Prologue #2
Dizzy ran over and dropped a ball at Drew’s feet.
He leaned over, grabbed it up, and tossed it to the side of the yard.
He didn’t have an arm on him like his cousin, Cam, but he could play fetch with Dizzy.
Drew remembered cuddling Uncle D’s dog, Scout, in front of the fireplace and falling asleep using him as a pillow when he was younger.
What he wouldn’t do to go back to those days.
His only worry then was whether he was getting dessert that night or did he want to play Little League that year.
Now? Yeah, heavy thoughts for a sixteen-year-old.
He didn’t want to go to West Point like his brother had. He didn’t want to join the Army. He wanted to work search and rescue with dogs. He wanted to—
“What’s going on, Squeaker?” Uncle D asked as he dropped down next to him on the stairs.
How the hell did he tell his uncle, never mind his father, that he didn’t want to follow in their footsteps?
Yeah, his sister didn’t go into the military.
His “cousins” weren’t in the military. But he was named after his grandfather, who served his country.
His dad and uncles had left a lasting impression in the enlisted ranks that, from what he’d heard, was legendary.
They all expected him to follow Tristan to West Point. To make something of himself.
He wanted to have a K-9 partner. He wanted to help find lost kids. He wanted to help sniff out drugs or weapons or—
“Squeaker, I can sit here all night. I know that you’re worried about something.
Are you failing a class? Going to be a father at sixteen?
” Uncle D paused before continuing, “Honestly, I’m not sure which of those would get you in more trouble with your parents.
Something is going on and they know it. Hence your weekend with me and Liam.
We’re your safety net, and possibly the only thing that is standing between you and the grounding that is sure to come. So, spill,” Uncle D commanded.
Well, wasn’t that just great. Drew’s head snapped around to stare at his uncle. “You honestly think I got someone pregnant? That I’m failing?” Drew couldn’t keep his tone level and knew he’d hear it in…three… two…
“Oh, no you fucking didn’t! You will watch your attitude or I’ll have you in the front rest position for the rest of the night. Now, do you want to rethink your choices in this conversation?” Uncle D raised an eyebrow while he frowned.
Yup, screwed that up . Of course, Drew was the screw-up.
Okay, maybe not a screw-up but, there was no way he was going to live up to his family’s standards.
They’d set them for generations and they were sky high.
He couldn’t shake the feeling this was a huge screw-up on his part.
Why change now? “I’m sorry for my disrespect,” Drew said, meeting his uncle in the eye.
He’d learned to show respect from the cradle.
Meet a man in the eye, chin up. “I’m not failing any courses nor am I to be a father before I’m eighteen. ”
“Again, I can wait all night.” Uncle D leaned back, hands planted on the porch behind him. “What’s it going to be?”
“Shouldn’t we start dinner for Uncle Liam? He’ll be hungry when he gets off shift. He worked over, didn’t he?” Drew moved to stand up but when his uncle tilted his head and glared at him, he put his tush down.
“I can guarantee if you don’t talk to me or your uncle Liam, that tomorrow night you will be sitting at the kitchen table with your parents until you spill every little detail in your brain.
You’ll be there until you tell them about how when you were eight, you, your siblings, and cousins snuck out of the beach house and went swimming in the middle of the night.
And you’ll be telling whose idea it was. Now, what is going on in your head?”
“You know about the swimming? About how—” Drew slammed his mouth shut before he said any more. Oh yeah, he could see the hints of the first sergeant in his uncle. He dropped his chin to his chest and let out a big sigh. “Okay, so I don’t think I want—”
The screen door slammed open. “You are never going to believe what a patient had shoved up their ass tonight. Serves me right for covering half of Bill’s shift.” Uncle Liam stopped a few feet behind him and Uncle D. “Oops, I’m interrupting the big talk, aren’t I?”
Drew wasn’t sure how to answer his uncle. Before he could say anything, Uncle D stood up and placed a quick kiss on his husband’s lips.
“Yes, your timing sucks,” Uncle D said. “Drew, this is not over and you will be finishing your sentence as soon as we’ve got dinner on the table. It’ll be a group conversation to prepare you to tell your parents whatever is in your skull.”
Drew looked between his uncles and nodded.
“Yes, Uncle D. We’ll talk over dinner. What do you need me to do for dinner prep?
” Drew rose to his feet and crossed to his uncles, hugging them both.
He might be the family oddball but he knew they loved him.
Somehow, some way, Drew needed to make sure that the conversation over dinner didn’t happen. “So, something in someone’s ass?”
Uncle Liam chuckled and swatted him upside the head. “Language, young man. Was there a farmer’s market recently? Because, not one, not two, but three different combinations of partners ended up in the ER with produce stuck in their orifices.”
Drew frowned as he tried to picture that but before he could say anything, his uncle D said, “Liam, you know I love you and I’ll let you do just about anything sexually to me. But, I draw the line at vegetables in my ass.”
§ § § §
Brody – age seventeen
He couldn’t believe it. He’d done it. He’d been accepted to Eastern Carolina University with a full ROTC scholarship.
He was going to bust his ass and get his nursing degree.
Brody always admired those in the military, so when the recruiter came to talk to the seniors a few months ago, he hadn’t seen a problem with trying.
Nothing said he had to make it his career.
He was going to be a nurse; he didn’t have to serve twenty for a decent retirement.
“Brody? Are you okay?” Erin, his current foster mom, asked from the kitchen. He had stopped just inside the front door to open his mail. She appeared in the hallway a minute later when he hadn’t responded. “Brody?”
Looking up, Brody tried to form words, but they escaped him. His head bopped up and down like a bobble head doll before he let out a loud, “Whoo! I fucking did it!” before grabbing Erin and twirling her in a circle.
“Language! You might be turning eighteen in two weeks but you still live under our roof,” she scolded him as she laughed. “Now why don’t you put me down and tell me what all this is about?”
Brody put Erin back on her feet and placed a kiss on her cheek. “Sorry, Erin. I did it! I got into the program and got the scholarship. I’m going to be a Pirate!”
“Holy shit! Jerry, get your ass in here. We’ve got to celebrate,” Erin hollered, walking back into the kitchen.
“Language, Erin,” Brody teased as he followed her. It might have taken him a few different foster homes, but it was possible that this last one was his forever family.
§ § § §
Drew – age twenty-two
“Still haven’t made up your mind?” Drew asked from the doorway of his roommate, Rick’s, bedroom.
“Have you?” Rick shot back. He spun in his chair and looked at the ceiling. “What wussies we are. Can’t even decide which branch to bid for. Should’ve put in our choices back in September.”
“You know which you want. Don’t lie. Infantry has your heart and soul.
I could tell when we went through Advanced Camp last summer.
And I’m pretty sure that if you have your choice, you’d opt for Airborne or Air Assault.
” Drew moved over to Rick’s bed and sat down, dropping his chin to his chest to stare at the floor.
Watch him cover up his shortcomings. He’d been doing it for years so what would another hour matter?
“What’s going on with you? You’ve been a bit withdrawn. Even snapped at Dowd during PT yesterday.”
Drew flew up from the bed, hands on hips.
“Oh, Dowd deserved it. Jackass showed up late, didn’t have his gear, and tried to lie about it all.
Moron needs to man up and stop his bullshit.
He thought ROTC was an easy, all-paid solution for a college degree that he wouldn’t have to put any effort into.
Wrong, motherfucker. You’ve got to earn the respect of your soldiers, not just expect it because you’ve got a bar on your uniform. He needs—”
Before Drew could blink, Rick was on his feet and putting his hands on Drew’s shoulders.
“Whoa, there, big fella. Dial it back.” Drew closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths.
“Okay, you ready to tell me what the real issue is here? Dowd has been a pain in the ass since he showed up in the fall. He won’t last passed this semester.
His grades suck and he’s got the ethics of a clump of dirt. ”
Drew opened his eyes, blinking fast. He was not going to cry, really he wasn’t.
“What if I’m not good enough? What if I let everyone down with my branch?
What if I don’t want to do twenty and retire?
What if I never wanted to go into the military?
” Drew whispered. Holy shit, did he really just say all that out loud?
As he watched, Rick opened and closed his mouth. Then he was pulling Drew down the hall, pushing him into one of the chairs in the kitchen. “Hey, what’s with the manhandling?” Drew groused as he moved to stand. “I’m just going to—”
“Sit your ass down and do some MDMP with me,” Rick commanded.
Across the top of a white board, he wrote, ‘What does Drew want to do?’ “Okay, let’s start with the easy part.
What branch do you want to go into? Off the top of your head, no thinking, no stressing over what your dad or uncles or brother want you to do. What do you want to do?”
“I want to work with military dogs,” Drew said with no hesitation.
“Ummm, best buddy of mine? Dog handlers aren’t officers. That’s an enlisted job. Dog outranks the handler… sound familiar?”
“You asked what I wanted to do from my gut. I want to work with dogs. Work with them in search and rescue, saving people.” Drew let out a huge sigh.
He’d finally done it. Told someone what he really wanted to do with his life.
Of course, he was currently stuck with a six-year commitment to the Army that was going to prevent him from doing that.
“All right. Then let’s work that into the grand scheme of your time in the Army. MWD teams are part of the MPs so, there’s your branch.” Rick wrote that on the board. “Now that you’ve chosen your branch, let’s see what else we can plan out.”