The Rescuer

Everyone having sex is at least 18. This is a work of fiction. I made it all up. This story more so than most of my writing is proof that I write fiction. That means that no, I am not in the Army, I don't live in Canada, I have never been on a dog sled, and this story will most likely never happen. It is a heck of a story, so check reality at the door and enjoy it for what it is.

Warning: this is a self-edited story. I do use Grammarly to help reduce my ability to murder the English language. Special thanks to goducks1 for his help.

*****

Chapter 26 -- Dimitri Admovidovich

A week later ...

My name is Dimitri Admovidovich. I'm a private in the Russian army. I am a twenty-year veteran sniper that's still a private because I like to drink too much and don't like authority. I am my country's best sniper though, so they keep me around. I'm on a ten-day leave, walking through the Canadian forest. I am looking for a cunt called Nakita. She killed my brother and several of his officers, then she disbanded the organization he built. I must avenge my brother.

It was an almost perfect crime organization. It was run with military precision. Then the bitch came along. She killed my brother in bed. Today, she is going to die. According to GPS, I am close. My brother stashed away a lot of money for me. I used most of it up buying intelligence and transport for this mission. I know about the family that lives there and that they are protecting her. However, from 800 yards, there is no defense if I can see her.

I am on a small hill, far from their compound. There is construction in progress and lots of people milling around. I see some women, one must be her. I look in my scope, and sure enough, there is the fucking bitch. I smile. I load a round in my rifle and start going through my steps. I already know the distance due to my laser range finder, it's 625 meters. I see the wind is light and I can feel the humidity, it's low. Yesterday, I took some training shots to verify the conditions before I moved in closer to my target. I'm confident. The bitch is going to die.

Think. Relax. Align my sights, check the wind, start doing my internal calculations to get the perfect kill shot. I am seconds away from getting my revenge and avenging my dear brother's death.

It's odd, for the first time in my life, I feel happiness. This will be very satisfying. I'm proud that I am avenging my brother's death even though it has taken so long. She was untouchable while in charge. Now, she is a nobody, and nobody will care. Her own government hates her. Getting information from them was effortless. They practically gave it to me.

+++++

Two days previous, Brian's point of view:

My satellite phone rings. It's by the front door, I go running. This is highly unusual.

I answer the phone, "Hello, this is Brian."

My old friend George has me on speakerphone, "Brian, this is going to be short. In a few minutes, a helicopter will land with two CIA agents. I want you to take them out hunting, far from your house. They will fill you in. Goodbye my friend and take care of yourself."

Well, that was different. I can hear the helicopter coming in now, it's one from the base, I know the sound well. I find it interesting that two CIA agents from the United States are being dropped off on my front door by a Canadian helicopter. Kim is the only one nearby.

I yell out, "Kim, we have two visitors coming. I am going to take them out hunting. I don't know if we will be back for dinner. I don't know if they or I am staying the night. This is work but different and that's all I know. I've got to go, I will be in touch later."

She looks concerned but accepts it. She really doesn't have a choice, this is my work life. I grab my personal rifle, my backpack, and Rocky. Then I am out the door to meet two people. Rocky was with Mary, but when I shouted and blew his whistle, he came running. He always does. Mary comes running too and has a hurt look on her face seeing me with my rifle and backpack. She instantly knows this is work.

The helicopter touches down, the two men drift off the aircraft and on to the solid ground, ducking their heads. They walk directly to me as surely they know exactly who I am. Each has a backpack, a sniper rifle, and is dressed in standard military fatigues. Both are wearing floppy hats with long brims that help to hide their faces. They aren't hiding, but they aren't showing off either.

I shake their hands, they introduce themselves as Ben and Brad. Yeah, like those are their real names. I point North, and we start walking into the deep forest. There is a campground about three hours walk from here, I will take them there.

They say nothing and allow me to guide them to the campsite. Rocky, as always, is slightly ahead and to my side. I know he will alert me to any danger. I notice the two men behind me walk silently. I find it slightly creepy. As we near the campsite, I start picking up materials (sticks, branches, and twigs) to start a fire for tonight. We each have MRE's and coffee. The fire is for warmth and light so I can see who I am talking to. On entering the campsite, the other two men have picked up larger pieces of wood so the fire will burn for a while.

Our campsites have firepits to help keep the fires safe. This site has a small stream nearby for fresh water. There are bricks around the firepit, so no mud to make a mess. Overall, they're charming places to stop. This one rarely gets used because it is so close to home.

Brad starts by pulling a file out of his backpack and hands it to me. Ben tries to start a fire, but he is not at home in the forest. Brad assists, he is far more knowledgeable. I have a file on a Russian military sniper, a private. Interesting, twenty years of experience. An impressive history of success, a remarkable account of being busted down to private, and impressive shooting scores. I would bet his liver shows a noteworthy history of drinking as well. I know this type of soldier, he makes me sick.

Ben starts the talking after he sits on a log set up for seating, "That man is the brother of the guy Penny killed to take over the smuggling organization. The Brits basically gave him everything on Penny, including her current location. He spent his life savings on overhead surveillance photos, intelligence, and transportation to get here and back. He'll be here in two days."

Brad continues, "In Russian lore, revenge is common. However, they don't always kill the person, sometimes they kill their family. We believe there is a genuine threat to Penny and your entire family."

I drop the file. Papers blow in the wind. Ben is all over it, he recovers every page. I am sick to my stomach, I want to throw up.

Ben continues, "With the new friendship between Russia and America, it turns out that your old general friend, General George McMichael and this guy's counterpart in Russia met each other a while ago and still stay in contact. The man hates Dimitri. They watch their men close, and he knows what Dimitri is up to." He smiles at me. "Your general trades the information for ten cases of American beer. He places a bow on each case and overnights it to Russia. That's some friend you have."

Now it's Brad's turn, "We know everything including the route he will take. Satellites are already tracking him. There is a hill about 700 yards due north from your camp where he will set up. The idiot had intel help pick out the hill for him. They know everything ... if we believe them. So far, he is following the exact path he planned out. A true professional soldier. He planned his course, and he is sticking to the plan ... so far."

Ben adds, "Tomorrow he will spend ten rounds practicing at noon which is the same time he will attack the following day. Then he will time his movement to arrive at 11:45 AM. When he sees Penny and or your family, he will start shooting."

Brad is all smiles, "We have been authorized to prevent that from happening. Penny was extremely helpful. She kept every bit of data we could ever want, and it's made a huge difference. It was like winning the lottery for us. We don't want her taken out by some drunk that envies his terrorist brother. The Brits are all wrong on her. She has been the best thing that has happened to us in decades."

Ben is now all smiles, "Ever see 'The Wrath of Khan'?"

I reply with a questioning look, "Yessssssss?"

Ben smiles and talks, no shit, he talked twice in a row, "In the movie, Spock points out how Khan's limited military training was working against him, he was only thinking 2D where in space, you can move 3D. We are going to spread out and move to 3D. We are going up into the trees. He will only be looking ahead of him on the ground. In the Russian army, it's the spotter that looks around and is tactical. Dimitri is just a shooter."

Brad takes over again, "We will each be up in trees, perched on a mounted treestand with camouflage ponchos for cover. This way if he changes his mind, we can cover a large area. You can climb a tree, right?"

I don't even dignify that with an answer.

Brad continues, smiling at my refusal to answer him, "We each have a camera on our gun. We would prefer to catch him in the act of aiming a gun at a Canadian citizen before one of us kills him. I am going to place a remote-controlled high-frequency whistle in the ground. I assume your dog will run to it and distract him."

I am in shock, "You guys have remote-controlled dog whistles?"

Ben laughs, "Well, not until yesterday when an MIT student made these for us. All of us combined will never be as smart as those kids are now."

Brad smiles and then breaks out his rifle, "So, anywhere, anytime, no money too much, moving or still?"

I smile big, "Wow, yes, I guess I did say that. You guys can shoot with those things?"

They both smile at me.

Brad says, "You see that single birch tree with three pines behind it? I will center three holes half way up. Ben will go a foot above, and you get a foot below."

Brad has an ultralight sniper rifle, the newest technology. He has a better scope than I do as well. He takes his time and squeezes off three shots just like a professional would. I look through my scope, and the placement is very tight. This guy is damn good.

Ben has the same rifle and shoots an almost identical grouping, just slightly further apart, Brad is better.

Brad says to Ben, "Someday you may beat me. Not today though."

Brad is smug in his abilities. My rife is far more cumbersome and has a slightly lesser scope. However, I have five years with this rifle. I wouldn't change a thing. In quick succession, I place five rounds on top of each other. They don't believe it, we walk out to the tree. A single bullet hole.

Brad asks, "Did you miss four times?"

I reach into my pocket and pull out my Leatherman. I then proceed to pull out five slugs from my hole. With the shooting, Canadian Geese are flying in their standard "V" formation overhead. I load a cartridge, look up, and shoot a goose from the sky.

I ask the two men, "Care to try that shot with the next 'V' formation?"

Ben spoke for both, "I think you've passed the test. We can count on you to hit your target."

I ask bluntly, "Was there ever a doubt? Surely you have heard the stories by now?"

Brad is rather honest, "We hear a lot of fantastic stories. Everything about you screams fraud to us so no, we don't believe everything we hear. We deal in facts. You're too good to be true. However, in this case, you're exactly as advertised. I thought we were the best of the best. We spent many years overseas as the most prolific hunters."

I correct them, "Second most prolific. There was a spot without a name. George was grooming me for this special position so my name could not be known, or I would have been taken by others. Ok, not this exact position but he did have plans. I had my own plan. You saw the way I lead targets, I don't need to wait for them to stop. If I could see them, I could kill them. Very few people know about me, I would like to keep it that way, so we don't have to do this more often, ok?"

Ben spoke in turn again, "We completely understand. Let's go back, eat, tell a few wild stories, and then get some sleep. We'll need a good night's sleep. Thanks for the humbling experience, I now have a new goal."

+++++

Back to Dimitri and his point of view:

Decision time, his wife, mother, sister's best friend, or Nakita? I need Nakita to die, the others are payback to that man that ruined my family. Ok, focus and let's take a shot. I have twenty more rounds at my fingertips for my next targets.

I am distracted by an unusual sound. I can't shoot distracted, what is that? I turn to my right, and a dog is sprinting at me like he is in mortal danger. No, that isn't a dog, that's Rocky! Oh fuck, that means ...

... the crack of a rifle shot is heard in the distance. Dimitri never heard it.

Brian's point of view:

The bastard had it coming to him. The guy had no clue that a whistle not ten feet from him blew because it is above the human range of hearing. However, it's not above a dog's field of hearing. Rocky ran to the whistle. He is about 60 pounds of dog, and his tongue is out when he runs. A big fur ball like that, when running at full speed, is a lot of movement in your peripheral vision and he makes a fair amount of noise with each step. A perfect distraction to a sniper.

What I did not expect was that eight other dogs would come running to that position. SHIT! I don't want my family finding this mess, and I certainly don't want them knowing. Dimitri was wearing camouflage, so he isn't easy to spot from a distance. I make a split decision and quickly descent the back side of the tree and then jog to my family. They look confused to see me.

Kim is worried on seeing me, "We heard a shot. What's going on?"

I laugh it off, "I was on my way back and saw an elk, so I scared him off. I will be back tomorrow." I kiss her lightly on the lips like I have done thousands of times before.

I hand Kim my rifle which surprises her. I go into a nearby shed and come out with fishing poles and a box of flies for fishing. I then jog back the way I came. Only Rocky stays with me. On the opposite side of the hill, Ben and Brad have dragged the body off the hill and are wrapping it up in his poncho. They then put Dimitri on their shoulders and off we go, back to our campsite. At the campsite, they each grab a portable shovel from their packs and walk east, returning an hour later.

200 yards from the campsite, a small creek has a wider, slow spot where we fish. We didn't even get a nibble. Nobody spoke, we are each dealing with the mission internally. These guys have not killed much, I can see it in their eyes. Their story is full of shit, these are not experienced killers. It's a lot easier to shoot a target than a person. The relaxation of fly fishing helped. There is just enough to do to help distract the mind.

As the sun starts setting, we walk back to camp and eat an MRE. We start another fire and then talk.

Ben speaks softly tonight, a big contrast to last night, "How do you deal with the killing? I still see the faces."

I am honest with him, "We're professionals, it's our job." He isn't buying my answer, so I continue. "After enough, they all blend together. You never forget though. It's why so many men can't talk about it. It can eat you alive unless you find a way to deal with it. I use a professional therapist and love. I love my family, my dog, and my country. You need something extraordinary in your life as well, or you are doomed. I had female friends on the base, and later I had Rocky. You need something outside of work. Having a pal like Rocky is enormous.

"Screwing up some tests don't hurt either. At a certain point, you're no longer good enough to be a sniper. However, you are good enough to start a new rescue program where a sniper works with a dog to form an effective rescue and extraction team. Saving lives is a whole lot more satisfying to me than taking them. Bad people still die but seeing a man lying in a stretcher breathing in a helicopter is a pretty good feeling.

"They may be in pain, possibly bleeding still, but we are rushing back to base at full military power to save his life. He smiles at you. He knows you risked your life for him, and his odds of survival are very high now." Now I am playful, "Then he either passes out or pukes on your shoes as he realizes he almost died. It's worth it though."

Now I have a tear in my eye, "Now, I'm washed up. I failed to finish my last two missions and worse, they had to carry me out, I was a detriment to the mission. They've retired me from active duty, and I'm strictly a teacher now. Don't get me wrong, I love my family and working with the dogs. However, nothing can replace the smile of someone that survives. I miss that."

I sulk now, and there is nothing they can say to help me. I go sit back against a tree and fall asleep with Rocky at my side, laying with his back up against me.

+++++

At the crack of dawn, we are up and on the trail home. They are in a better mood, but nobody talks. As we are walking up to my house, I hear a helicopter nearing. Mary and Kim rush into my arms.

Ben turns to me in a calm and confident voice that is friendly at the same time, "I know a lot of soldiers, male and female, that hurt emotionally if you know what I mean." I do. "Would you mind spending a few days with them and talk? You've so many security clearances that you can talk about anything. I think this could be a new way to 'rescue' people. The first would be my wife, she was in the infantry. She is the only original member of her unit to survive. She has a lot of guilt. I can't help her, and I see it slowly killing her. No therapy has helped, maybe you can?"

I give him a manly bear hug and say, "Set it up with Kim or Mary, I'm no doctor, but I'll do what I can. I'll need to know if she likes hunting, fishing, horseback riding, or sitting in a beautiful lodge eating fantastic meals."

He laughs, "My wife has had enough of the great outdoors, a few days of cooking and relaxing would be great."

The helicopter lands, Ben and Brad, run off and in a flash are gone.

Kim kisses me, "Sounds like you just got a great new job."

I hesitate before responding, "If they want me to try, that means counseling has failed, or they've refused to go. We'll need to be careful and then decide if we want to continue. I helped those two, I'll give it a try."

We walk inside, and I begin cooking breakfast. Penny is watching me closely, she is making me nervous. I pay more attention to my eggs, I don't want to catch hell for burning them. With coffee, bacon, and eggs going, everyone is soon up and at the table.

+++++

Later in the day ...

Kim runs up to me, and she is frantic. She is trying to speak, cry, walk, and all at the same time, and none of it's working. She is grabbing to drag me with her. I grab her shoulders so that she focuses on me, she does.

I tell Kim in a calm, smooth voice, "You're excited, I don't understand you. What's the problem?"

Still excited but in a calmer voice, Kim yells, "She is leaving! Now! Come stop her!"

Now that I have part of the story, Kim runs off to cabin number three, Penny's cabin. The door is open, and I see Penny in a rush pacing a backpack. She has too many clothes and makeup, it doesn't fit no matter how hard she tries. She too is crying while packing and seems borderline hysterical. Mary is the calm one of the group ... normally. Mary is grabbing Penny's stuff out of the pack and slowly putting it back while yelling "No," at her.

I stand in the doorway and use my best imitation of a drill Sargent to scream, "FREEZE! What the hell is going on here?"

Penny is crying but stops to look at me. I scared her with my voice, and she is like a little girl now as she tries to explain.