CHAPTER SEVENOctober 2005
After his first combat, subsequent injury, and first kill, Briggs spent twenty-one days in the hospital for his recovery. He was promoted to corporal while he was there. The promotion ceremony was quick and sterile, just like the hospital. The lingering aroma of rubbing alcohol and cleaning fluids added to his depression. Not one of his friends was there to shake his hand and congratulate him, but that was a good thing as well. It meant that no one else was hurt. He gladly would’ve traded the extra stripe to be back with his platoon in combat.
The physical therapy was the toughest part, but that went by rapidly as Briggs recovered from his wounds. After just a few months, he was able to fly home for his allotted ten days, basking in the sun, hoping he would not
