“That’s because,” Kell rasped, pulling her around so that she could rest in his embrace, kissing her mouth tenderly, “we share something good. Something special.”
Her whole body went hot. His kiss enflamed her, tightening her breasts, and she could feel that gnawing sensation between her legs. “It’s not going to be easy.”
“Nothing worth having ever is, Sugar. We’ll figure it out as we go.”
“You are always so damned confident.”
“I don’t like the alternative.” He chuckled, feeling her laugh with him.
“I don’t know how long I’ll be at Bravo. It’s a temporary assignment.”
“And then where do you go?”
“Back to Hunter, Georgia. I was taking advanced flight training. I’ll pick it up where I left off. When do you go home?”
“We return to Coronado in November. Just in time for Thanksgiving.”
“Maybe we could spend it together?”
“Even better,” Kell said, smiling down at her, “I was planning on going home for turkey day. Why don’t we try to plan to get you there with us? I’d like you to meet my family. My two brothers, Ty and Cody, will be home on leave, too, so it’s sort of a special holiday this year for all of my family.”
“I’d like that. I’m sure I can request leave for a week and be with you.”
“Then it’s settled,” Kell murmured, holding Leah close. But so damn much could happen between June and November. Kell had deployed too many times, knew the drill, knew that life was never even or a constant. Not in their line of work.
He worried about the phone call to her father. Was he going to bring up the fact that Grant was laying blame on Leah for the crash?
*
THE SUN WAS barely edging the peaks, the wind cold as Leah sat with Kell outside the tunnel. He’d patched David Mackenzie through to her and had handed her the sat phone.
“Leah?”
“Hi, Father.” She crouched down, her back to the wall of the cliff outside the tunnel opening. Knowing all sat phone conversations were taped, she wanted to keep this call short.
“Are you all right?”
“Yes, sir, I am. Chief Ballard is a good combat medic. I’m up on my feet and I’m almost a hundred percent.” Leah heard real concern in her father’s voice. That was a change. Or maybe she wanted to hear care in his voice, like how Kell cared for her.
She looked over to see Kell standing guard, his gloved hands on the M-4 across the front of his body, looking around, remaining alert.
“Can’t you get out of there?”
“No, sir. We have two hundred Taliban camping two caves over from where we’re at.” She heard the frustration in his tone.
“Major Grant needs you back at Camp Bravo.”
Her stomach clenched. Her voice went low. “This is a SEAL op. I have no say in when I get picked up, sir.”
“All right. I just wanted to make sure you were all right and you are.”
“Yes, sir. I’m fine.”
“Roger. Out.”
Snorting softly, Leah pressed the button to end the call. She felt rather than heard Kell approach. Slowly getting up, Leah handed him the phone. “It’s Hayden bugging my father,” she growled. And she told him about the short call. Kell’s face turned stony. That powerful sensation of protection wrapped around her.
“Don’t worry about it” was all he said. “Go back in. I have to call Ax and give him my report.”
Nodding, Leah turned and walked into the tunnel.
Kell released an uneven breath, his stomach like a nest of angry, disturbed snakes. He needed to tell Ax he’d found the flight recorder. That valuable piece of evidence would clear Leah’s good name and reputation once and for all. He wanted to talk to Clutch, but knew he’d have to wait until he got back to Bravo.
Right now, Kell felt the like the Sword of Damocles was hanging over the two of them. He felt trouble brewing for Leah. Knew Grant was responsible for it. Knew he’d come after her. And then, all hell was going to break loose because Kell wasn’t going to let that sick asshole get anywhere near her ever again.
CHAPTER TEN
MAJOR HAYDEN GRANT was pissed as he stalked into his office at Ops at Bagram. His young assistant, an Army private first class, blonde and stupid, had interrupted his meeting with his pilots, saying the call was urgent. The only thing that bitch was good for was sex when he needed it. At least she didn’t fight him. Slamming the door to his office, he picked up the sat phone.
“Major Grant here.”
“Master Chief Axton, Major. I have some news about your helo crash. Our operator took a grave risk and went back down to the crash site the other night. He’s retrieved the following items, the black box, two sets of dog tags and five bone fragments.”
Hayden’s blue eyes narrowed, his hand tightening around the phone. “He found the flight recorder?” Shit!
“Yes, sir, he did. Once our operator returns to Bravo, I’ll have it sent directly to your office.”
Cursing mentally, Hayden said, “Good work, Master Chief.”
“Sir? About the body remains. Aside from those few bones, my operator said nothing was left. He spent hours in the dark searching for the remains of your crewmen. The dog tags are somewhat melted and partially destroyed. Commander Lanoux felt the families of these men would appreciate anything that could bring them some closure.”
Shrugging, Grant said, “Yes, of course.” He could care less about that end of the crash. Right now, he had Leah in his gunsights, and this was his chance to destroy her career. He’d essentially already made light colonel, so he didn’t care what her father said or did. This was payback with that bitch. “When can I get that flight recorder?”
“When my operator can get into a safe enough area to be picked up, Major.”
“But, dammit, this is important!”
“So is my man’s life, sir. And he’s the one that is protecting Chief Mackenzie, so our commander is taking a conservative route, because this is an unusual situation.”
He wanted to curse the master chief, who sounded like he was dealing with a petulant child. The bastard. “Well, you keep me informed on the progress with this black box.”
“I will, sir. Out.”
Clicking off the sat phone, Hayden sat down at his desk, thinking. He’d already gotten the evidence on the helicopter communications for that night, and destroyed it. Sweet-talking an Army sergeant, a redhead who had eyes for him and probably thought she was going to marry him, had done the deed.
Rubbing his chin, Hayden smiled a little. Without that tape to prove that Brian Larsen had the controls when they went in to pick up those two SEAL operators, he could then blame Leah for it. If there was no record of the comms, it became a he said, she said. And because he was the head of the squadron, his word carried a helluva lot more weight than Leah’s ever would.
Smiling, he moved his hand across the desk, anticipating the coming confrontation with his ex-wife. He’d promised himself over the years that if he ever got a chance to sink her career, he’d do it. Well, it was here, and he sure as hell wasn’t going to pass up this golden opportunity.
Standing, Hayden knew he had to get back to the meeting. Once that black box arrived, he’d make sure the evidence in it was destroyed, if it hadn’t been destroyed already by the heat of the crash. Hayden wouldn’t know until after it arrived, but he’d get his redheaded bitch to find out. And if there was anything in it, she would make sure it wasn’t available to anyone. That way, he had Leah where he wanted her.
Moving out of his office, he glared down at the blonde. “No more interruptions,” he snarled at her as he passed her desk.
“Yes, sir.”
Hayden hadn’t counted on the black box being found, much less successfully retrieved. He was already hating the thoroughness of the SEALs. Too bad that operator hadn’t been killed, and Leah along with him, during his rescue attempt. That would tidy up everything. With any luck both of them would
be killed out in the badlands, and Leah would be off the face of this planet.
Hayden was worried she’d someday turn him in for what he’d done to her. He’d never felt easy about it, and was always looking for an opportunity to take her out of the Army. If she ever testified against him, he’d be court-martialed…or he would have been, if there’d been enough evidence. Smugly, he knew there wasn’t, but he didn’t want Leah to ever file a report on how many times he’d hit her and broken her bones. That would stop his career in its tracks. He dreamed of becoming a general, and only she stood in the way of it happening.
As he swung down the hall toward a room at the end where his pilots were waiting for him, Hayden thought about his mentor, Leah’s father, David Mackenzie. He was getting ready to retire and Hayden had his eye on that prize. Now that he knew he was officially going to become a light colonel next month, at a special ceremony that Mackenzie would be presenting for him here at Bagram, Hayden smiled. He knew his mentor doted on him, had once said he was the son he’d wished he’d had. Well, the son was now going to take the mentor’s throne. He was in perfect alignment for the career plum and knew Mackenzie would be suggesting that he become the next commander of the Shadow Squadron.
Rubbing his hands, Hayden put on his game face as he swung into the room. No one would know how damned happy he was. Tonight, he’d take the redhead to his favorite place and screw her royally. She liked rough sex and he liked making it painful for her. He’d celebrate his good fortune.
*
TOM AXTON LISTENED intently on the sat phone to the report by Ballard. Things were heating up near his hide. The Taliban were back in those caves, and more riders were joining Khogani. Writing down the intel, he said, “Let me talk to the LT and the commander. We have Khogani and we want him taken out.”
“Roger.”
“What are the chances you can move Chief Mackenzie and yourself out of that immediate area?”
“We may be forced to move if Khogani keeps returning to these caves. It appears he’s using them as a central meeting place. For what, I don’t know.”
“Do you have another place in mind?”
“Yes. But it means a five-mile hike down the mountain to reach it.”
“Is Chief Mackenzie up to it?”
“I think so. She’s no longer dizzy and her headaches are receding.”
Ax grimaced. It would be one thing if it was only Ballard. He was a mountain goat and knew the Hindu Kush intimately. Plus, he was in top shape; five miles was no challenge for him at all. But the pilot? It was a prickly situation because she was an Army warrant officer, and the commander had no wish to get entangled in a showdown between Army politics and the Navy SEAL way of doing things. Yet, Ballard was courting real danger, with Khogani seemingly setting up shop right next door to the cave where he was hiding the chief. “Are you sure she’s up for this?”
“I think she can handle it.”
“Okay, start making plans to move, because if Khogani keeps adding men to his army, they’re going to run out of room in those two caves and yours is right next door.”
“I’m way ahead of you on that.”
“Good. If you have to move, call me immediately. I want your GPS.”
“Will do, Master Chief. Out.”
Ax scowled. He’d just set the sat phone aside when Commander Lanoux poked his head into his office.
“How’s Ballard doing?”
Ax leaned back in his chair. “Sitting on a bad situation.” He caught his boss up to speed. Lanoux sat scowling at his desk.
“That woman pilot is our Achilles’ heel,” Lanoux muttered.
“Ballard thinks she’s good to go.”
“Yeah? When was the last time she played goat on a mountain in total darkness for five miles?”
Ax picked up his mug of coffee and took a sip. “Ballard’s a good judge of character, so I think if they have to move, he’ll get it done.”
“I just got another call from that asshole, Major Grant,” Lanoux griped. “What the hell is his problem?”
“He’s one of those brownnosers who can’t keep his nose out of our shit,” Ax growled, unhappy.
“He’s the kind I like to put on a hook and troll down a bayou with, dragging along in the water, inviting gators to lunch.”
Axton didn’t disagree. “Funny thing, maybe odd,” he told Lanoux, “but I spoke to Grant earlier. Ballard retrieved the flight recorder for that MH-47, two sets of dog tags and five bone fragments of the crew. You’d think that as a squadron CO, he’d have been a little emotional and a helluva lot grateful that Ballard found dog tags remains of his men. Those things are important to the families of those lost men. DNA will sort out the bones and who they belong to. At least the families can have some sense of closure. But this asshole was far more excited about the black box shit than anything else. Doesn’t make sense to me.”
“Takes all kinds,” Lanoux deadpanned, shaking his head. “Ballard shouldn’t have taken the risk. He was out in the open for hours that night. He was a sitting duck if Taliban were around.”
“He wanted to do it. He’s a SEAL. He understands what it means to give these families closure.”
“I know. It was damned risky with all the Taliban crawling around that area right now.”
“Ballard understands what it means to have found those remains.”
“Yeah, Kell’s like that. He’s a damned good man.” Lanoux stood up. “Any chance of getting them picked up today? Tomorrow?”
“No.”
“I want that Army major off my ass,” Lanoux growled, leaving the office. “Or I’m gonna drop kick his ass into a Lousiana swamp.”
Ax snorted. So did he, but he couldn’t push the Taliban out of that area to get a Shadow helo in there to pick them up.
Lieutenant Nate Drager, Dragon, knocked on Ax’s door and popped in.
“Hey, Master Chief, what the hell is going on with this Major Grant? I just got a call from a Colonel Mackenzie, head of the Army 80th Shadow Group.”
“Sit down,” Ax motioned. Draeger was the OIC for Ballard’s platoon. He caught him up with the latest intel from Ballard. “That’s his daughter out there. That’s why you got the call.”
Drager rolled his eyes. “Like we don’t have enough to do without babysitting these candy-assed Army types?”
“They don’t know how good Kell is. He’ll keep Chief Mackenzie safe out there, or die trying.” Not that Ax wanted any of his SEALs dead. That wasn’t the point. But he saw the first lieutenant become grim.
“I was just on the phone with Bagram SEAL HQ. Their intelligence section has two drones up in that area. If anything, it’s a hotbed of Taliban activity right now. There’s just no way we can risk a helo and crew to drop in there and try to safely exfil them.”
“It’s a very dynamic, fluid situation right now,” Ax agreed. “And it’s gonna stay that way for probably the next week. I was thinking that maybe we could get some Apaches in there to wreak havoc on Khogani’s gathering army. It would mean Kell and that woman pilot would have to leave the area because all hell would break loose after that.”
“It’s a thought,” Draeger agreed. “Knowing Kell, he’s got Plan B, C and D already lined up, too.” He grinned a little. “He’s not a sniper for nothing.”
“Yeah, I talked to him about that already. He’s prepared to move if we tell him to. Or if Khogani’s growing army decides to take up immediate residence near his hide area.”
“It’s too damn close for comfort,” Draeger agreed.
“Kell knows those cave systems. If he tells me they’re safe, I believe him.”
Draeger ran his hand through his long, dark blond hair, not looking like an officer at all. The thick beard covering his face made him look like an operator out in the badlands. “I’ll sleep better if I know they’re out of that immediate area. It’s too damned dicey for all of us.”
“Yeah.” Ax sighed, leaning back in his protesting chair. “But Kell’s a poker playe
r. He knows the odds. He’ll move if he thinks it’s getting too dangerous. He knows his top priority is to get that warrant officer back to Bravo alive and in one piece. Then, he can go back to hunting our HVT down.”
Snorting, Draeger muttered, “Ballard cleaned me out a month ago in that Texas hold ’em game in the big room. I lost forty bucks. That guy has a set of steel balls and a poker face to match it.”
Chuckling and watching Draeger rise, Ax said dryly, “That’s why I don’t play with him. He’s got poker luck.”
“Yeah, well, he’d better have that luck holding right now,” Draeger grumped. “The Intel people at Bagram are worried. There’s more enemy flowing across the border. Forty to fifty men per group. That’s never a good sign for any of us.”
“No,” Ax agreed. “But it’s the spring offensive. The Taliban does this every year.” They had three other SEAL teams out there, placed at important gate points where the inflow tended to go, with eyes and rifles on the situation.
By far, the most important target was Khogani and his growing army. This was a new development and Ax knew every black ops group was watching the Hill chieftain with a wary eye.
“Later,” Drager said, leaving the office.
Ax heard a couple of his SEALs out in the big room. Clutch’s laugh was deep and booming. The men were out there cleaning their weapons. Another of his SEALs was working up a DA, direct action, mission for him at the desk in the same room.
The kidding and teasing going on between his men made him smile a little. He had a good platoon of SEALs. They’d been together for three years and were tight as hell. As he rummaged around for some paperwork on his messy desk, his biggest worry was Kell Ballard. He was in a hell of a spot. And with Khogani around, his concern grew. The red-haired Hill leader hated Americans with a passion. He would kill any and all of them. It didn’t matter if the American was from an NGO or charity, either. Everyone was fair game to him and a target.
Worse, and Ax tried not to dwell on it, but if Chief Mackenzie was ever caught, all hell would break loose. Yeah, women were in combat, no argument there. What worried him was someone like Khogani, who was wily and very plugged into the internet, knew its use and power, would parade the woman pilot around for the world to see in carefully placed videos. And then Americans would throw their hands up in shock and demand she be rescued.
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