Call to Arms: Betrayed

Almost 14 yrs. later, 2027...

     “Mrs. St. Claire? There's a man in the lobby asking for you,” the secretary said, jarring Alexis St. Claire out of her thoughts. “Tell him to come back later. I'm busy,” she said as she sighed. She rubbed her temples and then looked at the worn St. Christopher's Medal she wore under her blouse.

      Mrs. Alexis St. Claire, formly Alexis Renard, was happy. She'd served a year in the Marine Corps before meeting her husband, Mr. Matthew St. Claire. They'd been married for 12, almost 13 years. She had three beautiful children: Charles Levi St. Claire, Mark Wayne St. Claire, and her baby, Sierra Rose St. Claire. 'Course, she also had a secret that no one, not even her husband knew. She was really Alyssa Blackwell, born 1995 to Vietnam veteran Markus Blackwell and Rose Blackwell. Served in the U.S. Army and was deployed to Ukraine where she was MIA for six months. Long time friend of Jeremy Burkhart, who served in Iraq and later was MIA with her.

      The intercom buzzed again, making Alexis growl in frustration. “I told you to tell him I'm-!” she exclaimed, angry. “Ma'am, he told me to tell you not to forget Pripyat,” the woman said as Alexis paused. “Ma'am?” the woman asked as Alexis swallowed hard. “Send him up,” she said as she panted softly. “Who could it be? Almost no one knows of my time in Pripyat here! Who is it?!” she thought as she opened a drawer in her desk and drew out her Marine service revolver. She cocked it and then hid it behind her back. The door opened and a man entered. “Thank you, Beverly. I can take care of him now,” Alexis says as the woman nods and then exits, closing the door behind her. Alexis drew her gun and then pointed it at the man. “Who the hell are you and how the hell do you know I've been in Pripyat?!” Alexis said, her finger on the trigger. “Since when did you go into the Marines? I mean, they're cool and all, but they're all douches!” the man said as Alexis put the gun to his chest. “Tell me who the hell you are or I'll put another hole in you!” she exclaimed as he took the gun. “Look into my eyes, Blackwell,” he says as he kisses her on the head. “Burkhart?” Alexis asks as he smiles and nods.“It's actually Johnathon Everhart, but it's good to see you, Renard,” he says as she smiles. “How about we go to lunch and catch up? My treat, Johnny,” Alexis says as she puts her gun away and then pulls on her coat. “Sure, kid,” he says as they both walk out.

*****An hour later*****

    “Tell me again, you have how many kids?” Johnny asks as Alexis takes a long drink of wine. “Three. My oldest is 12, my second is 9, and my youngest is 6. Here's a picture of my family,” she says as she draws a photo out of her wallet. Johnny takes it and then stares at it. “The man in the uniform's your husband, right?” Johnny asks as Alexis nods. “You fell for a Marine?” he asks, smiling. “Yep. Ain't I a sucker?” Alexis asked as Johnny laughed. “Hows your life been, Johnny?” she asks as he shifts in his seat. “Pretty good, I guess. How about I get to the real reason I'm here, savvy?” he asks as she sighs. “General Westgate contacted me a week ago. He wants us to come to the old military base and join up again to do a secret mission or something,” Johnny says as Alexis puts down her wine. “What happened to General Hardbrook?” she asks as Johnny shrugs. “He got old and retired, I guess. Listen, I know you said you'd never go back, but-,” he says as she pales. “Are you talking about recon in Pripyat?” Alexis asked, her hands shaking. He shrugged and then stood. “Thanks for the meal, Lexi. No offense to you or nothing, but this food, uh, ain't exactly my favorite,” he says as he turns to go. “How you meet me and my husband tomorrow night at Chester's? They've got the best burgers and fries this side of Nevada,” Alexis says as he nods. “See you then, kid,” he says as he walks out. Alexis sighs and then pays the check, drinking the last bit of wine. She goes to the restroom and then checks her appearance in the mirror. Satisfied it was nice, she turned and walked out...

*****A few hours later*****

     “I'm home!” Alexis said as she walked in the front door. She took off her coat and then put down her purse. “Hey, hon,” came her husband's voice from behind her. A kiss landed on her lips and she sighed. “You wanna go upstairs and, you know-?” he asked as his hands went near her waist. “But the kids-,” she said as he kissed her again. “I've already asked our housekeeper to make 'em dinner and put them to bed,” he said as she smiled and then started to run upstairs. “Catch me if you can, Marine!” she mocked as he took off after her. “Don't you dare, Commie!” he exclaims as he grabs her around the waist, making her shriek with laughter. “Seems I've won, don't it?” he mocks as she smacks him in the stomach. “I believe I won, dummy,” she laughed as he dropped her. “Bold move, Commie. Now, how's this gonna go?” Matthew asks as Alexis cocks her head, thinking...

*****An hour later*****

    Alexis and Matthew both lay on their backs, panting. “You've made your proposal, Commie, and I accept it. Long as you stay away, I won't tell the others,” Matthew says as he rolls over and starts to kiss her. “Hon, I saw an old friend today,” Alexis says as he nods, continuing to kiss her slowly. “I invited him to dinner tomorrow night at Chester's with you and me,” she said as he murmured and then paused. A scream made Alexis stand and then dress, pulling on  pair of pants and a shirt before pulling on her bathrobe. She walks down the hall and then enters her daughter's room. “Shush, it's okay, baby,” Alexis says as she goes to Sierra. “The monsters are back! Make them go away, mommy,” she whimpers as Alexis sits by her. “Where are they, baby, huh? Where are they?” she asks as Sierra points to the underside of her bed. Alexis drops down and then looks under it. “Any monsters under here? Hmm? Any monsters taking up residence here?” she asked, feeling under the bed. “Well, if there were any, they ran, but guess who I found?” Alexis said as she draws out a battered looking bear. “I found Captain Blackheart, baby,” Alexis said, depositing it on Sierra's lap. “They musta ran from him, huh?” Sierra asked as Alexis nodded. Sierra traced the black heart on the bear's belly and then snuggled under the blankets. “Can you tell me a story before I go to bed?” Sierra asks as Alexis smiles. “Which one, baby?” she asks as she sits by her. “I don't know. You pick!” she says as Alexis takes her up in her arms. “How about Cinderella?” she asks as Sierra nods and then snuggles closer to her. “Well, once upon a time, there was this rich man and he married a lady who had 2 daughters. He himself had a daughter from a previous marriage, but the poor girl was mocked by her sisters...”

*****An hour later*****

     Alexis awoke, Sierra in her arms, holding Captain Blackheart in her arms, her thumb in her mouth. She stood and then lay her down. She walked out of the room and then went back to the bedroom. She entered and then got into bed. “What was wrong?” Matthew asked as she took off her robe. “Just the monsters under the bed again. I got her to calm down,” she said as she stretched out. “I think you're mollycoddling that girl, Alexis. She needs to face her own fear of the dark. She's almost seven years old,” Matthew said as Alexis sighed. “She's fine, Matthew. I found her bear and now she's fine,” she said as Matthew sighed. “Good night, hon,” he says, closing his eyes.

*****The next night*****

    “Lexi, where did you say we're going to dinner?” Matthew asked as he finished tying his shoes. “Chester's Pub and Grill, Matthew,” Alexis said as she walked out, fixing her t-shirt. “Why are you wearing that? I mean, it's just a regular burger and fries kind of joint, but don't let me harsh your mellow,” she says as he sighs. “Am I overdressed?” he asks as Lexi smiles. “Like a whore meeting her worst client, hon,” Lexi says as she kisses him. He takes off his coat and then pulls off his shirt. Lexi giggled and then went to his closet. She pulled out a shirt and then gave it to him. He put it on and then pulled off his shoes and pants. She picked out a faded pair of blue jeans and then gave them to him. He quickly pulled them on and then pulled on a pair of sneakers. He also pulled on his soft leather jacket and then stood before Lexi. “My sincerest compliments to the person who designed your outfit, my friend,” she mocked as they both walked out, going to their car to leave…