Next to Die by Marliss Melton Read Free Book Online

doggedly toward his Jeep.
    She watched with concern as he shut himself inside and backed the vehicle slowly out of his driveway.
    He used to drive like a bat out of hell.
    With a shake of her head, Penny told herself not to fret over him. There were plenty of patients at Portsmouth Naval Medical Center who welcomed her attention.
     
    Joe wanted to die. The pain in his chest took up so much room, there wasn’t space for oxygen. His eyes burned. His knees quaked as he stood in formation with the other SEALs in attendance at Smiley’s funeral.
    Arlington National Cemetery was a palette of autumn hues. Pots of colorful mums flanked the myriad headstones. Vermillion maples and golden oaks fortified the perimeter of the graveyard. Was Nature mocking him? How could she seem so vibrant in the presence of death?
    The air was saturated with the scent of lilies. In the midst of dripping blossoms lay Smiley’s coffin, draped with the stars and stripes of the American flag.
    The bugler lifted the horn to his lips to emit the purest notes Joe had ever heard. They cut straight through his heart.
    Day is done. Gone the sun. From the lakes. From the hills. From the sky. All is well. Safely rest. God is nigh.
    Boom.
The first volley of the seven M14s cracked into the silence. Joe locked his knees to keep them from buckling. In his mind’s eye, Nikko passed out, dragging Curry down with him.
    Boom.
Mortar rounds punched into the earth and made the mountain tremble.
    Boom
. The fireball within the helo mushroomed outward, thrusting Joe away on a wave of incinerating heat.
    He swayed. The men standing at attention on either side of him shifted closer. “Sir?” one of them inquired beneath his breath.
    “I’m fine,” rasped Joe, but he wasn’t.
    If the men around him knew he’d been Smiley’s OIC, they were circumspect enough not to mention it. If they didn’t know, they would never guess. Middle-aged officers didn’t take the place of savvy, experienced chiefs. It was unheard-of, a put-down to the enlisted man’s integrity.
    So why had he done it?
    Beyond Smiley’s mourning family, there stood the press, momentarily subdued, oblivious to the fact that he was the sole survivor of that hideous disaster.
    God, keep it that way.
    I have to get through this,
Joe told himself, digging deep for composure. It was nearly over. The funeral detail stepped forward to fold the flag in a shape reminiscent of the tricorn hats of the Revolutionary War. Admiral Johansen presented it to Smiley’s mother, who cradled it in her arms like a baby, the way she’d once cradled her son.
    Joe squeezed his eyes shut. He couldn’t watch.
    The honor guard withdrew. It was the SEALs’ cue to merge and form a line. Joe fumbled to remove his trident pin. His fingers were still swollen, tender. He couldn’t see through his tear-blurred eyes. He trailed the man in front of him. And then it was his turn to hammer his pin into the lid of the coffin.
    Boom.
Half-blinded by tears, he somehow managed to align his pin with the others. His teammates went to shake hands with family members. Joe broke rank and limped toward his car.
    Once inside his vehicle, he clung to the steering wheel and let his chest heave. The salt of his tears stung the wound on his cheek.
    Help me, God.
The pain in his heart was getting worse, not better.
    Twenty minutes later, Joe drew his first full breath.
    With a sharp sniff, he lifted his gaze at the coffin, awaiting burial at the height of the hill. Smiley’s family still hovered around it, loath to leave their beloved Richard.
    I’m so sorry,
thought Joe, looking up at them.
If my arrogance and ambition got him killed, please forgive me. ’Cause I can’t forgive myself.
    Twenty-eight trident pins winked in the sunlight.
     
    Commander Montgomery was finally back. Penny rolled over as the headlights of his Jeep strafed her ceiling. He cut his engine and slammed his door shut.
Now I can sleep,
she thought, snuggling deeper into her