We Who Serve

Chapter Four

"I have seen many sunrises in the past few years, but this one feels different," Grimes spoke out as Ghost appeared behind her on the roof of the safe house. Grimes sat on a pile of rubble overlooking the sandy desert before them. "It feels peaceful."

"Why didn't you come back?" Ghost asked in a soft voice as he walked over to her.

"You have no idea how much I wanted to, Simon," Grimes spoke as she turned her head to look at him. "To see you guys again," Grimes said before looking him directly in the eyes past his skull mask. "To see you again."

"I never forgave myself," Ghost sighed as he sat beside her. "For leaving you in the desert."

"Had you and Soap come back for me, you would have been killed," Grimes told him, shaking her head. "And the outcome would have been different."

"It doesn't make it any easier." Ghost sighed and dropped his head to look at his hands balanced on his knees.

"I know," Grimes whispered to him as she looked back at the sunrise.

"I've been watching you all." She told him softly, "My comrades were worried about my obsession." Grimes chuckled. "But I wanted to make sure you guys were okay."

"Why were you at the warehouse?" Ghost asked, now looking at her curiously.

"I've been tracking a high-profile terrorist for the past year now with no luck to his were about," Grimes explained, standing up from the rubble and walking over to the roof's edge. "There was chatter over their lines of a man named Jackson, an American drug smuggler getting too big for his boots. He found himself in some debt to my target and, as such, was carrying out a job for him."

"What job?" Ghost asked; this was not the intel he had. As far as he was aware, they were only stopping a drug smuggler.

"Moving Missiles to the US," Grimes told him, turning her head to look at him as he joined her at the roof's edge. "I don't know the purpose, but I can only guess."

"And that's why you need Jackson?" Ghost asked as Grimes nodded.

"He knows where the missiles are being shipped to, who's involved, and where they are." Grimes told him, "He is the key to bringing this whole thing down."

"What if he doesn't talk?" Ghost asks, looking at her through his mask; he notices a small smile on her face.

"Oh, he will. Don't worry about that." Grimes informed him just as a dot could be seen in the sky heading towards the building. "let's get the guys up. Our ticket out of here has arrived." Grimes told him as she turned and walked to the ladder. She stopped and turned to look at Ghost.

"It's good to see you again, Simon." She smiled at him softly.

"Likewise," He muttered back to her as she chuckled while jumping into a ladder.

"Still a man of few words, something never change." Was all she said as she jumped down the ladders. Once she was downstairs, she noticed everyone was awake, including Jackson, who was still tied to the chair.

"Evac is here, gentleman," Grimes said as she walked out of the door and out to the desert. She walked past the vehicle and stood waiting for the helicopter to land. The pilot turned the chopper around, so the back was facing Grimes.

The wind from the propellers lifted the sand all around them as the five men appeared from the building and stood behind her. Jackson's handed we're tired in front of him. Soap stood to his right and Gaz to his left, both holding a shoulder. Once the chopper landed, the back opened downward to give a ramp-up. The propellors continued to whirl as a figure came into view and walked down the ramp as it dropped.

"Sorella, è bello rivederti."(sister, it's good to see you again) The man called out as he walked out of the chopper. He extended his right arm, to which Grimes reached out and grabbed his forearm while he grabbed hers as a greeting.

"È stato a lungo, fratello."(it's been too long, brother) Grimes replied.

"Did you get what you came for?" The man yelled over the wooshing of the wind.

"Plus extra. We need to change our location." Grimes called out.

"We can talk while we fly," the man nodded, and Grimes turned to Price.

"Captain Price, I need that vehicle loaded!" Grimes called as Price nodded and Motioned for Gaz to go and do so while Soap pushed forward Jackson. They began to walk up the ramp and past Grimes and the pilot.

"Ci si può fidare?" (can we trust them?) The man asked cautiously. Grimes nodded as they watched them load up.

"There is no group of people I trust more!" Grimes yelled. This seemed enough for the pilot, who nodded and walked up into the helicopter's body. Gaz drove the vehicle up the ramp, and everyone did quick work of securing it down.

"Stella, what is our destination?" The pilot asked as the ramp closed; Grimes looked to Price.

"Captain Price will give you the coordinates," Grimes said as Price nodded and handed over a bunch of numbers. The pilot nodded and walked to the front of the helicopter before beginning to take off.

"You speak Italian? " Soap asked, amazed at her fluent she was.

"Yes, it's the language all of us use in the Creed," Grimes answered his question.

"How many can you speak?" Soap questioned again.

"About 16."

"16! That's a lot!" Gaz called out, amazed.

"The creed taught me 13 of them, 3 I knew before then." Grimes as she sat down and buckled herself into a seat against the wall.

"It will be around four hours of flying until we reach your base," Grimes told them as she put her head down to catch up on her little sleep. The men began talking amongst each other, but Grimes tuned them out. She knew she had to grab whatever rest she could.