Operation: Endgame: When the Mission Ends, #1

Prologue

Twenty Years Ago

Jake could feel the bark of the limb cutting into his palm, but he refused to give away his position by changing the way he clung there. The old oak tree provided the perfect place for him to watch his new neighbors. Day three of spying on their war games and he finally understood the strategy behind capturing each other’s flags. Two of them played every day, complete with camouflage, face paint, and wooden machine guns. Every once in a while, their older brother joined them, but he usually stomped off in a huff after the two smaller boys captured him instead of his flag.

At the age of ten, Jake yearned to join them in their game. Loneliness consumed him after being uprooted from the only friends he’d ever known and dragged across the country to this strange place they called West Texas. He never felt anything as hot as it got here, never seen a place so barren, and never felt so out of his element, before he moved here from the mountains of North Carolina. He felt like he was exploring the wilds of Africa compared to the world he’d known until just a few short weeks ago. Now he spent his time observing the local wildlife in two boys who appeared to be about his age from his perch up in this tree. He wanted to approach them, but didn’t know how. So instead he just sat in his tree and watched all day long.

He brought along plenty of provisions...water and pb&j. His mother was so caught up in her own issues; she didn’t even notice he was gone all day every day.

It had been quiet for a while and Jake wondered if the boys had gone in, when he caught sight of one of them sneaking around the tree just to his left. This boy was the smaller of the two although there was no doubt they were brothers. They looked too much alike to be anything else. The boy held his gun at eye level as sweat dripped down the sides of his face leaving trails through his face paint. He wondered how they could stand those heavy camouflage uniforms in the West Texas summer heat. As if sensing his thought, the boy drew a canteen out of his belt and drank. While his attention was diverted, the other boy ran up behind him and leapt on him with a tackle sending both boys rolling through the grass. Their roll took them around behind the tree and Jake lost sight of them. He craned his head under the limb trying to see what happened and lost his balance.

Jake scrambled to catch a good hold on the limb again, but it was no use. A scream rose out of him as the ground rushed up to meet him and he tumbled onto the drought-hardened ground. The two brothers stopped wrestling to stare at Jake in shock as he rolled over in pain and tried to get his breath back. The larger of the two approached him, but the smaller boy decided this was a good time for retaliation. He pulled his arm back and belted the other one right in the eye. Jake couldn’t help but wince in commiseration. That must have hurt. He eyed the two boys warily wondering if they were going to turn on him next as an enemy within their territory.

Instead, he was surprised to see the smaller one smile at him and offer him a hand to help him stand. Hey you’re the kid who moved in next door aren’t you? We’ve been wondering what happened to you. He looked up at the limb where Jake had been sitting. What were you doing up there?

Jake mumbled, feeling stupid for falling out of the tree. Just watching. Why’d you hit him? Jake looked over at the larger of the two who still clutched his eye.

The smaller boy looked angrily at the larger one and stuck his tongue out at him. He snuck up and jumped me. That goes against the Geneva Code. You aren’t supposed to jump on someone when you have a gun, so I hit him.

The larger boy rolled his one uncovered eye. You’re so stupid. That’s not the Geneva Code. The Geneva Code says I can’t jump on you if you surrender. I sure didn’t see you surrendering as you slunk around that tree. I was just trying to minimize casualties by jumping you. You saw it, didn’t you? The larger boy looked at Jake. I was in the right, wasn’t I? I beat her fair and square, didn’t I?

Jake glanced between the two boys nervously, not really wanting to choose sides, but the larger one was right. Yeah, you beat him fair and square.

You liar! He did not. The smaller boy swung back around and gaped at Jake, looking angry. Wait, did you just call me a boy? the boy screeched as he launched himself at Jake who was still sitting on the ground.

Jake was the bigger of the two so quickly found himself sitting on top of the smaller one, pinning his arms to the ground. His jaw dropped when the boy’s hat fell off and a tumble of long red hair had come falling out of the confines of the hat. Crap! You’re a girl?!? and immediately started scrambling back off of her.

No duh. She said as she stood up quickly and started brushing off her pants. She grabbed her hat and shoved her long hair back inside of it. I’m Cassie. That’s Chris. She gestured at the larger boy. He’s a boy, in case you couldn’t tell. Cassie smirked at her brother, taking in his blackening eye. We’re twins. What’s your name?

I’m Jake.

Nice to meet you, Jake. She obviously had manners even though her next few words were said with a sneer. Since you boys seem to have an issue with girls, you better run because this girl just caught your flag. She grabbed the flag off the ground and took off running.

Chris looked at Jake and sighed. Hi Jake! Welcome to the team. We need to get you some gear. He looked him up and down and gestured down the street towards the twin’s house. Then we’ll see what we can do about capturing her cocky butt. He smiled.

Jake grinned back at him and decided this move to West Texas wasn’t such a bad thing after all.

Chapter 1

20 Years Later

Cassie switched off the blender, stuck in a straw, and moaned in appreciation. Yum. I’m officially the Queen of Making Margaritas. She yelled out into the backyard at her best friends, Julie and Penelope, Refills coming right up! Those glasses better be empty and in the air ready for more of my fabulously perfect margaritas.

Cassie smiled and laughed as she sauntered through the back door, carrying the pitcher of margaritas and her own glass, already topped off. The semester ended the day before at Texas Tech University and they were spending the day lounging by the pool to celebrate the end of another academic year.

As a military history professor, Cassie would be headed to Europe in two weeks to spend the summer as a guest lecturer. The year before, Cassie acted as a military strategy consultant on a video game, called Endgame. It became a bestseller within three weeks of release and remained there ever since. Cassie’s interview on the video extras made her a celebrity and in high-demand as a guest lecturer. It promised to be a crazy summer, but for now, she was celebrating the freedom from responsibility and drinking accordingly. This was their third pitcher of margaritas and all three of them were pleasantly buzzed.

They were at Cassie’s cozy little bungalow just a couple of blocks from the campus. She adored this house and had lovingly restored it when she had inherited it from her grandfather, while she was still in college. That restoration included the addition of this oasis she now called her backyard. Chris, Jake, and she had spent two whole summers transforming it, but the work had been worth it. There were terraces filled with mood lighting, easy-to-care-for plants, outdoor speakers, and the piece de resistance....the pool which beckoned all of them in from the West Texas heat.

Today, it was Julie and Penelope who were beckoning her to come refill their empty glasses. They sat in the shade of the outdoor umbrella which loomed serenely over the café-style bistro tables. They were her best friends, next to Chris and Jake, but the three girls could not have looked and acted more different from each other.

Julie was the tiniest of the three. She was a physical therapist at Texas Tech Health Sciences Center and also filled in as a physical trainer at the Fitness Center on campus. Her dark black hair was cut into a cute little pixie cut which fit her small frame and many times, she was mistaken for someone in junior high. At least, that was the case until she turned around and said person got a glimpse of her rack which would make any Playboy bunny envious. She was quiet, serious, and they all gave her a hard time about her OCD tendencies.

Penelope owned the local bookstore and taught yoga at the University Fitness Center. She had wavy honey colored long hair, startling jade green eyes, and a free-spirit attitude which made everyone love her from the very first. She was vivacious and outgoing and didn’t meet anyone who wasn’t an immediate friend. She was also flighty and a bit scatter-brained, but most people just learned that was part of her charm and overlooked the fact. Only her best friends knew that, for the most part, it was an act she used to hide her brilliant mind.

Cassie was tall, with a thick cascade of auburn hair. She grew up in Lubbock and had the Texas drawl to match. She’d always been a tomboy and very athletic. Now she channeled her athleticism through her running, which was almost like a religion to her. It was how she kept the margaritas from going to her hips, how she sorted through her lesson plans, and worked out the stresses which came from working at a high-stress University system. Also, it kept her fears about all the boys at bay so she could sleep at night.

They, the boys and her, had all grown up playing those silly neighborhood war games, but those games established a love of the military for all of them, even Colton.

Colt was her older brother by four years. He went to Texas A&M through the Corps and was a Special Ops officer. He flew combat-ready C-130’s and was a Major stationed at RAF Mildenhall in England.

Jake, Chris, and Cassie all attended and graduated from Texas Tech. Jake and Chris went the ROTC route with Jake becoming a PJ- Pararescue Jumper for the Air Force. He spent his career as a military paramedic jumping into enemy territory rescuing downed pilots and Spec Ops guys who had run into trouble. Jake had just been selected for Major although he hadn’t been officially pinned on yet.

Chris was her twin, younger than her by 4 minutes, and a fighter pilot who flew F-22’s. He was a Captain in the Air Force and the consummate flirt of the group.

Colton was her older brother, Chris was her twin brother, and Jake was their best friend. They all three were in the Air Force and constantly in too much danger for her liking.

Cassie re-filled their glasses and then flopped down into one of the empty chairs. Julie asked, Have you heard from any of the boys lately?

Colton called Sunday. He’s doing okay, although I still don’t think he’s dealing well with Dianna’s leaving him. Cassie’s forehead scrunched up as she considered her older brother’s pending divorce. Right now, he’s safely ensconced behind a desk playing commander in England. I hate that he lives so far away. I’m looking forward to getting to spend a little bit of time with him over the summer, so I’m hoping the desk duty continues. She gave a mischievous grin, No matter how much he hates it. That grin quickly turned into a scowl as she continued. He said he didn’t know where Jake and Chris are stationed right now, but he’s lying to me.

Penelope looked at her questioningly. Why do you think he was lying?

Cassie shook her head. I know my brothers too well. I could tell it from his voice. Besides, she said, her voice cracking, I’m having nightmares about Chris. Something’s wrong. I know it.

Both of her friends suddenly looked worried. As twins, Chris and Cassie always had a unique connection. They simply knew when something was wrong with the other one. Cassie continued, I’m sure I’ll hear from him soon. He’ll tell me he broke his toe or something and then I’ll feel stupid for getting all worked up about it. But until I hear that, I just don’t have a good feeling. Her eyes welled with tears at the remembrance of the visions of Chris in her dreams and her voice cracked when she said, The dreams have been really awful.

Suddenly, a doorbell rang from inside the house. Okay, no more unhappy talk. Like I said, I’m sure it doesn’t mean anything. Come on girls, it’s the start of summer. Drink up and I’ll go see if whoever is at the front door wants to join us. Cassie bounded into the house, while Julie and Penelope shared a look of concern.

As Cassie ran through the house, she swiped at her eyes, smoothed over the top of her ponytail. A glance down at the very miniscule top of her orange polka-dot bikini and the matching sarong confirmed everything was covered. She wasn’t expecting anyone, but with the semester ending the day before, most of their colleagues knew the girls would be hanging out at the pool celebrating. So it was a huge shock to see Jake standing at her front door in his blues when she opened the door.

Cassie flung herself into his arms. Jake? What are you doing here? When did you get back into the States? She suddenly realized he was standing very stiffly at the same time she spotted the Chaplain and another high ranking officer both in blues standing behind him. Her gasp came out as the only explanation occurred to her. She yanked back from Jake to look into his tear-filled eyes.

A guttural, Cassie... crossed his lips, but she didn’t want to hear what he had to say.

No, no, NO! Cassie was shaking her head viciously back and forth while she tried to escape back into the house, but Jake wouldn’t let go of her hand. This couldn’t be happening. She refused to accept this.

Cassie, sweetheart... Jake tried to clear his throat. I’m so sorry, hon. Cassie watched as a lone tear dripped down Jake’s cheek. Chris...

Cassie wailed, No! Chris is fine! No, you can’t do this to me Jake Madsen! No! He’s fine! Don’t you think I would feel it if he wasn’t? I always know. You know that about us. He may be hurt, but he is NOT GONE! NO! Cassie was shaking her head wildly back and forth and kept trying to escape from Jake’s grasp, but he refused to let her go.

He reached up, cupped her cheek, kissed her forehead, and looked directly into her eyes. Cassie, hon, I’m so sorry. He was in a crash and we couldn’t get to him in time. Cassie, Chris is gone. Jake pulled her into his arms to comfort her, but Cassie didn’t feel it.

Cassie just stood there within Jake’s embrace with her arms hanging to her sides. This couldn’t be right. Chris could not be dead. That is not the way things worked between the two of them. She was his twin and she would know if he’d died. She would feel it in her soul. This simply could not be happening. Cassie looked over Jake’s broad shoulder to the two men looking at her with sympathy in their eyes. They didn’t understand, but she knew better. Chris was not dead.

Chapter 2

Numb. That was all Cassie felt...simply numb. Cassie peered into her coffee cup and wondered if she should be feeling something more. Today was Chris’ funeral. She should be feeling more than this overwhelming apathy about everything going on around her. She stood here in the same kitchen where she stood every morning holding her coffee cup wearing the same periwinkle blue plaid robe she wore every morning. Shouldn’t something feel different if Chris was really gone?

That was part of the problem though. She still couldn’t believe Chris was really gone. Colton arrived back in the States about twelve hours after Jake arrived. He verified the same things Jake told her. Chris crashed his jet. No one knew exactly what happened. The PJ’s went in and retrieved his body eighteen hours after it happened. No one would tell her where, how, or why. The only intel she could get was Jake’s crew had something to do with the recovery and Colton had identified what was left of his body. Nobody said so, but she got the feeling there hadn’t been much to identify.

Cassie looked across the island into the living room where Julie and Penelope were milling around handling the details for the funeral and the reception afterwards. Cassie could see Julie checking things off her never-ending lists. Penelope was abnormally subdued today. That alone should convince her this nightmare was real. Pen’s vivacious personality was never what one would consider sedate, but it still didn’t feel real.

Their murmuring voices were so low; she couldn’t hear what they were saying. From the glances they kept giving her, it was probably a good thing. They were obviously discussing her. Could they tell she wasn’t feeling anything? Did they understand this never-ending numbness? Cassie couldn’t, but for now she was okay with it. She didn’t want to feel because, when it happened, Cassie knew the pain was going to shred her. For now Cassie was living life in a fog and that was really okay.

Julie came and joined her in the kitchen. There was a plate of muffins on the island in front of her that someone had brought in this morning. Julie pushed the plate towards her. Cassie, you need to eat something. Cassie shook her head no, but Julie wasn’t going to let her off the hook that easily. Cass, you haven’t touched anything in days. It’s going to be a stressful day today and you don’t want to pass out at the funeral. Just eat half a muffin and I’ll leave you alone. Julie was looking at her with such concern in her clear green eyes that Cassie couldn’t refuse; besides she had a good point. Cassie didn’t want to pass out at the funeral.

Okay. Cassie scooped up a muffin and pointed towards the French doors. I’m going to go sit outside while I eat it, okay? Just yell if you need me for anything. She glanced towards where Penelope was still working in the living room and scurried out the doors.

Cassie sat down at the bistro table where just five days before the three of them had been drinking margaritas and celebrating life. How had so much changed in such a short amount of time?

Cassie heard the doorbell ring inside the house. It had been ringing non-stop for days now as friends brought food and flowers. She knew one of the girls would take care of whatever it was. If Cassie was a good person, she would get up and handle some of this herself, rather than leaving it all to the others to handle, but she just couldn’t bring herself to care.

Penelope stuck her head out the door and said, Cassie, there’s a delivery here. They’re insisting you have to sign for it yourself.

Cassie looked puzzled. Okay, I’m coming. A delivery man stood at the front door holding a long rectangular box and a clipboard. She signed by the X and looked questioningly at the delivery box. There wasn’t a return address, so she asked the delivery man, Where did this come from?

He glanced down at his clipboard. It says here it’s from someone named Bernard Kleptofine.

Cassie looked at him sharply. Do you mind if I look? She reached for the clipboard and looked down at it. Weird. She handed the clipboard back to the delivery guy with a scowl between her brows.

Penelope looked at Cassie questioningly. What’s wrong? Who’s Bernard Kleptofine?

He’s the bad-guy in Endgame, the video game I worked on last year. He’s not real. He’s a fictional character. Cassie grabbed the scissors out of the drawer and opened up the box. On top of a pile of Styrofoam peanuts was a small card. Cassie opened it. It just says ‘Condolences’. It must be from a fan of the video game that heard about Chris. She handed the card over to the girls as she pulled an oblong object out of the box.

As she unwrapped the object, Julie looked at her worriedly. How would a fan get your home address?

Cassie shrugged. I don’t know. Until a year ago, it didn’t matter who had my address so I doubt it would be hard to track it down if someone wanted to. I’m not exactly hidden especially with my University connections and the fact that this has been my address for a long time.

Cassie reached the end of the roll of never-ending bubble wrap which revealed a very small, 1/3 scale replica of a Thompson machine gun. Oh wow. Look at this.

Julie looked even more perplexed. Why would anyone send you a gun as a sympathy gift?

For the first time, Cassie felt the first crack in her apathetic armor and her eyes filled with tears. I collect them, and this is a gorgeous miniature replica. Look at the detail on this thing. She held the gun up and inspected the details closely.

I still don’t understand. Why would someone send you a gun for a condolence gift when your brother was just killed in action?

Cassie looked up at Julie’s harsh tone and noticed her frown.

No, Julie. You don’t understand. This is from one of the fans of the game. In one of my magazine interviews I talked about my Thompson machine gun collection. You’ve probably never noticed them. Most of them are at the office. The reason I collect them is because when Chris, Jake, and I were young, we played war games around the neighborhood constantly. The Thompson was our favorite weapon of choice. It’s actually a really thoughtful, sweet gift to remind me of fun times with Chris. Cassie’s voice choked up when she said Chris’ name.

Penelope came up behind Cassie and gave her a gentle hug from behind. You, my friend, are a very strange bird. You had the most unusual childhood of anyone I know, growing up with all the boys.

Cassie looked at the gun with a watery smile. It was the best childhood any girl could ask for. I had three guys who loved and took care of me every single day of it.

Julie came up and hugged Cassie from the other side. So what exactly do you do with a miniature replica weapon?

Cassie extracted herself from their embraces and set the gun on her mantle above the fireplace. You put it in a place of honor to remember the good times. She rubbed a hand over the framed snapshot sitting right beside the gun. It was a photo of Chris, Jake, and her when they were young. All three of them were in full camouflage regalia...full face paint and camo fatigues. Chris stood in the middle between Jake and Cassie and all three of them wore a grin which spread from ear to ear. Those bright white teeth and white eyes standing out against their smeared and running face paint. It was one of her most beloved photos of the three of them...the Three Musketeers. Now they were down to two.

Chapter 3

Half a day and a lifetime later, Jake was looking at that same photo when Colton walked up behind him. He looked over Jake’s shoulder at the photo and grinned. You three were always the hellions of the neighborhood.

Jake nodded and smiled. Yes, it’s amazing the neighborhood put up with us playing our war games through everyone’s yards for all those years without calling the police on us.

Colton looked around the room at the food and plants which were everywhere... so many of them were from those same neighbors. Nah, the neighborhood loved you three. They knew as long as you were playing together, you were more than likely keeping each other out of trouble.

Jake pressed his finger to Chris’ face on the photo. That only seemed to work when we were kids though, didn’t it? I wasn’t able to keep him out of trouble this time.

Colton looked thoughtfully at Jake. His rank and position enabled him to gather more information about the crash than Cassie had been told so he knew it was Jake’s PJ team that had gone in