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“Shit,” he cried when he realized what was going on. “Help me get him up.”
They tried to help Luis stand, but he fought them off. “Stay down, soldier, unless you want to die. Incoming.”
He fell flat on the floor, covering his head with his hands, his body was shaking.
Maybe it was the cold tile. Maybe it was the smell of bacon frying, but somehow he jerked and then crawled into a fetal position before he glanced up at them.
Slowly, she could see him returning, and she also saw fear in his eyes. What had this man lived through that brought this on?
“What the hell happened?”
Trevor tried his best to act like it was nothing. “Just a little piece of the war came to visit you today.”
With a sigh, Luis sat up on the floor. “What did I say?”
“Just the usual stuff. Incoming, get down, soldier,” Trevor said. “If you’re going to do this, I wish you’d spill some military secrets.”
Luis jerked and then shook his head. “No, you don’t want to know. It would scare the hell out of you.”
He gazed at Stacy. “Sorry, you had to witness that.”
“No, it was my fault,” she said. “I dropped the pan you gave me and it seemed to trigger you.”
Getting to his feet, he shook his head. “They keep telling me I’ll get over this, but I’m not sure. Any kind of loud noise can trigger it. Damn military.”
Stacy walked over to him. “Don’t. You served your country. Don’t be ashamed that you have episodes where you go back into the fighting. What I saw was a man who was frightened for his life and his soldiers’ lives. I think that’s honorable.”
Luis shook his head. “It makes me feel so damn weak that I can’t control it. Why is my brain doing this to me?”
Grabbing his arm, she tried to pull him to her, but he refused.
“Weak? You’re one of the strongest men I’ve ever met,” Stacy said. “You’re an ex-Navy SEAL. They don’t get much stronger than that.”
“But the battle I always go back to is the one where a good friend died. I should have saved him.”
“No,” Stacy said. “I’m certain you did everything you could to protect him.”
“But it wasn’t enough,” he said. Looking forlorn, he sighed. “If you guys don’t mind, I think I’ll go upstairs and lie down for a little bit. Let me know when lunch is ready.”
Stacy watched as he walked out the door and up the stairs.
“Did I say something wrong?” she asked Trevor.
“No, but when this happens it leaves him weak as a kitten. He’ll probably sleep for a couple of hours. It will be good for him.”
Standing there naked, she felt so forlorn. This was all her fault. If she hadn’t dropped the damn pan, he would not have returned to battle.
“I didn’t know about his friend,” she said.
“Some things, no matter how long ago it happened, you just don’t get over. Luis has never forgiven himself for losing John.”
Shaking her head, she felt bad for the big strong Navy SEAL. How did you get over losing a friend in battle? Maybe he never would.
CHAPTER8
Luis had never been so embarrassed. Just when he thought the episodes were going away, one would surprise him at the worst possible moment. Why couldn’t he put the war and the death of his best friend behind him?
When the relapses happened, the episodes left him weak, exhausted, and almost despondent. Now instead of trying to push through, he often lay down and rested. When he did, he seemed to come out of it faster.
