Page 120 of What I Should Have Done

Just as I reloaded, ready to fire on Bernie and Ford’s combatants, a shadow flashed behind the children in my view. Spinning my gun onto the newest figure, Karim’s body came into full view—using a young girl who looked to barely be five as a shield.

He crouched behind her, making slow steps toward the gap in the wall. His beady eyes darted toward the exit. I remained steady, my focus solely on the man who was the orchestrator of all of this destruction. But I couldn’t get a good angle for a shot. The little girl remained in my view, not an inch of clothing from his traditional garb was exposed.

The overhead lights flickered. The stone walls groaned against the strain forced by Mother Nature. Water dripped, tinking against metal. Here was Karim’s last-ditch attempt to escape into the night. And I couldn’t get a damn shot off.

“Target’s making his way toward the exit, over,” I radioed to the team, still tracking his steady movements. “I don’t have a shot. He’s got a little girl as a hostage and cover.”

A couple grunts met my ears, but I refused to move my gun away from Karim al-Jabari in case an opportunity presented itself. Peering through my scope, the target remained on him, however blocked by his sickening choice of a barricade.

“Give it up, Karim!” Dom shouted out loud; a grunt and then crack of a gun followed.

“You will let me leave,” Karim hissed in response. He emerged fully from the room and crept along the remaining wall, holding the girl between himself and us.

“We can’t do that,” Dom answered. Another couple grunts and then everything silenced. A few whispers left the room he’d escaped from, and I had to assume that it came from the rest of the hostages.

“So,” Karim paused, tightening his arm around the little girl’s neck. Her eyes widened, big brown eyes full of fear. “It’s like that then?”

“Just like that,” Dom answered. From my peripherals came four men, each armed with their rifles. Mikey had fresh blood running down his lips and chin again with his cocky-ass grin back on his face.

Man, I love him.

Bernie and Ford had splattering of red stained across their faces, while Dom’s hands dripped wine. All but Bernie, who trained his weapon toward the hostages, slowly approached Karim in a steady wave. Stepping over the dead bodies strewn about the room, every inch encroaching on our target sent a wave of panic through our target—evidenced by the trembling increasing in his hands.

Then Karim al-Jabari made a fatal mistake. “If I go, you all go,” he announced and tipped his head just enough to the left. Hollow, beady eyes appeared around the little girl’s ear, and I squeezed my trigger.

The crack of my shot split through the air, silencing the hum of life.

Karim’s eyes widened and then glazed over, the echo of vitality’s fleeting glare, extinguished into shadows. He slumped backward, iron liquid staining the stone behind him, and his arm slid like jelly away from the little girl’s body. A single hole in his head dripped a single drop of red blood.

The girl, frozen as if she’d stepped into cement that hardened, began to violently shake. Her eyes slid to the four men that I called my team, my family. Ford joined Bernie and faced the hostages, keeping their guns packed into their shoulders just in case someone else decided to try something as Mikey and Dom slowly lowered their weapons.

As soon as the barrel of the guns were pointed to the floor, she raced forward. Tears streamed down her face as she leapt into Dom’s outstretched arms. I briefly closed my eyes, inhaling deeply as the adrenaline that had fueled me slowly slipped away like the evening tide.

“Phoenix to command, target eliminated, over,” Dom radioed. He lifted the girl to his hip and slowly walked back toward the hostages. One woman with eyes as big and brown as the little girl suddenly shot forward the moment Dom appeared from behind the wall. Squirming down from Dom’s arms, the little girl sprinted toward the lady and jumped into her embrace.

“Viper, Tank, you’re with me. Let’s quickly sweep the rest of the compound. Bernie and Crow, remain here with the hostages,” Dom commanded. There was something in his voice that sliced to my core as I watched Mikey and Ford join Dom.

We’d won, but I didn’t feel…relieved.

We’d won, but at what cost?

We’d eliminated Karim al-Jabari, prevented him from attacking more innocent civilians here and on US soil, but what was the price?

The body of a man who we once called friend, brother, and teammate waited for us.

So much death.

How valuable life was.

And how much pain ached in my bones.

Grief built like a steady drum as I waited with Bernie, keeping an eye on the women and children who would finally get to go free. Such a heavy price freedom cost. A weight that I’d signed up to carry, but it didn’t lessen the blow. A platoon was on its way to clear out the armory. A squad was already above ground, sweeping the buildings nearest to this compound.

They’d find Reyes’s body. Someone who’d caused more chaos and destruction than was necessary, all for what? At what price? At what cost?

Wasn’t there anything else that we could’ve done to prevent all of this?

My eyes closed again, and I hung my head, trying to focus on the fact that we’d won. That in the end, we would get to live another day.

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