CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

Ian, Gabe, Rafe, Vince, Tailor, Piper, Mac, Hazel, Major, Jak, Ham, Cowboy, Carter, and King landed on the largest of the three islands. From above, they'd circled several times but saw no signs of life, no fire, nothing to indicate that there was anyone on the island.

Exiting the chopper, they started to walk inland when the men suddenly appeared before them.

"If you're going to kill us, do it quickly," said a man. Piper stared at the men, then looked at her teammates.

"We're not here to harm you," she said. "We're a security company here to take you home."

"Home," he said softly. "We don't even know where that is any longer."

"It's wherever you want to make it," said Ian. "We'll find a home for you. We'll make a home for you. We just want to get you off this island before Kaplan comes. How many men do you have?"

"Five," said the man.

"Five? You only have five men here?" asked Tailor, confused at the number. The others had a dozen or more.

"Five men alive," said the man. "At one time, we had nearly a hundred. Five are alive."

Tailor walked closer to the group of men, and they all stepped back just a little. Realizing how he must look to them, he held up his hands, and he shook his head, smiling at them.

"I'm not gonna hurt y'all," he said. "I'm just tryin' to figure out how long you've been here. I can't tell how old you are from back here. That's all."

"Most of us are recent, at least compared to many of the men before us, less than ten years," said one of the men. "The men that died had been here decades. We had a lot of men from South Korea and China. Just getting them to get along with one another was hard enough, let alone trying to figure out everyone's stories."

"Who needs medical attention?" asked Carter, walking toward them with Gabe.

"All of us. We're all dehydrated, malnourished, bites, sunburn, you name it."

"Guys! We gotta move now. A storm is moving this way fast," said Evie. "Hello, boys. Welcome home! Almost."

"Jesus. Is she our pilot?" asked one of the men.

"Yep, and a damn fine one," smirked Ian. "Let's go, fellas. We'll get you fixed up on the bird."

Loaded and safe, Evie took off around the island, giving the men one last look at the space that had been their prison. She then put the Osprey in sonic mode, instigating the stealth features, and they were gone.

"What kind of chopper is this?" asked one of the men.

"It's modified for us," said Hazel, wrapping a wound on his leg. "Everything you see here is our own creation by some of the most amazing engineers you've ever known."

"Damn. I wish we would have had this when I was in."

"What happened to you? Why did Kaplan take you?" she asked.

"I'm ashamed to say it, but I thought I'd have some fun. You know, with one of the girls. Except I didn't realize they were just that. Girls. I got there, and he sent me into the tent. I turned around and walked back out. I mean, shit, she was maybe ten. Didn't even have breasts yet," he said, swallowing, shaking his head.

"I'm so damn ashamed of myself. I don't know if I'll ever be able to touch a woman again."

"Did you?" asked Hazel quietly, praying the man would say no. "Did you touch her?"

"No. No, I refused, which is what landed me here. But he didn't take me until he made me watch one of his men take her. That kid didn't even cry," he said with tears running down his face. "She was taught not to cry. How fucking sick is that?"

"How were you able to pay? We heard that he charges more than a hundred thousand for a night with the girls."

"Usually. We found out the hard way he offers a ‘deal' for those he wants to trap. I had access to something he wanted. Codes for a munitions locker. He made me watch them rape that little girl, that child, and then threatened to kill her if I didn't give him the codes. I couldn't do it. I just couldn't do it. I couldn't let her die. She wasn't even crying." He wiped his own tears, and Major nodded at the young man, Hazel gripping his hand.

"We know," said Hazel. "Major? Can you take him to the back for a shower and give him some clothes?"

"Let's go, man. We'll get you fixed up." He stood and hobbled behind Major, then turned toward Hazel.

"Thank you. Thank you for not judging me." She smiled, nodding at the man. Hazel picked up the medical supplies, slowly standing. She felt a firm hand on her shoulder and turned to see her friend, Ham.

"You okay?"

"They just picked them up from anywhere and everywhere. Others he targeted for what he needed, forcing them to choose between the life of a child, a girl, and what he wanted. The Kaplans were ballsy enough to do everything out in the open, and then when caught, just decided to kidnap and kill men for no reason."

"That was true for some of them," said Ham. "Others were POWs from other countries that their captors wanted to get rid of. Hands clean. Even if the U.N. sent someone in to investigate, there would be no sign of them anywhere. It's a case of men having more power than they should and using it in the worst possible ways."

"How will these people ever have normal lives, Ham?" she whispered.

"I don't know, honey. They might not. They might not sleep with the lights out or with them on. They might not ever want to touch sand again or eat tropical fruit or fish. They're going to have more issues than you and I will ever understand. But they will have the freedom to work through those issues and find their way home. Wherever that might be. They will find their way, and we will be there to help them."

She nodded, hugging Ham and walking back toward her seat. The other men were all being cared for. This would be difficult for all of them to get over, but the good news was that they would get over it. With the help of one another and their home team, they were all going to be alright.

After speaking to the medical team back home and relaying the types of medical issues they were dealing with, they all agreed that using the sonic speed and getting them to a military hospital was the best bet. For them, they knew that the Naval Hospital San Diego was going to be their best choice, although probably not the most welcoming to the team considering how they left with April.

It would also be the safest place to be allowed to land, unseen by civilian eyes. They could land the choppers on the rooftop, unload the patients, and then land at North Island Naval Air Station.

Although, that didn't prevent the Navy aviators from gawking at their birds. They were told who was landing but didn't dare move too close to the Ospreys.

With the stealth mechanisms and locks engaged, they were hidden in an empty hangar, and they were able to rendezvous at the home still owned by the team.

Taking turns, they showered as quickly as possible, changed their clothes, and prepared to head out after Kaplan as soon as given the location.

"Get some sleep," said Nine. "We appreciate everyone's help on this one. More than that, I appreciate your compassion for those men we just rescued. They were dirty, infested, broken, and yet you all treated them with dignity and respect. I would have expected that from all of you, but I just wanted to say it."

"We were glad to be able to help. You know that, Nine," said Noa. "I sure would like a piece of Kaplan. And I mean that literally."

"Same," nodded Ethan. "Just let me have a few minutes alone with him."

"Not before me."

"Fuck!"

"Damnit!"

"Shit! You just took ten years off my life that I can't afford to give. Stop that shit, Trak!" said Tailor. He shrugged at his friend, crunching into an apple.

"Nine is right. We should get some sleep," he said to the room. "We will want to be rested when the call comes."

"He's right," said Gaspar. "Ian has cots in the attic. Grab one, get pillows from the hall closet, and a blanket. There are twelve beds. Let us old guys have those. The rest of you take a sofa, cot, or the floor."

"Can we order pizza?" asked Alec with a childlike plea of innocence. His whiskey-colored eyes were big and wide, his hands clasped in prayer.

"Pizza?" frowned Ian.

"I'm hungry. So is Tailor." Tailor nodded like a three-year-old accomplice.

"Me, too," smiled Ethan.

"Same," grinned Jean. "That really got my appetite going."

"Fine. Order pizza. Island Pizza is probably the best. Order ten, maybe twenty, aww hell. Just order as many as they can make. They won't go to waste."

"We're getting pizza," grinned Tailor like a child. "I want one with everything and one with pepperoni, salami, ham, sausage, chorizo, mushrooms, and extra onions. Oh! And one with all the veggies and stuff. See, I like veggies."

"I know," nodded Alec. "Maybe after that, we can convince them to go get some ice cream."

"No ice cream!" yelled Nine from the next room. "Do you not remember what happened the last time you two ate ice cream? Two gallons of that shit, and all of us had to sleep outside. I have to sleep in the same house as your lactose-intolerant ass. You are not getting ice cream." Alec frowned, shaking his head.

"Since they got old, they're no fun anymore."