by Paige Tyler
This entire trip had been like one of those scenes from Indiana Jones, where they show you a map of the world with a plane slowly moving across it trailing a dotted red line so the audience can see where you’ve been and where you’re going.
Except in this case, there had been one plane to take them to Oahu, and another one to Batam. Then they’d ridden in a helicopter out to a rather innocent looking cargo ship in the middle of nowhere, which in turn had passed them off to the sub they were currently riding in. All in all, she’d experienced more excitement in the past twenty hours or so than she had in her entire life.
“The captain is concerned about the number of surface ships moving in this area,” Lucero said softly, pointing out something on the map laid out on the table in front of them. “So, when that hatch opens, your Team is going to need to move fast. All of you have to be in your boats and gone in less than three minutes.”
Poppy eyed the narrow ladder leading up to the hatch, then down to the heavy tactical gear and boots she was wearing, the reality of exactly how real this situation was hitting her. How the hell was she supposed to move fast up a ladder, wearing all this crap?
The black uniform and boots were bad enough, but the Kevlar body armor was insane. It weighed a ton and made her feel like a claustrophobic turtle. She’d tried to talk the guys out of having to wear it, claiming she wasn’t going into this operation to fight, but that had only earned her a glare from Sam.
“Wear it or don’t go,” Lucero said, ending the argument, such as it was.
Of course, the CIA didn’t care about having to wear all the stuff since he wasn’t going on the mission with them.
There was a little voice in Poppy’s head telling her she’d made a serious mistake coming, that there was no way in hell she could do this. She was only going to get herself killed. But then reason took over and she forced herself to calm down. She was here now. There was no going back.
When Lucero disappeared into some other part of the submarine, Poppy watched as Sam and his Teammates finished making last minutes checks of their weapons and other equipment. She checked her own backpack, making sure everything she needed was still in there and hadn’t shaken loose during the trip. Then Sam came over and started streaking black grease paint across the skin of her cheeks, nose, and chin. They hadn’t talked much since the argument on the runway, but she knew in her heart that he’d have her back throughout this mission. It was comforting beyond belief.
“This will tone down the high points on your face, keep light from reflecting off your skin, and help you blend into the background,” Sam explained as he worked, his gaze intent. “Just make sure you keep your hair under the helmet. Hair as blond as yours will glow like neon in the dark.”
She started to say thanks, but then the red lights overhead started flicking and everyone started moving—fast.
Poppy wasn’t aware she was climbing the ladder until water started splashing on her face. She froze, sure they’d opened the hatch while they were still underwater, but Sam’s tap on her boot kept her moving. A few moments later, she realized that the water was runoff coming from the top of the sub.
Okay, so they weren’t all going to drown. At least not yet anyway.
Once on deck, Poppy mostly stayed out of the way as Sam and the guys got the little—emphasis on little—rubber Zodiac boats out of the deck shelter and into the water. Thankfully, the waves weren’t too rough and she was able to make it into one of the two boats without falling in the water. She considered that a positive sign.
She ended up in a boat with Sam, Wes, Lane, and Dalton, which left Chasen, Noah, Nash, and Holden in the other. No one said a word the whole time they were loading up the boats, but she couldn’t imagine it was coincidence she was with Sam.
The engines on the boats were so whisper quiet that Poppy could barely hear them. Mimicking the others in the boat, she straddled the inflated rubber pontoon on one side, laying down on it and making herself as small as possible while holding on tight. Behind them, the submarine disappeared silently back into the depths like it had never been there.
It was kind of creepy.
The other boat moved off into the darkness, so far away that Poppy couldn’t see it. She flipped down the night vision goggles she’d been given, but even with the training Sam and Lane had given her on the flight over, it was still disorienting to use them. She had no clue how Dalton—who was steering the boat—knew where he was going.
If it wasn’t for the rapid beating of her heart and the occasional slash of sea spray coming up to douse her face, Poppy probably would have fallen asleep because the soft droning of the engine was surprisingly relaxing. But far faster than she would have imagined, she saw the darker blur of land ahead of them, and she knew they’d arrived on Morotai Island. The mission was about to start, whether she was ready or not.
Dalton timed their approach to the beach perfectly, bringing them in between two large waves. The boat barely tipped up a little in the back, and then they were sliding up the sandy beach, Dalton yanking the motor up so the propellers wouldn’t hit the sand.
Sam had her out of the boat before they had even stopped moving. Then she pretty much got out of the way again as he and the guys lifted the boat and ran up the beach with it. They moved faster with a boat full of gear than she did empty-handed.
They slid the boat under the brush and trees growing along the top of the beach. Looking around, she saw that Chasen’s group was hiding their boat in similar fashion further down the beach. Gear was unloaded and packs were strapped on quickly, everything being done without a single sound being made. She watched in awe as Sam and his Teammates checked and double-checked each other’s packs and gear.
Sam came over and checked her pack, making sure the straps along the shoulders and the one around her hips were snug. “What’s in here? It’s heavier than I thought you’d carry.”
“A nuke first-aid kit,” she said softly. “In case things go wrong and I have to work on the weapon.”
From the look on Sam’s face, it was clear he didn’t like the sound of that. A quick glance around at the other guys confirmed they weren’t so thrilled either. Then again, if she had to keep the nuke from going full yield and taking out this entire island, she imagined they’d be doing cartwheels.
Sam and his Teammates started moving inland without a word. One second they were all standing there, the next they were running through the jungle. Everyone spread out, and she did her best to stay close to Sam. Poppy had no doubt that if she got separated from him and the other SEALs, she’d be wandering around here all night. She breathed a silent prayer of thanks that she was an avid runner. Even so, jogging through the thick brush while wearing a heavy pack and body armor was drastically different than anything she’d ever done. Ten minutes in and she was already exhausted.
Every once in a while, Sam or one of the other guys would hold up a single fist and stop in their tracks. Sometimes, they’d kneel down, other times they’d stand there motionless as statues. She never had a clue what was going on, but she did whatever they did.
A few minutes later, the hill they were climbing was so close to being vertical she had to climb hand-over-hand. She was glad it was too dark to know how far off the ground they were. Sam was right behind her, steadying her with his hands if she faltered and keeping her from slipping. It was hard to put into words how grateful she was for his presence.
When they reached the top of the ridge, Poppy could see the dim lights of a village below them. They’d have to climb down more rough terrain to get closer. But even from here, she recognized the village as the one from the planning briefing. Though she had to admit, it had seemed a bit more substantial in the overhead photos.
“I know Lucero covered this during the briefing,” she whispered to Sam as she took a gulp from her water bag. “But he doesn’t honestly think we’re going to be able to bring the nuke back by the same route we came in, right?”
Sam took a drink from
his own water bag. “Carrying it out by hand was always the backup to the back-up plan. The primary plan is for us to transport the weapon out using whatever vehicle the bad guys have it in now, taking the road through the mountains to the coast, then south down the coastal highway to the beach where a larger boat will be waiting. That route will take longer and comes with its own problems. Getting through the mountain passes will be hard enough in the dark and there are multiple checkpoints we’ll have to get through. There’s also the distinct possibility that we’ll be chased by whatever is left of the two groups we stole the nuke from, so there’s that to look forward to as well.”
“That does sound bad,” she agreed. “But I still think that will be better than trying to carry a nuke down that cliff we climbed.”
“I’ll remind you of that when we’re getting shot at later,” Sam teased, mouth quirking.
She would have laughed if that didn’t sound so scary.
They moved off the ridge and into the village, slipping from building to building. The place was eerily quiet, but Poppy could still hear soft voices coming from some of the tiny houses they passed.
“The locals know something’s going down,” Wes said from behind her. “And they’re all hiding, praying they live through whatever’s coming.”
Poppy didn’t comment as they made their way to the edge of an open area in the center of the village. It was a few hundred feet across, surrounded by one- and two-story wooden structures on all sides. The square was thankfully well-lit, allowing her to push up those ridiculous NVGs. If she didn’t think she might need them later, she’d yank them off her helmet and toss them under the nearest porch.
They moved close enough to see what was going on but kept back far enough to stay hidden. Pulling a set of binoculars from her backpack, she scanned the area and was surprised by the number of vehicles scattered around. There were well over a dozen of them, including a large military looking cargo truck. If the nuke was here, it’d be in there.
She swung the binoculars toward the men gathered in the square and recognized Colonel Kam and Major Tae from photos Lucero had shown them on the submarine. The Alatas Brothers were there, too, along with plenty of extra muscle. There had to be at least fifty armed men around the square and every one of them looking tense and ready to shoot someone.
“We wait until the transfer has been made,” Chasen said softly over the radio. “I hate to let these rogues from North Korea get away, but it will be easier to recover the nuke if we’re only dealing with half the group.”
Poppy was clueless about these kinds of tactical situations, but Chasen’s plan seemed brilliant to her. Fighting half the people still seemed nearly impossible, but it had to be better than fighting all of them.
She wiggled under a beaten-up porch with Sam and Lane, while Dalton and Wes slipped into the deeper shadows of a corner. In the square below, the men were arguing about something. After five minutes of yelling at each other, some of the men from the North Korean contingent moved over to the large cargo truck and dragged out a metal container roughly the size of a coffin.
The eight men holding it weren’t small, and yet they still had to work hard to keep from dropping it. Note to self, she thought. The back-up plan was now officially canceled. No way in hell were Sam and the other SEALs carrying that thing back over the mountains.
The men placed the container on the ground with a solid thud, then flipped the latches. The tension down there was thick enough to cut with a knife. Maybe they’d get lucky and the two groups would take each other out, then she and the guys could take off with the nuke without having to do anything.
Nah. Things never worked out that easily.
One of the men opened the lid, revealing the missile warhead inside. There was some more conversation, along with some more arguing, then one of the North Koreans came forward and removed a few panels from the side of the warhead.
Poppy used her binoculars to study the exposed portions of the warhead, then the radiac one of the Alatas brothers waved around near the missile. “That’s definitely a live nuclear warhead,” she whispered into her microphone. “The background radiation is right in the range I’d expect for a weapon of that size and design.”
The Alatas brothers must have thought so, too, since both of them made a motion toward one of the other vehicles near the far edge of the square. A moment later, a man came over carrying a large briefcase. Poppy wondered what the going rate was for a high-yield nuclear warhead these days. Five million? Ten million? Who the hell knew.
“Okay,” Chasen’s voice came over Poppy’s earpiece. “That’s our cue to move into position. We go in the second the North Koreans are out of the area.”
Sam and Lane immediately started to slip out from under the porch, but Sam stopped before he got too far. He turned back to kiss Poppy, a difficult move under the decrepit porch.
“I want you to stay right here without moving a muscle, no matter what you see or hear,” he said. “Can you do that for me?”
Poppy nodded, though she was terrified at the idea of him getting into a firefight with so many armed men. She only prayed he was as good at his job as she hoped.
Another quick kiss and then Sam disappeared into the darkness with Lane, Wes, and Dalton. She wiggled back further under the porch and took up her binoculars to watch the tail end of the weapon buy.
Poppy watched as the man holding the briefcase the opened it. Colonel Kam picked up the black velvet bag inside, then reached into it and came out with a handful of diamonds. Even in the dim light around the village square, the gems glittered like crazy. Kam nodded in satisfaction. A second later, the men who’d carried the box with the warhead into the square put it back on the truck. Kam and his security forces moved away. The Alatas brothers did the same. It looked like the deal was done.
“Okay, it’s a go,” Chasen whispered into the radio. “Everybody move into final positions. We go on my command.”
Poppy’s heart pounded so hard, it was all she could seem to hear. Which was why she missed the sound of footsteps beside the porch. She peeked out, her blood going cold when she saw a dozen heavily armed men moving toward the village square. Judging from their mismatched clothing and weaponry, they were aligned with the Alatas brothers, and if she had to guess, she’d say they were moving to intercept Colonel Kam and his soldiers as they left the village.
Crap, the brothers were about to double cross the North Koreans, right as Sam and the other SEALs were moving in to recover the warhead.
Poppy had to warn them.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Sam moved fast toward the village square, slipping from hut to house, ready to engage with the Alatas brothers and their men, when the hair on the back of his neck shot up. Something was wrong. He opened his mouth to shout a warning over the radio, but then shooting started on the far side of the village, and he knew it was too late to stop the raid. Chasen’s team had already engaged. They were all committed now.
“There’s a group of heavily armed men coming at you from my direction,” Poppy’s distinct voice came over the radio. “They’re dressed like the Alatas gang, so I think they’re planning to ambush the North Koreans.
Sam heard his Teammates curse over the radio as gunfire erupted to the left. That was the direction the Korean forces had taken.
“More men are coming. At least ten of them,” Poppy said even as Chasen began shouting out orders to change the plan. “But these guys are dressed like the North Koreans. What the hell is going on?”
It was hard getting a word through all the chatter as Sam’s Teammates called out warnings to each other. The background noise of gunfire flooded the mics, making it worse.
“I want you to keep your head down,” he told Poppy, praying she could hear him. “Don’t move no matter what happens!”
Sam rounded the corner of a building at full speed, Lane coming around the other side at the same time. They both arrived in the village square in time to see everything going t
o hell. The North Koreans, who seconds ago had been leaving the village, had turned and were now attacking in force. It was obvious they had reinforcements who’d been hiding in case everything went to crap. The Alatas brothers and their men were arrayed to the right behind several vehicles with some of the backup Poppy had mentioned.
And stuck in the middle of both sides was Sam’s rather small SEAL team—along with a nuclear weapon that probably wouldn’t like getting shot.
Sam ducked as bullets tore up the ground around him, rounds coming from both sides of the conflict. He would have laughed if he wasn’t so focused on trying to stay alive. This wasn’t merely a one-sided double cross. The North Koreans apparently wanted their nuke back while keeping the diamonds. The terrorists wanted their diamonds while keeping the nuke. He guessed there really was no honor among thieves.
Poppy kept calling out warnings, using her hidden observation point on the edge of the village square to let them know when either one of the enemy forces was starting to gather themselves for a charge. Sam never would have thought it, but she was amazingly cool in a firefight.
A few moments later, Sam found himself fighting with Lane and Wes at his back, surrounded on all sides by people trying to kill them as the three of them tried to reach the big military truck and its nuclear cargo. Sam flinched as bullets tore through the canvas tarp stretched over the back of the vehicle, and he prayed the bullets hadn’t struck something sensitive.
If the bad guys weren’t so interested in killing each other, Sam and his Teammates would have been wiped out long ago. Even so, it still took much longer to reach the center of the village square than it should have. And then, just as they were within reach of the truck and the nuke they were after, Poppy’s voice over the radio froze him solid.
“Someone found my hiding place!” she shouted, and Sam could hear the rush of air across the mic that told him Poppy was running for her life. “I’m heading toward the south end of the village…I think. They’re behind me.”
