Page 7 of Promises in the Dark

Doc rushed after me, trying to stop me with desperate pleas. “You can’t leave, you’re too weak!”

I pushed past, not willing to listen. Nothing mattered but getting the fuck out of here.

“Wait!”

Finally, I managed to force my way past her, but my body betrayed me. My legs gave out underneath me, the pain too intense. Before I could crash to the floor, Doc grabbed me, catching me just in time.

“Are you satisfied now?” she asked, trying to support my weight. “This is why I didn’t want you to stand.”

The pain was sudden and intense. The world around me began to move in slow motion, the air trapped in my throat, my lungs struggling to get a breath of oxygen.

I pushed past the nurse that tried to stop me, not giving a single, solitary fuck about the hospital’s rules or anyone’s advice.

Everything became darker, my vision fading and swirling, my entire body giving in to the agony. All I could do was fall, the ground rushing up to meet me.

As the pain ripped through my body, taking over my mind, there was one final image that burned itself into my brain. Two glistening green eyes, staring straight into mine, and a faint hint of fragrance, teasing my nose, making me want to inhale even deeper.

Citrus and bergamot.

I could feel the coldness of the floor against my skin, the air gusting through the room, the overwhelming sense of exhaustion as every ounce of my strength abandoned me.

And then, nothing.

Sweet, merciful fucking oblivion.

Chapter 3

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the wasteland of Afghanistan sprawled out in front of me, the sun beating down on my skin like a sadist.

My eyes burned from the glare, the air thick with dust and grit that choked the shit out of me. That dry, cracked earth sucked up every bit of moisture like a thirsty whore desperate for every last drop.

In the distance, jagged mountains ripped through the horizon, their peaks lost in the haze of the blistering sky. The sun blazed like a motherfucker, turning our cramped vehicle into a goddamn oven. Sweat poured down my face, stinging my eyes and dripping like it had nowhere else to fucking go.

And then shit blew the hell up.

The explosion rocked the car, sending everything to chaos. Shrapnel tore through the air like jagged teeth, ripping through the flimsy-ass metal of the vehicle. I shouted, barely recognizing my own voice as I was flung out of my seat by the sheer force of the blast.

Even with the pain burning through me, I forced my ass to move. Somehow, I rolled out of the wreckage, grabbing my rifle and yelling at my team.

“Get the fuck out! Now!”

My voice barely cut through the chaos—gunfire, screams, and explosions all blending together in the fucked-up orchestra of war. Ears ringing, adrenaline rushing, I tried to shout louder, my throat raw.

“We need to get the fuck out of here!” I roared, hoping that someone heard me over the shitstorm around us.

The heat outside was suffocating, pressing down like a goddamn anvil. The dirt beneath our feet cracked and drank up every drop of moisture left in the air, like this whole fucking place was designed to wipe us out.

One of my guys hit the ground, blood pooling beneath him, soaking into the dirt like the earth was thirsty for it. I couldn’t take my eyes off the stain spreading across the ground, the last bit of life seeping out of him.

Adrenaline was pumping like a freight train, my heart jackhammering as I dodged incoming fire and unleashed a few rounds of my own. The insurgents were everywhere, screaming shit in their language as they shot at us from all sides. The roar of gunfire was deafening, bullets tearing through the air like demons.

We were outgunned, outnumbered, and completely fucked.

I fired shot after shot, my rifle kicking back hard enough to rattle my bones. I watched as those bastards dropped, their screams filling the air before hitting the ground like sacks of shit. The earth trembled under the gunfire, bullets screaming inches past my head. It was chaos, pure fucking hell, with neither side letting up for even a second.

Every nerve in my body was fried, tension wrecking me from the inside out, my veins still flooded with adrenaline. The mission had gone sideways, and all I could think about were the teammates I’d already lost.

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