Jeremy Noble

The Cause

The wail of the emergency siren nearly drowned out the sound of screeching tires and revved engines as cars began rapidly disappearing from the barracks parking lot. Michelle reached for the heart-shaped locket worn around her neck as she studied the horizon from her balcony looking for any signs of danger promised by the deafening horn. She studied the locket between her thumb and index finger in an effort to ground herself for what was to come. She had recently completed the U.S. Army’s Ranger School as a junior enlisted Army soldier and still sported the shaved head to prove it. She was no stranger to hardship.