Page 32 of Charlotte
“Are you going to be ok starting over at our age? And twins to boot. Where will you live? You won’t be here, will you?” Lisa’s voice quivers a little with that last question.
“No, I’ll go wherever Jordan is stationed. He thinks we will be back in North Carolina before much longer. It’s not so far away. We will be close to the ocean and you can come visit me anytime.” I tell her to reassure her our friendship will still be strong despite the distance between us.
After our talk I hang up, I am restless. I wish Jordan, Sr would hurry up and get here. The sound of a car pulling in the drive catches my attention and I hurry to open the door. It’s not Jordan, Sr. It’s JoAnn. Why is she here? How did she even know that I am here? I walk out to meet her at the bottom of the steps.
“Why are you here?” I demand when she emerges from her car. JoAnn is glaring at me. It’s hard to determine what she is thinking from her facial expression.
“I came to see what your plans are, Charlotte. I am not sure why you even came back here.” JoAnn says. She moves closer as she awaits my answer.
“I am not sure what you mean JoAnn.” I answer quizzically. “I live here. Why wouldn’t I come back? My kids live here, my job.”
“Poor sweet, Charlotte. You are so naïve. You have always thought the world revolved around you. Haven’t you?” JoAnn smirks at me. “All men want you. Patients love you. And you walk around like the fucking Princess everyone treats you as. You have no idea what it’s like. Sitting back day after day watching Dr Jones pinning for you. You prance around playing hard to get. I would have been the perfect wife for him. We would have made an awesome power couple, but he only had eyes for you. Why did you have to come back? That damn meddling Marine. He had to find you and ruin everything.”
“What is your problem? Why would you say that to me? I have never done anything to make you say such vile things.” I am almost screaming. I am so pissed. Sure Dr. Jones has asked me out in the past, but he wasn’t pinning. He’s dated other people, surely. Why is she so crazy?
“I had almost gotten him to forget you. Then we get the call that you have been found and you are coming back. He was over the moon happy that you would be coming home. I could not believe my rotten luck. Well now I have made sure you won’t ever come back.”
“What do you mean?” JoAnn has a crazed look in her eyes. The sound of another vehicle approaching gives me some hope. Please let it be Jordan, Sr. It was not meant to be. Focusing on the SUV coming up the driveway, I don’t realize that JoAnn has moved to stand next to me. When the vehicle stops, a couple of Hispanic men climb out, as fear snakes down my spine. A sharp pain pierces my arm. I look down to see a syringe with a milky white substance going into the vein on my forearm, just before the world goes dark.
Chapter 27
Hawk
Fuck!Why did this have to come up now. I don’t want to leave her. Not while she is vulnerable, pregnant, and scared. She is scared. It was written all over her face. She would never tell me, but I know her. Her body was trembling when I held her before I left. Tears welling in her eyes, but she refused to let them fall. My love for her grows more every damn day. It is imperative I come back home to her, to our babies. I will focus on this mission and get this done, but more every day I am thinking it time to call it quits. I love what I do, but I love her and our family more. Being separated from them for weeks and months at a time is not something I want to be doing anymore. I don’t want her worrying about whether or not I am coming back home. It’s time I move to a headquarters post. I have been offered one a couple of times but didn’t want to give up the field. Now, I am more than ready.
I just have to get to base, ace this mission, then put in for my transfer. Deadeye is ready to take my place in the lead. The guys will be disappointed in me, but it is for the best. It seems to take an eternity to reach base. As soon as we touch down, I head to the briefing room. Captain Olson and the others are already there waiting on me.
“Hawk glad you could make it. Sorry to cut your leave short,” Captain Olson smirks when I enter the room.
“I had to finalize some plans first,” I reply. I refuse to apologize for making sure Charlotte and the twins were secure before I leave to go on a mission.
“Alright now that the gang is all here. I have a briefing of this mission,” Captain Olson begins. “Your job is to get into the palace of the current reigning dignitary of Pakistan rescue the aid workers that have been kidnapped. The press doesn’t even know about the aid workers yet. So far, we have been able to keep it quiet. If you can get in, get them, and get back out without anyone being able to identify you, then we win. We will stop international war. The aid workers are really Spies from Russia. If the Russians find out about this, they will declare war and we will have a shit storm on our hands.”
“Ok, let’s do this. I am ready to get this over with.” I declare as I stand ready to head overseas right this minute. Within hours we are loaded up and, on a plane, to take us across the world. I say a silent prayer that we are successful and are back home quickly.
We haven’t been in the air long, when it hits me. Something is wrong. I feel it in my heart. Charlotte needs me. Damn I wish I wasn’t on a plane going across the globe. Using the satellite phone Captain Olson gave us before we left, I call him. I just need him to confirm that she is with my parents. Olson answers on the 4thring.
“Olson here.” I hear his deep baritone vibrate over the line. He sounds stressed.
“Captain. I need you to do me a favor. Will you call my parents and make sure Charlotte is with them? I know I sound like a worrywart, but I have a bad feeling. I just need confirmation before I am off grid for days on end.”
“Umm. I was about to call you. Hawk I don’t want you to worry, but Charlotte wasn’t at her house when your father arrived. I have sent a team from Fort Campbell out to investigate and your father and brothers are looking as well as her children. We don’t have any leads at this point, but we will find her.” Olson ends with a heavy sigh.
“Damn it! Where the hell is, she? Has Lopez found her? Tell me what you know,” I demand. I need this plane turned around immediately.
“We don’t know much. When your dad arrived at her house the front door was standing open, her suitcase was by the door, but she was nowhere to be found. I have sent word for the plane to turn around. You will be back here on base within the hour. As soon as I knew Charlotte was missing, I knew I couldn’t send you on that mission,” Olson updates me on all he knows.
“Call Tex he’s a former SEAL. Wolf knows how to get in touch with him. I have GPS trackers on her at all times. He can find her,” I rage into the phone. The need to be on the ground and looking for her is consuming. Normally I would never make such demands of my commanding officer.
“I don’t want to know about that do I? I am going to pretend I didn’t hear that, but I will call Tex for information. Be safe Hawk and hurry home,” Olson ends the call.
“Hawk? What’s going on? Is something wrong with Charlotte? The babies?” Straw asks as all the guys turn to look at me. The concern on their faces helps me to feel slightly better. They care for her too because she is mine.
“She’s missing. She wasn’t at home when Dad got there. Fuck! I should never have left her there alone.”
“Listen, man. You can’t blame yourself. She is tough. She will be fine until we can find her,” Ace says. “You just found her, no way she is getting away from you that easily.”
I know the guys are trying to be reassuring, but it’s not helping. I have to get to her. She is still alive. I would know if she were gone, would feel it deep in my soul. It can’t happen. I can’t live without her. She is my everything, my soulmate. I never believed in such things before especially not for me, but the moment I held her hand in mine in that café, she was mine.
