Zero Hour: Brotherhood Protectors World

by Holt, Desiree

  “I can do all the shopping I want when this is over,” she’d told Jesse, who chose not to argue with her.

  Her responsibility was to monitor the bug she’d placed in Morgan’s house. She had her computer balanced on her lap, picking up anything at all that came through, but so far the conversation had been pretty neutral.

  Jesse glanced over at it. “I wish we’d get more out of that thing.”

  She frowned. “You think they might actually suspect?”

  “No.” He shook his head. “I think it’s just been drilled into them to be careful no matter where they are. But they do keep referring now and then, casually, to Zero Hour. I’m guessing that’s the name of this project. If we only knew what the actual Zero Hour time was, it would be a help.”

  “Maybe they’ll talk about it more now that Morgan’s here.”

  “Let’s hope. So far we got nothing but garbage as he walked in and went to a room where we heard him close the door. Probably his office there.”

  “We’ll just keep listening and hoping.”

  For Jesse, it was like one of his SEAL reconnaissance missions, except the company was a lot better. Sitting next to her like this, so close, was doing funny things to him. He kept reliving the previous night with Terry, pulling out every precious moment as if it might be the last.

  And then there had been his fucking freak-out, the nightmare that plagued him and wouldn’t let go. He kept seeing the bomb explode when part of his team was killed. The ambush when they’d gone to extract a high-value target and deliver him for questioning and imprisonment. The attack by the Taliban when they were on a recon mission.

  And more, and more, and more.

  It seemed as if the scenes were never ending, burned into his brain and rolling at will like an old-fashioned movie reel. He’d tried outrunning them on his motorcycle, but that hadn’t worked. Counseling didn’t appeal to him. He couldn’t see spilling his guts to someone who hadn’t been there and experienced the horrors he had. Burying himself in the body of a nameless female seemed to be the only thing that helped, but that was way too temporary.

  His only peace had come during the time he’d been with Terry. The only nightmares he’d had were on the nights they weren’t together. But what if he had them when she was there, like last night. Sure, she hadn’t run screaming or kicked him out of bed, but how long would that last? How long would she put up with it?

  His mind drifted as they sat in the truck, so close he caught the faint scent of the cologne she’d dabbed on this morning.

  He’d woken again, just before dawn, the remnants of the nightmare teasing at his brain. He was afraid if he went to sleep again it would take hold as it had before so he forced himself to lie there, awake.

  Terry had been sprawled next to him, her head on his shoulder, one graceful hand resting on his stomach. He didn’t realize she was awake until she spoke.

  “Dream trying to come back?”

  What should he say? Yes, and have her throw him out of bed? No, and lie about it? Then he’d felt her hand sliding over his abdomen, caressing him.

  “Your muscles have muscles,” she teased, stroking the hard plane of his abdomen, her touch driving him nuts.

  “I’ll show you muscles,” he drawled, placing her hand directly over his dick.

  She squeezed it gently, her thumb creeping up to stroke the smooth skin of the head. He was instantly so hard he was afraid he’d come before they ever got to the good parts. But when he tried to move her hand away, she just squeezed him tighter and bent to string kisses over his chest.

  “My turn to make you feel good.”

  She closed her slim fingers around his hard shaft and began to move her hand up and down in slow strokes. He forced himself to lie there, letting her do her thing, feeling as if he should be making her feel good, too, but enjoying the hell out of this. Her slender hands were both gentle and strong at the same time, squeezing and stroking as his cock swelled and throbbed.

  He threaded his fingers through the silky mass of her hair, thinking about guiding her head down to work with her hand when she rose to her knees and, as if reading his mind, closed her hot, wet mouth over the swollen head.

  “Oh Jesus!”

  No one had ever made him feel the way she did. Hot and cold at the same time, aroused, totally immersed in the moment and the act.

  As she ran her tongue around the head, she continued to caress his shaft with one hand while sliding the other between his legs to cup his balls and squeeze him.

  Shit! Shit! Shit!

  He was so close to coming, he had to work had to back off. He didn’t want this to end. Maybe ever.

  She hummed against his dick, the vibrations reverberating through the flesh, one hand squeezing his balls while the other stroked him up and down. He lost himself in the rhythm, the heat surging through him, the softness of her touch.

  His orgasm exploded with unexpected force. One minute she was working him slowly and evenly, his body building to the big finale, the next it could not seem to wait one more second. It roared up from deep in his body, exploding into her mouth as she sucked and stroked and squeezed. He was unaware of anything except this incredible woman and her ability to lose himself in her and find a peace that eluded him everywhere else.

  It felt as if he came forever, Terry sucking every drop into her mouth and swallowing as she continued the magic with her hands.

  And then he was done. Finished, totally depleted.

  Terry lifted her head, cleaned the head of his cock with her tongue then smiled at him.

  “Think you might be able to sleep now?”

  “Oh yeah.” He wound his fingers through her hair. “I—” He stopped. “You—”

  “It’s okay.” She placed a soft kiss on his lips. “I wanted to do it. I enjoyed it, too.”

  She slid down next to him, pulled the covers over both of them, and rested her hand on his chest.

  “Better get some shuteye. We’ve got a big day tomorrow.”

  And surprisingly, when he closed his eyes, he fell asleep at once.

  “Jesse? Jesse, are you okay?”

  Soft hands were tapping his face, trying to rouse him.

  Fucking shit. Did he fall asleep?”

  He rubbed his eyes.

  “Jesus, Terry. I can’t believe—”

  She touched her fingers to her lips. “It’s okay. You had a sleep-deprived night.” She grinned at him, then her face sobered. “But it’s almost time for Zane to check in again. I figured you’d want to be awake for that. “

  He rubbed his hands over his face, pissed at himself and embarrassed.

  “Sorry. I don’t know what happened. I never, ever fell asleep on the job.”

  “It’s okay,” she assured him. “You know I’m here if anything happens. And I think you really needed this. I’m glad you feel relaxed enough with me that you can do this.”

  “I think you turn my head upside down,” he told her.

  “That’s okay, as long as it makes you feel good.” She wet her lips. “Listen, Jesse, I—”

  He held up his hand to stop her. “Not here. Not now. But when this is over, I want to talk.”

  She hesitated a moment but then agreed. “Okay. But we both get to say our piece, right?”

  “Of course. Just think about this. I can’t walk away from this again. Somehow I want to find a way to make it work. To make you trust me that I’ll stick this time. We have something good here, and I’m scared I’ll fuck it up again.”

  “Not if we work together. But let’s get through this first.”

  “Jesse?” Zane’s voice crackled in the headphone.

  Jesse held it so both he and Terry could hear.

  -“They all just left the house and headed for the gun range. There must be forty men there, plus Morgan and his personal crew. I think he’s taking them for a pep talk.”

  “Too bad we couldn’t bug that building.”

  Zane chuckled. “Yeah,. That would have be
en great. Well, let’s just watch and see.”

  “You have enough coffee?” Terry asked.

  “Oh yeah. Lainie gave me enough to keep me awake until next week.”

  Terry laughed. “She takes good care of you.”

  “That she does. I’m a lucky man.” His voice softened when he spoke of his wife.

  Terry, who had learned their story from Alex, personally thought Lainie was the lucky one. She wondered if Jesse would ever conquer his problems the way Zane had. Well, that was a subject for another day. Meanwhile, they had an urgent situation that required all their concentration.

  Chapter 11

  At five thirty in the morning, Terry was awakened by a text from Max.

  “We have more information. Trouble. This is no longer a solo operation by an agent out there alone.”

  “I told you, I’m not”

  “I mean with agency personnel. I’m on the way and arriving with a team early a.m. Best place to meet up?”

  She texted him back and tried to go back to sleep, but her brain would not shut off. At last Jesse, roused by her tossing and turning, urged her to get up and they’d have coffee.

  “I think we’re done sleeping for the night anyway,” he told her.

  At seven, she texted Alex to let him know Max was flying in from D. C. with a team and their expected time of arrival. Max had told her they’d arranged for their own ground transportation, and she’d told him to come directly to the house where she and Jesse were staying.

  By seven thirty a.m. the three of them plus Zane were gathered around the dining room table. Even as early as it was, they were far from sleepy. In fact, sleep was the last thing on anyone’s agenda.

  “Any more from your boss?” Alex asked.

  “No. I thought they might text when they landed.” She looked at her watch. “Could be any time now according to what he said. Let’s get started, in the meantime. We can talk about the measly info Jesse and Zane collected yesterday.”

  “Okay.” Alex looked around at each of them. “Just to review. The original word we got was that Zero Hour would take place in the next three days. One day has passed, so that leaves today and tomorrow. Anyone have any suggestions how we can narrow this further, since the bug doesn’t seem to be picking anything up?”

  “I don’t—” Terry was cut off by a new voice.

  “Yes. I do.”

  No one had heard the front door open and close, so they were startled to see the tall man in military fatigues striding into the room trailed by six others in similar dress. He glanced at Terry.

  “Nice to see you, Agent Fordice.”

  “Ditto, Max.” She turned to the others. “Let me introduce you to ATFE Special Agent and my boss, Max Yeager.”

  Max shook hands with everyone then turned back to Terry.

  “I have news that none of you are going to like.”

  Her stomach knotted but she didn’t panic.

  “Let’s go into the living room where there’s room for all of us.”

  But despite adequate seating, Max’s team chose to stand, silent, while he gave them what he’d learned.

  “First of all, we’ve wrung everything we can out of the traitor who gave out the codes and the information about security teams scheduling. The fact we identified him is being kept secret so Morgan won’t find out his plan is blown.”

  “And is it?” Jesse asked. “Are you able to stop it?”

  “Yes.” The word was clipped and firm. “One of the things we’re doing is allowing the traitor to remain at work, but we have two armed guards watching him, and one of our top programmers checking everything the guy does on the computer so he doesn’t send any coded messages to Morgan.”

  “Smart,” Alex told him. “And impressive.”

  “Do you know when Zero Hour is supposed to launch?” Zane asked.

  “Yes. tomorrow morning. Eight a.m. is Zero Hour. We believe they picked that for two reasons. One, that is the start of the business day in D. C., when the most people will be in the capital. The missile would destroy not only the entire city but miles of the surrounding area. And the nuclear fallout would extend even beyond that.”

  Ice crept down Terry’s spine at the words, and nausea bubbled up in her throat. This would devastate this country and put it in a totally disorganized and damaged condition.

  “Morgan could just sweep in with his men and take over. That’s the main reason he’s been ordering larger quantities of material for manufacturing. He’s been stockpiling weapons for their takeover of the capitol. And other places.”

  “They’d have to wait for the nuclear fallout to disperse before they moved in,” Max pointed out, “but the country would be in such a shambles it wouldn’t matter.”

  “So what can we do?” Jesse wanted to know. “What’s the plan? What’s their plan for getting to a missile?”

  “As I said, they’re making their move tomorrow morning. At eight o’clock there is a regular guard change for the missiles. Their plan is to wait just before the gate that leads into the compound, waylay the team, and move in themselves. They think they have the codes for the missile that our traitor gave them so they believe they are all set.”

  “Don’t the guards at the gates know who to expect?”

  “The faces change so much because there are so many different people involved, they only ask for credentials and match the faces to the photos on the passes.”

  “And the plan is?” Alex prompted.

  “My team and I will get there far in advance and conceal ourselves in the thick trees across the road. Morgan’s people plan to arrive about seven forty-five, set up a fake accident with bodies in the road, and when the guards stop to check on it they’ll capture them—or kill them if necessary—and take their places. But we’ll be waiting, and we’ve asked Malmstrom to delay the changing of the guard for thirty minutes.”

  “We want to be part of that,” Alex told them.

  “That includes me,” Terry added. “I’ve been involved with this.”

  Max shifted his gaze to her. “Morgan has a price on your head. He’s put the word out. His new money man, Lyle Beckett, discovered your real identity so he thinks he’s in the driver’s seat.”

  “You can keep me out of sight,” she insisted. “I deserve this, Max. Please.”

  In the end it was decided the four of them would join Max and his people and, at seven in the morning, they would all head for the spot Alex indicated on the map.”

  “I got almost nothing from the bug,” Terry told him.

  “My guess is they have some kind of electronic muffler. It was worth a try, but it was a longshot.”

  “Well, damn.”

  They reviewed the plans with the entire team several times before Max was satisfied everyone had it memorized and knew exactly what they were supposed to do. The next step was to hide Max and his people until the morning.

  “Our place,” Alex said. He looked at Max. “My wife’s family owns—”

  “A big spread,” Max interrupted. “I know. When I knew Agent Fordice’s plans I had every one of you checked out top to bottom including your underwear. I have to say, it’s comforting to know that we’ll also have three former SEALs on the team.” He turned back to Alex. “About that place to stay…”

  “No sweat. I just texted my wife. The bunkhouse will hold all of you, and she plans to feed you.”

  “That’s very kind of her. I’d also like to get a look at the setup near the gate to the missile silo. We can do some practice runs near the bunkhouse, if that works for you.”

  “Whatever you need,” Alex assured him.

  “Then I say let’s get moving. Terry, you need to ride in someone’s truck hidden beneath the dashboard. Beckett’s got people everywhere looking for you, and we don’t need to take any chances.”

  She wasn’t about to argue with him. She wasn’t foolish enough to deliberately make herself a target. They left Jesse’s motorcycle at the house and rode with Zane to Alex�
�s place. He followed them there, introduced everyone to Micki, and went over the schedule with her. Terry marveled at the composure of the woman who had been through a horrendous experience as a teenager and then had to deal with her father’s murder and the knowledge he’d been part of the group raping young teenagers like her. It was plain as day she and Alex were very much in love.

  The woman was obviously pregnant, and Zane confided in her that although she worked for the county attorney’s office, she was on a leave of absence until after the baby was born.

  The day passed in a blur. Max and his team, joined by Zane and Jesse, worked on every possible scenario of the takedown. Alex did not include himself because he had the sheriff’s office to run and county business to oversee. He would, however, be involved the next day. The air was filled with the tension of anticipation, and it seemed to take forever until the day ended and supper was served.

  Everyone retired early, in preparation for the big day. Launch time for them was seven o’clock a.m. Terry demanded not to be left behind, despite the bounty on her head, and Max and Jesse got tired arguing with her.

  “You’re the one I’m worried about,” Terry said. She and Jesse were staying at the big ranch tonight so they didn’t have to expose her to watchful eyes.

  “I’m fine. I swear it.” Standing in the bedroom they were sharing, the only light the moon coming in through the window, he cupped her chin and stared hard into her eyes. “Believe me. I would not take part in this tomorrow if I thought I’d have some kind of episode and put others in danger. That’s not who I am.”

  “I worry about you,” she told him.

  He smiled. “It’s nice that you do, but, Terry? Just so you know. I finally realized I was a fool to run away the last time. I see at last you aren’t the type of woman to run away from a situation like that. I’m just a stubborn idiot, but I was also scared. Afraid of what you might think or feel.”

  “We’ll have plenty of time to discuss that when this is over,” she promised. “I don’t want to ruin things either, Jesse. As long as we’re truthful with each other, we can make it through.”