Special Forces: Operation Alpha: Mia (Kindle Worlds)
Page 15
He glanced over his shoulder at her. "Stay put until I tell you it's clear." He glanced at the gun in her hand, muzzle pointed to the ground. "Keep that up, just not pointed at me." He winked at her, and then entered the study.
Her sight darted from the front door, to the stairs, to the the open second floor. She half expected the doors to open from the room across the entryway, and a half dozen men to come out, guns blazing. Did that really happen in real life?
"Clear," Ben whispered.
Mia stepped into the room, and went around the desk. She closed the top of the laptop, pulled it free from the charging cord, and handed it to Ben. Quickly, she pulled open drawers, looking for anything that might also be useful. In the bottom drawer was an external hard drive. She grabbed it and handed it to Ben, who tucked it into a large cargo pocket in his pants.
The door to the office closed. Mia's head snapped up. Petrov stood between them and the door, a gun pointed at her. "Ms. Rowland, so nice of you to bring one of your colleagues to me." He turned his gaze to Ben. "Now, in case you are thinking there are two of you and only one of me, you should know that I am an excellent shot, and a vindictive bastard. You may shoot and kill me, but it will not be before I am able to get off a round into the beautiful Mia. Something tells me that would be worse than your own death. Am I right, Mister—"
"Do Right," Ben answered. "And I think you either seriously underestimate my skills—" a shot rang out, the reverberations almost as loud as the actual shot.
Mia gasped, her knees suddenly turned to Jello. She held tight to the edge of the desk, not sure where to look. She was afraid to look in case Petrov was not the one who was shot. Seeing Ben lying on the floor, bleeding—dying—from a gunshot wound petrified her to the point of paralyzation.
Ben cleared his throat. "—Or overestimate your own."
Lying on the floor, blood spilling from his chest, was Petrov.
Something between a cry and a moan broke free from Mia's chest. Ben placed the laptop on the desk and managed to get around to her before she collapsed. Leaning against him, her head on his shoulder, she murmured, "I thought it was you who was shot."
"We are going to have a serious discussion regarding your lack of faith in me," Ben said. "Besides, I told you, I'm not going anywhere."
Ben glanced out the front window towards the gate. A few militia were running towards it when a series of gunshots sounded. The men fell to the ground like dominos. That was Ben's cue to get the fuck out and head toward the extraction point.
"Mia, we have to leave," he said, grabbing her arm and heading toward the door.
She glanced back toward the window. "What was that?"
"Tink and Lance blocking the gate and clearing a path to the wall for us to get out."
Ben peered to his left and right at the back entrance to the house. No one was around. Everyone had run toward the diversion.
Mia had one arm wrapped across her chest.
"Are you going to be able to run?" Ben asked. She had taken some significant kicks to the ribs from the Russian Godzilla.
"Yes," she forced out through clenched teeth. Ben was having a hard time believing her. He could hand the laptop to her, and carry her over his shoulder, but that may not help her much. Yeah, she wouldn't be running, but her ribs would be bouncing against his shoulder. He may do more damage than good. She was going to have to run, there was no other choice. The best he could hope for was that adrenaline would keep some of her pain at bay.
"Okay, let's go." They burst from the back of the house and across the open compound. When they got to the wall, Ben slid the laptop under his waistband at his back, and laced his fingers together. Mia stepped into the makeshift stirrup, and grabbed the top of the wall. Her arm strength was excellent—better than Ben had seen on many women—but she still struggled to pull herself up. More than likely, her chest was causing her pain.
Lifting one leg over the side, she looked down the other side of the wall.
"Is it about the same distance down as on this side?" Ben asked.
"The ground is higher on this side, so not too difficult a jump." She gazed back at Ben, her eyes serious and focused. "Should I wait for you to get up here before I go?"
Ben shook his head. "Go. I'll be over before you hit the ground."
She smiled. "See you on the other side then, Humps Well."
Ben was still chuckling to himself when his boots hit the ground not far from where Mia stood on the other side of the wall. How was she able to make him laugh in a situation that could lead to both of them being killed? He had no idea, but she had and that made her a pretty valuable asset to him.
Ben got on coms to Lance and Tink. "We've cleared the wall, and headed for the rendezvous point."
"Copy," Lance confirmed. "On our way."
The whir of helicopter blades in the distance intermingled with the sound of gunfire and the crackling fire of the explosions. Ben knew once the helo landed, the pilot would not want to be stationary for long. A helo on the ground was a big target, and having the bird shot meant they were all screwed.
"Okay, baby," Ben said. "We have to run again, but I want you in front of me."
"Why do I have to be in front? I don't know where I'm going."
Ben pointed to a spot. "Start running in that direction. The helicopter will land in that general vicinity."
"You should be in front."
"I can't. If someone comes up behind us, I need to be the one they get to first."
Mia's eyes grew impossibly wide.
"Don't worry," he said, lightly kissing her temple. "I'll hear them coming before they get anywhere close to us, and then I'll take care of them."
She nodded, inhaled deeply, and took off running. Ben was two strides behind her when he heard the crack of a rifle. Fire ripped through the thigh of his right leg. He saw Mia turn her head when she heard the sound, slowing to a jog. Ben pitched forward, crashing against her legs. The two toppled to the ground.
The rat-tat-tat of an automatic weapon was close by. He recognized the sound of the M-4. Boots pounded the ground in their direction. Ben looked up and caught sight of Lance and Tink running toward them.
"Are you hit?" Lance yelled as he approached.
"Yeah, right leg," Ben confirmed.
"What about Mia?" Lance was at Ben's side, rolling him onto his back.
"No, but has injuries to her ribs, probably a few cracked."
"Helo's landing. We gotta move out." Lance glanced over his shoulder. "Tink, you get Humps, I've got Mia."
Tink had Ben slung over his shoulder before Ben had a chance to inhale, and took off toward the helo. Lifting his head, he watched Lance hoist Mia up and follow them.
Sharp pains stabbed Ben all the way up his leg. Don't be a pussy, man. Suck it up.
Mia had it much worse. What if one of her ribs was broken and pierced her lungs? She wouldn't be able to breath and might bleed to death before they could get her medical help.
Tink tossed Ben onto the floor of the helo, and jumped in beside him.
Where is Mia?
A body flopped beside him. Mia was writhing in pain, loudly sucking air into her lungs. He reached over and grabbed her hand, giving it a squeeze. She turned her head to the side, and peered at him with those beautiful green eyes.
"You're okay, Mia," Ben whispered. "Just relax and breathe."
Ben could hear Tink's voice, muffled…and distant. "…not sure where it hit, but he's bleeding profusely."
Something tightened around his thigh. A black tunnel was closing in on his vision.
"Ben," Mia mouthed.
And then darkness enveloped him.
13
The stethoscope was cold against Mia's back. She didn't mind that so much. It was the inhaling and exhaling that bothered her.
"Okay, Mia, another deep breath for me," Dr. Winston murmured.
Mia groaned.
"I know it's uncomfortable. Just one more, and then we're done."
&nb
sp; Drawing in a ragged breath, Mia clutched Tink's hand in hers. She had stopped apologizing after the first few death grips when Tink had laughed and told her he hardly felt a thing. Of course, he wouldn't. Mia's hand looked like a child's in Tink's massive mitt.
What she wouldn't give for Ben to be the one holding her hand. He was still recovering from the gunshot wound to his thigh, and Mia hadn't been allowed to get out of bed and make the trek to see him. Lance had assured her that Ben was fine, even though he had yet to regain consciousness after the surgery to remove the bullet.
Thank God she had Lance and Tink. Without them there to keep her company, she would've gone insane. The pain in her lungs was always present. Inhaling and exhaling expanded the lungs, and put pressure on the three cracked ribs in the middle of her ribcage. Dr, Winston had explained—as he pressed against her ribs and told her to breath normally— that she was extremely lucky that the damage to her lungs was not more extensive.
Dr. Winston was lucky Mia didn't haul off and punch him.
"Time to suck." Tink handed Mia a plastic cylinder with a blue ball inside and a long tube. Mia hated this torture device, and was sure Tink was some sort of sadistic asshole who enjoyed watching her struggle to get the ball to raise to the midpoint.
Sucking on the tube as hard as she could, she held her breath for as long as she could—about two seconds—and released it.
Lance patted her on the arm. "Good job, Mia."
"Not bad," Tink said. "But you're going to have to do much better in order to get out of here anytime soon." Lance was her cheerleader. Always supportive and encouraging, which she loved about him. Tink was not. Well, that wasn't completely fair. Tink had a brusque, straight-forward, zero bedside manner kind of support.
The two had become more than two guys that had saved her. More than friends. They were her family now. Brothers. And she couldn't love them more than if they shared the same blood.
"Any news about Ben?" Mia choked out through a round of coughs. The sucking torture device always caused coughing, which the doctor said was good, and would prevent the onset of pneumonia.
Lance shook his head, and opened his mouth to say something, but then he clamped it shut. His gaze swung to the door, and he stood up.
Two men and a woman, all dressed in business suits, entered the room with professional smiles on their faces. They halted when Tink stood, placing himself between them and Mia.
"Hi, Ms Rowland," the woman said. She looked about Mia's age, with blonde hair that hung straight and barely hit her shoulders. "I'm Jessica Stewart, and I'm an Assistant Federal Prosecutor." She turned her body toward the two men, and gestured with her hand. "These are my colleagues, Donald Jackson and Curt Farley. We were hoping to talk to you about the death of Riordan McKenzie, and the information you uncovered regarding Senator William Hutton and the Hutton Foundation."
"How do you know about that?" Mia asked. She had only been back in the U.S. for a day, and this was the first time she had spoken to anyone outside of Ben, Lance, Tink, Mozart and Tex. So, who told this woman about her, and what had they said?
The tall, dark haired man, she thought his name was Farley, spoke up. "The FBI and CIA have been investigating Senator Hutton and his foundation for a few months."
Mia's heart rate sped up which increased her breathing, and that hurt like hell. She winced and wrapped her arm around her chest. The doctor hadn't wrapped them, which she found odd, but had explained it would hamper her ability to take deep breathes. The bones would heal on their own.
"Why would they be investigating the Senator?" Lance asked.
"They received information—anonymously—about a possible money laundering scheme. The man had made an appointment to come in and discuss his concerns, but never made it in."
"That was the day after Mr. McKenzie was found dead," the other man, Jackson, said.
"We believe Mr. McKenzie was going to provide us with the information that you eventually discovered, but was killed before he was able to talk to anyone."
Holy shit…so Riordan had been trying to turn in Hutton, and had been murdered. That could've been Mia's fate if Ben hadn't insisted on escorting her home the night of their first date.
"Why did Mr. McKenzie leave the file with you?" Jackson asked, peering straight into Mia's eyes.
Mia shrugged, and gave a shake of her head. "I've been trying to figure that out since I found the file in my office. I didn't know Riordan at all. I saw him at social functions the firm held, and maybe here or there around the office, but we never spoke more than two words to each other."
"Perhaps you wouldn't mind starting from the top?" Ms. Stewart asked.
"Sure. You better take a seat, this could take a while." Mia glanced at Tink and Lance. "And only if they can stay."
It took the better part of an hour and a half to get through the story and answer all their questions, but Mia had a glimmer of hope that there was a light at the end of this long tunnel, and she would soon be free of anything related to the Hutton Foundation and the Senator.
"So, what happens now?" Tink asked.
"We issue an arrest warrant for Senator Hutton," Jackson said, placing his legal pad in the black leather briefcase at his feet.
"And what does that mean for Mia?" Lance had been sitting on the edge of Mia's bed, holding her hand throughout the entire interview.
The three prosecutors gave each other sideways glances. Farley cleared his throat. "She will need to testify."
The grim looks on the lawyers faces did not fill Mia with confidence. Lance bristled beside her. "And what safeguards will be in place to protect her. She's already been threatened by her boss, had men break into her home and shoot at her, and she has endured a terrorist using her as a punching bag. If you put her name on a witness list, Hutton's backers will try to take care of her before this ever gets to court."
Ms. Stewart stepped forward. "We understand your concerns—and we agree she needs to be guarded. We will be placing her into witness protection until the trial."
"What exactly does that mean?" Mia asked.
"We will provide you with a new identity, and move you into a home in a different city."
Tink stood up and stepped closer to the bed. "And when would she leave?"
"If the doctor clears her for release—tomorrow morning."
Mia's head was spinning, and her pain meds were starting to wear off. New city. New life. Leave behind her job, if she was still employed. Leave DC.
Leave Ben.
They had just started getting to know each other, and had shared so much together in the short time since that first meeting in her office. How would she give him up? She had hoped they would spend the next few weeks recovering together, strengthening the relationship, and maybe even think about the future.
Now she was going to be hidden away with no contact with anyone she knew.
She dropped her head back against her pillow, closed her eyes, and welcomed the depths of slumber.
Mia sat on the edge of the bed staring at the floor. She knew the two federal agents behind her were itching to get going, but she didn't really care. She was the one giving everything up to help secure a conviction against Senator Hutton. She was the one that was going to have to try to explain to Ben why she had to leave.
She was the one that was struggling with the unknown. Would he support her, still want her at the end of the trial? Feel the same way about her?
Lance walked into the room , and squatted in front of Mia. Taking her hands in his, he looked up at her. "He's still not fully conscious. He goes in and out, and is not awake for very long. I'm not even sure he knows what's being said to him."
Mia's heart shredded. This was not the way this was supposed to happen. She wanted to tell Ben what was going on, and that if there was any other way, she would've gladly taken it if meant spending time with him.
"I need to see him," she murmured. "Even if he doesn't know I'm there. I can't leave without saying good-bye."
Lance stood and glared at the men. "She wants to see Ben before she leaves, and that's exactly what she is going to do."
The agent opened his mouth to speak, but Lance cut him off. "The federal prosecutors need her, but trust me, she doesn't need you and your witness protection program to the same extent. She has the protection of my team for life. Now, she's willing to go along with your plan, but only after she sees Ben."
Without waiting for an answer, Lance helped Mia stand and they walked out of the room. The agents followed them to the surgical recovery floor, but waited outside Ben's room. Lance escorted her to Ben's side, kissed the back of her hand and left, closing the door behind him.
Ben was on his back with his leg lifted in a sling. She knew it was important for his injury to be above his heart to prevent blood clots and other issues. A white blanket covered him, but his arm rested on the top of it. She slid her hand underneath his, and bent over to kiss it. He was surprisingly warm, and so still with his eyes closed. The monitor next to him softly beeped a steady rhythm. He looked peaceful, but it still tugged mercilessly at her heart to see him lying there. Unconscious. Unable to talk to her.
"Hey, Ben," she whispered, mostly because it seemed appropriate in the eerily quiet room. "I hate that I have to do this—I really wanted to wait until you were awake and coherent—but I have to go. I couldn't leave without telling you how I feel, though, so I hope you can hear me and will remember this when you wake." She took a deep, painful breath, but this time it had nothing to do with her broken ribs and everything to do with her shattered heart.
"There are no words that could express the gratitude I have for you. I'm not sure I will ever understand why you would get involved in my problems when you barely knew me. You saved me Ben, more than you will ever know. At my house, in Colombia, from Kevin—I wouldn't be alive today if not for you. But there are so many other ways you saved me. You opened my eyes to possibilities I never considered—the belief that someone like you could be interested in me, and want to explore 'where this thing is going'. Someday soon, I hope, I will find you so we can reconnect and see what comes next."