The Dream Jumper's Secret

by Kim Hornsby

  Shoved up against the wall, Tina tried to stand upright, knowing that her mother might see these pictures if this hit the media. When she smiled, they shouted at her angrily, so she put on her best emotionless face. Although she knew that the United States government did not trade hostages for prisoners, she believed in Jamey and his ability to find her. They had a special weapon that no one else had. Dream Jumping.

  ***

  Jamey had information now. Not a lot, but it just might be enough to find Tina. The group left AMTEX VILLAGE and took off for the base. Jamey so tired, he nodded off on the short ride.

  Gathered around the table back in the conference room, they poured over maps. Satellite photos zeroed in on neighborhoods and Jamey strained to find something familiar from his dream with Atash. Maybe, just maybe, Jamey’s description of the house, combined with Tina’s information would lead them to something.

  When he finally recognized something in the satellite photos, he showed Milton.

  “You sure.”

  “No, not at all.” Kandahar was a big city, full of side streets and houses that all looked alike. “Take me over to AMTEX,” he told Milton.

  Once inside Tina’s guarded room, he lay down on the bed with her backpack in his arms. Thoughts of Tina running along the Afghani streets in the dream, walking the beach on Maui, the two of them kissing in his bed in Carnation, eventually took him into a dream.

  He stood on the bank of the Tolt River in Carnation, watching the black water run swiftly. When leaves rustled behind him, Jamey spun around to see Tina approaching like she’d just landed. She looked frightened and tired. He wanted to hug her, but they might not have much time and he didn’t want to risk losing her or missing any important information. “We’re looking for the house.”

  “There’s a grouping of white buildings with red clay roofs next door.” She crouched, grabbed a twig, and drew in the dirt at their feet. “This is what it looks like. I have to draw fast. I could be woken at any time.” She explained the proximity of the beautiful Mosque and the mountains.

  “Are they torturing you?”

  “No. They still think I’m a reporter. I was just fed a bread crust by the woman. Are we being used to trade for prisoners?”

  “Your captors are hoping. We ID’ed the main guy with the chipped tooth. We have Delta Force and the Seals with us, once we zero in on the house.” He looked at her crude drawing, remembering another time when she’d unsuccessfully drawn a dive spot off Maui. Back when their biggest problem was finding a body.

  “This is how far away the Mosque is and where the buildings are. When they took me out of the room for a photo, I happened to see out the window.”

  “Good girl. Anything else?”

  “Very little, but the bell that sounds at sunset is like chimes, not a metal bell.”

  “Good. I wish I could come back with you and kill the bastards.” They stood and she moved into his arms.

  “I love you, big guy, and if this mission fails, just know that I died happy. Take Obi for me too, will you? Tell Mom I love her.”

  Jamey pulled back and looked into her big brown eyes. “It won’t fail. Trust me. We’re close.” Knowing that it made little difference if he woke up quickly to relay the information, he took the time to kiss her. Tenderly, sweetly. She smelled like Tina. All woman. When they pulled back he rested his forehead on hers. “Just stay quiet, don’t do anything to antagonize them, and don’t tell the others that help is on the way. If they question you, look like you’ve lost all hope, okay?”

  She kissed him again and then she was gone, yanked out of the dream. Faster than before, like the final second in the sinking of a ship. One moment they were kissing, the next, she was gone. He tried to jump with her, but nothing happened.

  He woke, opened his eyes. This dream jumping worked well with Tina. Hot Damn. Sitting up in the hotel bed, he looked over to Milton, who was watching from the desk. Jamey nodded. “Contact.”

  ***

  The woman in the burqa, who’d earlier brought the bread to Tina, came into the room again. She looked frightened of the guard, almost slave-like. Only her eyes were visible through her burqa. When they locked on Tina’s eyes, the woman gave a little motion for her to get up. It was a difficult task to get off the floor with her hands tied behind her waist and her feet bound, but she managed to get to her knees. The guard moved in to cut the ties around her feet. She was still bound at her knees and connected to the ties at her wrists but was able to shuffle now. She followed the woman, hoping that the participation of an Afghani woman added something more humane to this horrific situation. Probably not, judging from the look of terror in the woman’s eyes.

  It turned out they were allowing Tina to go to the bathroom, if you could call a hole in the floor a bathroom. The Afghani woman pulled Tina’s jeans and underwear down, and then motioned for her to squat over the hole, turning away after she did so,. Tina wanted to cry over this nicety. It was foolish to give so much credibility to emptying her bladder when she might be dead any minute, but it felt good to finally pee. The woman pulled Tina’s pants up, avoiding eye contact, and then handed the prisoner over to the guard at the door. Tina nodded at her, hoping to convey that she didn’t blame her for what was happening.

  As the guard shoved her back to the floor in her room, she silently hoped that when Special Ops arrived, the woman wouldn’t be killed.

  Chapter 34

  Every hour that passed was an opportunity for Tina’s safety to be severely compromised. When Jamey drew the house/Mosque/roof configuration on a piece of paper on the boardroom table, they hit the jackpot. The experts found the house within the hour. The mission was called Operation Sitting Duck, named after Tina’s code name.

  Jamey was told that he wouldn’t be allowed to participate in the rescue mission, even though he’d relayed the information that led them to the house. This was a big-time Special Ops rescue, only for trained members of the finest extraction units in the world--Delta Force and the Navy Seals.

  Tonight the Navy and Army would work together to extract the reporters and Tina. Using both forces was something that hadn’t happened much. Usually there was a competitive edge to each group but recently they’d been put under one umbrella and were discovering that Delta Force and SEALs complimented each other’s strengths.

  All efforts to jump to Tina had been vetoed now that they’d located the compound. Jamey didn’t even try. After a four-hour nap, he woke to find a tentative plan in place. They needed him to go in the Hummer, verify the house, see what he could pick up from driving by. The Mosque, white buildings, red clay roofs, remote location, were all there, and when he felt Tina’s presence in the house, Milton radioed they had final verification. It was the same house he’d come to with Atash, basically. The neighborhood looked different but the gate, the size of the compound was similar.

  The Sixth Force team stationed themselves a few blocks away in the back of a deserted house, while Delta Force and the SEALS prepared for the night mission back at the Kandahar base. Once darkness set in, Operation Sitting Duck would be underway.

  Details were kept top secret, but Jamey knew a few things. In the dead of night, a group of them would fast rope in from Apache helicopters, infiltrate the compound, grab the prisoners and get out. They’d probably shoot everyone in the house, unless there were children and women. Jamey had mentioned there might be one woman, an Afghani in a burqa, who’d helped Tina. Once the soldiers got the three hostages to the roof, they’d be hoisted to the Apaches and they’d take off. They had seven minutes from arrival to departure.

  In one respect, it was a strangely detached frustration to not be in on the rescue but Jamey had to remind himself that he was only a superhero in dreams, not in real life. He couldn’t actually leap off buildings and run at hyper-speed. That left him back at the neighborhood safe house, waiting to hear how the rescue went. His team waited with him, connected to Delta Force and the SEALs through Milton’s headset.


  ***

  Tina sat with her back to the wall, trying not to think about her thirst and hunger. She was imagining Millie’s pot roast when something bumped outside the door. The radio that played continuous Afghani music continued to pump out noise as she strained, listening for abnormalities. Something heavy fell on the floor outside the door and she held her breath. Her nerves were on high alert as she stared through the blackness at where she thought the door was located. Then another bump, a yell cut short, and the door burst open. Squinting at the blinding light, she saw a gun come around the corner, the leg that came with the gun was dressed in good boots and cammo pants like the American Army used and Tina knew the heroes had arrived.

  She spoke. “Light switch on the left. Only us three in here, three Americans. I’m Tina. Swear to God, it’s just us.” The prisoners on the floor were blindfolded, but would wonder what was going on. Four soldiers rushed into the room with red flashlights and headlamps.

  “Delta Force here to rescue you, ma’am.”

  “Thank you,” she said. “I think the guys are injured, so be careful with them. I’m fine.”

  Her ties were cut, and the next thing she knew one of the soldiers had grabbed her, slung her over his shoulder and she was taken from the room. “Don’t shoot the woman in the burqa. She helped me,” Tina said, as they bumped through the room. All she saw from her position was her rescuer’s backside and legs as they hurried through the house, up a set of stairs and burst through a door to the roof. The helicopter noise was louder now but still surprisingly quiet. She was set on her feet but clung to the soldier’s arm. Her legs were too weak to stand.

  “You okay, ma’am?”

  “Never better,” she said. “Thank you.”

  Several badass-looking black helicopters hovered over the house and spotlights illuminated the rooftop. The soldiers barked orders to each other, one guy even had a thick, deep Southern drawl.

  A rope dangled from the chopper and she was quickly clipped into the harness. “Thank you,” she said again to the soldier just before he turned to assist the others. The look of dedication and determination in the soldier’s face made an emotional gasp catch in her throat and she said a little prayer to protect these guys. If she was shot down in this helicopter, Tina wanted him to know that she’d been grateful. “You guys rock. Thank you so much.”

  Then, she felt a tug and was hoisted up to the helicopter. Hanging on tight to the strap, Tina watched the house below grow smaller. From her precarious vantage point, she noticed snipers stationed along the edge of the roof, the other prisoners being clipped in to harnesses, and soldiers scrambling around on the roof.

  One of the other hostages was below her on a separate line. It didn’t seem fair that she’d gone first when the other hostages had been there longer and endured more. Soon she was at the open door of the hovering helicopter, letting the soldier pull her inside. She gave the thumbs up sign and smiled weakly. A soldier pointed to the corner and she slid over to get out of the way. Looking around for Jamey, she soon saw he wasn’t here. Tears came to her eyes. She’d thought Jamey would be waiting for her in the helicopter. But he wasn’t a SEAL or whoever these guys were. He’d be waiting somewhere safe, wringing his hands.

  In less than a minute, three prisoners were inside, the word was given to go, and they took off into the Afghani night sky.

  One of the uniformed men handed her a blanket and she wrapped it around her body. The evening was warm and she‘d been sweating for thirty-six hours, but when the shivering started, she was thankful for the blanket.

  As they flew, she hoped her mother never heard about any of this. What was next? Landing at Kandahar? I’ll finally get on the base. Would she be reprimanded by the military for coming to Afghanistan and causing this rescue mission? She realized that it was because of her that they all got out. She’d aided the rescue of the other two hostages by getting clues to Jamey. At least she hoped the military saw it that way.

  The two other prisoners sat across from her, and she smiled woefully when she caught one man’s eyes. They looked much worse than her, having been there longer and beaten. One man had a black eye and cuts along his face. The other clutched his middle with an arm that was bent the wrong way, but both of them grimaced gratefully.

  ***

  Helicopters thrummed overhead as they moved north to the base.

  “Sitting Duck is in flight. Repeat, all ducks are flying.”

  The words coming through the radio were like music to Jamey’s ears. Sweet music. Tina was safe. The hostages were on the way to the base. Jamey looked over to Ranger and nodded. The team scooted out the back door of the building and into a waiting truck, then took off for Kandahar Air Field. Jamey had been close by in case his talent was needed but looked like the Force and the Seals didn’t need him.

  He closed his eyes as they bumped along the poorly maintained Kandahar roads and willed a message to Tina that he was on his way. He had no idea if it worked. The truck wound through the city streets heading north and onto the highway that led to the Air Field. Unless someone was stupid enough to shoot at a group of Apaches, or launch a missile, Tina was safe inside that thing. He let out a long sigh. Almost there. There’d be days of interrogations, but Tina was now in the hands of the American military.

  Next he’d have to keep Milton from finding out that Tina was a jumper. Now that his superior officer knew Jamey could message Tina, she’d look extremely interesting to the Force. But receiving messages and initiating dream jumps were very different, and Jamey would not let the space between those two skills close. The military must never find out she was a jumper.

  Walking into the high-security building on the base, Jamey could feel that Tina was close. Even if Ranger hadn’t already promised to take him directly to her, Jamey knew she was in the building. He hoped they’d have a few private minutes before the interrogations began. There’d be hours of questions about what she was doing in Afghanistan, how many times had Freud pulled her into jumps, and the logistics of what had just happened. He had to brief Tina on what not to say before Milton got to her. If he got to talk to her first, that would be a huge oversight on Milton’s part.

  Milton had known that Tina and Jamey had been communicating psychically through dreams since she arrived two days earlier. Jamey didn’t think she’d ever had direct contact with Milton, except for that note about being at AMTEX, so he hoped that very little was known about Tina, aside from what the military could pull up.

  Jamey waited for clearance and then was taken down a long hall to a door with a window in it. A woman in a burqa sat at a conference table, talking to two interrogators with a tape recorder between them. Jamey wore his disguise too—the wig, beard and teeth. Staying incognito was imperative to his future and he was glad to see Tina was disguised. Even through the burqa’s fabric, he’d know her anywhere by her posture, the way her hand held up her chin. This was the woman who’d flown across the world for him. As he waited for the door to be opened, he remembered that he hadn’t seen the real Tina for weeks.

  When she turned and looked through the window, she popped out of her chair and he could tell from her eyes that she was smiling under the veil. The door was buzzed open and he threw his arms around her and hugged her so tightly he had to remind himself to go easy. Removing the fake teeth, he then pulled his beard under his chin, moved her veil aside, and kissed her hair, her neck, her face, and, eventually, her mouth. Tears covered her cheeks. “Oh, my God, Tina. You’re safe.”

  “We’ll leave you two alone,” one of the soldiers said, and the two men slipped out of the room.

  Jamey couldn’t believe he was holding Tina in his arms. She was safe, and whole, and they were together again. Not just in dreams. The last time he’d spoken to her had been after making love in his bed in Carnation. Before the dream about the letter.

  “Jamey!” she sobbed against his shoulder. She drew away to look at his face. “Jamey, you’re safe.”

  He held her at
arm’s length and scanned her, looking up and down. “Did they hurt you?”

  She shook her head. “No. They didn’t. I wasn’t tortured or anything worse. They hadn’t gotten around to that. They didn’t hurt me. But I’m hungry.”

  “Tina.” He pulled her to him and kissed the side of her head. “You were lucky.” The relief flowed through him like a drug. “Oh, my God, Tina. We were so lucky to get you back. You didn’t eat yet?”

  “No. Am I allowed to leave here?”

  “Nope. We’ll order in.” He turned and stuck his head out the door. “Why didn’t you get her food? What’s the matter with you fuckheads? She hasn’t eaten in two days.” He turned back to Tina. “Pardon my French but they should’ve fed you.” He kissed her again and held her against his chest. “We have to keep your presence quiet on the base. I’m sure you were told that when they gave you this burqa. The other hostages have been told to forget they ever saw you. They’re journalists and were probably told you’re with Delta Force or something so they won’t write about you.” He swept her soft hair from her face with his hand. “There’s no way to explain this mission, and we don’t want you, or me, or anyone else on Sixth Force in the media. But, you’ve become our hero, saving the reporters and yourself. Top secret and undercover that is, but a hero.” He nodded at the door. “What did those two ask?”

  “About the house and what I might have overheard, which was a whole lot of nothing.”

  He nodded and lifted up the skirt of her burqa, like he was going to look under. “I like your disguise.”

  She pulled it down and glanced at the window in the door. No one there. “My clothes were bloody. Not my blood, but dirty and bloody. Do you know if they killed the woman in the house last night? The one who helped me?”