Chapter 7 Revenge #2
A cursory examination of the foil packet revealed no rips, tears, or pinholes. Tucking it into the breast pocket of her fatigues left her with only one last thing to do: find a man.
Had she really become that pathetic?
Maybe Lyons was right, and she was fucked in the head to even consider finding a nameless, faceless, and meaningless fuck.
But she couldn’t get Scott’s letter out of her head.
The anger coiling in her gut needed an outlet.
The pain needed soothing. She needed some way to redirect that energy, and she had less than two days to figure it out.
Once her unit returned to their base, her options would narrow down to impossible choices.
Then, she would be faced with weeks of rumination and nothing to ease the painful ache.
Okay, where to find a single officer to have angry sex with?
A glance out of the small makeshift alley had her spying a shock of white hair and the Goliath of a man attached to it.
Forest!
An idea grew in her mind. To avoid jeopardizing her career, she would need to be highly selective in her choices, and Forest might just offer a solution. She marched across the burning hot sand and rock, intent on joining Forest and his escort. Colonel Vane was with him.
“Forest!” She picked up her pace, jogging to meet him. “Hey!”
He turned to the sound of her voice and stopped. “Hey, Tia. What’s up?”
“Nothing really. I’ve got downtime until the morning. A little R and R. I was wondering if I could follow along. And get the scoop on the band members.”
Angel Fire was known for two things. They rocked it onstage like there was no tomorrow and what happened backstage was a thing of legend. A USO tour would put the brakes on most of their sexual escapades, but it might just provide her with exactly what she needed to forget Scott.
“We’re headed to the hangar,” Forest said. “That’s where the band will be set up. You’re welcome to join us.”
Any other man would have asked the colonel before offering, but that wasn’t how Forest ruled his world.
He was a man who did what he wanted, when he wanted, and however he damn well pleased.
He got away with it because he was rich as fuck, but also because he had a heart of pure gold.
Forest did what needed to be done and wasn’t afraid to step on those who got in his way, but his end goal always resulted in something honest and true.
Unlike Forest, she lived within the confines of rank and regulations. She turned to Colonel Vane. “Sir, may I accompany you?”
Colonel Vane gave a nod. “That would be wonderful, and maybe you could do me a favor, too?”
“Sir?”
“I’d love to do a PR piece on your connection to the band.”
“I’m sorry, sir, but I don’t know the band.” She jabbed her thumb toward Forest. “Now, this guy I do know.”
“It’s all connected,” Colonel Vane continued. “Personal stories are great human-interest pieces. Anything we can do to promote the troops.”
Forest’s eyes narrowed. Something was going on in that head of his. “Actually, I think we can spin this.”
Uh-oh.
“How?” Colonel Vane asked.
“Well, Ash…um, Blaze, wants to do something special. Playing for the Air Force is an honor, but he’s always thinking about those stuck at smaller outposts.
Those like Tia who don’t have the chance to take advantage of the typical USO-sponsored events.
If you want to do a piece on her, why don’t we bring the band to her unit? ”
She laughed.
“What’s so funny?” Forest said with a rumble of confusion.
“First off,” she began, “you’re on Bagram Airfield, and while there are some Air Force troops here, it’s a mix of all the services. But it’s an air base, commanded by the Army.”
“So?”
The colonel’s lips lifted with a smirk, but he remained silent.
“Forest, this shit matters.”
“Um, so?”
“You can’t go around telling a bunch of soldiers they’re in the Air Force or airmen that they’re soldiers, not unless you want to unleash World War III.
You’d be hitting on sibling rivalry between the services.
Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marines. Soldiers are Army.
Navy has seamen. The Air Force has airmen. ”
“And the Marines?”
She laughed. “The Marines are crazy. If you don’t want a PR disaster on your hands, I suggest you learn the lingo.”
“Okay, consider me schooled.” He turned to Colonel Vane, dismissing her with a smirk.
“Anyway…what do you think? Ash would like to play for those who aren’t here.
Is there a way to do a mini-tour of the smaller bases?
” He tossed an arm over her shoulders and tugged her in tight.
“Tia, it would be super great if you could come.”
That would give her more exposure to the band and more time to accomplish her goal. She’d have to speak with Skye and make sure her friend was okay with it. Unlike Lyons, who had no business in this part of her life, she valued Skye’s opinion.
“I don’t know…” She glanced at the colonel.
Deep in thought, Vane seemed to be considering the idea.
“It sounds a bit complicated, to be honest,” she said, “and above my pay grade.”
Vane rubbed his chin. “No promises, but it does have merit. I’ll bring it up at our next meeting and let you know if we can make it work.”
“Brilliant,” Forest beamed. Power and an overwhelming presence made Forest, a massive man, ferocious most of the time, but when he beamed that honest smile, his inner child shone bright and true.
Tia knew of the horrors of his childhood.
When he’d rescued her from a similar situation, the first thing after seeing to her safety had been a conversation about how hope and light existed in the darkest corners of the world.
Like all his other rescues, she didn’t believe hope existed.
After he shared his story, one which was the same as Skye’s, she had looked forward to living another day for the first time in a very long time.
Forest had given her a precious gift, one she thanked him for nearly every day. Without knowing it, he would be giving her another—a way to forget the heartache of Scott’s betrayal.