Summary

On the flight home after Germany, Bartle’s hand still instinctively closes around a rifle that isn’t there. The men flirt with the flight attendants, who play along by bending over enough to show cleavage. Bartle thinks about the men who didn’t make it out, especially Murph.

When they get off the plane, the men receive a debriefing and instructions on dealing with stress. After, Bartle stops in an airport bar while he waits for his flight home to Richmond. Bartle mentions a trail of sand he left as he walked in, but the man mopping the floor says there’s nothing there. The bartender sees Bartle’s uniform and refuses to take his money for the beer Bartle drinks, but Bartle insists, handing his money to the bartender and leaving before the man can refuse it.

On the plane, the pilot...