A State of Grace Pt. 04

There was another long burst of automatic fire, and Kevin covered me once more with his body. He jerked twice and gasped.

"Kevin!" I whispered.

"Now, while he's reloading! Make for that rocky outcropping! It's the only cover we've got!" he said urgently.

Then he rolled off of me onto his back, his pistol in his hands. He fired slowly, taking the time to aim. I reached for him.

"NOT WITHOUT YOU!"

"GO, DAMN IT!" he screamed. "I'LL BE RIGHT BEHIND YOU!"

The brush behind me parted and one of the men in suits was there - right there in our faces. There was no time to yell, run, curse, or draw my weapon. He was right there, holding some kind of compact rifle in his arms with the business end pointed right between my eyes. In that moment, I knew I was looking at the end of my life. I'd never graduate, never become a psychologist, never be a mother, and I'd never feel Kevin's arms around me again. This man was going to kill me, there was nothing I could do to stop him and to top it off, I wasn't even completely sure why!

And then came the explosion of blood. My ears were already deadened from all the gunfire, but to my surprise, it didn't hurt. I always thought getting shot would hurt. Maybe I was in shock or something? But then the compact rifle fell from the man's hands, and he crumpled face forward to the ground. Turning my head, I saw Kevin sliding a fresh magazine into his pistol.

"FUCK THAT WAS CLOSE!" (I think that's what he said, anyway.)

"ARE YOU HURT?" he shouted.

Wordlessly, I shook my head no. Kevin rolled onto his stomach and carefully grabbed the compact rifle from the ground where it had fallen. With skillful fingers, he ejected the magazine, checked the chamber, then put it back in. The rifle looked a lot like Kevin's AR, but the barrel was much shorter, and I'm pretty sure Kevin's isn't full auto.

Kevin took just a second to pull two spare magazines for the rifle from the corpse of the man in black before the looked at me again. He didn't have to say a word, his look said it all. I crouched and ran, diving behind the rocky outcropping he'd pointed out to me. A few moments later, Kevin dropped down beside me, panting with effort.

After a second to recover, he cautiously peered around the side of the rock, the rifle pulled tightly to his shoulder.

"KEEP YOUR DISTANCE!" Kevin roared at whoever he saw.

The only answer Kevin got was a short burst of automatic fire. Kevin answered it with a short, controlled burst of his own. I heard a faint scream - or at least I thought I did. Then there was nothing further. It felt like forever, but in reality, I think it was only a few minutes. Whatever the case, it was long enough that my hearing started to come back.

Kevin was wheezing and panting. Finally, the rifle started to droop towards the ground, as though he couldn't hold it up anymore. When he sagged back against me, I knew he'd been hit!

"The two guys in suits are down, the uniforms took off," Kevin mumbled.

"Forget that, Kevin!" I said.

Grunting with the effort, I pulled his upper body into my lap. I reached into his pocket and took out his folding knife and used it to cut off his shirt.

"OH GOD!" I cried, seeing his abdomen. "Kevin, you're...what do I do?"

"Gotta...stop the...bleeding first," he said tiredly. "Got any tampons?"

I always carried a few, since my periods have occasionally started when they weren't expected. I pulled my pack off and got them. I unwrapped one and he took it. He put the applicator against the wound, and to my horror, pushed it in. He moaned in agony, but I could see, as he tossed the applicator away, blood flow had ceased. He did the same with the other wound.

"Oh, Kevin! Oh God, Kevin!" I cried.

I prayed for the strength to keep my wits about me. I prayed for help. And, I prayed that God would spare my brother.

"What next, Kevin?" I asked urgently.

"Gotta keep...me awake," Kevin said. "And you have to get help. I wonder if Chris and Hannah are still in the park? I...bet Hannah...could fix me..."

He looked up into my eyes.

"Take this," he said, pushing the rifle to me. "Get to the Jeep, get to a phone, and get help."

"No! I won't leave you!" I cried.

"If I don't...get help, I'm dead," he replied, simply. "We...don't have any...way to call for help. I don't think I can walk...out of here."

"Kevin," I sobbed, "If I leave, you could die!"

"I'll die for sure if I don't get to a hospital," he said. "If it has to happen, I'd rather die in your arms than in the back of an ambulance, anyway. I guess...you should stay here."

He smiled lovingly up at me and weakly stretched out a hand to touch my cheek.

"You're so beautiful, Gracie," he said. "You have always been my true love, even though I was...too blind to see it...I love you!"

"Don't Kevin!" I said fiercely. "Don't you dare say your goodbyes! Not yet!"

Then I remembered: the dead man! I gently, loving slid my legs out from beneath Kevin and lowered his head to the soft dirt.

"You stay with me, Kevin!" I said. "I'll just be a few feet away!"

"Okay...you say so, babe," Kevin mumbled.

I can do this, I told myself. Holding the rifle against my shoulder as I'd seen Kevin do, I leaned carefully around the rock, and startled the hell out of Chris West! He grabbed the rifle out of my hands just before I could squeeze the trigger.

"Whoa there, girl!" he shouted. "Back it down!"

He quickly put the weapon on safe and then slung it over his shoulder.

"We saw part of what happened," he said. "Enough to know who the real threat was, at least."

He met my eyes with a steady gaze.

"I made sure my family was safe before any other consideration, though, and I won't apologize for that."

"I understand that," I said, recovering my wits. "Kevin's hurt, though, he needs-"

But Chris had already darted behind the rock and was examining Kevin. As I watched, he clucked his tongue. He ran a finger around the wounds and nodded his approval at the field dressing. He worked quickly, using items from his own pack to clean the areas around the wounds. He was clearly a practiced hand.

"How-" I began, but he cut me off.

"I've done one tour each in Iraq and Afghanistan with the Army, plus I'm married to a truly excellent nurse," he said, answering my unspoken questions.

He sat back on his haunches and turned his gaze on me.

"He's probably going to make it," Chris said. "Gut wounds hurt like hell, and I know there's a lot of blood, but as long as we get him to a hospital in the next little while, they'll put him back together again."

Chris smiled down at Kevin and rested a surprisingly gentle hand on his shoulder.

"I'd say you've got guts, kid, but you probably wouldn't care for the irony!"

Kevin smiled wanly in spite of himself.

"You're going to have to help me, Grace," he said. "Let's get him up."

Kevin gave an agonized cry as Chris and I lifted him to his feet. Chris supported most of Kevin's weight; I think my 'helping' was to keep me occupied, not because he actually needed me. Sure enough, as soon as Kevin was upright, Chris hoisted him into his arms and started walking towards the treeline.

Just a few feet farther down, we encountered the second man in black. He was sprawled against a tree. Kevin was obviously a better shot, I thought to myself. Even with the added burden of Kevin - who wasn't exactly a lightweight - Chris moved like a soldier, making less than a quarter of the noise I was making. When we finally reached the treeline, Chris gently set Kevin down, propping him up against a tree.

"Stay here," Chris said, his tone making it a clear order.

Then he took off a fast run. I quickly lost track of him, but as Kevin was my focus anyway, it didn't matter. I dropped to my knees by his side and tenderly stroked his face.

"Just hold on, Love," I soothed him. "Help is coming!"

He leaned against me and I pillowed his head on my breast. I gently caressed him, offering him all the love and gentleness I could. It was all I could do for him, other than the whisper quiet words of love to him. I was fully, intimately aware that he had saved my life yet again! As I knelt there, holding my wounded hero to my breasts, I made a decision.

"Kevin," I said softly.

"Hmm?" he said tiredly.

"I know the timing is awkward, to say the least, but...Kevin, as soon as you're healed, I want your baby!"

"But-"

"No, love, no arguments!" I insisted. "I want there to be something in this world other than two of us, that proves we lived and loved together! We were meant to do this, Kevin! I've never been so sure of anything else in my life!"

"Okay," he said. "It's not...like I didn't want to give you a child. So what if it's...earlier than I planned? We...can make it...work."

He smiled at me.

"Now...we just...need some names...huh?"

"Yes!" I agreed, tearing up. "We'll have plenty of time to choose them together, Kevin. Kevin?"

He was still smiling faintly, but his eyes had gone glassy, and his breathing was weakening.

"Kevin!" I cried. "Kevin, wake up! Kevin, come back to me!"

His eyes rolled back into his head until only the whites showed, and the feeling of alarm turned into outright terror.

"KEVIN!"

*****

Author's Notes:

Well, it's been a fascinating last couple of months. I wasn't expecting to get another contract so soon after the last one, but the money was way too good to pass up. I'm back for now. I would say I'm back for a few months, but you never know. When you're a 'private contractor' you go where (and when) the work takes you. Sometimes you know quite a bit ahead of time - and sometimes you don't! There have even been some contracts where I've been allowed to have my family join me. Those aren't too bad, but they're also few and far between. Still, it allows me to provide pretty well for the aforementioned family, so I won't complain (too loudly).

The next chapter will probably conclude 'A State of Grace." It depends on whether or not I can tie off all the many loose ends in a single chapter or not. Where we go after that depends on you, dear readers. You haven't been shy about your comments up to this point, so don't start now! Best of Holiday Wishes to all of you and your loved ones!

- Carbinemaster