Fire Dancer

EDIT: This story achieved 1st Place in the Thriller Genre at the 2019 LAS VEGAS FILM & SCREENPLAY competition. Likened to: “Ms Rambo" meets “Rounders.” There is no love in War or Poker! This story salutes the Native American Indians and all females who, had, are, and will serve in the U.S. Armed Forces. The story is set in a very near future war in some desert country. The story follows Shawna Chenoa (her tribal name is Fire Dancer) through her trials and tribulations in war, peace, and crime. In the US Army, she is a Lieutenant in charge of a Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical testing and compliance unit. Her unit falls into combat where they are forced to become fighting soldiers very quickly. Her platoon happens upon and rescues several American POWs and shortly later a Russian POW. That Russian later gives the story a twisting ending. Her soldiers find the WMD that the enemy proxy fighters stole from Russia. Lieutenant Chenoa witnessed many deaths in her platoon. She and many survivors suffered bloody combat wounds to include PTSD. She resigns her commission, returns home, gets married, and pursues a career as a professional poker player. She believes poker is a safer vocation than fighting a war; until she wins a large poker pot from a psycho. The psycho seeks bloody revenge, costing the lives of Shawna's friend and her husband’s life. Shawna must somehow send that psycho to hell, to save the lives of her remaining friends to include that of her own. The story concludes when she finds love again in a poker room.