Breaking Habits

Chapter 43- Micah-The End

One Year Later

We're doing the last drill in the training program and our training officer is shouting his ass off.

"Cut the fucking wire, Yorke!"

My hands are trembling and nerves has sweat dripping off my forehead. If I cut the wrong wire, I could damage the trip switch. That comes with big consequences, so I must make sure the risk to ratio is right before I act.

"Cut the wire!"

"Just hold the fuck on." I yell back.

Standing on the safe side of the yard, it's easy for him to keep shouting, but the rest of us will get zapped if I get this wrong. I learned the hard way in the first six months of training. Now, I want to avoid getting electrocuted with one-hundred and twenty volts.

"There's no waiting! The clock's ticking! Cut the fucking wire now!"

The pressure adds to my nerves and it makes my hands shake more. I can't remember what the fucking book said but I'm going with my instinct.

"Cut the fucking wire!"

When I do, the clock stops ticking and I tense to wait for a dose of electricity.

"Great! "Now we all can go back to England tomorrow!"

The radio cuts out after that and the shock that I was waiting for doesn't come.

***

As our plane pull up to the gateway, our commanding officer tells us that we've passed the physical part of the training programme, and that we'll be spending the next month doing desk work. It's the last part of the assessment before we can get back to our normal lives, and I can't wait to wrap thing up.

"Especially you Yorke. You get my full recommendation."

I shrug thinking nothing. I just need to get this over with so I can go be with Beth. I haven't seen her in twelve months. I said I'd be gone for a short period; a year was not in my time frame.

"Twenty-four hours is all you get," he tells us and everyone groans. "Whoever drags their ass back later than that, will have you all doing the last part of the programme again, and I'm sure none of you wants that."

The government should re-think the names for their programs because whatever they're training us for has nothing to do with search and rescue, or anything like what was agreed. We've made no attempts to search or rescue anything.

We've mostly done combat and heist training. I have a feeling they'll use the people they selected for something else, but I don't care because my team and I have fulfilled our part of the agreement.

***

On the way through departure. My friends tell me of their plans. Riot and Jordan are heading back to their place to spend their twenty-four hours together. Sevyne's going to her sister's graduation party, and Bradley's going to see his brothers and nephews.

We get outside and I'm the first to hail a taxi. "Where are you going? Ride with us." Riot calls out when Sevyne and Jordan climbs into another taxi.

I turn to her and miss the one that pulled in. "I have two important things to do Ry, and one of them takes more than twenty-four hours."

"Say hi to Beth for us," Sev says catching on.

"See you in twenty-four hours then," Jordan says as their taxi drives off.

"I know you're heading to the office first. Do you need my help with anything before I go?" Bradley asks coming to stand next to me.

"I'm meeting our managers in an hour; they're going to catch me up. I need a ride; Where's your car?"