Traitors (Damned of the 2/19th - Book Five) - Finished

I Just Had to Ask...

2/19th Special Weapons Group Barracks
Restricted Area - Western Germany
Early Winter - 1986
Day: Seventeen

The bottom of the stairwell was cold, and I was laying in the dark and cold, my eyes staring upward unseeing. I was blind, bleeding out from a stab wound through my shoulder, if I didn't freeze to death first. I couldn't even shiver, my body completely unresponsive.

Even when a weight settled on my chest.

A frozen icicle pushed into my shoulder, into the stab wound, digging around for a moment before pulling free. There was a lewd sucking sound a moment later, and I was dimly aware of footsteps thudding down the steps.

Boots were pounding down the steps...

I took off running, my boots pounding against the dirt, the cliff edge coming up fast. Behind me my twin sister urged me on and two of my brothers gave a loud yell. I reached the cliff and launched myself into space, hands reaching out, grabbing onto the rope and swinging out wide, the river below me.

I let go, flying through the air, the water sparkling as I headed for it, throwing my arms and legs wide as I fell almost thirty feet, tucking in at the last moment and plunging into the cool water. My legs flexed when my feet hit the bottom...

Nancy fell on me, giggling, as I pulled her down onto the sand of the Spanish beach and on top of me. She was bare naked, as was I and everyone else on the beach, enjoying the summer sun in Barcelona. She kissed my face, biting my lower lip before pulling away, leaving me tasting blood, and smiled down at me.

"Nasty boy." She giggled, all traces of the hard and cruel woman missing. "Come swim with me."

I let her pull me up, and we ran into the ocean holding hands, laughing as we did so. The water was cold, the sand was hot, the beer crisp, and Nancy firm.

We dove into the water, and I plunged beneath it...

My mother pulled my head out of the water in the sink, and I gasped loudly and choked, crying from the pain where she had a hold of my hair and the fear that she would drown me.

"I saw you kissing that girl, defiling her." my mother spat, "Now I have to wash away your sins."

I tried to push away from the sink, but my nine year old arms didn't have the strength to overpower her as she plunged my head back into the sink, back under the water, and her other hand began swatting the belt hard across my buttocks. I began kicking, and she struck me harder, pinning my chest against the edge of the counter and forcing air from my lungs.

My mouth opened and I began to scream under the water of the sink...

I lunged up, my left hand reaching up, my right bound to my chest, and I inhaled with a whooping gasp, my body insisting I was drowning. I realized where I was and fell back against the cot, wincing at the pain in my head, and reached under my pillow with my left hand, looking for my glasses.

"Morning, brother." Bomber said. "Here, you might need these." He waved my glasses in front of my face and I took them, opening them and pulling them onto my face with a practiced motion. The world came into focus, and I sat up.

"How you feeling?" He asked me as I looked around.

Nancy was asleep, her face innocent, her lips gently parted, and one arm hanging off the cot. Her brown hair was disheveled, sweaty, and I could see that she had a streak of blood on her cheek. Taggart was on the other side of her, her eyes closed and breathing slowly. Marks was asleep next to Hendricks, sprawled out in a chair and snoring softly. Raleigh was sitting in a chair on the other side of Hendricks, in the middle of taking his pulse. Jefferson was on the other side of Taggart, reading a book in the dim light with Kebble leaning against his back and listening to a Walkman. Oakes and Nelson were at the far end of room, Clifton huddled up with them. They were whispering together, and Clifton glanced at me and quickly looked away.