Battle Ready by Mark L. Donald
Author:Mark L. Donald [Donald, Mark L.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: (¯`'•.¸//(*_*)\\¸.•'´¯)
ISBN: 9780312600754
Amazon: 0312600755
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Published: 2013-03-11T23:00:00+00:00
15
QRF
The tragedy of war is that it uses manâs best to do manâs worst.
âHARRY EMERSON FOSDICK
Chris arrived with a platoon from 10th Mountain including an air force tactical air controller assigned to the company and a medical team made up of the battalion surgeon and additional medics. Chris was in the passenger seat of the lead vehicle, and we saw his blond hair from a mile out. Vic immediately called a meeting with Tom, Chris, and me along with the officers and senior enlisted from the 10th Mountain. We gathered at the spot where my vehicle sat just hours earlier and briefly explained to Chris and the others what happened. After Vic was through he turned the floor over to Tom. It had been over an hour since we received enemy fire, so we assumed the onslaught of air support that Vic wielded on the enemy ended any desire to continue the assault.
âCaptain, I know we all would like to get out of here, but weâd like to sweep the area and gather what intel we could off the enemy dead if youâll allow it,â Tom said to the officer in charge of the QRF. The captainâs sergeant major nodded in support. Tom suggested the 10th Mountain platoon leader take a couple of armored vehicles and head toward the southern ridge while another squad joined up with a group of our ANA and followed the blood trail on foot.
âDoc, youâre the only other American familiar with the layout of the battlefield. Why donât you take Hamadullahâs fighters and the staff sergeantâs men and push out toward the east. Chris, grab a couple soldiersââhe paused to see if he had approval from the captainââand check the bodies on the ridgeline for intel. Iâll take some of my men and cover the flank.â I could see that Chris was annoyed with his assignment, and when everyone moved away he asked to speak with Tom and me.
âWhatâs up?â Tom asked.
Chris removed his ballistic sunglasses. âI didnât come out here to scour the dead. Frankly, these are my men, and Iâm a little pissed I couldnât be here with you all when this happened.â I could see both the pain and intensity in his eyes. He was right, he knew these men far better than I. Heâd trained them from the beginning and led them under fire on numerous other occasions, and I knew exactly what he was feeling. I had to stay behind on previous operations when insertion platforms or other parameters changed at the last minute. It wasnât a good feeling, especially when the team took casualties. Each special operations warrior has something inside him that screams, âI can be the difference.â Itâs not arrogance or ego; itâs simply an unwavering belief in ourselves. Itâs part of the internal drive that gets us through training and those times when the odds are stacked against us. Unfortunately, itâs also what haunts us when our teammates fall. Tom looked at me as if the decision were mine to make.
Download
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.
Einstein: His Life and Universe by Walter Isaacson(1312)
Finding Freedom: Harry and Meghan and the Making of a Modern Royal Family by Omid Scobie & Carolyn Durand(1174)
Promised Land (9781524763183) by Obama Barack(1152)
Compromised by Peter Strzok(1067)
Finding Freedom by Omid Scobie(1060)
JFK by Fredrik Logevall(992)
Freedom by Sebastian Junger(630)
Salford Lads: The Rise and Fall of Paul Massey by Bernard O'Mahoney(577)
The Russia House by John Le Carré(563)
Kremlin Winter by Robert Service(526)
Day of the Dead by Mark Roberts(514)
A World Ablaze by Craig Harline(505)
Graveyard (Ed & Lorraine Warren Book 1) by Ed Warren & Lorraine Warren & Robert David Chase(503)
Flying Tiger by Samson Jack(501)
Joe Biden: American Dreamer by Evan Osnos(490)
100 Things Successful Leaders Do by Nigel Cumberland(477)
Melania and Me: The Rise and Fall of My Friendship With the First Lady by Stephanie Winston Wolkoff(476)
The Irish Buddhist by Alicia Turner(470)
The Mission by David W. Brown(459)