Chapter 29: A Chapter Closed

She gave him an amused smile with a roll of her eyes. Rick being nervous was an expression she was seeing on him for the first time. That he was, wasn’t funny in any way but why was.

Today was January 3rd. Today, Rick was starting his ‘sentence’ as a military man.

He didn’t like it one bit. The idea of making a run for it had crossed his mind and was tempting. Very tempting. But he had given his word to Major Hunt and he would respect it. Not only that but he would have nowhere to stay and he wouldn’t put it past the Major to leak the information about what Rick was now. Furthermore, the soldier had helped him with the search for Chris by providing an authorization to leave the country. Rick being seventeen he wouldn’t have been able to do that but by signing the contract he was given and enlisted, the US Government became his guardian until he reached his majority in June.

The contract had been fair. Rick would have to take his GED first thing first then, once he got the results, will have to choose a college to enroll in. Of course his scores will be determinant regarding which college he can attend but he wasn’t too worried about scoring less than 750. After that, Major Hunt said he’ll have someone take care of his registration and getting his courses. Rick would simply have to focus on training himself as a soldier then be a soldier. For five years.

“Unless you’re on a mission, of course. There is no reason you wouldn’t.”

“Will you even bother to answer?” There wasn’t any shake in his voice. No tremble nor stutter. It was clear and firm but the fact that Rick even asked the question in the first place told a lot.

Jill frowned and cursed her ex-boyfriend’s little sister’s name. “I’ll write to you more than you will write to me.”

She saw doubt in his eyes but he quickly changed the subject. “What about my stuff?”

“For the last time, I have it under lock. You don’t have to worry about it.” The sigh that escaped Jill’s lips was one of irritation. It was the fifth time now that she answered that question.

For some reason, Rick got really attached to the weapons he had accumulated during his escape from Raccoon City. He had always been a hoarder and protective of his belongings but this was going way too far. Honestly, Jill couldn’t blame him. That was the only thing he had left in his life, saved for her. His weapons.

She was sure it was a defense mechanism or a coping one. Inwardly she cursed again, Claire’s name. Badly. The girl had hurt Rick even more than Rebecca did and she was very crossed with her.

Rebecca had been honest from the get go. What had happened between Rick and her in the Mansion may not have been a mistake but she had never had in mind for something longer. She had apologized for it.

Claire, on the other hand, made promises and broke them within less than three months. Jill thought Rick had been joking when he told her she had broken up with him. She had seen the couple together absolutely everywhere during the quarantine, heard them fuck everywhere too, then they left together to search for Chris and bam, by December 29th Rick was at her doorstep and single.

When Jill heard the story, she thought he was pulling her leg but the cold dead look on his face had been even worse than when Rebecca let him down ‘gently’. She couldn’t honestly understand Claire’s reaction. In Rick’s shoes, Jill would have acted the same. It made sense, it was logical and it saved their lives.

She had believed Claire would help Rick in healing, in trusting people and it had backfired spectacularly. The youngest Redfield had given her friend hope and just took it back away. Even Chris, of all people, thought it was a dick move from his sister when he and Jill talked about it.

And now, Rick was even more closed up than before. Years of care, of character development and personal growth wasted to ruins.

“I don’t like being unarmed.” Rick confessed.

Jill stared at him flatly. “You’re not unarmed. You can probably dodge a bullet easily and crush a gun with your grip.” She grabbed him by the shoulders and turned him around to face the building. “Go in there and start a new chapter of your life and stop acting like a child.”

He looked at her over his shoulder with a blasé look. “I haven’t been a child since my father beat me for the first time when I was six.”

“Could have fooled me,” Her reply came with narrowed and threatening eyes.

This time, it was Rick who exhaled. “Don’t get yourself killed?”

“Who do you think you’re talking to?” Her voice was unamused. A good kick to the ass to make him stumble forward put an end to that topic. “Now go. You’ll thrive there.”

“And if I don’t?”

Jill smirked and crossed her arms right under her chest. Despite the thick winter coat, there was quite a volume in that particular area. “I’ll let you have a squeeze of the girls.”

Rick looked disgusted. “God! Who would want to squeeze inflated—”

He didn’t finish his sentence and ran inside the building when Jill drew her gun from its holster. As he disappeared behind the glass door, her expression turned back to smiling.

‘He might be taller than me now but he still fears me when push comes to shove.’

With that said, Jill turned around and got on the car she had rented for the occasion. She still had some time before she could start her new job in Baltimore, so she had driven him from there. It was her way to show her support, that she’d have his back, always. He really needed that after his break-up. So did she in truth. Rick had been quite the constant in her life for five years after all. The only person she had who was out of the military or law enforcement or in the gun business. He always was her anchor to remember there was a normal life to have, even though his situation was far from normal.

Turning up the radio, she found a station playing Shaina Twain’s Don’t impress me much and immediately started to sing along, her voice fading from Rick’s hearing as the glass doors of the recruitment center slid shut behind him.

He presented his papers to a man behind the desk at the entrance. The soldier, in his twenties, began checking for his name on a register but found nothing.

“Are you sure, son?”

“If my name is Rick Wald?” Rick answered flatly.

The soldier realized then how dumb the question was and had a better look at the form he had been given. He had just checked for the name as it was usually enough to give the information needed to the recruit. When he saw it wasn’t quite the regular form he frowned and had a thorough look.

“Major Hunt? Huh. That’s unusual.”

The man muttered and picked up the phone. Rick heard the name of the Major and waited patiently for being told where to go. He waited some more when he learned that he needed to be on standby here and that someone would fetch him.

Rick couldn’t honestly understand what he was doing here. He was supposed to join a black ops team, meaning something secret. Yet here he was in one of the four main basic training camps on the East Coast. He knew he needed to learn the basics but he had believed he would do it behind closed doors wherever the team’s headquarters were.

“Rick Wald?”

He turned his head right to see a woman in pristine military uniform. A brunette with green eyes, approximately 5 feet tall and a few inches. A tight bun and glasses with it too. She was wearing a few medals and ribbons he didn’t know anything about. From her face alone he estimated her age to be in her late twenties, early thirties but then again it didn’t mean anything. He had learned from Jill that people had the tendency to appear older than they look after seeing the battlefield.

“Yes.” Rick replied politely.

“Follow me.”

She didn’t utter another word and simply turned around. Rick followed her in silence. Down a corridor, then another and another until they reached an elevator. After sliding a card into a card reader, the doors opened and they got inside. Another slide of a card and she pushed the B10 button.

Rick’s senses were on alert. He may trust Jill but that didn’t give her friends or acquaintances the same amount of trust. Being led to a deep underground basement didn’t help either. Not when his expectations had been out the window since he saw the building from the car.

The descent wasn’t long. Less than a minute and without any stops. When the doors opened, Rick once again followed his guide. The sound of her heels on the ground were the only sound he could hear in the surroundings, even with his enhanced hearing.

The walls were concrete grey for the simple reason that it was concrete. Walls, ceilings, ground, even the neon lamps above were reminiscent of a bunker. Closed wooden doors left and right in perfect rows.

After going through two more corridors, they went through a double door and arrived at what looked like a training ground as vast as a hangar. Weight equipment on one side with a few men using them or acting as a spotter. To the other side was an obstacle course going around most of the place, running lines and multiple mats for what Rick could see as a sparring area. All in all there were around twenty people give or take. Among them was Major Hunt, hands behind his back and looking at a spar.

“Major.” The woman called sternly to her superior.

Ethan Hunt turned around and saw her and Rick. A glint gleamed in his eyes and he gave her a nod. “Thank you, Captain.” He turned around and put an end to the spar.

Immediately the Captain pulled a whistle from her pocket and used it. All activity stopped almost on the spot. Quickly, the mats were abandoned, the weights too and everyone saved for Rick stood at attention in one single line in front of the Major. To Rick it was clear none of the men and women right under his eyes were fresh recruits like him.

The Major gave him a look and it rolled off Rick’s shoulders. Not insisting, the man focused on his subordinates in front of him.

Hunt’s eyes swept the line of candidates. “Now that all personnel are present, you will be briefed on the purpose of this detachment.” He paused, allowing the silence to emphasize his words. “Each of you has been carefully selected based on the recommendation of a commanding officer. You are here as candidates for a newly formed special operations unit.”

He took a measured step forward. “Over the next four weeks, you will undergo a continuous assessment and selection cycle. You will be tested in every applicable military discipline, both physical and mental. Your performance will be evaluated against the standards required for this unit’s mission profile.”

Another deliberate pause. “At the conclusion of this cycle, two candidates will be selected for permanent assignment to the unit. The remainder will be reassigned to new posts commensurate with their demonstrated abilities. This selection is final and non-negotiable.” His gaze hardened slightly. “Are there any questions?”

“Sir!” A relatively tall Asian man raised his voice.

“Go ahead, Sergeant.”

“I was told this was a once in a lifetime opportunity for one’s career. What does being part of your team entail?”

The Major’s answer was both very informative and not. “Very high risks, high rewards and I’ll leave it at that. Captain.”

The woman stepped forward, her posture rigidly authoritative. “Captain Walker. I will outline the daily schedule. Reveille is at 0430 hours. You have thirty minutes for personal hygiene and to assemble for formation at 0500. From 0500 to 0630, you will conduct mandatory Physical Training. The mess hall serves breakfast until 0700.”

She scanned the line, ensuring every candidate was tracking. “At 0700, the daily testing cycle begins. You will be evaluated in rotating five-person cohorts. Personnel not actively being tested are to utilize that time for personal preparation and study. You have the latitude of the facility, but you must be at the ready to report immediately when your cohort is called. The morning testing block concludes at 1200 hours.”

“The afternoon testing block runs from 1300 to 1800 hours and will involve the full detachment. Evening chow is at 1830. Your time is your own after 1900, but barracks will be inspected daily at 0600. Lights out is at 2200. Your performance, your discipline, and your readiness during all free periods are part of the evaluation. Is that understood?”

“Yes, ma’am.” The soldiers replied in a disciplined and united fashion.

“At ease.” The Major ordered and turned to Rick. With a movement of the head he signaled to follow him outside. Something that wasn’t missed by a few candidates. Behind them was the Captain walking at a safe distance in silence.

“Not what you expected, hm?” Major Hunt said to Rick.

Rick told the truth. Partially. “I expected to take my tests for the GED.”

“And you will. It’s where we’re going right now. Captain Walker has the credentials to give you the tests.”

Rick nodded and went with a question of his own. “What about my basic training? Even if I didn’t know about the fact you wanted to make a team for some bullshit missions, it’s obvious they’re all veterans. I know nothing about how a soldier acts or being one.”

“Captain Walker will take care of that too. You’ll have to learn everything within the week.”

“I suppose I actually have to work for a spot.” Rick had turned his head to look at the Captain with an eyebrow raised questioningly, wondering if she was capable of doing everything around here.

“Yes but considering what you can do, it’s in a bag.”

“Someone didn’t like your decision regarding me. Someone high up.”

For the first time, Major Hunt gave Rick a side glance. “You’re correct. I need a paper trail and witnesses to justify your selection. This unit will be reporting to the president with only one intermediary. However it will be known by quite a few people in power who could influence the President. There must be no doubt that you belong in the team.”

“Alright. Did you already make your choice and I have to eliminate some competition or…”

“No. The soldiers I want to be part of my unit have already all been recruited. There are just two vacant spots that I need to fill. Counting you of course.” He stopped at a door and opened it. With a wave a movement of the arm he invited Rick inside. “All of this is moot if you don’t pass though.”

Without a single word uttered nor a single look, Rick stepped inside the small room. With a rectangular table surrounded by chairs and a projector on the ceiling aimed at the end wall, he couldn’t mistake it for anything else than a conference room.

Taking a seat facing a stack of papers, he waited for Captain Walker to come in. With amusement in his voice the Major wished him good luck. He could, after all, the situation was quite funny to him.

“Luck is for the under prepared.” Rick replied and noticed a gleam of agreement in his examinator’s eyes.