Lucky's Choice(92)

“Have a seat on the couch,” Shade ordered.

Willa took a seat while Shade removed the items from the drawer, setting them down next to her. Then he sat down on top of the coffee table in front of her.

Picking up the display case, she was able to see several medals and a flag.

“Lucky tell you anything about when he was in the service?”

“He told me that a friend’s brother was killed, and he felt responsible.”

“He wasn’t responsible. I’ve told him that, his superiors have told him that, and this tells him he wasn’t responsible”—he gestured at the case—“but he can’t let himself off the hook because he made that promise to Bridge.”

Shade’s face twisted. “The Last Riders met when we were overseas, and we’ve remained friends even after we were discharged. I’ve thought over the years about what has kept our friendship strong, what made the difference between us to keep us from splitting up and just talking occasionally.” Shade shrugged. “We work well together as a unit. We watch each other’s back, and we trust each other. I came to the conclusion that each of us has a code that we live by that makes us the men we are.”

“What’s Lucky’s?” Willa stared down at the picture frame in her hands.

“You tell me.”

“Honor.”

“Yes. I met Lucky when he was still a pastor in the service. I was in and out of camps during different times, and I never had much contact with him then, but even from what little I saw of him, I saw the war taking its toll on him. After Knox’s wife Sunshine died, he couldn’t do it anymore. He couldn’t tell one more brother that someone they loved wasn’t coming home. I thought he would leave the service then, but he re-upped, went into Seal training, and came out at the top of his class. If Lucky couldn’t save them with the Bible, he had made his mind up to do it with a rifle. His sense of honor had him wanting to make sure he could bring as many brothers home as he could, even if he had to sacrifice all his beliefs, even if it was his own life he had to forfeit.”

“John 15:13: ‘Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends,’” Willa quoted softly.

“He went on all the dangerous missions in the worst areas. Then Bridge asked Lucky to watch over his kid brother when they were told to empty a village before the enemy attacked, and Lucky promised he would.#p#分页标题#e#

“Willa, what I’m about to tell you is classified.”

“I swear to God I won’t repeat what you tell me,” Willa said earnestly.

“I know you won’t, or I wouldn’t have told you as much as I have.”

Shade leaned forward, putting his forearms on his thighs as he recounted Lucky’s past.

“We were given six hours to evacuate a village of sixteen hundred. I was in place on a ridge to alert them if any enemy approached, but I was ordered not to make my presence known. There was intel that a target the government wanted taken out would be present when the enemy forces attacked, and the government wanted that target bad.

“Two squads went in. Lucky, Kale, Razer, and four others were in one. They would get the refugees out. The other squad would take them to safety. The evacuation was going well until one of the refugees didn’t like being rushed and turned on the soldiers. He grabbed Kale’s gun and turned it on him. He was shot in his leg and arm.

“The rest of the soldiers continued with the evac while Razer and Lucky worked on Kale. It took time, and the enemy was getting there sooner than the intel had predicted. Lucky called for air evac for Kale, so Train and his team were on the way to get them out. At that point, everyone had been evaced except Lucky’s squad, and it was those ten men who were left to face the Hell that was about to open up.

“Keep in mind, I wasn’t allowed to break cover and give them any support. The target I was after was too important. I had to watch those men fight one of the dirtiest fights I’ve ever witnessed. Lucky brought down soldier after soldier, but they needed a break so Train could land the helicopter and get the men out.”

“What did Lucky do?”

Shade’s mouth twisted. “The crazy bastard went and found a break in the enemy line then sneaked out of the part of town that wasn’t covered. He sneaked behind enemy lines. It was a suicide mission. He set off explosives that gave Train time to land and get the squad on board.”

“How did Kale die?” Willa whispered, barely able to talk without bursting into tears.

“He bled out. He died when Lucky was setting off the explosives. The men tried to get his body to the transport. Two men were shot trying. Razer still tried, risking his own life until the command was given to leave him.”