“Wait on my signal,” he ordered everyone on the channel as he took a moment to strategize. But the comms became scratchy and difficult to hear. Ryder tapped his earpiece.
The Specter gunship called back to Ryder. “Tango one to rogue one. Heat signatures show he’s inside. We are ready with payload.” The signal betrayed some sort of interference. Fucking radios.
“Is his family inside?” Ryder asked, knowing the wife and children would be with him.
No response. Just static. Ryder tapped his earpiece again. Fuck.
“Tango one?” Ryder demanded through his mic. The response was an indecipherable crackling. “Shit.”
Ryder nodded, looking up to the tower. Fuck. He felt it—the rebel leader was in there. This was their chance, after years in Mali. The mission had been waiting for this opportunity.
The compound was largely quiet, but Ryder could hear local vehicles in the distance. The enemy was remobilizing. They had to make a move.
“I’m going in,” Ryder said into his mic. “Shanahan, Blackshot, follow me.” Someone he trusted with his life, and someone he was forced to drag along. All teams, cover.”
Ryder motioned to the side with his hands, trying to keep John safely behind him. His comms continued to be scrambled, so he ripped out his earpiece. He was in the dark. In the shadows. No one could hear him. John stood back, gaining a covered position near the crumbled wall. Blackshot appeared from the darkness, farther away on the opposite side of John, and nodded toward Ryder.
It had come down to just the three of them.
as he approached the building, Ryder reminded himself that whatever threat the rebels posed, the SEALs were stronger, better equipped, better in every way.
What the fuck could go wrong?
As he got to the door of the tower, he grabbed what he needed from his kit. He placed a demo charge on the door. As it opened his path, he chucked flash bangs into the first room. Wasting no time, Ryder stormed in, followed by Blackshot and John in sequentially different directions, covering all angles. They searched for threat and the target to no avail.
Ryder’s vision settled on various points of the room, pointing his gun as he moved with confidence. Around the hall, a woman and children huddled in the corner of a living room, crying in fear. He moved on quickly but ordered John to watch over them. The husband, the leader, wasn’t there.
Where the fuck is he?
Ryder kept moving up the stairs, alone. Rifle out, finger on the trigger, he got up the stairs, and then he saw him, sitting in a chair near a desk.
The target. Gun in hand.
Ryder ordered him in Arabic to put down his weapon. The leader did not comply. He just sat there, stone cold.
As Ryder approached, he realized the man was dead. Had the rebel leader had killed himself? No. That can’t be.
Something was very wrong. There was blood everywhere.
Ryder’s instincts screamed at him. He turned on his heel and faced the black doorway. His ears started ringing. He could hear John downstairs, yelling at the family to stay still. Ryder grabbed his earpiece, yelling into his mic, hoping for anything.
It was a goddamn trap.
Get out.
At that moment, an explosion went off. Walls buckled, and smoke poured in. Screams came from the first floor. Ryder ran back down the stairs into the living room. John took a step back, grabbing the family to cover them against the crumbling rock. As he locked eyes with John, another, louder explosion went off, and everything went black.
Olivia.
28
“Hey, are you okay?” Zach approached Olivia as she picked up her morning tea from the canteen.
She hadn’t heard from Ryder since he’d left, and she’d been up all night, grappling with anxiety and chest pain. He’d left her. She’d fucked him over.
“What do you mean?” she snapped as her face went white and she spun around to face Zach.
The cryptologist looked taken aback, unsure how to react to her extreme response. “The mission last night…” he started quietly. The blood drained from his face. Olivia could tell he hadn’t slept. He was shaking.
Holy fuck.
“What happened?” she squeaked. Her stomach fell. She could see it in his face. “Please.”
“They didn’t all come home.” Zach was in shock. “They just…” He stared off in the distance with a vacant expression.
“Who didn’t come back?” she demanded, needing to hear the words.
Zach just shook his head, equally unwilling to accept it: an honorable man whose fate had been sealed for too long.
The painful memory of what she had done rushed back to haunt her. I put a target on his back. It’s my fault.
“I’m so sorry.” He blinked.
She took a step back. It couldn’t be. It couldn’t end like that. “Where is he?” she cried out. “Is he alive?”
“They don’t know.”
Her body vibrated in horror, terror, fear. She had to find him. Where was he?
His voice was empathetic. “He… just vanished. They pulled Blackshot and Shanahan out of the rubble after the blast… and there was no sign of Ryder anywhere.”
Olivia choked, rubbing her hands against her face. Oh god. She needed him back. She needed to know that he was okay. That he was going to come back to her.
“He did this. He fucking killed him,” she blurted out as tears ran down her cheeks. “He fucking knew.”
As Zach searched for words, she backed away and ran to the only place where she could demand answers.
The snake pit.
Her body flew down the path between the buildings, and she felt more determined than she’d ever been. In no time, Olivia whipped open the door for Fuller’s office, marching in like a storm, surprising the murderous lieutenant commander and Senior Chief Blackshot, who was sitting with him.
Blackshot turned around, and she saw dark circles under his eyes, which seemed to be the result of both sleep deprivation and facial bruising. The redness in them was unmistakable. She doubted he had slept yet. He looked like he’d been ridden all night and put away wet.
“Olivia,” Fuller snapped at her with threatening, bared teeth. “What the hell are—”
“What did you do to him?” she accused immediately. “Bring him back!”
Fuller’s face grew livid, uncontrolled. He glowered at Blackshot. Blackshot rubbed his chin with spastic movements, shakier than she’d ever seen him. His limbs shuddered and trembled as he attempted to stand still. The man didn’t look right.
“You think you can come in here and yell at me?” The vicious man raised his voice, turning back to her. “You’d better check yourself.”
“Fuck you,” she fought back. “You fucking did this to him!”
The twitch in Fuller’s mouth told her everything. She was right. He’d fucking sent Ryder to his death because Ryder had exposed him. Because Ryder had tried to do what was right. Because Ryder had talked to her.
And because Olivia had fucked him over.
“You seem very invested in Luciano. A little too invested.” Fuller’s tone remained uncompromising and unapologetic. “Is there such thing as professionalism anymore? A prostitute would be more professional than you.”
The words drove a deep seam of hatred inside the darkest parts of her soul. Something in Olivia’s brain snapped, and the angriest part of her needed to throw all of her cards on the table to scare Fuller into submission.
“Let me guess: the only man missing is the one accusing you and your little friend here of war crimes.” Her tone was raging and threatening. “Yes, I know what you’ve done—and I won’t be the only one.”
She looked at the surprise blooming on the faces of the pair as her warning percolated. Visibly distraught and disturbed, Blackshot watched her with a haunted look, perhaps the only one of the two who appeared troubled by what he had done.
“She’s insane,” Blackshot growled, frowning. “War crimes? Do you even know what th
at means? Fucking foolish.”
“So now we get to see what your so-called report is really about? Interesting.” Fuller laughed in a poisonous tone. “Tell me, did Ryder tell you all about it before or after you bent over for him?”
Blackshot shifted awkwardly, and his body had a shake that he couldn’t control. Olivia sensed his energy. He was hyped up and clearly fucked up. Very upset. Something terrible had happened. She just knew it.
“Well, she’s a low-class whore,” Fuller hissed to Blackshot, though his eyes never left Olivia’s. “What do you expect?” He seemed damn pleased with his put-down.
But all it did was light a fire in her. Olivia nearly whipped a chair at him. The only thing that mattered was Ryder. So she stepped forward and looked down her nose at the big bad wolf. “Fuck you,” she said through gritted teeth. “I’m going to destroy you.”
“You would like that, wouldn’t you?” Fuller laughed, and he faked a yawn.
Olivia’s blood felt like raging lava. She was seconds from ripping both their faces off. Blackshot looked back and forth between her and Fuller, seeming confused and on the verge of vomiting.
“Did you kill him?” she questioned Fuller, pointing a finger at him. “For what he knew?”
“Why would I kill anyone when I can watch them self-destruct?” Fuller snarled at her.
Self-destruct. Olivia gasped for air. He’d been banking on Ryder destroying himself all along. Was that why he’d demanded that Ryder spend a lot of time with Olivia and keep a close eye on her? How deep did this conspiracy run?
“You were witness to their violations of the code of conduct.” He dismissed her and nodded at Blackshot. “I’ll recommend the charges now.”
Blackshot looked up at her, and she saw his expression change. He returned to the moment, angry. Viciously angry. Olivia’s body shook with rage, but she did not refute it. She knew that Blackshot had caught them in the act. And that meant Fuller knew.
“You shouldn’t have done that.” Blackshot’s voice seethed with hatred as he spoke to Olivia. “You ruined him. His reputation. His years of service.”
Olivia opened her mouth, unable to process. His words spoke to her wildest fears. She took a step back, and then another, as Blackshot watched her with hatred. He was ready to fucking kill her. He looked unhinged. Murderous.
High.
Fuller was feeding Blackshot drugs to control him, to blackmail him. Is that what he had done to Ryder—but instead of using drugs, he’d used her?
“You will leave when I say you can leave,” Fuller informed her, seeming pleased with how things had turned out. “When I’ve seen a copy of your fucking report.”
The final words cut to the chase. That’s what he’d wanted all along. Control. Power. And she’d allowed Ryder to feed right into his scheme.
Tears threatened to explode from her eyes, but she had little choice, backing out of the room quickly and spinning to run. But where to? She had wanted to leave. She had wanted to go home. Now, with Ryder gone, or dead, she couldn’t—not without knowing what had happened to him.
Olivia refused to let her tears come and opted for sheer anger instead. She leaped forward to the main doors and slammed them open, marching outside.
Fortunately or unfortunately, Bruce was waiting outside, watching her closely.
“Let’s go,” Blackshot ordered her from behind, following her closely. “You’ll be under supervision from now on.”
“What’s going on?” Bruce stepped forward in shock.
“Mind your own fucking business.” Blackshot paused, holding tightly onto Olivia’s arm, moving her forward. “I have to deal with her.”
Bruce held up his hands, halting the senior chief. “I get it, but you’ve been up all night.” The civilian trainer calmed him. “I’ll triage her and escort her to her bunk.”
Blackshot seemed to consider his words as he rubbed his nose. She wondered how much coke he’d done to stay up that long. He was clearly tweaking. In his moment of pause, Olivia wriggled from his clutches and jumped toward Bruce.
“Let’s go.” Bruce caught her arm and scowled at her. He tugged on her arm, and they began walking quickly before Blackshot could change his mind. Olivia didn’t want to tempt fate. She should have heeded all of Ryder’s advice. She was completely alone without him. She wished he were there to protect her. To help her.
As they approached her bunk, she stopped and turned, and Bruce released her.
“What’s your game?” She pointed at him, gritting her teeth. “Whose side are you on?”
“Ryder’s,” Bruce explained solemnly. “And you can’t stay here any longer.”
As he said the words, Olivia knew she had to make a decision. She didn’t want to leave anymore. Not with Ryder missing. She knew once she left the base, she would be cut off from any sources of information, and she’d never learn what had happened to him.
But by leaving, she would deny Fuller control of the report, and she would stay true to Ryder’s deepest wish: to protect his troops and make Fuller pay for what he’s done.
“I’ll take you to the airport,” Bruce offered.
Olivia let out a deep breath. “Fine, but… my things,” she said. “I have to pack.”
“What do you have that’s irreplaceable? Just grab that. I’ll send the rest back in a package. We need to get you out—now.”
Fear crept up her throat. She knew exactly what was at stake. Ryder’s words came back to her quickly. There was a target on her back, too.
She nodded at her trainer and ran inside.
There was no sign of Daphne, no sign of anyone. Everyone was working in the offices, trying to get the master chief back, dead or alive.
It took her no more than a few minutes to gather everything important into her arms and run out of the bunk for the last time. Within moments, Bruce had her safely stowed in a truck near the guard gate. As they pulled out of the main gate, off the quiet compound, Blackshot appeared behind them in the entranceway.
He had the look of a menacing murderer, and his hand hovered over his pistol. But, to her amazement, he let her go.
And that was the most curious thing of all.
Once the truck was well on its way to the airport and their heart rates had stabilized, Bruce opened up the conversation. “Olivia, I’m sorry about everything you’ve been through here.” As he looked over, she could tell by his expression that he was regretful.
She remained silent, unable to process any more. Everything was happening so fast.
“Fuller wanted me to keep my eye on you at first—just like he wanted Ryder to. That was fine with me.” His face was warm and affectionate. “And then Ryder met you.”
She looked at him sharply. “What do you mean?”
“I trust Ryder’s judgment. I knew by the way he looked at you and talked about you that you were going to be a game changer. He trusted you.”
“Fuck.” Olivia shook her head.
“But I fucked up,” Bruce said, looking over at her with deep regret. “I told Blackshot where he could find you alone and have that conversation. I’m sorry for what I caused.”
Exhaling through the pain, she gazed over at Bruce. She had to ask the question that had been burning inside her all day. She just had to know.
“Did Fuller send Ryder to his death… for talking to me?”
“It’s… possible. But no one really understands Fuller’s schemes.”
“Jesus.” Olivia felt like a knife was gouging out her heart.
“If anyone could survive, it’s Ryder,” Bruce tried to reassure her. “He’s a hard-ass fucker, and one of the best SEALs I know.”
Her throat tightened at the prospect of Ryder dying. Or already being dead.
Bruce hit the gas, speeding heavily down the main road toward the Bamako airport. It was a long drive, but an experienced driver could make it happen much faster.
It helped that the southern route had been cleared of rebel roadblocks.
O
livia looked over at him, at his glass eye, and remembered the story.
He noticed. “I’m not the only dude he’s saved. Every single guy in that compound has fallen under his protection in one way or another.”
Olivia nodded. It was hard to hear about Ryder, but she was desperate for more.
“If it weren’t for him, they’d all be dealing with much more serious shit. He took bullets for them and spared them from Fuller’s goddamn dirty antics.” Bruce shook his head disapprovingly. “He spared them Fuller’s perpetual blackmail.”
Olivia knew exactly what he meant because Ryder had talked about it himself. It was what had motivated him.
Was Ryder a criminal? The courts could decide. But if it were up to Olivia, she would say no.
The memory of his lips pressing against hers flashed before her eyes, but the vision of him dying alone out in the desert still haunted her.
“What exactly are these dirty antics?” she asked.
Bruce exhaled long and slow, trying to find words. “There are some guys, a very select few, who have a drug habit… and Fuller fuels that.” He spoke slowly and carefully. “Because it makes us beholden to him.”
Bruce observed Olivia as he finished his statement. She nodded with understanding. “Blackshot,” she said. “And you.”
Bruce nodded. “And, thanks to Ryder, no one else. He protects the junior SEALs from Fuller.”
What an insane burden for one man to carry. And all Ryder had asked for was someone to help him. He’d trusted Olivia. She was supposed to help him. He’d believed in her. Even when she didn’t believe in herself.
She stewed in silence. In pain. Ryder was right all along. She needed to live up to what he saw in her. Be the Olivia he believed in.
“Ryder is a great guy. He’s not a liar. Trust him.” Bruce clutched the wheel and watched the horizon for the international airport.
Olivia knew all that before Bruce even said it. She knew it because she loved Ryder. It was just that she wished she would have been clearer. She wished she hadn’t faltered. She wished she hadn’t gone behind his back.
Desert Exposure Page 18
