Page 34 of Garr

“We could use your help over here,” grinned Gaspar. “Crazy kid over there wants to know how to shoot a bow and arrow. We thought you could help him.”

“I do better with knives, but I’ll try,” he said with a smirk.

The men were quiet on the drive back to Belle Fleur. Visiting the hospital wasn’t easy. In fact, it was the most difficult part of their entire year. But it had to be done. The children needed it, and so did they. It reminded them that they were still human. They still had hearts filled with compassion.

When the animals were back on their island, and the men thanked them all with special treats, they took the boat back to Belle Île, where they were greeted by a bonfire, spiked eggnog, and cookies. But the most beautiful sight was their wives.

“We thought you could use a little cheer,” smiled Erin. Lauren rose to hug her husband, kissing him soundly.

“I’m so proud of you,” she said in his ear.

“News travels fast,” he said, looking at Irene. “Is Matthew back yet?”

“On his way, love,” said Irene. “Let’s just enjoy this family time, rememberin’ all the things we’re grateful for.” Matthew suddenly appeared from behind them, wrapping an arm around his beautiful wife. He stared at his sons, all of them, and raised a cup to them.

“Amen, my love. Amen.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

“Our friend, the Colonel, never went overseas,” said AJ. “He canceled the trip citing an intestinal issue.”

“But?” said Cam. AJ stared at him. “I sense a ‘but,’ and I’m sure you’re going to tell me what it is.”

“Yes. But. I’m hearing chatter that there are plans for several more mass shootings. One already happened early this morning outside an electronics store in Boulder, Colorado. People were lined up for the early opening of the store to get a special deal on big-screen televisions. Seven were killed, thirteen wounded.”

“Damn. All for a fucking television?” frowned Eric.

“That’s the worst part of all of this. The televisions were never on sale. The store said they didn’t advertise it and had no intentions of selling televisions at that price. Someone lured them there.”

“Oh, shit,” muttered AJ, staring at his screen. Quickly, he linked his laptop to the big screen overhead, and the men all turned to look.

“Colonel Brockman, you aren’t seriously suggesting that the answer to all these random shootings is for Americans to buy more weapons and become armed citizen patrols with no leadership, no training, nothing?”

“That’s exactly what I’m saying. If every American had a weapon on their hip, in their car, at their side, they could defend themselves.”

“Or they could kill other Americans!”

“That is a risk. Of course, we would want them all to be trained and go to weapons training classes, but once they did that, they would be proficient enough to protect themselves and their families.”

“I would respectfully disagree with Colonel Brockman.”

“Admiral Harris, please shed some light on this. What are your thoughts about all of this?”

“I think Colonel Brockman is not speaking for the majority in Washington, D.C., nor is he speaking for the majority of our military or para-military organizations. I won’t argue that Americans have the right to defend themselves, to bear arms, but this should be done in a tightly regulated, controlled environment with only certain weapons allowed for the general population. What Colonel Brockman is advocating is a rogue mercenary army.”

Brockman stared at his colleague with a glare that said, “I’ll get you for that,” but he spoke no further, turning from the cameras and leaving the steps of the Capitol.

“He’s trying to create a mercenary army,” said Luke. “AJ? Get Admiral Harris on the phone. See if he has time to speak with us.”

“Actually, his assistant just sent a text asking if he could meet with us. Here.”

Cam looked at Luke, shaking his head. Eric and Hex did the same.

“We’ll meet with him in New Orleans,” said Luke. “Tell him we’ll reserve the private dining room at Commander’s Palace. Name the time and we’ll be there.”

“Luke, what if he’s actually in on this with Brockman?” asked Eric.

“I want to believe he’s not,” said Luke. “Harris was a commander when I was a SEAL, and he was a damn fine one. His team completed more missions than just about any other team in the same time frame. They were highly successful, and not one of them had a mark on their record. That says a lot about him.”

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