“I guess it takes a couple of old war horses to get things going. Let me get started and then we can do lunch in a couple of days. I’d love to hear about what’s been happening with you,” Hammond said.
“I love going on a date. See you later, Roger,” she said as she made her way out of the room.
Petyr Kursov pedaled his way down the narrow streets on the outskirts of Krakow after completing his deliveries for the day. Just 17 years old, he had a very strong, thin frame, well-muscled from the daily deliveries he made for his father. Growing up in Krakow he had never known the Soviet Union his father had grown up in. Although ethnically Russian, he considered himself Polish. As a result, he had grown to enjoy the freedoms of his native land and had made many friends. As a matter of fact, he had become very popular in school, making friends easily and getting a reputation of being easy going and helpful when you needed him. His education was top notch and he always achieved high marks in school.
Every day he left school to help his father make the deliveries of medicine or other sundries for people who had a hard time getting in to the shop. The elderly in the area had come to know and love the black haired youth with the sparkling blue eyes. He was always there with a friendly smile and helping hand. In turn, this helped his father’s business greatly and the family enjoyed a prosperity that had them very comfortable.
Petyr made a turn around one corner onto one of the main streets and began coming up on a young girl with auburn hair carrying two heavy bags of groceries. He immediately recognized her as Freda Polski, whose family had moved into the apartment above theirs just three weeks before. Petyr had a difficult time getting to know her. Only rarely did he see her outside of school and they didn’t share any classes. To Petyr, she was extremely attractive, so he eased his bicycle up alongside her and called out to her. “Need some help?” he asked.
Startled slightly, Freda quickly smiled. “Oh, hello! I wouldn’t mind some help,” she said.
Petyr got off his bike and grabbed the two bags placing them in the wire basket he had mounted over the front tire. “I’ll walk with you,” he said. The two began walking together as he pushed his bike.
She flexed her fingers and looked down at where the plastic had cut into them. “I wasn’t sure I would make it,” she exclaimed. “The family needed more than I had thought.”
Petyr smiled at her. “I was beginning to think I’d never see you. This is the first time I’ve seen you outside school,” he said.
She gave him a small grin. “Well, I don’t get out much. My mother is not well, she has difficulty breathing. All those years of smoking have nearly killed her, so to help my father; I have to do a lot of the work around the house. By the time I get supper done and everything cleaned up, I just have enough time to get my homework done before I need to get to bed,” she said.
Petyr gave a sigh. “Same with me. I help out my father delivering packages after school. Sometimes I think I’ll never get my homework done and get some sleep. How long has your Mom been sick?”
“For the last five years. Mother has to use an oxygen tube now. She gets winded just standing up and walking across a room. That’s why we moved into the city. Going back and forth to his work from the family farm nearly killed Father. He works so hard, and comes in so tired, I felt like I had to do something. Luckily, I’m a pretty good cook,” she said with a grin. “But sometimes I have a little time and I go down and sit on the bench in front of your store. Just a little fresh air helps a lot. Aren’t you at the same level as I am in school?” she asked.
Petyr smiled. “Yes, but you weren’t assigned any of the same classes. I’ve seen you a few times, but when you’re rushing to your next class, there’s not much time to say hello. How are you doing in school?”
“Not too bad,” she said. “I want to go to the university and become a teacher. Father says they will get by if I go, but I’m not so sure.”
“A teacher, huh. Why that?” he asked.
She shrugged. “I really like being around children, and my grandmother was a teacher. What about you?”
“I hope to get into the university too, but I am interested in biology. Either I want to do biological research or become a doctor. I’d like to help figure out what makes us all the way we are. You know, what really comes together to make your hair the color it is or your eyes as green as they are,” he said. “I don’t want to change how it’s done, but just to understand it.”
“Sounds nice,” she said with a smile. The fact he had noticed the color of her eyes had not gone unnoticed. “Maybe we will go to the same university together.”
Petyr couldn’t believe how much he was enjoying the conversation. “I think I would like that a lot. I’m glad we finally got the chance to talk a bit. Maybe I need to come this way every day.”
Freda laughed. “Well, I don’t go to the grocer every day, but I might try and sit on that bench for a while each night. Maybe you will catch me there,” she said with a sly look.
Petyr looked up and rubbed his chin with one hand. “Hmmm, I might be able to work it into my busy schedule,” he said before looking back at her and smiling.
Freda had heard all about Petyr at school. Of all the students, no one ever said anything bad about him. Yes, his looks were amazing, but she found his personality to be just as pleasant as the others had told her, and she felt drawn to it. Now they were laughing together walking along the street. She would make sure that she spent some time on the bench tonight.
Lieutenant Jeffers escorted Colonel Pete Peterson into Hammond’s office. He had been a little concerned about the summons to an Admiral’s office to be a part of a special team. Admiral Hammond came from his desk to greet him.
“Colonel Peterson, it’s good to finally meet you. A friend of ours had a lot of nice things to say about you,” he said cheerfully.
The puzzled look on Peterson’s face was priceless. “I’m afraid you have me at a disadvantage, Admiral,” he said. “A friend?”
Hammond almost laughed. “Yep, Dale Ricks told me you were probably the only army officer who had his shit together, so that’s why I asked for you.”
Peterson’s face broke into a wide grin. “I’ll be damned. I hadn’t made the connection. How’s he doing?”
“Pretty fair. The last I heard, they have him down at Fort Belvoir in a training billet. I just got here a few days ago and I haven’t been able to catch up. Have a seat,” Hammond said to the colonel. The two men sat down and Hammond continued. “Colonel, I’ve been handed a tough job and I will need a few people with combat experience on the team. I got the go ahead from Defense to select a few people to join it. I remembered what you and Ricks had gone through so I asked where you were. Luckily you were over at Fort Meyers. I appreciate you joining us on such short notice and I appreciate you coming in a little early so we could meet.”
Peterson was relieved a bit now that he knew what had happened. “Not a problem, sir, but I’m still a little interested in knowing what we’re up against,” he said.
“I’ll explain more at the meeting, but the main thing is to try and determine who the next threat is and how we are going tackle it. At first, my predecessor had just invited flag officers, but I felt like we couldn’t do this without people who have been there and done that a little more recently than they had. I need you to look at this from the ground pounder perspective. I can’t make recommendations that will work unless I know the guys with the bayonets can do the job. I believe you are just the guy to tell me this,” Hammond said firmly.