SEAL Team 666: A Novel

“‘Sir’ will do,” Holmes said, not looking up from the imagery he was studying on his tablet. “Ruiz says boss. He’s from the South so I excuse it.”

“Yes, sir.” Walker fought the urge to roll his eyes. Whatever old-school textbook Holmes had used to learn how to be a leader, he must have excelled on the chapter about how to be aloof but tough. Walker much preferred the in-your-face style of Instructor Reno or any number of Navy chiefs he’d had the displeasure of getting crossways with.

Finally Holmes set his tablet on the bench beside him. Walker watched him, knowing that the man had two choices. He could either stand up and get in Walker’s face, or he could sit back and relax, demonstrating that he didn’t have to work in order to get his point across. Walker had seen both worked to perfection and knew how to deal with each.

“SEALs need to be ready at all times. I spoke with Instructor Reno a little while ago and he said that he was disappointed that your equipment wasn’t prepared.”

Ouch! Holmes knew that there were few men on the planet that Walker respected more than Reno. Walker stood straighter and squared his shoulders. “You spoke to him?”

“I did. He told me that you were one of his better SEAL trainees. Not the best, mind you, but among the better. He asked why you’d been chosen, but I explained that it couldn’t be disclosed at this time. Did you ever let him down?”

“No, sir.”

“And why is that?”

Walker noted the effectiveness of Holmes’s ability to deal with the situation. He looked too calm, too cool, sitting back with his arm resting along the backrest of the bench seat.

“I respect Instructor Reno, sir. I—”

“But you don’t respect me?” Holmes shook his head.

“No, sir. It’s just that I’ve spent the last eleven weeks with Instructor Reno and I know him better.”

“Ahh. So you have to know someone to respect them.”

“No, sir. I respect those appointed as superior over me.”

“And what did I tell you?”

“To get my gear ready, sir.”

“And did you?”

“No, sir.”

“You’re full of ‘no sirs’ tonight, aren’t you, son?”

“No, sir.” But then as Holmes raised an eyebrow, Walker said, “Yes, sir.”

Holmes leaned forward, draping his elbows over his knees. He rubbed the Annapolis ring that was in place of a wedding band. “When you fail to live up to the standards set by Instructor Reno, you have to do more physical training. When you fail to live up to the standards of SEAL Team 666, you let down yourself, the other team members, and me, and you put all of our lives at risk.”

Walker felt the air leave him as disappointment at his own failings filled his chest.

“More important than our lives, you put America at risk, Walker. The president and the Sissy expect us to perform a mission, one in which the sovereignty and safety of the United States of America is paramount. To ignore orders that support this mission is akin to loading rounds into the weapon that kills Uncle Sam. Is that clear?”

Walker gulped. “S-sorry, sir,” he stammered.

“Don’t be sorry, SEAL, just stop acting like an FNG.”

“Yes, sir.” Walker stood for a few seconds before he realized that he was released. He turned to go, but evidently Holmes wasn’t quite done.

“Make sure you zero that Stoner. Get Ruiz to help you. I don’t want you winging me in the head when you’re shooting a hundred and eighty degrees the other way.”

“Yes, sir.”

Walker moved back toward the others near the rear of the plane feeling like he’d just been punched in the gut, chest, and head.

Laws spoke first. “Did he give you the Ring Speech?”

Walker looked at Laws through hollow eyes.

“Was he rubbing his ring while he talked to you?” Laws asked. “Did he use the word ‘paramount’? We call that the Ring Speech.”

Fratty snickered. “That’s a good speech. Left me feeling like a deckhand on the Titanic.”

“I wanted to crawl under a rock,” Ruiz admitted with a sad smile.

Walker suddenly felt a little better. Being singled out was the absolute worst. But the shared-misery philosophy was a foundational belief in the military and was the cement that kept men together even during the toughest times.

Walker set about unpacking his gear and laying it out on the decking of the C-141 Starlifter. Soon Ruiz was next to him, helping him organize and unwrap the new items. Fratty joined a few minutes later, then finally Laws.

“Was she worth it?” Fratty asked.

A smile crept across Walker’s face as Jen’s freckles appeared before him. “Yeah.”

Over the next hour, they readied his gear and repacked it for the mission. Since he’d lugged his entire issue, he had a lot of redundant items that he wouldn’t need. These were in a separate pile.

As they worked, Walker found the other SEALs opening up to him a bit more.