Love Survives (Love's Suicide #2)(50)

The night before I was set out to leave we met in our secret spot. She cuddled her body up against mine and held it there. “I’m going to miss you, Valentine.”

“Yeah, I’m going to miss you too.”

“I need you to do me a favor.”

“Anything.” She couldn’t know how grateful I was to have had her when I lost Mullins.

“Don’t you dare give up on getting home to Katy. Once you have her, don’t ever let her go.”

“I promise.”

She kissed me on the cheek. “Seize the day, my friend. Godspeed to you.”

Those were the last words that Spence ever said to me.

For a while we were going to be without a way to send mail home. As much as I hated the idea, I knew when I returned there would be letters for me waiting.





Chapter 24


What happened in the next couple days would change my life drastically. This would prove to be the hardest mission as a ranger that I’d ever performed. My job was to kill, and I was mentally and physically prepared to do it, because I knew it would get me back to safety, and a day closer to going home.

My mindset was in order, and as direct orders were being delivered to us I stared down at my weapon, making sure it was loaded and I had enough supply of ammo on me to reload accordingly. My heart was racing, fueled by adrenaline and fear. I wasn’t scared of what I had to do. I was scared the aftermath would haunt me forever.

We waited until nightfall to enter into the small city. The quiet of the night was only a camouflage to what awaited us. One by one we crept through the streets, guarded and alert.

The first shots came from the high end of a western point. We all turned around unloaded a few rounds as we ducked for cover. Separated by the situation, I took in my surroundings, located a building to set up and scope out where the enemy was.

The building was clearly vacant since only half of it was still remaining. Once I’d cleared an area near a window I knelt down and set my weapon for better aim. The only way to tell where the shots were coming from was to listen and watch the sky light up.

Out of the corner of my eye I saw someone running across a street, dressed in white. I knew it wasn’t one of our guys. A second was all it took for me to aim at the moving target and take him down. His body flailed for the few minutes it took for him to die. I reset my weapon and took a few deep breaths before the next target came in sight. From where I was positioned I could see the rest of my unit ducked down in an adjacent building. They signaled me with a flashlight, and I did the same back, giving them confirmation that it was just me. They then used Morse code to let me know that there was a group to my left. I no sooner turned to look to that side of the building when I heard someone running nearby. I turned off my flashlight and hid behind some debris until I could figure out where they were. Shots ricocheted off the stone walls around me and I knew that if I wanted to get out alive I was going to have to face this person head on.

Without regard for his proximity, I turned and started firing a full clip. When my gun was empty I looked around the room, turning my light on to reveal the man was very dead.

I could hear a few more speaking in their language. I crept closer to that area, peering out the window where they couldn’t see. One was on the roof, aiming his gun near the location of my unit. I took him out easily with my gun, but only to signal to his companions where I was squatting.

Then ran after me, chasing me into another building. At the same time I heard more shots fired as my group was trying to cover for me.

By the time I made it inside of another building and secured the door, the shots had ended. I clicked on my light to make sure I hadn’t just ran inside of a building full of the enemy. In the far corner I spotted a man who was clearly dead. A small girl. She was crying softly. I ran to her side. “It’s going to be okay.” She couldn’t understand what I was saying. I held out my hand for her. “Come, please.”

Slowly she squirmed out from behind the man and took my hand. I held her close as we made our way to the exit of the building.

I could see my unit in the clear. They thought they’d gotten everyone. Then I heard the sound of the grenade. I tried to shine my light to find it, but there was too much on the ground, and I was running out of time. I pulled the child along, counting the seconds until I knew there was no time left. I threw my body over that little girl, shielding her from what was about to come.

Nothing could ever compare to the feeling of hot metal shrapnel digging into the skin. I couldn’t hear, and everything seemed to be spinning. While it was all happening I clung to that little girl, praying she’d be safe. If this was my last few moments on this earth I wanted to die knowing I’d saved her.

Then everything went black.



I woke up in a hospital bed, the lights were dim and I could hear people talking around me. That’s when I knew my eyes had been covered. I went to reach up to remove the bandages and realized I was hooked to an IV. I started calling out for someone to help me, praying that I wasn’t going to be blind when they did.

I could hear someone approaching. “Calm down. You’re in the hospital.”

“Get this thing off my face,” I ordered.

“Calm down, sir. It’s just to protect your head wound. It seems to have slipped down while you were sleeping.”

The room brightened as she adjusted the bandage. I was immediately able to see. Relief swept over me as I looked around the room at the other occupied beds. “Where am I?”