2: Beneath Orion, Worlds Apart 05

He hadn't felt despair like this in years; the last time he felt this way was just before he met his future wife, Jessica, who had literally saved him and turned his life around. Ryan wasn't sure how he would get through this, but he had to be strong for Jessica and Faith. Even for Kaylee. It would take a lot of time and a lot of prayers to heal, if one could actually heal through something this devastating. All he could think about was his boy, who had just turned into a man, but would never have a chance to fully experience adulthood. It wasn't fair how his son's life was tragically cut short.

Remembering how young and innocent he once was, all Ryan wanted to do was hold his boy on his lap one last time, running his fingers through his tousled hair, hugging him so close that he could take in his scent. He remembered his irrepressible laugh every time he tickled his chest, or pried his arms apart to tickle him under the armpits.

He looked over at Jessica who returned his forlorn glance. He could see it in her eyes; she was feeling the same thing too, missing her boy in the same way.

"Again, we are so sorry for your loss," the Major said, sensing it was time for them to go. "But please, remember we will call you tomorrow and follow up. We can't even begin to imagine the pain you are feeling, but we will support you and your family the best we can. We know some of the best counselors in the area that can help all of you overcome and deal with the loss." He handed Ryan a card and said, "If you need anything, call this number, night or day. We will be there to assist you in any way possible."

Ryan reluctantly nodded and escorted them out.

As the two officers stepped outside, they both turned around and snapped to attention. Both solemnly raised their right arm, saluting Ryan and his family. "Your son gave the ultimate sacrifice, and he died a hero. Airman Luke Patton will never be forgotten." Gravely retracting their salute, they left the premises.

---

The emptiness refused to go away. For the next week, Ryan, Jessica, Faith, Kaylee, and even Audrey all slept together in the living room under various piles of blankets, pillows and sleeping bags. Nobody said anything, but they didn't need to. It was unspoken but obvious that no one could bear the thought of being alone. Ryan made it a point to read a Bible verse or two every night, lighting the candle on the coffee table so he could read in the dark before everyone went to sleep. Afterwards he would close with a quick prayer.

Jessica and Audrey cried softly, every single time, as he read the passages and prayed aloud.

Faith sat quietly, somewhat stoic, focusing deeply on every single word uttered by her father. Her eyes watered and she sniffed profusely.

Kaylee, on the other hand, grew mad every time she heard a Bible verse. She didn't say anything, but the look of intense anger on her face said plenty. Kaylee caught Ryan observing her scowl more than once; she thought he was going to say something to her, or at least pull her to the side, but he never did.

---

The three girls broke the news to Aaron over at his apartment. None of them wanted to, but they knew he had to know. They didn't do a very good job; all of them cried while trying to form a single sentence between the three of them, attempting to tell him about Luke's death. By their crying alone he figured out what had happened. Ironically, it was Aaron that ended up comforting the girls.

Kaylee didn't feel good leaving Aaron; he never even cried. His eyes watered, but not a single drop fell. Maybe he was in shock, or maybe he was handling his best friend's death in his own way. Heck, maybe it was just because he was a guy; she didn't know.

Things would never be the same, Kaylee just knew. How could any of them return to a normal life? She was tired of walking around like a shell of a person, like a lifeless zombie. But she didn't know any other way. Maybe Aaron had rubbed off on her, but eventually over the next few days she stopped crying. Was it possible she was out of tears?

Faith was holding out much better than she was, God bless her. Kaylee had no idea how, but that girl was strong; she admired the simple fact that Faith was able to, at a minimum, simply function.

Kaylee on the other hand hadn't showered in several days or bothered to change her clothes, let alone touch her face or hair. It didn't even occur to her until she one day looked in the mirror and saw a decaying, lifeless girl with matted hair and huge bags under her eyes staring back at her. Worse yet, she didn't care.

It took a serious pep talk from Jessica, Faith, and Audrey to get her to stand on her own two feet and attempt to take care of herself.

Faith escorted her into the shower as if she were a child that had never taken one before. Faith turned the water on, checking the temperature, and finally closed the curtain leaving Kaylee in the shower.

Kaylee stood still as the cold water splashed her face, cascading down her naked body, stirring something inside her and awakening her very soul. After going days and days without crying, all kinds of emotions rapidly surfaced, overwhelming her to the point of dropping to her knees.

It was as if each drop of water fell like rain against her soft skin, teaching her how to cry all over again. She ran her fingers through her hair, trying to hold back the tears, but she couldn't.

They spilled out. Kaylee sobbed, blubbering uncontrollably. Her body trembled. Gently placing her head in her hands, she wailed at the top of her lungs, releasing all of her anger, sadness, frustration and rage with a single scream. She was angry with Luke for dying, and she was angry with God for refusing to protect him. She just wanted to wake up from this nightmare, but the nightmare was real.

---

Word of Luke's death spread through town like wildfire. Even when they all finally left the Patton household, trying their hardest to brave the world and momentarily forget the tragedy that befell their family -- pretending life was actually normal for a moment -- they couldn't seem to find a moment of peace.

More than once while trying to shop at the mall or relax at a coffeehouse they ran into people they knew who intentionally avoided eye contact, as if they didn't see them. But then there were complete strangers who would come up to them and express their condolences. Which was nice, of course, but it served as a reminder of a pain they couldn't forget or escape.

All Kaylee wanted was to stop hurting, and it was hard enough to forget about Luke on her own. The last thing she needed was constant reminders of Luke's sacrifice, how much of a hero he was and how his memory would live on.

That was bullshit. She just wanted Luke back, and that was never going to happen! At least she wanted him alive. Even if he came back and -- Heaven forbid -- he was still hooking up with that desert tramp, she'd be happy for him. He could keep that silly little slut if he wanted to. She might be miserable for the rest of her life if he was with another girl, but it would be easier to manage; that kind of misery she could handle.

At least he would be alive.

How pathetic was that?

---

The dirt road off in the distance appeared to serve as a major highway. From Luke's view several hundred feet above and about a quarter-mile out, the road would have blended into the colorless brown landscape if it were not for the dust clouds kicked up by a couple vehicles. Straining his eyes, he guessed that two of them were local decrepit automobiles, but the third might have been a contracted transport tanker truck, judging by its outline.

Back at his deployed Air Base Luke had seen similar looking vehicles, often hauling in fuel for their helicopters, fighters and Warthogs. He didn't know how long the highway was, but he took it as a good sign of an American presence. Climbing a little further up the mountain for better radio reception, Luke pulled out the radio. He monitored several frequencies, but no chatter was heard.

Luke dialed up the most likely frequency he thought the Americans might be on. It was an old frequency -- a lot had happened since his radio was lost -- but he crossed his fingers.

Luke took a deep breath before he keyed the radio, and said a quick prayer.

"Watcher, Reaper 31, come in."

No response. He knew he was unlikely to get a hold of Watcher, but he tried again with the same results.

At this point, he would have been happy getting a hold of any Allied forces over the radio, no matter what the nationality.

"Any station, any station, Reaper 31."

Luke tried a few more times, but remained unsuccessful. Luke thought back to the mission briefing. He remembered one or two other frequencies the Army used. He dialed one of them up.

He spoke slowly, "Any station, any station, this is Reaper 31."

Again there was no reply. Luke made a second radio call.

He heard back, "Reaper 31, Reaper 31 this is FOB Spartan. We have you loud and clear, state your position."

Luke's heart skipped a beat.

Finally! Another American voice... it seemed like an eternity since he last heard one. Luke could hardly believe his own ears.

Luke relayed his position to Forward Operating Base Spartan the best he could based on distinct terrain points, although he didn't have much to work with other than the mountain range and the highway.

The soldier on the radio told Luke to hang tight, confirming he passed Luke's approximate location through secure channels and help would be on the way.

Time seemed to stand still. It was only a matter of minutes, Luke knew, but it felt like several hours.

Eventually Luke's radio came back to life, "Reaper 31, Phantom 10, we are inbound and searching, do you copy."

Phantom... that was the callsign of one of the rescue helicopters.

Luke responded, trying to contain his excitement, his heart leaping, "Phantom 10, Reaper 31 has you loud and clear." He pulled a flare out of his survival vest and added, "Flares readied upon visual"

The voice through the radio responded, "Copy, we are inbound and searching." Breaking standard radio protocol, Phantom added, "We'll get you out of there. Be careful and keep lookout."

Luke gave them an invisible smile, acknowledging, "Copy, I'm definitely ready."

He heard the rotary blades slicing through the air well before he saw the metal birds; it sounded like they were on the South side of the mountain, opposite Luke. Three helicopters materialized as they passed over the ridge, as if they were angels of God Himself. Luke had never felt so relieved in his entire life.

"Thank you, God," Luke quietly prayed as he spotted them, popping the flare and waving it back and forth. Hope was finally returning; he could practically see himself at home with his parents, his sister, and of course with Kaylee, but he had to contain his excitement until he actually made it out of this forsaken land. He wasn't out of the woods yet.

One of the helicopters hovered above Luke while the other two flanked out, taking up defensive positions. Just as he had seen before when Lieutenant Wayne was rescued, a cable lowered down towards Luke -- it was his ride home. He quickly grabbed it and buckled in, signaling to the flight crew above he was ready to be hoisted up. As the cable reeled in and lifted Luke upwards, he held on tight, still giving prayers of thanks.

The Pararescue Jumper pulled Luke into the helicopter and gave a thumbs-up to the pilot. Before Luke knew it, the pilot pushed up the power and just like that they were on their way home. The PJ pulled out a medical kit while inspecting Luke for injuries. Shouting above the noise of the rotors, he yelled, "You have no idea how good it is to see you. You've had pretty much all of CENTCOM looking for you; everyone thought you were dead."

Luke smiled weakly, shouting back, "I thought I was, too." As he thought about what the PJ had said, he thought about Lazarus, the man that Jesus had raised from the dead. Maybe he should pull his Bible out again. After all, it kind of seemed like they had a lot in common.

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