Sanctuary

any there to begin with. I don’t see any tracks in the dust on the floor either.

I kneel and poke my head around the corner looking into the building proper. I don’t like being backlit by the daylight but there isn’t really an option if I want a glimpse inside. The light at the door fades into a deeper gray and then darkness further into the interior. The sides are covered with that same inky black. The only exception is a thin line of light showing on the other side at ground level from the opposite door. Nothing stirs.

I’d go in now with those with me but I’m not comfortable with how the rest of our small group is still sitting at the front. If something were to happen, they would be in the line of fire ahead of us and our rounds would easily go through the sheet metal sides. Pulling back from the open door, we retrace our steps to the front and describe what we saw upon arriving.

“I’ll be taking Red Team and Robert in with me. Frank, will you take everyone and the vehicles back up the road a little ways. Leave one the Humvees here. If something does happen inside, I don’t want anyone to be in the line of fire or in a position to catch a ricochet. Those walls won’t stop a bullet,” I say.

“Sure, no problem, Jack,” he answers.

Mom catches my eye and I know she has something she wants to say by her look. I nod my head and we step aside from the rest.

“Are you sure about taking Robert in?” She asks in a hushed voice.

“Yeah, Mom. He went in with me at the BX in the Azores and did a great job in a hellish environment. He has to learn and he’ll be okay,” I reply.

“Okay, you know what’s best. I don’t know about Bri and Nic carrying weapons though,” she says.

“I know. Me neither really but they have to learn too, Mom. The luxury of having that kind of choice has gone,” I respond.

“Okay, but know that their minds are still developing and things can be taken to an extreme at their age.”

“I know. I wish it were different,” I say and we return to the others.

Why do kids always say “I know” to their parents no matter what age they are? I think watching the others load into the Humvees and Jeep. They drive through the open gate and onto the country road, disappearing quickly behind large blackberry vines that edge the road. I hear the squeal of brakes shortly after and then the muted sound of engines idling a short distance away. The remaining Humvee looks lonely sitting in the dusty yard after being surrounded by other vehicles only moments ago.

“Alright, McCafferty, take the Humvee around and park so that the interior is lit up by the headlights as best as you can. We’ll meet you there and formulate a plan based upon what we see,” I say.

The rest of us start walking to the rear entrance, reaching the side as McCafferty climbs in and shuts the door. The loud shutting door is followed by the sound of something metallic hitting the floor and bouncing a couple of times inside the building. What was that? Did something just fall off a shelf or is something in there? Or is it occupied? And if so, why didn’t it happen before? I think knowing we made a lot of noise on our arrival and since. Everyone freezes from the sound that was emitted dully from the other side of the wall.

“Well, we have to assume there’s company in there,” I say.

“McCafferty, we may have company inside. Wait for us before pulling into position,” I say over the radio. She drives the Humvee alongside and keeps pace with us.

I round the corner and stand by the opening again. McCafferty parks just off to the side and behind us. I call out to see if anyone is inside. It’s pretty obvious that if anything is there, they or it already know we are here so I feel comfortable calling out. It’s not like we were being sneaky. There’s no reply.

“We’ll form a line in front of the door fifteen feet back and have the Humvee come between us. Henderson, Denton, and Gonzalez on the right. Robert on the left with me,” I say and relay our plan over the radio.

The Humvee pulls between us shining its lights into the interior. A shriek answers the glare of the headlights on the concrete floor, which is otherwise bare and empty in the middle. I catch a fleeting glimpse of a shadow moving off into the darker recesses of the interior. We stand with weapons at the ready scanning the inside fully ready for anything that might sweep out towards us. Nothing comes and I don’t see any additional movement. The one shriek is that’s heard. The inside falls back into its silent state.

McCafferty exits the Humvee, the sound of the door shutting echoes across the dusty lot, and she stands next to Robert. I walk over and lean against the front of the vehicle, both feeling and hearing the idling engine behind me. God, I hate this urban stuff, I think scanning the interior. Tall shelves, reaching almost to the ceiling are filled with miscellaneous materials. They extend away into darkness on the left and right; their edges lit from the glow of the headlights but fading quickly into the obscurity of the dark.

I would just leave as the building is obviously occupied but we need these doors. Just how occupied still remains in question. My phone vibrates. I take it out and see it’s a text from Kelly. I turn it off and snap the cover shut without responding and return it to my pocket, focusing back on the building. I don’t want any interruptions and can’t afford to make any mistakes. My thought process has to be on the here and now.

Standing from my leaning position, I turn on my flashlight and turn the beam on the rafters above. My light immediately catches a night runner poised on one of the steel girders spanning the width of the building. It’s squatting there with one hand on a support beam, glaring at us. It gives a piercing yell as my light centers on it.

“Oh hell no you don’t! I know that trick,” I say bringing my M-4 to my shoulder and fire a short burst.

The noise of my sudden firing jars the still air. My rounds impact into its chest and shoulder propelling it backward and off the girder. The night runner shrieks as it falls through the lit part of the interior and hits the concrete floor with a loud thump; silencing its scream. The once bare concrete turns red around the still body as blood begins to slowly pool around it. Another shriek and scuffling is heard from the left further back in the shop. My light pans to the source of the noise but the shelves and the items on them prevent me from seeing what lies in the lanes between.

“Well, we know there’s at least one more in there,” I say to the others around.

“Yeah, and I thought I heard something off to the right but I’m not sure,” Henderson states.

“Well, we can’t assume anything. Why is it that every building I want to go in seems to be occupied with night runners?” I ask rhetorically. “I’m beginning to think it’s some sort of conspiracy.”

“Not sure but it certainly seems that way. Maybe you’re just unlucky,” Gonzalez answers with a grin on her face.

“Yeah. Maybe we should ask for a transfer,” McCafferty says grinning as well.

“I guess I know who the first two in are,” I respond to their good-natured ribbing.

Talking and joking like this brings back the memories of prepping for missions and the bantering just before jumping off. It seemed to bring back a certain amount of humanity into what we were about to embark on and to cover some of the nerves. That is exactly what this little bit of joking does. It calms all of us and seems to reassure us that all will be fine.

I continue to stand at the entrance debating on whether to use the night vision goggles or not. If we do use them, we’ll have to turn the headlights off and the glow of the day’s light through the entrance may interfere with their functionality. I decide to go in with flashlights rather than risk a chance of being blinded if we have to face towards the open door.

“McCafferty, did we bring any of those flash bangs with us?” I ask.

“Yes, sir. I believe we have a few in the back,” she answers.

“Okay, the interior is not that large so this is going to go by fast. Henderson and Denton, you’ll have the right. Henderson, take the lanes as we come to them and Denton watch overhead. Gonzalez and McCafferty, the left. Gonzalez the lanes and McCafferty up top,” I say.

“Hooah, sir,” they respond.

“Robert and I will be out front in the middle. Make sure you all stay a little behind us to give us clear lanes of fire. Robert, take the right front and I’ll take the left front. Watch the shelves above and keep an eye out on the rafters. We’ll toss a couple of flash bangs inside just prior to going in and move at a quick walking pace. Any questions?”

“No, sir,” Henderson, Denton, and McCafferty answer.

“Good to go, sir,” Gonzalez replies.

“Okay, Dad,” Robert says.