Scott Andrews - Operation Motherland

"Thank you for this Jack," I said. "It'll be helpful."

He looked surprised. "But I can show you myself. I mean, I'm coming with you."

"Out of the question," I said curtly.

"But I know the layout better than any of you. I'm the only one who can lead you safely though that place."

"We've got a woman on the inside," I said. "She's going to meet us and take us where we need to go. We don't need you. Anyway, what combat experience have you got?"

"Sanders taught me everything he knew," said the boy defensively.

"But have you ever actually been in a fight?"

"I was there when the Americans attacked."

"That's true, Lee," said Jane. "One of the few things I remember is Jack shooting at them."

"Look," he said. "At the moment it's just you and this Iraqi guy, right?"

"My name's Tariq," said the man standing beside Jack.

"Right, sorry. Tariq. Neither of you know the compound like I do, and you could use the backup."

I shook my head. "No. This is a mission of stealth. In, grab, out. With luck we'll be gone before they realise we were ever there. The more of us there are, the greater the risk of us being detected. And I'll be honest, I don't trust you not to go and do something stupid, like trying to blow the place up."

Our glorious majesty sulked for a moment and then said something which changed my mind.

"There's one very special warehouse down there…" he began. We listened until he'd finished speaking; all of us with our mouths open in astonishment.

"And you know the codes?" I asked incredulously.

He nodded. "Sanders showed me. I persuaded him it was my royal prerogative. I think he thought it was funny."

We were all silent for a moment and then Tariq clapped his hands and said: "Well shit, now we've got a ball game!"

Jane

That night Justin and Tariq helped me to a downstairs room they'd prepared for me. After they'd gone I lay in the cool sheets feeling the soft cotton pillowcase on my naked scalp.

I was too nervous to sleep, unsure of what I felt. My joy at Lee's return, my fears for his safety and that of everyone in the school who I'd unwittingly put into the firing line, the loss of Sanders. It was all too much to process. So I lay there, unable to sleep, until I heard a soft knock at the door.

"Hello?" I said.

The door cracked open and Lee stepped inside. "Hi."

"Hey."

He came and sat on the bed next to me, avoiding my gaze. "I'm sorry. For shouting at you this morning, I mean. That was out of order."

I reached out and squeezed his hand. "Don't worry about it."

"It's just, with Dad and you… I mean, he might die and you look so ill. I just…"

"He's going to be fine. He's had a good day. He's sleeping it off naturally now. He's over the worst."

"I thought I'd lose him, too," he whispered. "Like Mum."

"No. Not today, anyway."

He bowed his head, took a deep breath and said softly: "I killed her."

"Sorry?"

"She was so sick. She couldn't stop crying. It was awful. Then there were the seizures and she started bleeding from everywhere. And I couldn't help. I couldn't do anything for her. I sat there mopping her brow with a wet flannel and telling her it'd be okay. In the end she begged me to kill her, to make the pain stop. She'd never have asked me to do that if it hadn't driven her mad. And when she said that, when she said 'Please kill me', I stopped crying. Because here was something I could actually do, you know? Here was a way I could help her. So I took a pillow and I smothered her. And you know what? She didn't struggle. She put her hand up and held mine, even as I was using it to choke the life out of her. She held my hand and she squeezed it, just like you're doing now. She was grateful, so it didn't feel like murder. Bates felt like murder, even though I suppose that was a mercy killing too. But Mum? No. 'Cause I loved her so much. She was kind and funny and she used to sing me to sleep when I was little. And when she died I thought, that's it. I've killed the person I loved most in the world, the only person left who loved me. I thought I'd actually killed love and that I was broken now, forever.

"Then I came back to school and found you. And then Dad."

He began to cry great heaving sobs. I pushed myself up and wrapped my arms around him, pulling him down on to the bed beside me. I held him as he wept, stroking his head and shushing him into a deep, silent sleep.

Lee

"Dad, I dunno if you can hear me, but I've got to go. Blythe's got a couple of the kids from the school and Tariq and me are going to get them back. I know what you'd say if you were awake, but if you were in my shoes, you'd do exactly what I'm doing now and you know it.

"I reckon we'll be back in a week or so. By then you'll be up and about, I'm sure, waiting to bite my head off for being so reckless.

"If I don't come back, then you'll be among friends here. Jane will take good care of you, and I want you to take good care of her in return. She's special. You haven't met her yet, but she saved your life and mine. Only she's not as strong as she makes out, sometimes. She's better when she's got someone to lean on. And if I don't come back, that's going to have to be you.

"When you called me from Iraq that time you told me to be strong. For Mum. I didn't let you down. You'll never know how strong I was. Now I need you to be strong for me, and for her. I know you will be. You keep sleeping it off and I'll see you soon. I love you Dad.

"Bye."

Jane reached out and took my hand.

"I would ask you not to go, but you wouldn't listen, would you?" she said with a sad smile.

"No. But I came back last time, and I'll be back again. I promise. And this time I'll be staying. I meant it, you know. No more fighting for me. I've had enough. I just want to stay here and look after the school. With you. In mono."

Jane laughed. "How is the other ear?"

"Almost back to normal now. I'd say about 80%."

"That's what you get for trying to be a soldier."

"You can talk, Davros."

"Oi!"

I leaned forward, put my hands on her sunken cheeks and kissed her. Then I rested my forehead on hers and closed my eyes.

"I'll see you soon, Jane."

"You'd better, Lee."

Then I stood up and walked away.

I didn't look back.

Lee

"Anything?" I asked.

"No. Just static," replied Tariq.

"And you're sure you got the frequency right?"

"Of course."

"And the clock's right?"

"She said three every morning. She'll be here, Lee. Relax."

The radio gave two bursts of white noise.

"That's her." Tariq pressed the speak button on the Stryker radio and squawked back four times. There was a pause and then the radio crackled into life.

"That you, Tramp?" It was Sue, whispering.

"Yes. Where are you?"

"South perimeter. There's a firing range by the fence."

"I know where she is," said Jack. "We can be there in five minutes."

"Did you hear that, Lady?"

"Sure did. There are perimeter patrols, so go carefully. I'll be waiting."

"See you soon." Tariq clicked the radio off and we primed our weapons.

We had parked the armoured car in woodland close to the base. Although we'd encountered no patrols or guards of any kind, Blythe had begun stamping his authority on the area.

We'd passed Stonehenge on the way to the base; the ancient stone circle was full of staked soldiers, hundreds of them, lined up in concentric circles, staring at the stars, like an offering to an ancient God.

We had no doubt that we'd suffer a similar fate if we were caught. I used the periscope to scan our surroundings. "All clear," I said. We turned off the interior lights and cracked the hatch, climbing out into the cold night air. It was a dark, moonless night, but Jack was wearing a nightsight Jamal had given us before he left.