Before Sunrise Read Online Free PDF

saucers.
    Kennedy laughed. “Yes, he’s pretty old…just
like Daddy Phil is pretty old.”
    Mackenzie grabbed her purple teddy bear and
stuffed under the covers with her. She turned over. “Okay, night
mommy. I’m okay now.”
    “ Night, baby.” Kennedy
smiled.
    She walked over to Liam’s photo and picked
up the silver picture frame. In the photo he had been off on one of
those covert missions he could never talk about. He’d e-mailed her
this picture and she had printed and framed it.
    “ You are pretty old, aren’t
you sweetie?” Kennedy said. She kissed his image and gave a deep
sigh. She set the picture down, then walked out of the
room.
     
    ***
     
    Aircraft Carrier ~ Mediterranean Sea
     
    Liam swallowed roughly. His throat burned as
if he were choking down shards of glass instead of saliva. It took
some effort but he managed to open his eyes. Nothing made sense. He
blinked. He blinked again. All he could make out were shadows and
shapes, and the constant buzzing noise. So he closed his eyes and
lay there perfectly still. He’d wait for darkness. He’d learned to
love darkness. There was calm in darkness, peace. Liam used his
mind over his body, and regulated his breathing, down to his
heartbeat, until he felt it slow within his chest.
    Liam became aware. The cushion of the bed
told an unexpected story. This wasn’t another hellhole to be
tortured in. He had comfort. Liam opened his eyes. Focus returned.
He recognized the shadow, as it took form, to be a nurse. Navy. He
could tell by her uniform. Her hair was neatly pinned back under
her cap. She had kind eyes and a sweet face, and that alone made
him think he again had slipped into a dream. He felt her lift his
wrist to check his pulse. She glanced up, then away, and then back.
The nurse dropped his arm and backed away from his bed in
shock.
    Well, hell. She wasn’t the only one.
    “ Lieutenant! You startled
me, sir. Welcome to the land of the living, sir,” she
gushed.
    Liam tried to speak. He
couldn’t. The nurse immediately got on an intercom. He heard her
give a quick report. During her short bursts of speech, Liam
employed every sense he could control, trying to understand his
surroundings. The pure, clean air had definitely been filtered,
and cold ; he
didn’t smell the desert dry heat or the stench of his excrement.
His vision sharpened on the details of his quarters. He’d been put
on a ship. The cold in the room, the painted steel walls, the low
ceiling and mounted medical apparatus looked distinctly military.
Yes, he was on a ship. If he remained perfectly still he could feel
the thrum of the engines, far below.
    The time spent in captivity, he’d lived
almost entirely in his head. He’d imagined himself places far and
wide, anywhere but the hell he actually dwelled in. Some days he
convinced himself he swam in the cool ocean, or played golf with
Eric and Vasquez. Even better, he’d be home on the tan-and-blue
sofa, watching the Vikings and knocking back a brew while Kennedy
slept underneath his arm. But none of those moments felt as real as
this one. It confused him. He owned his fucking dreams. Dreams were
the one thing they couldn’t take from him. In his dreams he had
Kennedy, her sweet, soft body pressed to his as she made him repeat
his promise that on his return date he’d be through the door before
sunrise.
    That promise he kept each and every time.
Liam would roll her under him and she’d stare up at him with
worship in her eyes. He hated to admit it, especially then, but he
liked the undiluted, unwavering love he found there. Not many
people gave a shit about him in the world. Kennedy’s faith in him
had been complete. She’d run away from her family at seventeen to
go with him when he joined the Navy. Her devotion made him feel
like a man, her man. Those moments were a constantly visited dream
for him. And even though they could get vivid, loving her, kissing
her, the moment he tried to hold her always felt hollow