taking any legal steps,” Captain Ericson ordered as he stood and stretched his six-foot-plus frame while running his fingers over his copper-tinted blond hair. Captain Stevens recognized this as a sign the meeting was over.
He stood, saluted, and said, “Thanks, Captain. I know you will resolve this incident in the best way possible.”
He pivoted on his left heel and left the room. He felt that the determination would be reasonable and fair even though he might not be totally content with the implications for Bryant. He also knew that Captain Ericson often offered creative solutions to problems about which no one else had thought.
Chapter 3
Communication from Home
Shawn sat lengthwise on his bunk in brig cell 3 with his back against the wall and his head propped up against a pillow. The paper he was holding was a copy of several emails sent from his mother over the past year. Lieutenant Commander Stevens had handed Bryant’s Marine escort an envelope with a bundle of papers inside to give to Shawn when he reached his cell.
Besides the printed emails from his mother was a note written by Lieutenant Commander Stevens. Bryant read over the note before he looked at his emails.
Petty Officer Shawn Bryant,
I received a copy of an email through Captain Ericson that was sent by your mother about three weeks ago. She said that you had not communicated in over nine months.
Because of your arrest and the information from your mother, I had one of my staff do a search of your email. That’s when I found her emails.
I understand that you have been on several missions in the past few months and that you might hesitate to explain why you are now in the brig, but she is obviously worried. I expect you to let her know that you have not been seriously injured and maybe respond to other aspects of her email. In her email to Captain Ericson, she did say that there had been some important changes that may have an impact on you. By the way, why haven’t you used the internet to Skype or something?
Since you are not allowed a computer in the brig, I decided to make these copies. Depending on the disposition of your case, you can respond yourself later, or I can have someone take a message and send it for you.
Let me know what you plan to do.
Lieutenant Commander Carl Stevens
Shawn recalled that he had offered to Skype a couple of times, but his mother had not yet purchased a computer. She would have to go to the local library to have a computer and have face-to-face contact with Shawn. This made it difficult to have spontaneous contact between missions. What he knew was that he did not like writing, and that was the biggest reason he had not responded. The other reasons were more complicated.
He was having some difficulty with what to write in response to his mother’s correspondence. What do I say, that I’ve been put in prison for beating up a fellow SEAL? I can’t imagine that making her feel any better than not responding.
His thoughts were a jumble. His mind moved from his past to his future and then back to the present. None of it looked good to him, but everything except his future was done. He had learned to focus on the present and the immediate future, and none of that was in his control at this time. From what he could see of his long-term future, it would not be so good either. His thoughts moved back to the emails.
Shawn noticed that the emails were dated. He reflected on how organized his mother was. Everything had its place and time. It seemed ironic to him because his stepfather was just the reverse. He depended on his wife for so much but seemed to resent it at the same time. The arguments between Shawn’s mother and stepfather were legendary to him and Ellie. He swallowed hard as he thought about his sister. He remembered that before her death, when their parents started to argue, he and his sister would head outdoors, unless it was late at night. If the arguments started after he went to bed, Shawn would hide in his room with a pillow pulled tightly over his head. After Ellie’s death, he recalled being frightened and angry whenever his mother and Hank started arguing. It almost always led to objects and threats being thrown at each other. This was especially true when Hank was drunk.
Shawn shook his head to rid his mind of these visions and to bring his focus back to the emails. He resisted the urge to just read the last email randomly and began to arrange the emails according to dates. There were seven. The first email was written nine months ago. He felt a mild sense of guilt over his indifference to his mother’s communication. He justified this with the thought that he was involved too deeply in combat situations to respond. But that was not the only reason. He also felt a sense of abandonment around his court process and enlistment in the Navy.
Hank had complained bitterly when Shawn’s mother had attended his court hearings. After sentencing, his stepfather refused to allow Shawn back into the home. He spent his last days in Oregon at his uncle’s house, and even there he felt ostracized. Often the only contact he had from his Uncle Jeff and Aunt Sally was around dinner. His cousins, Stephen and Sam, had some contact with him, but it seemed stiff. He was glad when he finally had to head to Portland to be shipped to San Diego Naval Training Center.
As Shawn read the first email, he noted his mother’s attempt to seem normal. She made no mention of the severe arguments with his stepfather and even seemed chatty and casual in her comments. She did mention that she had a doctor appointment but did not say what it was for. The second email was about the same, but she made no mention of Hank. The email was mostly focused on the ranch and the difficulty of keeping everything going.
The third email was about the same except that she said she had met Susie Metcalf, Shawn’s high school girlfriend, at the local grocery store. She said that the conversation was “about what’s going on around here” but added that Susie had inquired about Shawn. Toward the end of the email, she stated that Susie acknowledged “going out with” a guy named Barry Whiteside, a local attorney. She said, “Susie seems okay, but I can tell she misses you.”
Shawn rested the email copy on his lap. His mind turned to the last few days before his departure for the Navy. He had dated Susie for almost a year, and they had become intimate after about a month. It was the senior year for both, and they expected to be together after graduation. The death of his sister made Shawn less available both with time and emotionally. Initially, Susie was understanding and attempted to be supportive of Shawn, but slowly she became frustrated and began to seek more time with him. It was then that the fight between Shawn and his stepfather happened. Once Shawn moved to his uncle’s home and did not have the ability to drive, Susie saw even less of him. After the court process, Shawn was focused on his enlistment into the Navy, and they did not have much time to say goodbye.
Shawn reflected on the last meeting, Susie was wearing tight jeans with designer emblems on the back pockets. In his mind’s eye, he saw her blonde-tinted brown hair hung down over a white blouse with the collar open to the third button. He felt a twinge of loss. Her brown eyes, oval face, and small nose were punctuated with a serious frown, and their conversation was brief. Her body stiffened when he held her, but she eventually melted into him and sobbed.
Shawn felt confused. His mind was almost completely on his travel to his active duty station in San Diego. He had rarely been out of Harney County. The upcoming trip was both exciting and frightening. But the warmth of Susie’s body and her tears focused his body on her. The desire to stroke her body was almost overwhelming, but he held back. She pulled back and looked at him through her tears. Her mascara was streaking down from her eyes. Shawn touched her cheek and pushed her tears to the side, streaking her mascara more.
“Do you have to go?” Susie complained.
