Without Law 19, page 12
“I’m gonna call that one point for Tara,” Anna said.
“Alright, alright.” Pete narrowed his eyes. “Beginners luck, now you come at me.”
“You got it, old man.” Tara said as she took her stance again. “Get ready.”
“Oh, I’m ready.” He lowered himself into his fighting stance once more, and this time I could tell there was a little more ferocity in him. It seemed the competitive spirit ran in the family.
Tara barely gave him a second to breathe before she swung at him.
Pete leaned back to dodge her palm, but that was part of her plan, and as soon as he was off balance, she swung out her leg and caught his ankle.
The older man’s eyes went wide as his feet were swept out from under him and he fell flat on his ass.
“Another point for Tara.” Anna grinned.
“Are you alright, Mr. Vincennes?” Bailey asked.
“Yeah, yeah, I’m okay,” he said as he stood up and dusted himself off.
“Sorry.” Tara smiled. “I didn’t hurt you there, did I?”
“I think I’ll live,” he chuckled, then he looked at her seriously. “That was better than I ever imagined, though. I didn’t think I’d ever see you in a fight, let alone winning one.”
“So you admit I won?” Tara teased.
“Yes, pumpkin, you won,” Pete laughed, and he pulled his daughter in for a hug.
“Good,” Tara said. “I guess you can have some dinner now.”
“You weren’t going to feed me if I won?” he asked.
“I might not have.” Tara shrugged.
“You’re just as cruel as ever,” Pete chuckled.
The platinum-blonde grinned at her father, then the two of them made their way back to their seats, and they took the bowls I passed to them.
The food had cooled off by then, and I picked up a spoonful and put it in my mouth.
The dish was spiced with cumin, paprika, and some other seasonings I wasn’t sure about. There were tomatoes, onions, chicken, beans, and corn, and I quickly chewed, swallowed, and took another spoonful. The meal was delicious, and I was glad Tara’s father would get to experience it for himself.
“Oh, goodness,” Pete said, and he closed his eyes and savored the bite he’d just taken. “This is amazing.”
“I just kind of threw it together,” Tara told him. “Tav didn’t tell me you were coming or I might have made something better. Then again, I might have made something worse since I was still mad at you, so it’s probably best I didn’t know.”
“Then I guess I should thank Tav,” Pete chuckled. “Because this is delicious.”
“I mean, you could thank me instead,” Tara said with a raised eyebrow. “I cooked after all.”
“Right, thank you, pumpkin.” He smiled and took another bite.
Pete ate slowly, and he seemed to chew every bite for an especially long time.
“Dad,” Tara laughed after a minute. “There’s plenty, stop being so weird about it.”
“It’s not the amount,” Pete explained. “It’s just been so long since I’ve had a good home cooked meal.”
“I really will have to cook for everyone here soon,” Tara mumbled. “If they’re as starved for good food as you are, it’s no wonder you guys haven’t won yet.”
Pete nearly spat out his food laughing, and I couldn't help but join in. Tara wasn’t exactly wrong, I bet a good meal would get all the soldiers feeling just right, and it might spark a little more fire in them after nonstop battle for months and months.
After dinner was over, the girls all chatted with Tara’s father while I sat back and observed everything. I might not be his favorite person, but he seemed to be warming up to me, and I was happy to see he and Tara were back on good terms.
Pete was funny, though, and he appeased Anna’s request for embarrassing childhood stories ten times over. He had the girls roaring with laughter, and Tara was bright red with embarrassment.
I half expected her to try and fight him again over his embarrassing her, but she took it pretty well, and she even joined in with the laughter.
After a while, though, Pete stood up and gave Tara a hug.
“I’ll see you in the morning,” he said.
“You might want to come over early,” Tara told him. “We’re leaving tomorrow.”
“Right.” He nodded, then looked at me. “Tav, I was wondering if I might have a word with you before I leave?”
“Of course,” I agreed.
“Privately,” he clarified, and his dark brown eyes were serious as they landed on mine.
Well, shit. Maybe he didn’t like me as much as I thought he did.
Chapter 8
“Tav, you don’t have to go if you don’t want to,” Tara said with an eye roll, and she turned to her father. “Dad, stop trying to talk to everyone in private.”
“It’s alright.” I smiled at the platinum-blonde then turned to her father. “I’ll follow you.”
“Thank you,” he said and led me toward the main building.
Tara shook her head, and while I appreciated her sticking up for me, I didn’t need her to do that, especially not with her father. The man didn’t strike me as the kind of man who wanted to talk about nothing, and I knew it would be best if I simply went with him and heard what he had to say since it was clearly important to him.
I followed the man to the building, and he leaned up against the cold metal and stared at me.
“Look,” he said, and his eyes narrowed as he cocked his head to the side. “I like you. You seem like a nice man.”
“I appreciate that, sir,” I told him.
“And Tara seems incredibly grown up,” he added. “And I can’t help but feel you’re partly to blame for that.”
“It was mostly her.” I smiled. “I just gave her the tools to do it.”
“Humble, too.” He nodded. “Like I said, I like you, but that’s still my baby girl over there, and it’s my job as her father to threaten any man who wants to be with her.”
“I understand.” I smiled and nodded.
He didn’t seem to be actually threatening me, he was more saying it was his job to do it, whether he liked me or not, and I could respect that. Like he said, that was his baby girl, and I’d do the same for my own daughter.
“So, with that being said,” Pete continued, and his dark brown eyes landed on mine. “If you hurt her, I’ll stab you in the dick.”
My eyes went wide at his words, and I couldn’t help but think how this whole stabbing people in the dick thing ran in the family.
“I understand, sir,” I chuckled and shook my head.
“You find this funny, do you?” he asked, but a smile played at the corner of his lips.
“Sir, I assure you, I would never do anything to harm your daughter,” I said. “She means the absolute world to me, and she is fully protected under my care.”
“Good to know.” He nodded.
“But I find your specific threat a little funny,” I admitted.
“I don’t think any of her other boyfriends have found being threatened with a dick stabbing funny,” he laughed.
“It’s not the threat itself,” I told him. “It’s the fact that I’ve seen your daughter stab at least two men in the dick. Both times she told everyone she was going to do it before she did it.”
“She what?” he asked, and his eyes went wide.
“To be fair, they were rapists, or killers, or both,” I told him.
“Dear god.” He put his face in his hand and started to laugh. “I’m afraid this is all my fault.”
“Sir?” I asked.
“I used to tell her I’d stab her boyfriends in the dick if they messed with her,” he sighed and shrugged. “I guess it rubbed off on her.”
“I see,” I chuckled.
“It’s still amazing to me to think she’s able to fight, especially alongside a Ranger.” He shook his head. “You’ve trained her well.”
“I think so, too.” I smiled.
“I still don’t think she should be in the field, though,” he added.
“Honestly, sir,” I said. “I don’t, either. I don’t like her being out there in the condition she’s in, but I’m sure you know your daughter better than anyone, and you know how stubborn she can be.”
“Hard headed as hell, that one,” he chuckled. “I know she won’t listen to anyone, even me. However, if she’s going out there with you, it’s your job to keep her safe. I don’t want a single hair on her pretty blonde head touched, you hear me?”
“I do,” I assured him. “I’ll be looking out for her the whole time.”
“Good.” He nodded and shook his head.
“She’ll be just fine.” I smiled. “She’s been in plenty of battles before, and she can hold her own. But, I’ll be right next to her the whole time, so please try not to worry about her too much. I promise I’ll bring her back safe. Like I said earlier, I haven’t lost a single man yet, and I don’t plan on starting now.”
“I do like you,” he told me sincerely after a small pause. “My daughter has grown up since she’s met you, and she’s confident and able to take care of herself. I can tell it means a lot to her, and I appreciate everything you’ve done for her.”
“It’s been my pleasure,” I said.
“You seem like a hell of a soldier,” he said. “And your ideas in the war room were well thought out. I think this plan of yours could actually work, then we can finish this war for good and finally go home.”
“I’d like that, sir,” I said.
“Mmm.” He nodded. “One of the other soldiers mentioned you all have a farm at home? I thought you were staying on campus still.”
“We are,” I told him. “But you’ve seen Piper, it’s surrounded by small towns and farms. We were lucky enough to have some of the farmers still around. We brought them to the college with us since we have running water and electricity, but during spring through fall, we plant and harvest on the farm.”
“That’s incredible.” His eyes narrowed on me. “I’m impressed with everything you all have managed to accomplish.”
“It wasn’t always easy,” I said. “But it worked out well.”
“Well, I’d love to see what you’ve done once this is all over,” he said.
“I’d like that, sir.” I smiled. “And I’m sure Tara would, too.”
“I’ll see you in the morning, Ranger.” He clapped me on the shoulder and stepped around me to open the door.
“Goodnight, sir,” I said and then headed back to the fire where the girls were.
They were quiet as I walked over and sat down, but as soon as my butt hit the makeshift bench, they all leaned in and started asking questions at once.
“Hey, hey,” I chuckled. “One at a time.”
“What’d he say?” Tara asked.
“He threatened to stab me in the dick,” I said.
“I fucking knew it!” Anna laughed.
“Dammit,” Tara sighed. “I was hoping he really liked you.”
“Oh, he does,” I assured her. “He basically said he had to threaten me, even though he liked me.”
“That makes sense.” Bailey smiled. “Even if he likes you as a person, that doesn’t matter when it comes to Tara. I think it’s sweet how much he loves her.”
“It is sweet,” Paige agreed.
“Yeah, I knew they’d like each other.” Tara grinned.
“Hold on, I said he liked me,” I joked. “I didn’t say I liked him.”
“Oh, whatev.” Tara rolled her eyes and waved her hand at me. “You totally love him. You kinda have to, he’s the grandfather of your child.”
“True,” I laughed.
It was late then, and I decided it was time for us to get some sleep, so I added some extra wood to the fire so it would burn through the night, then we all slipped into the tent and curled up for bed.
I woke well before dawn and stoked the fire, then I found some oatmeal and got it going, along with some spices and some canned strawberries to add flavor.
I also laid out everything to make coffee, but I didn’t dare try and brew it myself. Tara was a stickler about who made the coffee, and even though she’d drank what I made before without realizing it, I knew if she came out and saw me making the coffee she’d give me hell for it.
So, I stirred the oatmeal instead and watched as other civilians sleepily crawled out of their tents, waved to me, and started their own breakfasts.
“Hey,” Bailey said softly as she climbed out of the tent and walked over to me. “I smelled the oatmeal.”
“Smells good, I hope,” I chuckled.
“Definitely,” she said, and she shivered slightly and took her seat by the fire.
The blonde had a large hoodie on, and she pulled it over her hands so only her thumbs stuck out. She also had a beanie on, but it didn’t fully cover her ears, so I reached over and adjusted it so she’d be warmer.
“Thanks.” She smiled at me and looked around. “Did you make coffee yet?”
“No.” I shook my head and laughed. “I was scared.”
“Scared?” she asked, then realization dawned on her face. “Oh, right. Say no more.”
I handed the blonde the coffee grounds, then I pulled the pot of water off the flames for her. Even if I couldn’t brew the coffee, I could at least boil water for it.
“Thanks,” Bailey said, and she poured the grounds in and grabbed a spoon to give them a quick stir.
It was still dark out, but the sunrise was coming soon. The sky had lightened a bit above the horizon so it was now a dark blue instead of the black it was before.
“Mmm, something smells good,” Paige said as she crawled out of our tent.
Anna was right behind her, but the redhead didn’t wait for Tara, instead, she zipped up the tent behind her.
“Tara still sleeping?” I asked.
“Yeah.” Anna nodded. “We figured we’d let her sleep as long as she can.”
“Good idea.” I smiled.
“At least until the coffee’s ready,” Paige said.
“Even better idea,” I chuckled.
“It’ll be ready in just a few minutes,” Bailey said.
While we waited for the coffee to brew, I looked around the camp, and after a few minutes, I saw a group of five people make their way out from behind the warehouse.
There were four men and one woman, and immediately I could tell they were the pilots. They each had huge smiles on their faces, and it was obvious they were excited to finally be part of the action.
Whereas the Captain in Yorktown had squandered the SEALs he had and used them only for menial tasks, the General here was being smart and saving the pilots for when they were really needed. They were technically Air Force Special Reconnaissance, so they were Recon first and pilots second, but I’d known a few pilots in my day, and they always said there was nothing better than flying, so I figured it was the same for this group, too.
I watched as they made their way over to the MiG we had parked near camp, and Ben came out to greet them. The six of them circled around the MiG and chatted, and I smiled and thought this plan just might work.
I wouldn’t have endorsed it if I thought it wouldn’t, but there was always the off chance something could go wrong. My team was prepared for whatever came our way, though, and we would have the SEALs with us, as well as Minji so she could translate if necessary.
“Here,” Bailey said, and she handed me a cup of coffee.
“Thanks,” I told her as I took the mug of dark liquid and took a long pull.
The tent unzipped behind me, and I turned around to see Tara glaring as she crawled out.
“Are you alright?” I asked with a laugh.
“I’m fine.” She continued to glare as she walked over and sat next to me.
Bailey didn’t say a word, she just leaned over and handed the platinum-blonde her cup.
Tara took the mug, took a sip, closed her eyes, and smiled.
“Mmm, this is good,” she sighed.
“Glad you like it,” Bailey chuckled.
Once we all had our coffee, we took a few minutes to drink and relax, then I dished up breakfast. It didn’t take long for us to eat, then it was officially time to get ready for the day.
I followed the girls into the tent and threw on the outfit I had laid out the day before, along with all my weapons, then I grabbed my go bag and headed over to our jeep.
Hammer was already over there, and the SEAL and I filled the backs of the vehicles with Gustaf rifles and shells, as well as some grenade launchers, extra plasma and regular pistols, food, water, and supplies for an overnight trip.
We also filled up some gas cans and made sure everything was fueled up. Between the SEALs, the pilots, and my team, we needed three vehicles, and while I didn’t plan on us being gone long, it was best to be prepared for anything.
“That’s all of it,” Hammer said as he closed the back of the last jeep.
“Great.” I nodded. “As soon as the pilots are ready, we’re ready to go.”
“Let’s hope that’s soon,” he said, and he looked up at the sky which was now lit with bright purples, pinks, and oranges.
“I’ll go talk to them,” I said.
“I’ll gather everyone up and make sure they’re ready,” Hammer offered.
“Thanks.” I smiled at the SEAL and walked over to the MiG where the pilots were all gathered around.
The door to the plane was open, and the female pilot was inside touching various buttons while the men all hung around right outside the door and pointed and chatted.
“Hey,” I greeted them.
“Tav.” Ben smiled. “Come to see if we’re ready?”
“You know me so well,” I joked.
Ben looked up to the female pilot. She was short, maybe 5’5”, with chin-length blonde hair and bangs.
“Jess, you ready?” Ben asked.
“Ready as I'll ever be.” The woman grinned. “I work better on the fly anyway.”
“Good to know,” I chuckled and held my hand up. “I’m Tav. I don’t think we’ve been introduced.”
“Jess,” the woman said with a nod.
“Andy,” a tall, thin dark haired man with gray eyes said.
“Jeremy,” another dark haired man said, except his was down to his shoulders instead of in a neat buzz cut like his buddy’s.
