I was one of five women chosen to serve our country, fighting side by side with the men, and only some of us had come home. Being surrounded by friends and enemies, having to choose who you can save, who you can love, and how to survive is something...
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Panicked banging on my door jolted me awake. When I realized I wasn't dreaming and the pounding on the door continued even more rapidly, I rushed over, heart hammering against my chest as I threw it open. Standing on the other side of the doorway was a young terrified sentry, his dark eyes were the size of dinner plates as he stood before me shaking with fear. I could see the color in his flesh drain as the beads of sweat raced down his face as he gasped for air before me.
"What's happened?" I demanded, trying to keep calm for the both of us. It was obvious something horrible happened and the longer I stared at this distraught kid, the more my anxiety got the better of me. My body trembled and my heart raced as a cold chill ran down my spine causing goosebumps to prickle the surface of my skin.
The kid stammered, "P-please, hurry!" He took a wobbly step back from me, his wide eyes never leaving mine.
I furrowed my brow at his request, watching him carefully. "What's happened? Hurry where?"
With a shake of his head, the words stuck in his mouth as he turned from me to run, motioning for me to follow him. I snatched my pack from the hook by the door before chasing after him in the still of the chilly night.
Running after this kid, my stomach twisted into a tight knot. My heart slammed into my chest so hard I feared my ribs would break and the bile began to rise as I feared for what I'd see when we neared the location he was leading me toward.
The kid led me down a darkened dirt path surrounded by tall aspens along the dike toward the outpost I knew Harry Welsh was manning. My thoughts raced with worry, wondering if something happened to Welsh and his men but we stopped on the path halfway to the outpost. In the dead of night, my eyes zeroed in on a panicked Welsh kneeling beside an equally distraught Winters with a body splayed out before them. My heart stopped and my breath hitched in my throat as the world spun around for a moment. I blinked at the scene before me, trying desperately to regain my composure.
Urging myself to focus, I took an unsteady step forward as my eyes locked onto the body on the ground. The closer I got, the easier it became to identify who it was - Moose Heyliger. I rushed over to his body, sinking to my knees on the opposite side of Winters and Welsh, to examine his wounds. I glanced up at Winters, who looked shaken up.
"What happened?" I asked, trying not to let my fear be obvious but the crack in my voice gave it away.
"We were on patrol," Winters explained, still staring at Heyliger, "A sentry shot at us."
I examined Winters for a second, searching for wounds. "You're all right?"
Winters nodded. "I'm fine. Heyliger got shot two times," he told me, "I've managed to bandage the leg..." he motioned to the leg in question, turning to gaze at it as he spoke, "it looked pretty bad." He was trying his best to remain calm, whether for my sake or his own, I couldn't tell. I turned to the leg. Winters was right. Heyliger had a clean wound through his right shoulder but the shot in his left calf was worse.
