Chapter 8

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We finally found where the enemy was hiding and so while Georgia and Sarah stayed at the safe house we were going to go eliminate that group, they tried to take my daughter and now they're going to pay.
"You ready for this?" Captain Johnson asked. "Of course, I was ready since we found out where they were hiding from the guy that tried to take Sarah." I said and he nodded.
We loaded the chopper and left for the enemy camp out in the desert. We got close and landed the chopper so they wouldn't know we were here and started walking the last two miles to the camp.
About a mile down the road I knew something wasn't right so I told the team to stay alert and then a gunshot rang out and I was almost hit. "Ambush!" I shouted.
We ran under the cover of an abandoned building and opened fire just as the terror group came out of hiding. These people were going to die. When you threaten me, it's one thing, but threaten my wife and daughter, I'll hunt you to the ends of the earth. While we were in the building I saw the rocket launcher in the hands of the enemy.
"Get out!" I shouted to my team and we all ran for an exit. Everyone made it out but me. The rocket hit just as the person in front of me left the building and just before I lost consciousness I felt the crushing weight of the building.
I was in and out of consciousness for the next thirty minutes as I lay there with a piece of metal in my arm, I can barely feel my left arm but I knew I wouldn't lose it. I saw the team try to find me after they killed the last of the enemy but I couldn't call for them to tell them where I am and then they left giving up the search after picking something up from the ground. The dust settled and a truck just happened to be driving by. The owner of the truck got out I guess because he was curious which was lucky for me because I'm losing a lot of blood from my arm.
"Help." I said weakly and the guy turned his attention towards where I was at. "Hello? Anyone out there?" He asked and I spoke again. "Over here." I said and he came closer. "Where are you?" He asked and I answered the best I could. "Under the building." I said and then he saw me looking out from in under the rubble piled on my body. My arm is out from under the rubble but there's a steel rod lodged in it and I can't move it. "I'm going to get help." He said and went to his truck. That's when I lost consciousness completely.
Davis's POV:
As I went to the truck and the guy lost consciousness I called for help. I'm the sheriff and I know some people who could get here quickly to help dig the man out.
I sat there and waited and when they showed up and we got back to him I noticed we needed to work fast or this man wouldn't make it, he's already lost a lot of blood from his arm and to make matters worse he's probably got some broken ribs from all this weight.
"What happened here Davis?" Marshall asked and I shook my head "I don't know but hurry, he sounded weak already before I called you." I said to my friend. We started to dig him out and once we got the last steel beam off of him the ambulance arrived.
The paramedics worked with him trying to keep him alive and when we made it to the hospital he wasn't looking too well, he was ghostly pale and he was losing body heat fast from the amount of blood loss.
'What was this guy doing there?' I wondered. 'How did this happen?' Then I noticed the ring on his finger and wondered. 'What of his family?'
They took him in for immediate surgery and needed a pint of 0 positive blood so I volunteered. It wouldn't be the first time I donated blood and I knew it would make a family happy if he survived.
They got the blood and I sat in the waiting room just so I would know how the guy was and so I could ask him a few questions.
They got him out of surgery and in a room and came to me. "How do you know this man?" They asked and I answered them simply. "I don't, I was driving by when I saw the building crumbled to the ground and if I hadn't have stopped I wouldn't have found him." I said and the doctor nodded.
"Come with me." He said and led me to his room. They know I'm a cop and I'm going to want to ask him some questions when he wakes up and so they left me in there with him.
"What were you doing there?" I asked him even though I knew he wouldn't answer. Then I noticed all the old scars on his body, they look like, stab wounds? I called the doctor in here and asked them to turn him on his side so I could see his back.
I noticed the scars on his back that looked like whip slashes and got some pictures of them for investigation and thanked the doctors as they left the room.
As I was looking at the pictures I took I noticed a tattoo on the back of his shoulder of some words. 'Always ready for anything, no matter the cost.' It said and I wondered what it meant.
"What line of work are you in?" I said wondering what he did and what happened to him.
A few hours later I heard him start to mumble a name in his sleep. "Sarah, leave her alone, no, Sarah!" He shouted and jolted awake looking around without recognition and then he looked to me. "Where am I?" He asked and I told him. "Your in the hospital, just got out of surgery, they had to get that piece of metal out of your forearm." I told him and he looked like he remembered some of what happened.
"Got to get home." He said and I shook my head. "You can't, not until you recover." I told him and he looked defeated. "What happened to you?" I asked him and he looked like he was trying to remember.
"I don't remember." He said and I decided to ask him who Sarah was. "Who's Sarah?" I asked him and he looked to me in surprise. "How do you know that name?" He asked and I told him. "You were mumbling it in your sleep." I said and he relaxed. "That's my daughter, she's seven." He said and I nodded.
"What kind of work do you do?" I asked him. "I'm a United States Navy SEAL." He said and I was surprised. "You're a what?" I asked making sure I heard him right and he told me the same thing and then I figured out what that tattoo meant just from his career. "What's your name and rank?" I asked and he told me. "Commander Lucian Phillips." He said and I was surprised, he must've joined right out of high school, he doesn't look that old.
"Well commander, I found you under the remains of a building what were you doing there?" I asked and he looked like he just remembered the whole thing. "I was with my team, some guys who captured me three months ago and tortured me until I escaped last month had threatened me and my family and we had to go into hiding for a while and we finally found where they were hiding and we went to eliminate that terror group. There was a rocket launcher after we took cover in a building so I warned everyone to leave the building and they made it out but the rocket hit the building. Just before I made it to the door, the building collapsed on top of me and my team tried to find me but I guess they couldn't see me because of the dust and they left after killing the last of the enemy." He said and I was surprised.
"So commander Phillips, what of your family? Parents? Wife?" I asked him and he told me about his family. "My wife, Georgia, is a year younger than me but we met in high school and graduated together, my dad is a retired Marine and my mom died of cancer three years ago." He said and I felt like I knew him from somewhere. "What school did you graduate from?" I asked him.
"Kevlar high in Miami Florida." He said and now I know where I knew him from. "Me too weren't you the star football player?" I asked and he nodded his head.
"I wondered what had happened to you, I don't know if you remember me but I'm Davis Richards." I said and he looked at me. "I remember you, what do you do for a living now?" He asked.
"I'm the sheriff here in this little town." I said and he smiled. "Thanks for saving me back there, the only reason I stayed alive back under that building is my wife and daughter, they mean the world to me and I promised them I would try to make it back to them alive." He said and I nodded.
"I know the feeling, I was in the Army until my service time was up and joined the police force once I was out of the Army." I told him and he nodded.
"I decided to turn mine into a career because I love protecting my family and serving my country." He said and I nodded. "I knew some men and women who thought the same thing while I was in the Army, people I knew who made it a career because they didn't want to give it up." I said.
He then looked to be deep in thought and so I stayed silent. "You know, being a SEAL is all I want to be besides being a father to my daughter and a husband to my wife. They're my world and the SEALS is my life." He said and I understood where he was coming from.
"I can't feel my fingers even though they're still there, I guess whatever they gave me for the pain is working." He said and then fell asleep so I left.
I got home and then got a call from the hospital a few minutes later. "Hello?" I said and the reply was instant. "We need you down here ASAP, something's going on with the guy you brought in." They said and I ran back to my car and sped to the hospital.
I got to the room and there were doctors working on him. "Thanks for coming sheriff he stopped breathing shortly after you left did you find out what happened to him?" One of the doctors asked and I told them.
Lucian's POV:
I told the sheriff, Davis, what happened and who my family is and then looked to where my arm was. "I can't feel my fingers even though they're still there, I guess whatever they gave me for the pain is working ." I said and then fell asleep.
While I was asleep I saw a light and heard a voice. "Lucian." The voice called. "Mom?" I asked because that's who it sounded like. "I'm here." She said and I walked towards the voice.
I stood close to the light and saw my mom, the way she was before the cancer. "What's happening to me?" I asked her. "You're dying, you lost too much blood." She said and I shook my head.
"No, I gotta get back to my family." I said and then felt a sharp pain in my chest and suddenly I was looking down on my body.
There were doctors all around my body trying to revive me. Then they placed something on my chest when I felt the pain again. They were using the defibrillator and after the third try they looked like they were about to give up.
"No! Don't give up, I have to see my wife and daughter again!" I shouted but they couldn't hear me then I saw them gather around my body along with the sheriff and they bowed their heads and I heard the sheriff's voice. "Thank you Lord for sending this warrior here to serve our country with the SEALS. Keep an eye on his family and keep them safe through this tragedy." He said and then I fell back into my body.
I took a deep breath and my eyes shot open but I couldn't make anything out, it was all blurry. They must've heard me because a doctor was shining a light in my eyes and talking to me. "Mr. Phillips can you hear me?" He asked and I nodded my head.
Finally I focused on his face and then tried to sit up. "No, don't try to sit up you need to rest." He said and so I lay back down. "I never thought I would see an actual miracle happen." Sheriff Davis said and the doctors agreed.
They checked a few more things with me and looked at my arm and then left. "I'm glad you came back." The sheriff said before he left and I nodded and then fell back asleep.
Georgia's POV:
It's been a year and a half without my husband, a whole year and six months since they told me the building they took cover in was hit by a rocket. They told me it was possible he was still alive, they never found his body, only his dog tags. I wear them around my neck every hour of every day never taking them off.
I wear them because it reminds me that there is hope, Sarah, our baby girl, hasn't been too great since her father went missing for the second time, she's no longer the playful child she was when she had her father.
It's not the same without him, I look to the stars every night, to our favorite constellation, Orion, and pray that he's alive and he will just show up at our doorstep and he'll be just fine, I know when and if he's found he might be scarred from the building but I won't care about that, he's the only man I have ever truly loved, the only one I want to grow old with.
He doesn't know that we now have a little boy, his boy. I named him Nicholas and he's almost a year old, I found out I was pregnant with him the day Lucian went missing and nine months later I had a little boy who looks just like Lucian. I'm afraid Nick is going to have to grow up without his father, that's my biggest fear.
I have to stay strong for them though, I knew the risks I took when I married my SEAL, I knew the dangers he has to face to protect us from people like the ones who were after us.
As I look at our baby boy I know Lucian would be proud to see his little boy. Nick is a quiet boy, I show him photos of his father so he'll know who he is when he returns. I then hear a knock on the door and get up putting Nick in his crib and went to go see who it is. As I open the door I don't believe my eyes, there on the front step stands Lucian, alive and real, not just a dream this time. "Lucian? Is that really you? Please tell me I'm not dreaming again." I asked and he nodded.
"Yes Georgia, it's me and you're not dreaming." He said and I felt the tears in my eyes. "Oh my God, I thought you weren't going to come home, I thought they would find your body and I would have to attend your funeral." I said crying as I hugged him. "There's something you need to know Lucian." I said when he got sat on the couch and I sat beside him.
"Okay what do you need to tell me?" He asked and I told him. "The day you went missing I found out I was pregnant with your child, nine months later I had a baby boy, he's almost a year old now." I said and his eyes lit up.
I told him I would be right back and went to go get Nick. "This is Nicholas, our baby boy." I said and he smiled as I handed our son to him. "Nick, hey buddy." He said to our baby and then Nick said his first word early. "Daddy." He said and my eyes went wide. "He said his first word Lucian. He said it just for you." I said as he smiled down at our baby. Then we heard another knock on the door.
"I'll get it." I said and got up to get the door. I opened the door to see Lucian's team standing outside. "How you holding up Mrs. Phillips?" His captain asked and I told him. "Just great as of today won't y'all come inside." I said and as soon as they reached the living room and saw Lucian sitting there their eyes went wide. "Commander? How, when?" One guy said seemingly extremely surprised.
"Well sit down anrd I'll tell you." He said and they did taking a seat wherever there was room.
"After that rocket hit that building I was buried under a pile of concrete and metal and I was knocked out. There just happened to be a truck driving by when they saw me under all that rubble and dug me out, I was in the hospital for ten months and in recovery for another eight months. There was a piece of metal lodged in my arm and they barely saved it." He said and the team seemed deeply entranced in the story.
"I just got out last week and they found a way to get me back home and the first thing on my mind was telling my wife that I was okay." He said and the team nodded. "Well I'm glad you're alive." His captain said. "I need you to come by the base later today or tomorrow." He said and Lucian nodded. The team got up and left after talking with Lucian a while and I sat in the living room with him.
"It's almost time for Sarah to be home from school so why don't you go hide and surprise her." I said and he nodded giving me Nick as I went to wait outside the door for the bus.
The bus pulled up and Sarah came out looking unhappy, the way she's been looking since the day Lucian went missing. "Hey Sarah, I have a surprise for you go look in your bedroom it'll be waiting for you." I said and she went up to her room with me following close behind. She opened her bedroom door and froze as soon as she saw him.
"Daddy?" She said and broke out in tears. "Yes sweetheart, it's me." He said and she ran to him crying. I stood there in tears, not of sadness this time, but of joy.
Sarah has her father back, Nick won't grow up without his father, and I have the love of my life back. Even as I thought of the time without him I could no longer be sad, because he's back, he's home and alive.
"Your really home." Sarah said as she pulled back from their hug. "I kept my promise and came home for my two favorite girls and now my favorite boy." He said and she nodded.
Lucian's POV:
I finally got released from the hospital and they found a way for me to get home and I walked up to the front door of my house and knocked. When Georgia opened the door she looked surprised to see me alive. "Lucian? Is that really you?" She asked and I nodded.
"Yes Georgia, it's really me." I said and pulled her into a hug. I walked inside and sat on the couch when Georgia told me she had to tell me something and I got nervous.
"When you went missing I found out I was pregnant with your child and nine months later I had a baby boy and he's almost a year old now." She said and then went into a room and came out with a baby, our baby boy. "His name is Nicholas." She said as she handed our boy to me.
"Nick, hey buddy." I said and he opened his eyes and said part of the word daddy. "His first word and he said it just for you." Georgia said and I smiled. I heard a knock on the door and Georgia went to get it.
I heard voices and then footsteps and looked up to see my team with their eyes wide and their jaws to the floor. "Commander? How? When?" Lt. Hart asked and I told them to sit down and they did. When they got sat down I told them the whole story.
When I got done telling my story we talked some about how the team was doing and just before they left my captain said he wanted to see me at the base later today or tomorrow and I said I would be there.
Then Georgia told me Sarah was about to be home and told me to go hide so I could surprise her and so I handed Nick back to her and hid in Sarah's room. A few minutes later Sarah came in her room and froze once she saw me. "Daddy?" She said as she broke out in tears. "Yes sweetheart it's me." I said and she ran to me and jumped in my lap hugging me.
"You're really home." She said pulling back from our hug. "I kept my promise and came home for my two favorite girls and now my favorite boy." I said and she nodded. Then I got up and walked over to Georgia. "Let's go downstairs for a minute." I said and she nodded and we walked downstairs.
When we got downstairs Russell was laying by the door. "Hey Russell, how's the big bad pitbull been?" I asked him and he jumped up and ran to me.
"He missed you almost as much as we did." Georgia said and I laughed as he placed his paws on my stomach and smiled up at me.
"Ok boy, get off I gotta go somewhere for a few minutes." I said and he obeyed and sat by my feet. "I gotta go by the base so I'll be back in a little bit." I told Georgia giving her a kiss goodbye.
I got in our hummer and drove to the base after calling my captain to tell him I was on my way. I got to the base to see the team waiting by the gate. "Hey captain, you wanted to see me?" I said and he nodded.
"Lucian, I need you to come to my office, I have someone here for you." He said and I wondered who it was. I walked to his office and saw the Admiral there. I saluted him and he did the same.
"Welcome commander, I found out something from your father, the reason your alive today." He said and I nodded for him to go on. "You're not just a human, you're a shifter." He said and I nodded. "I knew there was something my parents weren't telling me." I said and he nodded.
"So what kind of shifter am I?" I asked him and he told me. "Just a shifter meaning you can shift into anything or anyone you want we have an undercover operation if you're up for it and the werewolf Lucas Anghelescu is coming tomorrow to teach you how to shift." He said and I told him I would do it thanking him before I left.
I got to the hummer and Lt. Martin came up to me. "It's good to see you alive and safe." He said and I nodded and left.
I got to the house and it was dark outside so I went up to the bedroom to find Georgia there waiting on me. "So why did they want you at the base?" She asked and I told her.
"The admiral had an undercover operation he wants me to go on." I said and she asked what I told them.
"I said yes, because I'm not exactly ready to give up being in the SEALS because I like being able to protect you and Sarah." I told her and she smiled. "Okay but be careful." She said and I nodded.
"I know, now time to get some sleep they want me back up there at 7 in the morning so they can tell me more about it." I said and we got under the covers and fell asleep.

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