Page 59 of SEAL's Spitfire
A medical team was waiting as they touched down at the air force base. They loaded the women on gurneys, while Ryan accompanied them and gave them updates on their conditions. The rest of the missionary group were also brought to medical to be checked out even though they looked fine. Then they’d be flown to Ramstein Air Force Base in Germany for debriefing. After that, they’d finally get to go home.
Meghan and Miranda would have a different path. They’d be stabilized then sent to Germany for treatment. Depending on how they progressed they could be at Ramstein for a while.
Rafe didn’t want to leave without seeing Meghan again, but the SEAL team was heading to Norfolk in a few hours. Their mission had been a success and it was time to go home. Normally he’d be the first one on the plane, but he didn’t want to leave her again. Cam didn’t look happy about leaving Miranda either.
“C’mon, bro. I know where there’s a beer with your name on it.” Jake put his hand on Rafe’s shoulder and squeezed. “I’ll make sure you have time to check on her before we take off.”
“Thanks.”
“She’ll be fine. Look at all the shit she went through just to get here. That girl is tough.”
“Yes, she is. But…”
“Give them a chance to get some fluids into her and some antibiotics. I bet she’s awake and hugging her brother before we leave.”
“I hope you’re right.”
Chapter 18
Voices. Afraid to open her eyes to check her surroundings, she remained still. She couldn’t tell if they were speaking English or Pashto. If she could just make out what they were saying, she’d know if she was somewhere safe. The last thing she remembered was the explosions and having trouble breathing in the dust-filled room.
The gentle hum of a machine and the smell of antiseptic encouraged her to slowly open her eyes. She prayed she wasn’t still tied to the chair and awaiting the next beating. The bright light hurt but brought a sigh and tears of relief. She’d been so sure she was going to die in that room.
“Praise the Lord.” Turning her head toward the sound, the pain reminded her just how alive she was.
“Charlie?” Her voice cracked and sounded hoarse to her own ears.
“Hey, Meggy. Welcome back to the living.”
“Charlie. Thank God you’re safe. We are safe, right? I was so worried they’d figure out you were my brother and hurt you.”
“Yes, we’re safe. They brought us to the air force base. Your SEAL friends rescued us.”
The SEALs? Rafe was there? She looked around but the only one with her was Charlie. She’d missed him, he’d probably had to go off on another mission and regret squeezed her heart.
“Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. You’re the one we’ve been worried about. Look what they did to you. I was worried you were never going to wake up.”
It was too much, too fast. The words echoed around in her head but weren’t making any sense. Meghan closed her eyes to try to focus on his words, but everything was all jumbled.
A cool hand patted hers. “You have a concussion. Don’t worry if things don’t seem right. They will as you heal. And you need to take it slowly.”
Meghan’s eyes opened at the new voice.
“Give her a chance okay. She probably has a colossal headache.”
“Yes, doctor. I was just so happy to see her wake up.”
“Doctor…”
“Yes, Ms. Henley?”
“I know they beat me up pretty badly, but how bad is it? Will I be stuck here for long?”
“Besides the concussion and a fractured cheekbone, you have two broken ribs and more bruises than we could count. The swelling of your face and around your eye should go down in a day or two. It’s going to be painful and hard to see until then. The good news is you will make a full recovery. Just remember it’s going to take some time.”
“Thank you.”
