Jessica and Cara talked through the night. Jessica tried to console Cara as much as possible but she could see her friend's hurt was more than just skin deep. Jessica had witnessed first hand the pain Zach had inflicted on Cara throughout their school years. Whilst he may never have laid a hand on her, it was all his doing, explicitly or not. Cara had received her fair share of bullies and to fall for another was on the invisible list of what not to do. As midnight crept in, Cara took herself to bed, hoping she would get some sleep. The tears had dried a while ago but she could still feel the dryness sting her cheeks. She was angry for allowing herself to be fooled by Zach, his good looks and charm had blinded her and she had fallen for it. She inhaled deeply, resting her head on the plush pillow. The darkness enveloped her and she begged the shadows to take the pain away. Closing her eyes, she tried to imagine a simpler life but she didn’t know what that was. It had been a

“Archer!” A hand slapped him on the back, forcing the coffee in his hands to spill over the table. “Johnson.” Archer said choking on his drink, “How’re you doing?” Johnson sat next to him at the conference table, the room was situated in the middle of a large concrete building. The walls were greyed, accommodating a few blacked-out windows that let the tiniest slice of light through. The dimly lit room was overlooked by the battered hanging bars of light that had seen better days. The smell of coffee and men’s musk suffocated the atmosphere, whilst the sound of male ego filled the expanse. Archer was struggling with the lack of communication with Cara. The week had dragged while signal limited his access to speak to her. He had left her a message but he was unable to see if she had tried to get back in contact. It was one of the drawbacks of the job, and it frustrated him that it caused so much silence and distance between them. Archer had struggled w

Archer woke up with a jolt, his alarm clock buzzing in the background alerted him that they would be moving out today. Archer jumped down from the bunk, heading towards the showers. He could already hear Johnson singing away as he opened the door. Archer flung his towel over the hook on the wall before stepping under the water. “Hey man!” Johnson turned to Archer. “Hey!” Archer returned, not as emphatically as he would have liked. “This girl has got you in a twist! What’s going on?” Archer turned to Johnson, giving him a brief dismal expression. “Okay okay! I give up!” Johnson retorted, throwing his shower gel at Archer before leaving the room. The men loaded up the vehicle before making their way over to the other side of the base to the airstrip. Checking their kit one last time before they entered the aircraft. The team placed their bags under their seats, doing their final roll call. Archer had tried to keep the situation between C

The team had made their trek out to a nearby compound, the journey wasn’t long but the heat of the midday sun made it slightly more difficult.As they reached their new temporary base camp, O’Connell pulled out his map confirming their final destination.Three of his men entered the compound while the remaining men stood guard, rifles at the ready. Clearing the area was a quick and easy process, once confirmed Archer ordered the team to set up. The compound was small, it consisted of four rooms all on the ground floor with one large open room that took up the entire upper level. A mediocre staircase led from the upper floor to an open area on the roof. It was inconspicuous and would serve well as basecamp, temporarily.O’Connell and Blake were set up in one room, their weapons lay across the floor as they carefully inspected every detail. Archer walked through the area, observing their administration before turning the corner into the next room

The aircraft bounced across the tarmac as it came into land, the sudden motion jolted Archer awake. Rubbing his eyes he watched as his team rose from their seats, picking up their kit bags in a jostled fashion. The ramp lowered with a painfully loud scream as it met the tarmac below. Each man strode down the ramp, slinging their kit over one shoulder. The transport arrived, parking behind the ramp. Each man heaved his bag into the rear with great force before taking a seat inside. Within minutes the team were speeding over to HQ, it was late in the night and Archer and his men were rubbing their eyes as exhaustion threatened to take over. The vehicle ground to halt outside HQ and each man jumped excitedly from the trailer, almost hearing their beds calling them. “Brief at 0800 lads, get some sleep.” He ordered. Archer followed behind the team, dropping his kit across the bed and locking his bedroom door. He sank onto his bunk, allowing the comfort of