Page 33 of Cade

“It was all these kids in a massive concrete building. They were naked, starved, and clearly abused. Our orders were that we were to take down the rebels and their leader, but the intel was bullshit. They told us that there were maybe two dozen men. It was more like two hundred. We got the kids out and barely made it to the extraction site.”

“When you got back, they ordered the treatment?” asked Doc.

“Yea, they said that we all had to see the shrink and be cleared before we could return to duty. The general said we didn’t follow orders. We got the kids but left the rebels. Pissed all of us off. Before we left, we were all inoculated for the usual bugs and viruses in the jungle, but some of the guys were puking their guts up. I don’t know how they made it through.

“A few of the guys have already gone back, but now they’re all spooked because of what happened with Gardner and McDonough. The unit has been ordered to stand down for the foreseeable future.”

“You said that this Dr. Greco’s assistant or someone approached you outside the VA.” Franco nodded. “Then what happened? You went to that farm, and he injected you with something?”

“Yea, he gave us all injections in the arm.”

“Then what?” asked Cass.

“I-I don’t remember,” he said, rubbing his temples. “I mean, I remember the shot, and I remember waking up at home, but I don’t remember what happened in between that.”

“What day did you go to the farm?” asked Cade.

“It was a Tuesday.”

“What day did you remember waking at home?” asked Cass.

“It-it was a Friday. I lost three fucking days,” he whispered. “I didn’t think of it before. Three whole days. What did I do during that time?” Cade stared at the others and gripped the man’s shoulder.

“I don’t know, but we’re going to find out.”

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