bother covering up and walked naked to his bathroom. Maybe one day, if he was lucky, he wouldn’t be walking through the house in his birthday suit. Yeah, he had time but if he didn’t move it he’d be late.
He loved working with the pee wee players. Seeing them figure out how to block a run or throw a spiral pass brought warmth to his heart. But even better was watching them work together as a team or stepping out of their comfort zones trying something new.
Forty-five minutes later, wearing sweats and sneakers, he grabbed up his coach bag and walked out to his truck. He’d put the truck in reverse and started out of the garage. When a breeze blew through the window, bringing the rotten smell to his nose, he remembered he hadn’t started the wash. Shit! Throwing the gear shift to park, he ran back in the garage, leaving the truck running. Two clicks on the machine and he was back in the truck. A tap on the remote and down went the door. As soon as Aaron saw it closed, he pulled the truck out of the driveway.
Off to help little boys learn the value of practice.
CHAPTER TWO
Leif dropped to the floor outside his sister’s hospital room and leaned against the wall. Holy fuck had the last thirty-six hours kicked his ass. Okay, maybe if he’d actually gotten some sleep on the plane, he might be in better shape. The nine-million hour layover in Istanbul hadn’t helped any either.
He needed a few minutes to gather himself before opening the door. The briefing from Kim’s doctor settled his mind a bit. Kim would be okay but would need to be in traction for at least two weeks. Multiple breaks in her left leg along with a concussion and some internal bruising. Not as bad as it could’ve been from what he said. Finding his mom’s doctor was next on his list. Guess her doctor was in surgery at the moment and wouldn’t be available for a few hours. Hence his ass on the tile instead of a chair next to Kim’s bed.
“eh hmm.” A person clearing their throat had Leif opening his eyes and looking up. Going by the look on the nurse’s face she wasn’t too happy seeing him sitting there. “Sir? You can’t sit there.”
