One Life ✓

Chapter 28: The This Ends Here Shift

Drew—San Antonio International Airport, San Antonio, TX

Guilt floods my body as I yell at a man and his child. Me. A Ranger. Sworn to my country as a protector of the innocents, now against them. TC's eyes are clouded with the same regret, plain and true.

A group of hodgepodge armed men tromp towards us, and I breathe in sharply. We know what to do. The gun feels heavy in my pack.

"You. America?" one guy barks.

"I am on your side. Enlisted as an undercover militant," I say slowly, hoping he'll understand.

"Him?" He points to Tee.

"Same," I reply shakily.

He nods. I can tell there is still a little doubt left in his brain, but they're shorthanded. Any support they can get is good enough. "Plane. Guard. No person get out."

"Okay." As they leave, I turn to Tee. I lower my voice to a whisper. "On my signal, we pop the doors and evac. We have to hold them off."

"Start with one exit and get them all in one place. No dividing and conquering today," he adds.

We mill about, continuing our rueful yelling until the cabin is empty. I peek into the next cabin. Also empty, but not for long. I register what we need to know. Large plane. Six exits. Deploy two.

As soon as quiet fills the cabin, I wait a second for confirmation of safety.

Then I tap my index finger to my wrist and point to Tee.

In one swift, minute action, TC opens the exit, and a huge yellow slide inflates from the side. Before the passengers can panic, Tee shakes his head and puts a finger to his lips.

Now they understand what has to happen. People silently shuffle towards the slide, even though alarms have gone off. Tee and I ready our guns. They'll be here in no time.

I hear shouting in the back of the plane. They're coming. As the terrorists rush in, guns cocked, TC yells. "Get down!" He shoots, precise, taking down a guy in one shot.

I shoot the other terrorist while TC takes the third. They crumple to the ground quickly. One is trying to get up. He fires his machine gun wildly without aim.

Tee ducks. We cover the civilians as they rush out the slide.

Among the chaos, I hear a familiar shout from the tarmac.

"Come on, guys, let's load the buses!"

Why is Grace here?

TC—San Antonio International Airport, San Antonio, TX

I startle when I hear Grace's voice. I'm scared for her to be here.

Drew looks my way. "Go ahead. I'll finish evac."

"Thanks." I shake my head and take the slide down. As soon as my feet touch the ground, I bolt to my Grace.

"Grace!" I yell.

She stands at the bottom of the slide in her pregnant woman scrubs, helping people onto airport shuttles to get to safety. As soon as she sees me, her eyes widen.

"Oh God, Tee!" yelps Grace, pulling me into a hug. My uniform crumples against her hands. She holds me away from her, running her soft hands through my hair, over my face, as if making sure I'm all right. I smile a little bit as her fingers touch my lips.

"You shouldn't be here." I cup her face in my hands. "I don't want you two getting hurt."

"I drove here," Grace explains. "I couldn't stay at SAM for another second. I thought you'd need help to get you out, so I came. I just..." I can tell her mind is wandering. She runs her finger along my cheek, focused on a spot in the distance. "I don't think Amira likes me very much."