Epilogue
Nine months later.
"Oh wow okay," Jules winced as she felt another contraction start and pressed her hand against her side where it felt as if someone was wrapping their hand around her lower spine and squeezing. She thought that being shot hurt but maybe now she wasn't so certain.
"Yep," Her mother just smiled knowingly from where she sat next to her on the couch and stared at her watch, timing the contraction, "Just breath through it."
Jules rolled her eyes at the useless information but she decided it not to snap and instead focus on the wall across from her until she could feel the tightening pain subside and knew that it was coming to a close.
"Thirty seconds," Katherine remarked with an impressive nod of her head, "Something tells me that these aren't Braxton hicks again."
"-Or heartburn," She added when she saw Jules open her mouth to speak.
"No, maybe not," Jules sighed sadly and turned her head to the left where a floor length mirror was propped up against the wall next to the bay window. Sat on the edge of the sofa she looked at her humongous reflection; her legs were spread wide to accommodate her large belly, her hair was tied back in a ponytail and she was dressed in her pyjamas as it was barely seven o'clock in the morning. The pain had started in the early hours but she had suffered from false contractions, Braxton Hicks, a few weeks ago and she still wasn't due for two weeks so she simply got up and pottered around the house until her mother heard her and woke up to investigate. Katherine had taken the spare room at Marc's request since the start of her last trimester. The doctor had stressed that there could still be complications even this late into the pregnancy and as Marc was away on tour he did not want her left alone. Jules stated that she wasn't alone but he claimed that Safia, a twelve year old girl, was not the ideal birthing partner he had in mind for her. She had to agree with him and Katherine leapt at the chance to be close to her daughter again, even if it meant swapping Bishop Green for greater London.
"Your hospital bag is ready and waiting in the hallway. Shall we take you upstairs to get dressed?"
"I need to get Safia ready for school," Julia told her mother as she gripped the edge of the sofa and pushed herself up onto her feet, swiping her mum's hand away when she tried to help her. "Safia?" She called out as she wobbled across the living room, out into the hallway and stood at the bottom of the stairs, "Safia, honey, it's time to get up." As she looked up the stairs waiting for Safia to reply she was struck by how simple her life had now become. After years and months of fighting for this exact thing she was finally there with an adopted daughter and another child on the way. She still missed the military and when she went on maternity leave it was the hardest day saying goodbye to her family but seeing the beautiful girl emerge at the top of the stairs rubbing the sleep from her eyes and wearing Princess Tiana pyjamas made everything worth it.
"I'm up," Safia yawned.
"Brush your teeth and get dressed for school sweetie," Jules told her, biting the inside of her cheek when she suddenly felt another contraction start to build up.
"Okay," Safia yawned again as she turned and walked into the bathroom whilst Jules gripped the end of the banister and rode out the next contraction. Squeezing her eyes shut she rested her forehead against the banister and bit her lip to keep from crying out in pain a little.
"Julia?" Katherine's voice suddenly called from the living room until it was suddenly right next to her, "What's taking so long- Julia are you alright?"
"Yeah I'm just peachy," Jules gasped when she felt like she could finally talk again.
"How long was that one?"
"I don't know," Jules snapped, "I didn't exactly have counting on my mind."
"Sarcasm isn't going to help," Katherine sighed as she wrapped her arm around her daughter's shoulders and led her back to the living room.
"Oh I don't know," Jules sighed, "It helped me." But she gave her mother a smile when she said it to let her know that she was joking, partly anyway.
"There couldn't have been more than five minutes between those two contractions. I think we should start thinking about getting you to the hospital," Katherine told her.
"I need to get Safia to school," Jules let out a slow breath as she slowly lowered herself back down onto the sofa but she couldn't deny that this wasn't happening anymore, "And I need to ring Marc." She was praying that the baby would wait until it's due date for Marc to come home but he or she seemed to have a mind of their own, something Marc would say they got from her.
"Here," Katherine picked the IPad up from the coffee table and handed it to her, "You call Marc and I'll make some breakfast for Safia."
"Okay," Jules propped herself up with pillows before she took the IPad and turned to her mum, "And mum? Thanks, for everything."
Katherine just smiled but she could tell that she was touched, Jules never thanked her anything, "It's what mothers are for, but thank you for letting me help you, I know you probably wouldn't have asked me to come if it wasn't for Marc."
Jules went silent because she knew she was right. There was still a little rift in their mother and daughter relationship since she found out that her mother had intentionally tried to keep the truth from her but recently they have tried to put it on the back burner, mainly because it was hard to live with someone if you were constantly thinking about what could have happened if she had gotten her way and what she could have ruined, but Jules had to think that everything was turning out for the best now, her and Marc were back together and they had a family now. Jules just couldn't help but think that if she had to do it over again her mother would still lie to her and she didn't know how she felt about that.
Katherine didn't give Julia a chance to respond before she turned and headed into the kitchen. Blinking a few unshed tears from her eyes Jules powered up the IPad and turned onto Skype. Pressing the number for Marc she waited as the line rang and rang, crossing her fingers that he would pick up. She did the mental maths and knew that it was nearly half past ten in the morning in Afghanistan. After a few minutes the call ended and she had to delay ringing him again when another contraction rocked her body; they were coming faster and stronger. This time it felt as if someone had stuck a dagger in her lower back and someone was sat on top of her at the same time. When the pressure released once more she pressed the dial button again and waited, her patience wearing thin as the line went unanswered.
She wanted to throw the IPad across the room before she took a deep breath and heard Katherine and Safia talking up the stairs about breakfast and school. Pressing dial again she closed her eyes and prayed that Marc would answer when the ringing stopped and she heard Marc's voice call out to her.
"Hey beautiful!" Marc called out and Jules let out a small whimper because she did not feel very beautiful right then and she realised how much she needed him, "Your ears must have been burning because I was just chatting to Twitch about- Jules?" He said and she heard the concern in his voice so she opened her eyes and stared at the screen which only made her want to cry more. He was sat in front of the webcam inside a tent but she could still see how sunny it was there and in her head she could smell the sand and feel the heat on her skin. She missed it so much.
"You okay, sweetie?" Marc frowned.
Wiping her eyes Jules repositioned herself on the sofa which took longer than it used to before she shook her head at the camera, "Marc, I'm- I think I'm going into labour."
"Wha-" Marc gasped as he was caught off guard, looking around him as if for guidance on what to do, "Bloody hell, how is it?"
Jules stared at him, "Painful, you're welcome to come and try it!"
"Sorry," He winced, "Where's your mum?"
Jules rolled her eyes at him, "She's getting Safia ready for school. We're gonna go to the hospital soon but I just needed to see your face and tell you-" Jules had to stop talking as she felt another contraction and she lowered the IPad a little as she bent forward in pain. She could feel her heart racing as she started to panic, she couldn't do this. "Marc!" She cried, "Marc, you need to get your ass on a transport and get back here, I can't do this."
"Sweetie you know I can't do that," Marc told her, "But I will be there very soon, I promise you can do this."
She shook her head and closed her eyes, "I can't."
"Sergeant Julia Langdale you look at me," Marc's voice turned authoritive and the soldier in Jules responded instantly. Her eyes snapped open and her back straightened a little as she stared down at the screen, "You've been blown up, shot, experienced loss, tortured- You've literally stared death in the face! You. Can. Do. This."
His words knocked her out of her downward spiral and she clenched her jaw tight as she gave him a small nod.
"Good," Marc said as a wide grin stretched across his lips, "Now go and have our daughter and give her a kiss from me. That's an order." His voice cracked a little at the end and Jules touched her fingers to the screen.
"It's going to be a boy but okay," Jules told him. They decided not to find out the gender and they both thought differently, "I wish you could be here," Her voice shook.
"I do to," Marc wiped the back of his hand across his nose, "But I'll be there before you know it. I love you so much."
Jules nodded, "I love you too. Can you tell the others, twitch and Carlos?"
"I'm gonna be telling everyone," Marc replied which made Jules laugh until she heard her mother calling her name.
"Julia, we're ready. Safia is going to eat her breakfast in the car on the way to the hospital, I'm going to drop you off, take Safia to school and then come back to the hospital, okay, let's go." Katherine shouted out.
Jules stared at Marc's glitchy face and ran the tip of her finger down his jaw, "I've gotta go."
"Okay," Marc nodded his head a little too frantically, "Just remember to breathe and I'll be right there beside you throughout all of it even if I'm not actually there, okay?"
"Okay," she swallowed, "I love you."
"You can do this," Marc told her, "I love you too and give our daughter the biggest kiss in the world from me and tell her I love her too."
"I will," Jules got to her feet and walked towards the door, "And you focus on coming home safe."
"Our deployment ends in a few weeks and then I'll be right there," Marc reassured her, "And what's a few weeks to us?" He asked with a smile on his lips.
She let out a slow breath as she remembered the last time he had asked the question and what she had replied with. "About 12 seconds," She said.
"Exactly," Marc told her, "12 seconds and I'll be there."
"I'll be waiting for you," Jules said and neither of them wanted to end the call but her mother was calling her from the car whilst she stood in the doorway on the last bar of wifi signal.
"You can do it," Marc repeated the words and it was exactly what she needed to hear.
She nodded her head, "Bye."
"Bye love," Marc gave a small wave and it felt like a knife to the heart when she pressed the 'end call' button and his face disappeared. Switching off the IPad she placed it on the table just inside the door before she stepped out in her pyjamas and slippers to go and give birth.
* * *
19 hours later, Afghanistan.
His watch said it was just before 5AM. The sky had just begun to turn from dark to light and he could feel the sunrise waiting just beneath the horizon to poke its head out and begin a new day. But there would be one person who wasn't going to be here much longer to enjoy it.
Waiting on the tenth floor of a derelict office building on the abandoned side of town he set his sniper rifle on the ledge and watched the building across from him, a military Humvee parked outside. His target had been inside for a few hours but the building wasn't known to them although during his surveillance he had seen a few faces going inside that he did know. He recognised their faces from known or suspected jihadists. It only hardened his resolve that he was doing the right thing.
Checking his watch again he saw that another thirty minutes had passed and the sky had begun to turn warm amber in colour. It was nearly 2AM back in England and he thought about Jules, lying in hospital with a healthy baby girl sleeping in a cot beside her. Marc had gotten the phone call to say that he had a beautiful baby girl and Carlos knew then that it was time. Since that day nine months ago when Jules made a deal with Ridgeway to owe him a favour he had been thinking of a way to get her out of it because he knew that whatever favour Ridgeway got her to do it would be the kind that she wouldn't be coming back from. Ridgeway hated that his prodigy had left him and he would not let her go so Carlos would do it for him. He had thought long and hard and a number of ideas had come to him but this was the only one with a guarantee that Ridgeway could never harm Jules or her family again.
Carlos had had time whilst Jules was pregnant because Ridgeway couldn't touch her but now she had given birth that safety period was over but Carlos wouldn't let her be harmed again. She had been through too much and he wouldn't let this bastard hurt her again. He had placed a tracker on Ridgeway's personal vehicle and followed the GPS signal here to a suspicious area known for strong terrorist connections. Carlos might have wondered what or who Ridgeway was meeting here but nothing would surprise him anymore about Ridgeway so he set up across the street and waited. And now his wait was at an end as he saw the door open and he positioned himself behind the rifle.
Pressing his eye to the scope he aimed it at the door and watched a heavy set man with a thick beard and a scar across his left cheek step out and Carlos recognised him instantly from the intelligence photographs in folders back at the base. They had been trying to find this man for months after they thought he orchestrated a bombing at a hospital last year. Carlos breathed and held off from pulling the trigger as he watched him scan the area before he stepped back and held the door open for the western General behind him. He wasn't in his uniform but rather black cargo trousers and matching jacket but Carlos could see his face and he knew it was Ridgeway. And seeing him now shake hands and exchange words with the terrorist made Carlos's disgust for Ridgeway triple. He had been doing this for Jules but now maybe it was also for the greater good if an American General was consorting with terrorists.
Checking his watch again Carlos did not have the time to wait and see who else was inside or if they would come out as his window diminished rapidly. Settling himself back into his rifle he took aim and settled the sight on Ridgeway's head. He thought for a second that this would be classed as treason before he pulled the trigger and splattered Ridgeway's brains across the walls of a terrorist dwelling. He never saw it coming and Carlos's only regret was that he didn't know that it was him. Turning the rifle a smudge to the right he took out the terrorist that had been holding the door open and as his body collapsed to the ground those inside the building heard the commotion and came out firing. There were half a dozen of them and from his vantage point he managed to dispatch them easily. He waited a few moments to see if anyone else would emerge but when nothing happened he started to pack up and within a few moments he was running down the stone steps with the rifle across his back, sidearm drawn, and exiting the building. Turning right he walked in the opposite direction, hurried around the corner and located the motorcycle he had parked there. Holstering his side arm he straddled the bike and started the engine. Kicking it into gear he twisted the throttle until the back wheel spun around and he was facing the opposite direction. Riding around the other side of the building he stopped at the end and looked up the road to where Ridgeway's body lay on the ground with a dark red hole in his forehead with his eyes wide open, seeing nothing.
Revving the engine he sped off down the road away from the town and back towards base. With the wind whipping at his face Carlos reached into his pocket, removed a small explosive trigger and, without looking back, pressed the button. A second later the C4 he had strapped to Ridgeway's petrol tank detonated and the Humvee was blasted into the air, removing the evidence of his tracker and covering his escape.
His ride back to the base was peaceful and he thought nothing about what he had just done. If the military police did happen to find and identify Ridgeway's body it would be in the wrong sort of place for them to ask questions as to why a decorated general was with terrorists. Carlos knew enough that they would not want that sort of information to leak out so they would sweep it under the carpet and never speak of it again. The bigger picture was that a handful of terrorists were dead and Jules and his goddaughter were safe from Ridgeway.
As he neared the base he diverted around the back to a less manned vehicle entrance and he waited at the metal fence which was covered in sand-coloured camouflage for a few moments before it was opened and he zoomed through. Parking the vehicle amongst dozens of others he switched off the engine and left the keys in the ignition.
"Did you do it?" Twitch asked quietly as he returned from locking the gate, his cheek tugging rapidly in anxiety as they clasped hands.
Carlos nodded, "It's done. How are things here?"
"Yeah good," Twitch said as they fell into step next to each other and headed towards the barracks, "No one knows you were gone."
Carlos nodded and they fell into a comfortable silence for a few moments.
"Marc is going to call Jules soon when she wakes up and a few of the lads are thinking of throwing a little party for him tonight," Twitch told him as if they were strolling along to breakfast, "What do you think they're going to call her?"
"Ramirez, clearly," Carlos laughed.
"Hate to break it to you buddy but Ramirez isn't a girl's name," Twitch laughed, "and even if it was I doubted they'd call her that."
"Okay let me guess you'd want them to call her Steve or Stevie," Carlos replied.
"Stevie does have a nice ring to it," Twitch remarked as he made a show of putting his hand against his cheek and thinking about it.
"Idiot," Carlos bumped him in the shoulder with his own but he was laughing as he did it, "They'd have to be senile to call her after you. Ramirez is clearly the better choice."
"Oh really?"
"Don't believe me?" Carlos raised his eyebrows, "Let's go and ask the others, I'm sure they'll side with me on this one."
"Okay you're on, but I don't think they will. . ."
Carlos and Twitch carried on bickering all the way through the base as the sun rose behind them on a new day and a new future.