Chapter 14
Graysen impatiently pushed her away, his voice heavy with concern. “Marlene, you shouldn’t have come. The situation here is more serious than you think. I suggest you go back. It’s not too late to leave and head back to Maruland before you’re officially enlisted.”
But Marlene paid no heed to his advice. She was determined to use this opportunity to surpass Caroline, to claim the honor and accolades that she believed were rightfully hers.
The next day, when the new bomb disposal teams were formed, Caroline and Beckham were already
out on a mission.
Their objective for the day was to clear all the lightning–triggered mines in Asmad Village.
The last time, an unsuspecting local had stepped on one of the mines, causing several casualties. The leadership was deeply concerned, specifically assigning their team to finish the task.
Time was tight, and the task was heavy.
One carried the mine detector, while the other stood behind with a sniper rifle, guarding their
backs. They moved forward inch by inch, each step a battle between life and death.
By midday, they had cleared a significant portion of the minefield.
Just then, another armored vehicle arrived, and the bomb disposal teams piled out. Graysen, Marlene, and a few others were assigned to the area.
Ignoring the warnings everyone around her, Marlene immediately hopped out of the vehicle and skipped around the minefield, calling out, “What a beautiful view!”
Beckham hadn’t even had a chance to scold her before the ground beneath Marlene’s feet exploded
with a dull thud–a remnant mine detonated.
Graysen acted quickly, pulling Caroline into his arms and rolling with her to shield her from the
blast.
Marlene was knocked down by Graysen’s swift intervention, and the others scrambled to escape.
Fortunately, it was just a leftover mine with relatively low power. Once the smoke cleared, everyone slowly rose, brushing off the dust.
In a fit of fury, Beckham stormed over to Marlene and slapped her hard across the face, the sound of
it ringing out. Her face swelled up instantly, turning bright red.
“Who gave you the audacity to act like this in a minefield? Are you trying to die? If you want to die, go back to Maruland. Don’t drag anyone else down with you!”
Beckham’s temper flared. He wished he could slap the stupidity out of her. Marlene staggered backward, covering her swollen face with her hands, hiding behind Graysen, too scared to speak.
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Graysen thought about saying something in her defense, but when he saw the three–star rank on Beckham’s shoulder, he immediately shut his mouth.
Beckham’s eyes were red with fury, his gaze sharp, In front of everyone, he said coldly, “This is a high–risk mine zone, not a playground! You’re all one step away from death here. If you want to survive, you better start listening!”
As everyone fell silent in the face of Beckham’s harsh words, their arrogance quickly dissipated. Only then did he return to Caroline’s side.
With genuine concern, he asked, “Are you Okay?”
The sudden gentleness in his tone was in stark contrast to his earlier ferocity, and the team members began exchanging uncomfortable glances.
Caroline nodded slightly, grabbed her gear, and continued walking forward.
The two of them moved seamlessly like they’d practiced this dance a thousand times.
Graysen, watching from a distance, clenched his fists, his knuckles turning white.
But there was nothing he could say, nothing he could do.
The timing was wrong. The setting was wrong. All he could do was suppress his frustration and continue clearing the mines.
Unfortunately, he and Marlene were paired up for the task. Carrying the heavy sniper rifle was a struggle for a woman, so Marlene could only handle the disarming.
But as other teams sped ahead, Marlene was still painstakingly searching for the trigger wires.
Graysen grew more and more impatient, regretting his partnership with Marlene for the first time.
His eyes shifted to Caroline ahead of him, watching her clear mines with precision, effortlessly taking one out every few minutes. His gaze softened with pride.
The sun dipped lower in the sky, inch by inch, until it set beyond the horizon.
The entire minefield had been cleared, and Caroline’s team had completed the bulk of the work.
Beckham casually strolled over to Graysen, giving him a glance that was dripping with disdain.
Graysen, already simmering with anger, was about to confront him when several members of his
team quickly pulled him back.
“Graysen, your team was definitely slower today…”
Graysen knew his team had performed poorly, but when he saw Marlene’s injured expression, his anger flared even more. Yet, he couldn’t bring himself to yell at her. Instead, he scoffed and walked
off.
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The mocking voices of the other teams followed him.
“Can’t even focus on the task and still keep exchanging glances. No wonder they’re getting criticized.”
“That woman’s a disaster. She doesn’t know anything and yet comes in to ‘help.‘ What bad luck.”
For the first time, Graysen ignored Marlene entirely, letting the others gossip behind his back.
Back at the base, he spotted Caroline walking alone toward the dorms. Seizing the opportunity, he
hurried after her.
“Caroline, give me a few minutes. Let’s talk,” he called after her.
“Graysen, I’ve told you. We have nothing to talk about. We’ve broken up. Did you forget?” Caroline
shot back, her words sharp and biting, each one like a knife to Graysen’s chest.
Graysen paled at her response, pausing for a moment before stubbornly continuing, “Caroline, I know I made mistakes. Please, give me a chance. Let’s start over. After we finish our rotation, we can go back to Maruland to get married and have a baby. If you’d prefer, we could marry here instead. I’ll do whatever you want, but you can’t just ignore me.”
