Our Bruised Bodies | Bradley Bradshaw

ACT FIVE - PART FOUR

"You got to evade, Lieutenant, the wind just turned again." The radio came alive, which had Grace curse under her breath while she watched Hangman turn his F-18 away from the carrier to reposition. They already weren't in the best mood, since they rain was too heavy to see anything on the surface of the ocean and a submarine was hard to spot during clear sky and sunshine already. Honestly, it was to be expected, but they had to something.

"Just keep calm, Lieutenant Seresin, we're getting you down in due time." The calm voice came back onto the radio and all Grace heard as a reply was a tired huff.

The rain wasn't the problem, not really, the turning wind was. If only the wind could stay steady for long enough for them to land on the carrier. This was slowly turning into a disaster and Admiral Springer would surely take grand pleasure in pointing it out to Grace as soon as she had brought her bird down.

"Captain, you are clear to try." The same calm voice told her, before she did attempt it. Her angle was good, the wind unsteady, but so far nothing she couldn't correct with her flying. She was a bit quick due to the sudden gush of wind from behind which made things more complicate, but she would be fine as long as she would keep the angle, the path in front of her clear.

"And touch down. Good work, Captain." The female voice praised her, while all Grace could think off was Jake, who was still up there in the storm, because she had chosen him, because she had ordered him to follow her.

"Captain!" Someone called, as they met Grace on the flightdeck, standing by her F-18. "Admiral Springer wants to see you asap." The man told her, which caused her to shake her head.

"We just landed for a refill. We haven't found the submarine just yet." She explained and even though the man seemed disappointed that she hadn't managed to unmanageable just yet, he respected her greatly for how strongly willed she was. Wanting to go back up into this storm, just for them. To finish the mission that wasn't even hers in the first place, so they could all have a moment or two of relaxation.

"The storm is getting heavier, Captain. Operating on the flightdeck is getting too dangerous. You do not have permission to take off again. All we must do is get Hangman down." Grace looked over her shoulder towards the ocean for a moment, knowing that out there somewhere is that bloody submarine and that she yet had to find it. She longed to get back up there, to do her job properly, but Springer was most likely right, there was no getting back up there. She had to keep her feet still. This would do no good, wouldn't proof a point, wouldn't make a difference, so she looked back at the person in front of her.

"Alright." She called back over the loud noises of the storm, for there was no use in arguing. "I will go and see Springer. Tell Seresin to find me once he's touched down too." With that she cleared the flight deck quickly, while they stored her F-18 away.

Every moment mattered, before slowly but surely Jake was running out of fuel and it was all Grace's fault for forcing him to come along to an undoable mission, just because she thought it would make any change down here. No matter what she was doing, nothing seemed right.

Walking down the corridor threat rose in her chest, filling out her body as if it tried to take over all her body. Swallowing thickly, Grace shock her head to get herself back under control, her eyes firmly shut for a moment while she moved down the corridor to Springer's office.

She knew there was no place to run to, no place she could hide. Jake was her responsibility, just as much as Lincoln had been. She had hurt one person she cared for deeply before, but Lincoln was still alive, he was still trying his best to live his life, if she had failed Jake, if he won't manage to touch down soon, if he would run out of fuel and die, it would be all her fault and there was no forgiveness for murderer, she knew that much for she was one. A few people in the Navy were, but adding the name of a friend, of someone she considered more an extension of her own rather than someone completely separated from her, that was unforgivable. Grace wouldn't survive if she would have to add the name of someone, she loved to the list of people she killed. She couldn't live with that fault weighting down on her.