Chapter 16

Present – Ben – OPPLAN

So far the OPPLAN is going perfectly. As she hits the Stand Off, she has the perfect intonation in her voice, the banditos turn on all the lights (it upsets me when they fire at her), she ran immediately and they chase her - so the OPPLAN is still working...

But that's the thing about OPPLANs: They never work exactly as planned. I watch Stacy like a hawk as she's leading the banditos right into my hasty ambush. She's almost to the side trail and then ... Oh Hell No! She falls to the ground and doesn't move. Shit! I don't know if one of their shots hit her or what the hell has happened!

I yell, "Shit Bo! Come on, we need to save Stacy."

I sling my rifles over my shoulders, grab on to Bo's mane with both hands and the next thing I know he's up and I'm on his back. He takes off like his tail is on fire and I can barely hold on! When we reach Stacy, he turns up the road and I yell, "Fill your hands you sons-of-a-bitch."

I pat Bo on the neck and say, "Bo, you're a damn fine horse and it's up to you to keep me on your back." I let go of his mane, pull both my rifles around and start firing short bursts at the approaching banditos.

One of the many things we practice at sniper school is firing at moving vehicles and also firing from moving vehicles. Some vehicles, like a bouncing Humvee or a chopper don't make good weapons platforms, but Bo is a different damn story: Firing from his back, is like firing from a Cadillac so I'm putting a major hurt on the banditos! Even firing offhand three are already down and the others decide to turn tail and run, but they aren't getting away that easy. Bo and I chase them down and kill all the fuckers!

Now to see what the hell is wrong with Stacy!

Present – Stacy – OPPLAN

I wake up just as Ben and Bo fly past me. I can't believe it and start to laugh! Especially when I hear Ben yell, "Fill your hands you sons-of-a-bitch." Because that's almost the exact quote Rooster Cogburn used in True Grit. Bo reminded me immediately of John Wayne's horse so that's why I gave him the name Bo and now Ben's even acting like Rooster!

I pull my AK around to help Ben, but he's kicking their butts just fine by himself and I'm a little worried I might accidentally shoot him or Bo, so I just watch. The battle is over faster than I thought it would be and then Ben turns Bo back towards me, slowly trots up and says, "Stacy, are you okay?"

I respond, "Ben, you reminded me of John Wayne in True Grit! Where did you learn to ride like that?"

He reaches down and pats Bo, Bo nickers and Ben laughs, "Yeah, I guess you're right, it was sort of like that scene where he charged Ned and his gang except this time Bo didn't get shot. But don't praise me for the riding since Bo did all the hard work: Keeping me on his back and not getting scared by the rifle shots. He's a hell of a horse! Now what the hell happened to you?"

I blush and guess at the cause, "Ben, I'm sorry but I fainted. I think it was from Dorothy taking too much blood from me but I feel much better now." I hear Patches whinny and I add, "It looks like Patches is worried about me. Let me go tell her I'm okay. So what are we doing next?"

Ben replies, "Stacy, even though we took care of all the banditos, we still need to clear the house. Let Patches know you're fine, then I will give you some instruction on what we're going to do. Just so you know, this could be even more dangerous than what we just did..."

I start to stroke Patches and Knacker (I still hate that name) and worry a little about clearing the house...

Present – Ben – Regrouping

Dammit! Stacy fainting scared the hell out of me. If Dorothy was here I'd kick her ass for taking too much of Stacy's blood and giving it to me. That's one of the problems with medical people, they think they know everything and then they become over confident and fuck up! Unlike my profession, when they fuck up they only kill the patient, not themselves.

As I watch her taking care of Patches and Knacker I realize she's pretty damn good for a kid and that I'd miss the hell out of her if she was anywhere else.

She looks at me and suggests, "Ben, it's getting dark and I'd like to find someplace to look at your leg and then rest."

I respond, "Okay Stacy let me get off Bo and we'll go over the basics of clearing a house." Again, Bo kneels so I can get off him. Then I reach up and scratch him and he nuzzles me. As I walk towards Stacy I decide I like this horse better than most women I've met.

Stacy grins at me and offers, "A penny for your thoughts."

I smile and say, "I was just thinking how much better Bo is than a woman: First even though he's a horse, he's not a nag; second he does what he's told without complaining; third I can ride him all day and he doesn't get tired; and forth he's not jealous of other horses."

Stacy bristles and argues, "What the hell are you talking about! First I have never nagged you, well at least not when you didn't deserve it; second I've done all the crazy stuff you've asked me to do without complaining; third you've never ridden me so you don't have any idea; and forth and the biggest of all, I guarantee Bo would be jealous of not just any other horse, he'd even be jealous of me..."

Present – Stacy – Regrouping

OMG! Did I just blurt out what I thought I did? I run it over in my mind, realize what I said about Ben riding me and blush like crazy! I sure am glad it's getting dark and Ben can't see me.

Ben says, "Stacy sometimes you're full of shit! There's no way Bo would be jealous."

I'm happy he ignored the riding comment as I accept his challenge and dare him, "Oh yeah why don't you just come over here, scratch Patches or Knacker and see what happens."

He walks over to Knacker, begins to scratch him and Bo runs over right away and pushes Ben away from Knacker with his head. I giggle and say, "Watch this."

I walk over and start to touch Ben and Bo rushes right between us and pushes me out of the way. I triumphantly say, "See I told you so. Now I think you owe me an apology!"

I can hear the laughter in his voice when he says, "Stacy I apologize. Yes it does seem Bo is jealous just like a woman. However at least he doesn't remind me when he's right and I'm wrong!"

I can't believe him - sometimes he's so frustrating! I get ready to let him have it when he gets back to the matter at hand, "Okay Stacy, I think we've waited long enough and now it's time to go clear the house. Tell me have you been SLLSing? If so what have you heard?"

I look down because I've been distracted and forgotten all about SLLSing. I answer, "Sorry Ben, I was distracted."

He continues...

Present – Ben – Regrouping

"I know you were Stacy and you should know it's a common mistake to let your guard down after a battle. But mistakes like that will get you killed. Now SLLS and let me know what you observe."

I can tell she's upset but I know she won't ever forget this lesson. I watch her SLLS, she looks up and says, "Ben even though it's too dark to see anything, I think that someone turned off one of the lights in the house because I think they were all on when we first walked up here. I also think I hear someone softly calling from the house. I still can't really smell anything other than the horses because they really need to be groomed."

I touch her shoulder, but Bo gets a little upset so I take my hand away and say, "Stacy that's an excellent job! You are right, one of the lights is off in the house. It could be someone turned it off, or it could be one of my shots hit it. And there is at least one person in the house. They may be injured because they are calling for help."

I continue, "Okay Stacy we are going to clear the house - this is called UC or urban combat and it's the most dangerous type of combat we will ever face. We are going into an enclosed space without knowing who is in there or what the interior looks like. First we will approach the house and I will use my periscope to recon the room through the window or open doorway. Once I'm sure of the layout of the room, I will 'pie the doorway.' This means I will stand at the side of the door and slowly move until I can see the entire side of the room away from me, sort of like how you cut a pie into slices. Then if it's clear, I will use the periscope and pie the back and the other side of the room. Once I'm sure the corners of the room are clear, I will enter the room, double check to make sure the corners are clear and then move to what's called the 'point of domination' of the room. It will be the corner that gives me the best view of all the entrances to the room. Do you have any questions so far?"

She says, "If you're doing all this, then what the heck is my job?"

I appreciate how aggressive she is so I chuckle and explain, "You have one main job and that's covering my six so I can concentrate on the targets in front of me. I want you right behind me facing in the opposite direction except when I enter the room. You will stand against the wall just outside the room and then quickly move into the room when I call it clear. Remember this: Doorways are always funnels of death so never stay in a doorway longer than necessary and also never stick the barrel of your rifle around any corner. You see this all the time on TV shows and all it does is just give away your position. While we're talking about rifle handling, remember to keep your rifle pointed level but never let it point at me. Do you have any more questions?"

She asks, "How will I know which corner you will choose for the point of domination?"

I answer, "Stacy, I'm proud as hell of you because that's an excellent question. I will use hand signals to let you know. One more thing, once you enter the room don't turn your back on the doorway or the room, instead slowly back towards me. And if I say drop, that means to hit the floor. Now it's time for a weapons check and then we'll roll."

Present – Stacy – Clearing the house

I'm nervous and I ask, "Ben before the weapons check, how about you let me have a bathroom break?"

Ben softly chuckles, "Yeah it's better to do that now than in the middle of an op. You go first and I will cover you and then I'm next."

I move over behind a bush and wonder what would happen if I needed to go in the middle of an op - that's something I will need to ask Ben later. I finish, walk back out and Ben hands me a wet wipe, I ask, "Where did this come from?"

He says, "I always keep some in the top of my pack. You have some in yours, but must have forgotten about it."

I really need to figure out what gear is 'essential' and keep it at the top of my pack. I clean my hands and Ben says, "Okay keep watch because it's my turn." Ben heads towards the bushes and Bo tries to follow him. He pats Bo, hands me his lead and says, "Bo, it's okay I'll be right back. Stacy please keep him from following me."

As I'm SLLSing while Ben is gone, I do hear some new noises coming from the house and the horses ears perk up. Ben walks up and I mention, "Ben, did you hear the noises from the house? I couldn't make out what they are."

He says, "Great job Stacy, I did hear them and I think someone is dragging something around in the house. Plus the calls for help have stopped. It's time to go see what the hell is going on in the house. We're going to do bounding overwatch again to reach the house. I know out here, it's too dark for you to see my hand signals, so I will flash once with my red flashlight when I'm ready for you to move to my position. Make sure once I relocate, you keep checking behind us."

I question, "What about the horses?"

Ben answers, "Shit! I've never had to do this with horses before. With my leg it would be nice to have them closer to the house in case we needed to bug out. Do you have any ideas?"

I say, "I think Bo's going to follow you whatever we do. So how about we let him do that until we reach the tree close to the house. Then we will tie him to that. And I'll bring Patches and Knacker with me."

Ben questions, "Won't Bo just pull himself loose from the tree?"

I answer, "Not if you tie him properly and pat him a couple times."

Ben says...

Present – Ben – Clearing the house

"Okay, weapons check and then let's roll." I had already performed a tactical reload of both rifles (never leave a place you have cleared or a battle with a partially loaded weapon) right after killing the last bandito. I pull the mag out of the M4 rap the back of it against a tree twice to make sure the rounds were where they are supposed to be in the mag and perform a SPORT¹

¹SPORT (usually SPORTS) is an acronym used for making sure you rifle is ready for action.

1. S – Slap gently upward on the magazine to ensure it's fully seated and the magazine follower is not jammed.

2. P – Pull the charging handle fully to the rear.

3. O – Observe the ejection of a live round or expended cartridge.

4. R – Release the charging handle (never ride it forward)

5. T – Tap the forward assist assembly to ensure bolt closure (usually multiple times)

6. S – (not done here) Squeeze the trigger and try to fire the rifle.

I then do a similar procedure for the AK, I've done it so many times it's now automatic and only takes about five seconds at the most for both rifles. I SPORT while I watch Stacy do the same. She does it correctly, but more slowly, looks at me and says, "Wow you looked like a robot when you did that."

I answer, "You did a great job and will get better with practice. Are you ready?"

She says, "Not quite yet!" Then surprises the hell out of me and upsets Bo by giving me a big hug! She pulls away and says, "That was for luck!"

I head off towards the first good cover and can't believe what Bo does...

Present – Stacy – Clearing the house

Ben starts to move and Bo moves with him almost like he's shielding Ben from the house. It surprises me and I think it startles Ben at first. It's so dark that soon all I can see is Bo's outline against the lights of the house.

I SLLS, finally see the flash from Ben's light and start to move towards where I saw the light, leading Patches and Knacker. It proves to be a huge pain in the rear and takes me way too long to reach our first position. I kneel beside Ben and whisper, "I'm leaving Patches and Knacker here."

Ben replies, "Good idea you were exposed for too long getting here. If we need to bug out, we can both ride on Bo."

I tie up my horses, Ben whispers, "After the next move, you should be able to see my hand signals."

He moves out and again. Bo is with him as I SLLS.

I see the flashlight and this time make good time getting up to him. He whispers, "That was much better. We're leaving Bo here because he's so big he's giving away my location."

I whisper a response, "Well he's not going to be happy about this, so you'd better give him some love and I will tie him up."

Ben loves on Bo and whispers, "Bo, I have to leave you here so be a good horse."

I tie up Bo and watch as his ears go back just a little; yeah he's not happy at all about this. Ben says, "Okay the next stop before the house in the big tree where we were going to tie the horses. You will hold there until I safely recon the house."

He moves out, Bo yanks his head but can't get loose and stamps a foot. I scratch him and say, "Bo, Ben's going to be fine."

I hear Patches and Knacker making some noise behind me and wonder what the heck is going on. Bo turns, looks back at them, somehow yanks his lead loose from the tree and takes off towards them. I need to go and see what's going on! As I get ready to move, the next thing I know Ben's right beside me and whispers, "Stacy, someone's behind us and is after Patches and Knacker. You stay here and SLLS while I go and take care of them."

Ben takes off right as we hear someone screaming bloody murder!

Present – Ben – Clearing the house

Shit! Someone is after the horses and whomever it is the horses sure don't like it. Patches and Knacker both started making a hell of a racket and then Bo takes off towards them like his tail's on fire. I pause by Stacy, tell her what I'm doing and take off to get the bastard when I hear him start screaming like he's being murdered. I get there and I sure understand why: Bo has grabbed the bastard's shoulder in his mouth and is shaking the hell out of him like a dog shakes a ragdoll. Damn! That has to hurt like hell!

I run up as Bo drops the bastard. He no sooner hits the ground, when the up until now docile Knacker comes over and stomps the shit out of the bandito. I know better than to get in the middle of this fight. It doesn't take long and the bandito is dead – Shit! I've been slapped by women, bit by women and even kicked by women but nothing comes close to what these horses did to the bandito. If hell hath no fury like that of a woman scorned, then the devil has no anger like that of a pissed off horse. It makes me wonder about Jens, I mean Ms. Donaldson. I wonder if she's as pissed off at me as the horses were at the bandito. At least she can't bite me like Bo bit the bandito or kick me like Knacker did – after all, what's the worst she can do to me? Shoot me?