Bishop's War (Bishop Series Book 1) (7 page)

“Come here, boy.” John wrapped his arms around Chris. “So, I’ve got three weeks to get you ready? That course almost killed me. In the meantime let’s see what you’ve got.”

They squared off, throwing jabs and a few light punches at each other until John moved in and grabbed him in a head lock.

After Chris tapped out John said, “Seriously, congrats cuz. I see you’re in great shape, but we’re gonna do some insane workouts together before you head out to SF training.”

“Yeah, that would be great Johnny. Thanks!”

“Thanks? You’re the one doing me the favor. Now that I’m retired I’m already feeling soft,” he said winking at Macho.

“Yeah, sure. I can tell, real soft. I’ll call you tomorrow and we’ll set up a schedule,” Chris said as he and his dad went to get drinks.

Even though John was having a great time he was still looking for Maria. He finally spotted her sitting on a lawn chair away from the main party talking with his Aunt Grasiella. He stood there watching them from a distance and realized his palms were moist and sweaty. He’d known Maria his whole life and she still made him nervous.

Maria’s father was from Scotland and her mother was Filipino. She was the first girl he ever kissed and she was still the most beautiful girl he’d ever seen. Her complexion was a creamy mocha, her long jet black hair flowed down her back, her Asian eyes were dark, soft and shining, her lips were full, and her body was simply ridiculous. More important than her good looks, Maria had a huge heart, and was “wicked smart.” She volunteered at the local Boys and Girls Clubs, had an MBA from Columbia, and was a Senior VP at JP Morgan.

Grasiella and Maria saw him and waved franticly as he worked his way over. He picked up the aunt that raised him, his favorite person in the whole world and gave her a tight squeeze that made her giggle.

Then he turned to Maria and gave her a hug and kiss on the cheek that was more formal than he meant it to be. After an awkward moment he decided it was time to speak and managed to croak out, “Huh, hi Maria.”

“Wow! Really? That’s what you got for me? After you were done saving the world I dreamed you’d come charging in on a white horse and carry me away. Even without the horse I was expecting a lot more than a huh and a hi.”

She pulled him close and gave him a long, lingering kiss that made Grasiella blush and smile with approval.

Chapter 8

The Evil That Men Do

Union Square Park, Manhattan

“Everything is ready,
Amir. The men will not fail you, but you should not be here,” said Khalid Mulan.

“I must be certain. There has already been one mistake, and the mistake was mine alone. Aziz will not tolerate another,” said Amir Khan, standing with Khalid next to their off-duty cab on the west side of the park.

Amir couldn’t hide his tension and ignored Khalid’s disapproving stare. He wanted to be at the scene even though he knew his battered face was attracting unwanted attention. His smashed in nose had been poorly reset. It looked unnaturally crooked and both his eyes were swollen and black with green highlights around the edges. The dark sunglasses he wore did nothing to stop the sun’s rays from repeatedly stabbing him in the brain and he was still seeing spots from getting “sucker punched” during his night in jail.

Amir still could not believe his own stupidity. He wound up in jail because he forgot his wallet and driver’s license at the safe house. He was heading here to the park to scout it out one last time and was focused on the mission instead of the road when he was pulled over for going through a red light. Just two days before the operation that he’d planned for years he gets arrested and then gets his nose broken.

Right away he had known he was in big trouble and it only fueled his anger. He was angry at himself for getting arrested. He was angry that he lost his temper and spit at the soldier. More than anything he was angry for getting beat up. Amir also knew that if this mission did not go as planned he was a dead man. His organization was unforgiving and family or not, his uncle Aziz would have him eliminated.

“You know, they will call on you to kill me if anything else goes wrong, Khalid.”

“Amir, we have been friends since we were boys. You are my brother, and I will gladly give my own life to protect yours.”

“Let us pray that Allah keeps us both alive. At least until our work here is done.”

“Have faith my brother, and look around you. Allah has blessed us with good weather and the target is filled with infidels,” Khalid said, as they surveyed the park. They had picked Union Square because of the large crowds and light security. One of the few city centers without check points and security cameras, it’s a central hub for New Yorkers with eight subway entrances and six different subway lines that keep the park crowded with lots of through traffic.

Busy year round, warm weather increases traffic tenfold, and every Saturday from spring through fall there is a bustling farmer’s market surrounding the park where they sell homemade pies and breads, grass fed beef, fish, fresh fruit, and locally-grown vegetables. Dozens of stalls are set up for the thousands of shoppers that pass through.

This Saturday in June the sky was clear, the sun shone brightly, and the light, easy breeze made it one of those perfect summer days. The park and surrounding market were filled beyond capacity, people shopped to the island rhythms of a decent reggae band, and some talented teenage break dancers put on a show for the crowd.

Amir looked on with indifference at the scene in front of him. He saw no beauty in the tall trees that shaded the benches where people were eating lunch and relaxing. The happy hum of children’s laughter from the large playground at the park’s north end did not touch him. The many families and women with strollers walking nearby meant nothing to him. These were his enemies, nothing more than moving targets.

“Fucking Americans. I wonder how many we will kill today?”

“Many Amir, many.”

Amir and Khalid were both of the Pashtun tribe and grew up in small Afghan villages east of Kabul. Amir began fighting by his uncle’s side when he was a boy, first as a lookout climbing the high rocky bluffs and mountain peaks in search of the enemy, and later, given his own rifle, he became a deadly sniper. He shot his first man at age eleven and there were many more after that. Despite his bad temper and insatiable appetite for killing, his uncle Aziz had seen intelligence in him. Amir spoke seven languages including English and some broken French. A long term planner, Aziz ordered Amir to go to America, “to help destroy the enemy from the inside.”

Given a false identity, he arrived in New York and for the past five years his uncle had been sending him men and money. He had also recruited his own soldiers and established cells throughout the city.

Amir patiently planned for the day when they would strike and that day was today. Once this mission was completed three more massive strikes were to follow that would cripple the city and maybe even the entire country. His dream was to bring America to its knees. He wanted the world to know his name. He wanted the world to know that a poor mountain boy from Afghanistan destroyed the superpower that dared to invade his country.

“Go now, Khalid.”

“You’re not coming?”

“Soon, soon. You go on ahead. I will meet you later to celebrate and prepare for the next attacks.”

“As you wish, Amir, but don’t stay long. Everything you see, including the ground under your feet will be gone very shortly.”

“God willing.”

“It is God’s will that these devils all die today, my brother.”

“I know it is Khalid. Go now and get the other teams ready.”

As Khalid walked away Amir gazed upon the thousands of men, women and children all around him. He hated them all and wondered again how many they would kill today.

Chapter 9

Maria

Queens, NY

While Amir was
thinking about murder John was thinking about love. He and Maria had talked for hours at his party the night before and once they got to her house in Queens there had been no pretenses. They both desperately wanted each other and clothes were coming off before the door closed.

The sex had been violent at first. Fast, rough, and angry. Only after they had purged the pain of their past hurts did they slow their pace, becoming more tender and more passionate. Drenched in sweat, they gripped each other tightly as they came together. Afterwards, bathed in the warm light of the full moon, they lay staring into each other’s eyes, saying I love you without a word being spoken.

John slept deeply and slept late for the first time in a very long time. He was still on a combat schedule and usually shot up an hour before dawn with his senses keen and alert. Today he woke up at nine with a lazy smile and Maria’s sparkling eyes on him.

“I know you just got back and you just woke up so I’m not trying to put any pressure on you, but there’s something I need to say,” she said in a soft voice.

John sat up and laced his fingers through hers, waiting for her to speak.

“I’ve loved you my whole life, Johnny. I love you, and I’ve been waiting a long time for you. Waiting without any promises. Waiting without knowing if I’ve been waiting in vain. Worrying that you might get hurt again or even killed this time. Worrying that you might have met someone else and come home married.” She paused, wiping away tears and trying to maintain her composure.

“I love you, I want to marry you, and I want us to have lots of kids together before I’m too old to have them. Sooo… what’s it gonna be big guy?” she asked with a fearful smile.

Looking back at their long love affair, all their breakups had been over stupid things. Although it seemed big and important at the time it was always something insignificant that tripped them up. They would argue over things that he couldn’t even remember now and a disagreement would escalate into a fight and the next thing he knew they were broken up. Before either of them could take back what had been said he would be on a plane heading into another war zone.

In his heart John knew that he had been unfair to her. He’d been running from Maria and from himself for a long time. The death of his parents, accidentally killing the Yale student when he was eighteen, and Felix going to prison for his mistake had all haunted him. These were his demons and they had eaten him up and driven a wedge between them. Not anymore. Now he felt more at peace than he had ever been.

Less than two months ago he had been talking and laughing with his buddy Sammy Mills in Kabul. John and Sammy had gone through Special Forces training together. They became fast friends and were both unofficially adopted and mentored by their CO Tommy Burke. They were separated when John was assigned to the 7th Special Forces Group that operated in Central and South America because of his fluent Spanish. But later, with all the action in the Middle East, he re-united with both Sammy and Tommy in Iraq and Afghanistan as part of 5th Special Forces.

John and Sammy were sipping morning coffee at a small café in Kabul when a young kid on a bicycle rode up to them. They smiled and waved at him, not realizing the kid’s intentions. He raised an ancient, large caliber revolver, steadied it with both hands, and casually shot Sammy in the face. John killed the kid, who couldn’t have been more than thirteen, then bent down to check on Sammy. His lower jaw was gone, teeth and bone fragments were stuck in his throat. He held him tight, breathing into the gaping hole that used to be his mouth, waiting for the ambulance that never came. Sammy died in John’s arms, staring into the eyes of his best friend.

Men die in war and John had buried a lot of buddies over the years. You stay on the front lines long enough you bury friends, or friends bury you. Period. He lived this, he knew this, and still he just couldn’t get past Sammy’s death.

Finally, after starting three fights on base and volunteering for every hot mission he could Major Burke pulled him into his tent and sat him down for a talk. “Look Johnny, I know Sammy’s death hit you hard, but you’ve got to let him go.”

“I’m trying, I’m really trying.”

“We’ve known each other a long time, and I care too much about you not to tell you the truth when it needs telling. Johnny, you’re probably the greatest fighting man I’ve ever seen or ever heard of. That’s the truth. You’re the best. Not ‘cause you’re the bravest, though you are one heroic son of a bitch. No, you’re the best cause when the lead’s flying and the bombs go off, most guys, no matter how tough, no matter how brave, and no matter how well they’re trained, still get a little nervous. They’ll flinch, or hesitate, or rush, or do something foolish that gets them or their pals killed. Not you Johnny. You stay cool. I’ve seen you, man. It’s almost an eerie cool. It’s like you slow everything down and you kind of float across a battlefield. You always seem to know which guy to take out first or last. Somehow, you instantly know the sequence. It’s like you’re playing chess out there Johnny, and it makes you real special, but it scares the shit out of a lot of guys who are some pretty scary motherfuckers in their own right. When it comes to killing you’re one spooky dude, my friend.”

“What’re you saying, Tommy?”

“What I’m saying is this man: you’ve got to bury your dead. You told me a long time ago about your mom and dad being murdered in front of you, and you’ve seen a lot more death since then. You have ‘em all wrapped around you like a blanket and it makes you one deadly motherfucker out here, but it’s not letting you have a life, man. Outside of your patchwork quilt of dead family and friends you’ve got nothing. You’re afraid to go home. You’re afraid to live.”

John was shaking with anger and ready to rip Tommy Burke apart for what he’d just said, but Tommy continued on. “Johnny, I can see you want to kick my ass right now. All I can say is, do what you gotta do man, no hard feelings. Just know that I’m saying what everyone else out here knows, but are too chicken shit to tell you. They’re too scared of what you might do to them, and too scared that you might lose your edge and not be there to save their sorry ass in the next fire fight.”

He’d looked down at his feet for a moment, then added, “Johnny, I love you, and I don’t want to see you get wasted out here. You’ve done your share. You’re not even fighting the enemy anymore. You’re just trying to kill your own demons. That is guaran-damn-teed to get you blown away, son. Bury your dead and leave them here. Go home and get a life, man. Marry Maria if she’ll still have you.”

“What about you? Majors don’t lead A Teams, Captains do. So why’re you still out here?” John asked in a shaky voice.

Burke had shaken his head slowly and then with disappointment in his eyes said, “You already know the answer to that. First off, you guys on Razor are the sons I never had, and I can’t put my boys in the hands of a stranger while we’re at war. I called in every favor I could, and then had to beg and plead to keep my command. Second, I’m a working man. My whole check, every dollar I earn goes directly to Amy and the girls. I’ve got seventeen years in this man’s army. Three more till retirement and a full pension, then no more humping through the mud shedding my blood. It’s watching my lawn and my baby girls grow, giving them all lots of TLC, and waking up with Amy in my arms for the rest of my life. And I’ll tell you something else. If, God forbid, I catch a bad break and get blown away out here, I’ll be real sad about it, but I’ll also accept it and die a happy man. You wanna know why?” Burke asked looking deep into John’s eyes, piercing him.

“The reason is that I gave my country the full measure of my devotion and service, the same way I gave my wife and kids all the love in my heart. So I’ll be real sad that I won’t get to walk my girls down the aisle and grow old with Amy, but I’ll die knowing how much they loved me, and how much I loved them in turn. With my last breath I’ll whisper their names and ask God to protect them for me.”

Burke started getting angry then.

“Johnny, the only two guys out here who’ve known about your money are me and Sammy. Sammy’s dead, and I’ve never told a soul and never will. I’ve never thought less of you for it, or that you were some rich punk with something to prove. But, the fact is you don’t need to be here, man. You don’t need this job. Your papers are here. I took it upon myself to have them prepped and ready. In a month you can be back home. Walk away Johnny, walk away. You saved my life four times out here, and I’ll miss you, but do it. Go home before it’s too late. Walk away before you’ve got nothing left inside. It’s time to stop the killing and start the living.”

John had stumbled out of the tent feeling drained and beaten by Tommy’s words. It took him two days to fully digest it all. Then the storm clouds in his head parted. He realized that almost everything he believed in was a lie. He’d warped his own truths to cover up his guilt, sorrow, and anger. He’d run away from his family and from the woman he loved. He’d lied to himself and to her. He knew he’d wasted a lot of years of their happiness and he was suddenly desperate to get to Maria and to start a real life with her.

He signed his discharge papers that afternoon. He’d had many more talks with Tommy Burke over the next few weeks while he waited for his release and his ticket home. He told the major that he’d saved his life and he wanted him to be at the wedding. Tommy had two weeks of R & R in August so they would schedule it then.

“Don’t you think you better propose first?”

“Planning on it, sir.”

John had gone on his last mission just before his papers came through. He traveled through the mountains near the border and placed surveillance equipment in an old shack that was a suspected enemy meeting place. It took him two days to make the round trip. He could have done it in one if he’d killed the enemy scouts and lookouts he’d come across, but his fighting days were over. He chose to go around instead of through them.

He said goodbye to his many friends, the operators from his ODA, Team Razor, and he told Tommy he would send a letter with the wedding invites for him and his girls. John felt like a new man, as if he’d been reborn. He felt lighter because he was. He left most of his dead in Afghanistan. Most of them. The final moment of cleansing had been his talk with Felix and even though they’d gone to jail right afterwards it was well worth it. The last of his demons were gone and he could finally start living a real life.

He’d planned to tell Maria all this in time. He just didn’t want to blast her with everything on their first day together.

“I’m so sorry, Maria,” he said.

She immediately burst into tears, falling face first into her pillow.

“No baby, you don’t understand,” he said pulling her close. “I’m
sorry
for all the years I wasted for both of us. I’m sorry I kept running away. I’ve loved you from our first kiss. No, from even before that. From the moment I first saw you in the fourth grade. Then it took me three years to get up the nerve to kiss you. I loved you then, and I love you now more than ever. I left the service, honey. I left to come home to you. We’re getting married in August. Tommy has leave then and he has to be there.”

Maria pounced on him and screamed at the top of her lungs, squeezing his neck until he could hardly breathe. They kissed and laughed and kissed again. Then she pulled back and said, “Two things. One, you didn’t kiss me first, I kissed you. I waited and waited for you to make a move, but you were such a big chicken I knew I had to do something or end up an old maid. I kissed
you
first, you big liar!” she said and gave him a punch in the chest.

“Okay, okay you kissed me! What else?”

“What else and second is this: What kind of lame ass proposal was that? You didn’t even ask me to marry you. You just said we’re getting married in August. How do you know I’ll even say yes?”

“What? You just told me that you wanted to… You’re driving me cra…” He stopped in mid-sentence and composed himself. He picked her up and gently sat her on the edge of the bed. Getting down on one knee he asked her.

“Maria, will you marry me?”

“Yes! Yes! Yes!” she screamed, then quickly kissed him and ran to call her mother.

Feeling dizzy from the morning’s events, he leaned back against the bed and shook his head. He smiled while he listened to Maria squealing on the phone and realized that for the first time in his life, or at least as far back as he could remember, John Michael Bishop was truly a happy man.