Adrian's Eagles: Book Four (Life After War) (30 page)

“Must be Field Trip day,” Seth joked, stopping in front of the group as they came to the large training tent. “Unless you guys snuck out again?”

There were snorts and giggles all around.

“We didn’t escape,” one of Peggy’s girls retorted sharply, tossing a dark braid over her shoulder. “And you know it. So come on and let us in!”

Samantha was surprised at the rudeness, but saw that the guard, and Neil, had smiled.

“But I don’t know for sure,” Seth protested. “Bad guys can look like anyone, right?”

The younger kids tensed at their own mental horrors, faces tightening in fear, and the girl’s voice was grave. “Yes. Even like you and Adrian.”

“Exactly and that’s why I have to ask every time anyone comes through.”

“Kids can’t be bad guys.” This came from another of Peggy’s group, and again, Sam was glad of the two calmly listening kids holding her hands.

“Yes, they can.”

Neil’s hard voice snapped Sam’s head to him.

“They don’t always know because grownups are sneaky. Sometimes they ask kids to do things that are wrong.”

“And do you banish them, too?” one of his little boys asked, clinging to his arm, and Neil shook his head.

 
“Never. It’s not a kid’s fault when a grownup makes them do bad things.”

“The grownup should be punished,” the braid swinging girl exclaimed brutally, telling Sam she’d been hurt. “Not us!”

“Yes. If a grownup tries to get you to do things you think are bad, say you will and then come tell Adrian,” Seth instructed.

Listening as closely as the kids, Sam realized this was a training session, too.

The guard checked his watch and did a fast sweep of the camp, while pretending to be confused. “I wonder where he is this time.”

The kids all let out another loud cheer, startling Sam, and she watched warily as they all began darting around. Hide-n-seek?

“There he is!” ponytail girl screamed, pointing up and the kids clustered around the trunk of the tree Adrian was sitting in.

“What’s the password?” Adrian barked at them, making Sam jump.

“We love America!” they responded together.

Adrian snapped a salute. ”You may enter!”

He jumped down and was immediately smothered with little bodies hugging, tackling, and wrestling him to the ground.

Sam was surprised Adrian would take the time for this and amazed that he was so popular with the kids. It spoke of his inner person being as good as the one they saw daily.

When she started to move closer, worried about the little girl with the broken wrist, Neil caught her eye. “He’s got them.”

And he did. From tickling back and chasing, to a quick hug and smile, it was clear the kids adored Safe Haven’s Leader.

“How are you?”

Sam was aware of more than one set of ears listening for her answer.

“Adjusting.” She raised a brow, unable to resist even though she had serious doubts about his sense of humor. “Did he get all the mud off his jacket?”

Neil’s face went red. “I was afraid to ask.”

Sam chuckled. “I’m sure he’s had worse,” she commented, watching Adrian start a game of tag.

“You two ready for some coffee?” Peggy called, tone friendly enough.

“No, thanks.”

Sam moved to get a cup, needed the caffeine rush to fully wake (that or danger), and she was careful to throw out the air that she wasn’t to be messed with. Sam saw the woman’s eyes cool. Good. If she decided she wanted the uptight Trooper, Peggy and her spunky daughter wouldn’t get in the way.

“Thanks.”

Sam hung around her for a moment as she sipped the strong brew, waiting to see if there might be a threat, but there was only a series of cool looks exchanged. Because the mother wanted to keep the peace? Becky didn’t care about the rules. Why would her parent? From all appearances, Peggy wanted Neil to be her son-in-law, even though her daughter was only a 15 year-old kid.

Some mother
, Sam thought, moving back toward Adrian and the happily running orphans. To her mind, Becky was a baby compared to Neil. Did that mean she was attracted to another man with mental problems?
Maybe that was the only kind she could feel
ali
…

“Okay kids, line up,”

Peggy’s voice echoed firmly and all the dusty children flew her way after promises of a visit from Adrian.

“Get with your chaperone and you can go on in.”

Sam’s two girls clutched her hands eagerly, almost dragging her forward. “Come on!”

Laughing, Samantha moved faster into the area she’d noticed and wondered about. Hilda had said it was where Adrian taught his army to be true men and she stepped inside almost as eagerly as the kids.

Instead of the adult setup that would have to normally be used, the long tent was filled with half-sized equipment.
Kid-sized
, she corrected herself, letting the little girls lead her to the circular obstacle course in the middle.

“We
hafta
warm up.”

Sam surrendered the second hot drink in an hour and began helping the girl with the cast remove her shoes and socks.

Thinking she might have to learn their names soon, Sam paced them as they walked the low beam, rolled under empty boxes, and jumped over gaps in the mat. She kept a close eye on the girl in the cast and finally had to call out, “Hey you!” when she leaned too far over the beam. “Be careful…what’s your name?”

The girl hopped down with a grin, cast bumping against the hard wood. “Tracy. That’s Leeann.” She turned to point at the thin girl. “The rest of them are…” The recital went on for a while and Sam tried to keep up and still watch out for Leeann.

“Your turn!”

Sam blinked. Turn? Surely it wouldn’t hold… She watched Peggy heft herself onto the first beam and move across smartly before rolling under the boxes in an awkward shove that sent cardboard flying.

The kids giggled hard and Sam moved to the beam with Tracy now ready to do the paralleling.

“Whenever you’re ready,” the little girl called, holding up her casted wrist and Sam grimaced. They knew to take her place. How cute… and terrible that it was necessary. Sighing, she moved steadily along the wood, trying not to wince at a lance of pain in her old injury, that keeping it straight was causing. If Peggy could do it, so could she.

“You want me to do what?”

Cynthia’s voice drew Sam’s eye as she rolled over the mat. She had mostly forgotten about the reporter and stood up to see a boy with a bandage on his hand hopping up and down in protest.

“Run course!” he ordered and Cynthia shook her head. “Not me.”

“I can’t
if’n
you don’t!” the child shouted, but the reporter only denied him again.

“Sorry, kid.”

Sam smiled down at her girls. “
Wanna
run the course with him? You’ll have to show me how.”

“Yeah!”

They dragged her toward Cynthia, and Sam snagged the boy’s uninjured hand. “Come on.”

The child’s face lit up and Cynthia stuttered her thanks, embarrassed.

 
“Uh-huh.”

Sam didn’t offer more, but her tone said
shame on you
! and Neil felt his respect for her go up. The Storm Tracker was okay.

Serving as an extra pair of eyes, Anne watched the kids play in happiness. John had been right to bring them here. Anne noticed Adrian in the flap and wondered if he knew how lonely he seemed, watching his orphans frolic without him. She didn’t see much of him most days. She was either helping John or helping these kids, but soon, she would have to ask him for something. When they’d first come, there hadn’t been any reason to tell the Leader here about the cancer. Now, that had changed. One of Adrian’s chain of command had abilities that might push her husband’s illness into remission and there wasn’t anything Anne wouldn’t offer in return.

3

Kyle moved toward the center table with casual steps, sure what he was about to do would be hated by the sullen Marine on Adrian’s right as much as the morning’s start had been. After embarrassing Kenn on the course, she’d taken a rookie record from Seth and stolen Daniel’s high score on a training game. A busy two hours that had allowed some of the other level men to see how determined she was to succeed.

Steeling his nerves (it amazed him that he still felt any hesitation at all considering the missions he and his Eagles had completed since the War) Kyle stepped over to Angela’s side of the crowded center table.

“Hey, Kyle. Did you come for coffee?”

“‘Cause this
ain’t
it!”

Those at the table laughed at the well-used joke and the tanned Eagle grinned back, eyes full of warning Adrian took note of.

“Me and the boys are
headin
’ out. I thought I’d see if the rookie wants to come along.”

Silence fell over the table and those around them, and then over the entire Mess.

“Great idea.” Adrian turned to the blushing female across from him. “Feel like being out of camp for a while?”

Angela could feel his pleasure and Kenn’s fury. It hadn’t been planned. “Sure, when?”

Wanting to be sure those listening understood he now supported this, Kyle took control back. “Is fifteen minutes enough time for you to get ready?”

Angela snorted, standing up. “I’ll be ready in five like everyone else.”

The pair moved toward the tent area, ignoring the shocked camp around them. There had been rumors and stories, but no actual confirmation. It was true. She’d been accepted as an Eagle, a woman who had only been in camp for two weeks.

Silence reigned in the Mess and it took Neil’s full control to play his part convincingly. He and Kyle had worked it out only a little while ago. “Never seen a woman shoot that well. She hits 90% of all targets in Level Three. That’s the same level as Zack.”

Adrian played his own role happily, voice perfectly in awe. “A few more like that and we’d have enough shooters in camp to keep any bad guys off our asses.”

“It takes guts to join the Eagles. You think there are more women here like that?”

Adrian let his blue gaze sweep the openly listening people, making pointed contact with a few. “Yes, but they’ll come out when it’s their time.” Adrian went back to his lunch and the camp did the same, muttering and whispering. One of those he’d looked at was only 15!

Adrian gave Neil a subtle nod of approval and then moved them onto camp business. “All right, the day’s schedules are out. We’ll need to …”

“He’s very pleased with you.”

Kyle acknowledged the pride he felt at Angela’s words. “Then I’m doing it right.”

“Thank you. I know it’s for him, but thank you anyway.”

The Mobster raised a bushy brow. “It is for you, too, though. If you didn’t deserve the chance, he wouldn’t be giving it.” His team was currently loading the Excursion that he preferred to travel in because of the huge cargo area. Kyle made a motion to Billy, who relayed it to the others.

Assuming he had told them how long until he’d be there, Angela quickened her step. “I can meet you if you need to go.”

Kyle shook his head, sweeping the area. “My team is your shadow today.”

Realizing what that meant, Angela was grinning as she ducked into the small tent that never failed to remind her of her lost time with Brady. “Two minutes.”

Only half of that had gone by when she emerged from the tent in the rookie gear that had been lying near her tent flap this morning and unknowingly made them the center of attention again.

Angela belted her sweater over the uniform, hair high and tight under her cap, and slung the single bag over her shoulder, still smiling. No secret guard. They would be outside the camp and away from prying eyes for a few hours. Finally!

Not needing to see her face to know she was as eager as any of his team usually was to escape camp for a while, Kyle followed her to the vet area with a light step. It was going to be a good day.

“One minute.” Angela ducked into the animal tent to see her son and the vet in the middle of feeding the ever-growing zoo. She stayed near the flap, out of their way. “I’ll be with Kyle and his team today. Have Mitch call if you need me.”

Unlike after the War, when she’d been weakened by the loss of the baby, she could talk to him over any distance now and Charlie was glad she was still being cautious about their gifts, like before. It didn’t occur to him that she was providing cover, like an Eagle would have.

“Okay. Be careful.”

Angela tried not to frown. “I will,
mom
.”

The teenager snickered and after a quick nod at the unfriendly vet, she joined Kyle.

“I’m all set.”

Kyle glanced at his watch as he got them moving toward the waiting truck. Less than four minutes, including walk time. It was impressive for the team, but for a female? It was slightly unnerving and they moved across the camp in silence.