Michael Risley - K.I.A.: In Between Nowhere

About the Author

After his captivity in Vietnam and stay in a hospital in Germany, he was assigned to the special ops unit. He was selected because of his age, physical condition, and willingness to do what was necessary to escape. He was sent to HM school and a Special Forces training at Camp Pendleton.

Upon graduation, he was involved in several missions with his five teammates. He was still missing Danielle and dealing with all day-to-day trials of trying to stay alive. But eventually, even after being offered a commission, he was beginning to wonder if he would be alive to get it. After much consideration, he left the Navy, married, and had two children.

He became a Christian and served in a local church. Writing these three books took a lot of trying to remember all the days and nights as accurately as possible. Not all of them were pleasant but needed to be said. The story is all true, except for the ending, which was how he would have liked for it to end.

But God had other ideas for his life. He could have put this story and the second book all together in one book, but trying to remember everything and be as accurate as possible was difficult. And he had more trouble writing the third book than the others, probably because of the deaths and violence they saw all the time.

K.I.A.

In Between Nowhere

Michael Risley

ISBN 978-1-63814-155-6 (Paperback)

ISBN 978-1-63814-156-3 (Digital)

Copyright 2021 Michael Risley

All rights reserved

First Edition

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

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Murrells Inlet, SC 29576

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April 1, 1963

Just couldnt believe how pretty and quiet it is. Six in the morning on a Sunday. I guess peaceful would also be appropriate. I was in Indianapolis, Indiana. The weather was sunny and mild. Id guess around sixty-five degrees. I had to head back home and fix breakfast for my brother and sisters. About a year ago, my father had piled us in the car and left my mother and took us to Sheldon, Illinois. Then on to Houston, Texas. Thats where I quit school to help my dad work. So I kind of became a nanny.

It was so beautiful out here, so peaceful and quiet. I was able to gather my thoughts and try to make some sense of it all. For a year now, I had quit school to take care of my siblings. I guess I was trying to think a little bit about my future. I had met a friend at a park last week, playing baseball. He was a little older than me, maybe around seven or eight months. Anyway, he told me he was going down to the Navy recruiters office to join the Navy.

It sounded good, so I tagged along. We took what seemed to be umpteen tests, and I scored pretty well. They were very surprised at my scores. The only catch was, I wouldnt turn seventeen for another two weeks. Life this last year had seemed so uncertain. Its like being nowhere and being somewhere at the same time. My dad needed help, and I felt my siblings needed me. But whats next?

Ricky and I left for boot camp in San Diego on April 14, 1963. We selected different schools after boot camp, so I never saw him again.

June 1964

The biggest surprise was the orders I received. I was being sent to the hospital corps school. They told me I was selected for corps school because of my physical condition and intelligence, for possible future black-ops assignments. I asked to talk to the CO of the corps school, and he agreed to see me.

HM3 Mike Risley, sir.

What is it I can do for you, Petty Officer Risley?

Well, sir, I was wondering why I didnt get dental school and was wondering what exactly future assignments means.

He replied, You are part of a select group of young men who, because of your age, physical condition, and scores on the gun range, are being trained for a special mission ops team. You are, as of now, a first-class petty officer. After corps school, you will be sent to field med school where you will be trained for recon and special warfare missions. So let me ask you, are you up for the challenge, Petty Officer Risley?

August 1964

Back in the States, I finished corps school and was on my way to North Carolina for more training. I arrived on a Saturday, so I was just chilling out there in the barracks. I was sitting alone and thinking back. My recent past was both agonizing and filled with fond memories. The Enterprise , Danielle, my brothers and sisters, but mostly Vietnam. The captain said it was mostly my time in Vietnam that made me uniquely qualified for this particular training. They gave me E-4 when I got out of Nam. Now, all of a sudden, an E-6 at only eighteen years old!

Class started early Monday morning. There were fifteen of us. It seemed I was the only one who had been in Nam, much less a POW. I could see there was going to be a lot of questions. And I wasnt exactly thrilled about what some of those questions would be.

There were a lot of things about Nam I would like to put behind me, but the instructor said those things might help keep me and my buddies alive. I guess I couldnt argue with that. We were going to be doing classroom work for four weeks then six weeks in the woods learning survival skills, as well as firearms training.

I was right; back in the barracks, I started getting all kinds of questions. Of course, the one I feared the most: being what it felt like to kill someone. That was a hard one to answer because, at that moment in time, I was happy. But also, I thought I was a little wacko.

We were told we would be sent out eventually as six-man teams. The theory was, there would be possible dropouts. Not everyone made the cut. The teammates I was with were Moose, always cracking jokes; then there was the Thin Man, Mo, Goose, and Joker. We got along great. Teamwork was one of the most important parts of our training, and the six of us were quickly becoming very close. It seemed like the classroom training flew by. The captain was right; my nightmares and depression seemed to be things of the past.

October 1964

We started out in the field training: map reading, survival, stealth training, and what was edible and what wasnt. They asked me what I ate back in Nam as a POW. I told them the truthwhat I could dig up and whatever crawled close to me: bugs, lizards, cockroaches, whatever. I wish you could have seen their faces. It was hilarious. When youre hungry enough, you will eat things you never thought you would.

We were training to use water, rivers, lakes. We scuba dived, climbed trees, dug holes, and set up traps to hurt or disable the enemy.

That night, I was back in Nam: tied up, being kicked, hit. I guess I was screaming in my sleep. Goose was shaking me as I awoke, hitting and kicking the closest one around me. It took Goose and Thin Man to hold me down as I fully awoke.

Im sorry guys. Bad dream, I guess!

That is an understatement, the Joker said. Everybody was laughing, like they were sitting in a comedy club. The six of us were starting to mesh together like a well-oiled machine. We hadnt graduated yet, but the captain called us in and told us we looked to be the best six-man team he had ever trained. So he started briefing us on our first missionCambodia.