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melissabik

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It was silent as Jack turned the car around and we headed back to Ruckshire.  I didn’t even explain exactly why we had to go back…  I was just so overcome with emotion.  Hours passed as we drove through towns, then states, then towns again…  “Alright, Katarina; I think it’s time you tell me what the hell is going on,” Jack said, breaking the silence.  Funny; I was acting like Sam now, withholding information from people…   I nodded slowly.  “I can’t exactly tell you all of the details, but that guy who is trying to kill me went to my home and is threatening to kill my mom and Sam,” I explained with as little detail as possible.  Jack nodded, staring at the road.  “I see… So we’re going back to save them…” he assumed.  I nodded.  “That’s the gist of it,” I replied.  My stomach began to grumble, so I grabbed a bag of the chips from the seat.  “I’m sorry that I dragged you into this mess, Jack.  You didn’t have to offer to help me find Sam,” I said.

I was feeling guilty.  First I endangered Sarah’s life, then Sam’s, and now Jack’s.  I felt terrible.  “What would you have done if I left you in that motel parking lot?” he inquired.  I didn’t want to answer that question because I knew that I would just have stood in that parking lot, completely lost.  “See?  You need me; and I know that.  A soldier never leaves his comrade to die.  If his brother falls, he carries him to safety,” Jack replied.  Wow, that’s actually pretty deep for Mr. Macho…  “Well, thank you again.  You have all ready done more than you needed to do…” I stated.  Jack smiled.  I looked at the clock; it read, “1:30 pm.”  I began to get nervous.  “How much longer until we reach Ruckshire?” I asked impatiently.  Jack flipped out his map.  “I’m not sure.  5 more hours or so?  I’ve never been good with calculating time; I just know how to get you there.”  I nodded my head.  I had a question I wasn’t sure I wanted to ask Jack, but I knew that I had to.  “Will you help me save them?” I finally had the bravery to ask. 

Jack smiled.  “Of course.  I was trained in the army.  I think that qualifies me to do something…  I can kill a man in 30 ways with my bare hands, you know,” he bragged.  I rolled my eyes.  “I know; you told me that all ready,” I said with a smile.  Jack rubbed his chin.  “I did, did I?  Well, what haven’t I told you?  We have 5 hours… give or take a few…” he suggested.  I was surprised at his comment.  He was the total opposite of Sam—almost.  Unlike Sam, he was willing to answer any of my questions.  Sam hid the truth from me until he couldn’t do it anymore.  I shrugged my shoulders.  “Let’s see…  What did you do before you were in the army?” I asked.  “Well, I went to school, and when I turned 19, I worked with my dad at his mechanic garage.  He died when I turned 20.  It was terrible…  He had cancer, and there was nothing we could do; he didn’t even tell us until he was on his death bed…”

How terrible…  I know how he feels.  My dad is gone…  It was funny, but I felt a closeness to Jack that I didn’t feel before.  “… After that, I decided to join the army.  It just seemed like the right thing to do for some reason.  Up until I was 25, I was in the army… 5 years…  It seems like such a long time now…” he thought for a moment.  My brother suddenly popped into my head.  I had tried to erase him out of my memory, since he was MIA last year.  I didn’t want to assume the worst, but considering the kind of person I was, I had done exactly that; subconsciously.  Sarah, on the other hand, had forced herself to believe Mark was still alive.  For some reason, I just had to ask.  “Jack?  Did you ever meet someone by the name of Mark Volstead when you were in the army?”  Jack thought to himself, searching his memory for anyone by that name.  “Not that I can think of… who was he?” he asked curiously.  I forced the tears to stay inside as I thought about my brother.

“He is… was my brother.  Last year, he went MIA, and no one has seen him since.  I was wondering if you, by any chance, ever met him…” I said quietly.  Who was I kidding?  There was a one in ten thousand chance that Jack had ever met my brother.  “Well, do you know which infantry he was in?” he suggested, seeing my obvious anguish over the situation.  “Um, he was in the 15^th infantry…” I sniffled, trying to hold back the tears that were threatening to come out.  “Volstead, Volstead…  Mark Volstead…” Jack muttered, thinking to himself.  I didn’t try to hold out any hope; I had all ready forgotten how to hope since my father died.  His death was also the death of my belief in something greater; something that was out there, watching out for me.  I had died the day my father died.  “Lieutenant Volley!” Jack suddenly stormed.

I jerked back in surprise from his outburst.  “Excuse me?” I asked, wondering what that was all about.  Jack tried to contain his happiness as he struggled to drive at the same time.  “LT Volley was a great friend of mine, but because I was higher rank than he was, I never knew his first name.  I thought the name Volstead sounded familiar.  We all called him Volley.  It was a lot faster to say than Volstead.”  Jack laughed to himself, remembering my brother.  I couldn’t believe it.  He really did know my brother.  He knew Mark!  “He talked about a little sister named Kat.  I didn’t think too much about it, but Kat is short for Katarina…” Jack continued.  I nodded, letting some tears spill out.  “I can’t believe you’re Volley’s sister!  This is so surreal…” he thought.

I began to smile, feeling some sort of happiness in this altogether dreary day.  Suddenly, Jack stopped smiling.  His face had gone from excited to somber in two point five seconds.  “What?” I asked, feeling nervous about his facial expression.  Jack was silent for a minute.  “Katarina, Volley died on the battle field the day I was in that explosion,” he said regretfully.  No!  He is supposed to be alive, and he is supposed to come home to us!  He can’t be dead!  Not after I just thought he was alive!  I was quiet.  More tears began to fall.  “He got shot in the chest, right in front of me.  It should have been me…  When he hit the ground, I knelt at his side.  He was bleeding so much… I tried to stop it.  We were in that field for two hours, waiting for the medics to arrive.  I was trying to keep him talking, and he just talked about you.  He started to talk about how annoying you are, and then he talked about how much he loves you.

“He said that if he didn’t make it, he wanted me to take care of you.  I agreed, feeling overly confident, thinking that the medics would be there any minute.  After I agreed, he smiled… and passed away,” Jack stated sadly.  He forced himself not to cry.  Macho man… never cries when he’s sad…  Well, I’m not a macho man!  I have to cry!  I began to weep.  “So, he’s dead…” I managed to say through my fits of tears.  Jack nodded solemnly.  “I am so sorry, Kat,” he replied.  I couldn’t believe it; my brother was actually gone.  I really had lost him…  As I continued to cry, I saw a hand shoot out in front of me, holding a fist full of tissues.  “Here,” Jack stated.  I grabbed the tissues and wiped at my eyes furiously, realizing I was wearing mascara, and it was running.  “Thanks,” I replied with gratitude.  “Kat, I promised Volley I would take care of you…” Jack stated.

I shook my head.  “You don’t have to keep that promise, Jack,” I replied, feeling like I was helpless all over again.  They had made a pact based on how instable I was.  That was almost insulting.  “I promised him; and I’m going to keep that promise,” he said, and it almost sounded as if it was this final statement, chiseled in stone.  I rolled my eyes.  “Fine, but I’ll be a pain in your side until you give up,” I stated, wiping at my eyes, stubbornly.  Jack shook his head at my attitude.  “I was in the army; there is nothing you can do that will make me break my promise.”  Wow, what a guy…  “You are a really good friend to do that,” I observed.  Jack smiled.  “I am; and I promise I’ll be a good stand in brother to you; I can’t replace Volley, but I’ll try to do my best to be a great brother to you,” he vowed.

He put his hand on his heart for emphasis.  I smacked his hand, letting out a smile.  So far, he wasn’t doing a bad job of filling my brother’s shoes.  I glanced at the clock on the dashboard.  “3pm.”  My heart began to pound a little faster as my breathing got heavier.  Time was running out.  There was a task at hand; Levi had Sarah and Sam.  And I wasn’t about to lose any more people in my life.  I had all ready lost enough.