Tank (SEAL Team Alpha Book 4)

by Zoe Dawson

  The tarmac was crowded, and it parted as he made his way toward his truck. Again, he hadn’t been able to get Alyssa off his mind. He’d second-guessed himself so many times, he was giving himself a headache and a complex. Maybe he should have told her how he felt. Maybe in this instance being an obstinate jerk and telling her he didn’t want her to leave was what she needed to hear.

  But it was too late. She’d made her decision and sealed it up by now, was all ready to pack up and move—

  His thoughts abruptly cut off when he saw her. Dressed to perfection in a pretty dress and coat, her hair blowing in the wind, her face enhanced by the subtle application of makeup, she was stunning, but she was always stunning being her plain Jane self. His heart stalled. He dropped his pack and surged forward. Reaching her, he grabbed her and swung her around and she laughed with glee.

  Setting her on her feet, he cupped her face. “I don’t want you to leave. It killed me to let you go. I want you in my life. Forever, Alyssa. Tell me it’s not too late.”

  She wrapped her arms around his neck.

  “Damn, Alyssa…I hoped you’d change your mind—” He got choked up, his voice strangled. “I was afraid.”

  She stared at him, then she closed her eyes, and said, holding on to him with desperate strength, “Shut the hell up and kiss me.” Closing his own eyes, Tank roughly turned his face against her neck, locking his arms around her. Inhaling raggedly, he tightened his hold on her, an agony of relief rushing through him. She gave a soft sob and he picked her up in his arms.

  “Hey, Hunt, you dropped your pack,” Hollywood said with amusement in his voice.

  “Take care of that, would you? I’m busy.”

  “You got it, bro.”

  Tank walked off the tarmac to his vehicle. He took her back to his house and straight up to his bedroom. He pulled her onto the bed with him and faced her, fully clothed. He was hard as a rock for her, but he wasn’t done talking. “I want to explain.”

  “You don’t have to, Thorn.” She reached for his buttons, but he covered her hands.

  “I want to, babe.”

  She pressed her forehead to his. “Talk fast, then. I have to take my turn, too.”

  “I had to work hard to keep everything together growing up. To survive. There were so many things that could kill us, least of all my father. He killed my little sister and he walked away from it. I’ve been protecting the people in my life instead of supporting them. Jordan’s illness opened my eyes to how separate I was from them. Dan, too. He does a dangerous job and I am so proud of both of them. We made it together. Fuck everything else.” She moved, and he clenched his teeth against the powerful surge of sensation. “But I got here because of you, Alyssa.”

  He met her eyes, his face contorting with raw emotion as she came fully into his arms, fusing herself flush against him. His face pressed against her neck, he hung on to her, grateful—God, so grateful—for her. “No one else could get me there.”

  Making a choked sound, she tightened her arms around him and turned her face into the curve of his neck, her voice watery. “All I want is to be with you, Thorn. I came here to tell you that I turned down the position and I’m resigning my commission and leaving the Army completely.”

  He held her with all the love and strength he could muster. Finally she drew a hard breath.

  “I’m doing this for us,” she whispered brokenly. “I want to be there for you when you come home, handle things so you don’t have to worry about anything and can focus on saving the world. She cupped his face, caressing his face, her heart in her eyes. “Because there is no doubt in my heart that I love you more than life itself.” He hugged her hard, holding her so tightly, so grateful. “That’s the way I can continue to serve my country. I’m doing it for me, too. I thought I had to somehow fill my brother’s shoes. Do what he would have done, to make his death mean something.”

  “You are enough exactly as you are, babe. It doesn’t matter what your dad thinks.”

  “I know that now.” She smiled and it was the most beautiful thing to him. “All my life my father’s been dictating to me who I should be. I couldn’t be the son he lost because I am the daughter he has left. He is the one who has to reconcile that, not me. I’ve done the work and I don’t need commissions and a uniform to seek my own path. All I need is you, our charity and my clinic. I love you, Thorn Hunt, so goddamned much that the thought of not being with you brings me physical pain. You’re my one and only, my warrior, my man, and I pledge to support you and protect you forever.”

  His chest was so full of her and he’d never been this happy in his life. “Then move in with me, Alyssa. I love you more than I could ever express. I need you in my life.” He didn’t know how he would have gotten through the loss of Echo if it hadn’t been for Alyssa and her pushy, know-it-all attitude. He’d needed a swift kick and she’d given him one.

  She gave a soft, shaky laugh, caressing his face.

  Shifting her so that she was on her back, he braced his weight on his elbows on either side of her head, holding her face between his hands. He stroked her cheek with his thumb. “Is that a yes?”

  “Um…yes, that’s a yes...” She swallowed hard and smoothed her hands up his back, her eyes filling with tears. “…on one condition.”

  “Name it,” he said, brushing his mouth over hers. He wasn’t sure how much longer he could keep his hands off her.

  “You and Bronte be my spokesperson and spokesdog.”

  He threw his head back and laughed.

  “Spokesdog? I can one hundred percent say I’m your man, but I’ll have to ask Bronte about that.”

  As he dropped his mouth to hers, he was always aware that they were missing a team member. We’re coming for you, Blue. Don’t give up.

  Tank had surrendered to Alyssa and let control go. Blue knew what he was talking about. Be the fish was his cryptic message, and Tank finally got it. A fish swims in a sea he cannot control, but has no illusion of control. He just swims with the flow, dealing with it as it comes. He would do exactly that. He’d immerse himself in the experience, live each moment and try not to control the outcome, but deal with the flow as it came.

  Blue stared at the space between his feet, watching water drip off his hands and puddle between his bare feet. The soles of his feet were raw from being forced to walk the length of the cell for half the day. They were either dunking his head under water or prodding him through the cell bars with a baseball bat to walk and keep moving. His body hurt from all the jabs, and once he’d grabbed the wood and yanked hard, smacking his tormentor’s face against the bars. The guy now had a broken nose.

  That got him no food or water, and he was running out of stamina to fight back. Which is what they wanted. He hadn’t slept in at least forty hours. Or was it thirty? Time meant nothing except a string of minutes stretched with pain. His clothing was soaked, but nothing mattered right now.

  The anguish at seeing Elena gunned down was balled up and shoved into a place he refused to open. He called it his guilt box.

  He barely found the strength to keep his head upright. It thumped against the wall.

  His brain was fuzzy, time and day lost in his disorientation, and his stomach rolled loosely. No light came into this dark place. The light that had beautiful blonde hair had been snuffed out.

  He tried to use his sleeve to wipe off the dirt on his hands. In the dark it looked like blood, and even in the back of his mind where sanity still existed, he knew he was in a state of delirium.

  They’d taken everything.

  The tall doors opened and some light penetrated the darkness. Men came in and dragged him out of the cell. They sat him in a chair, tied his hands, and his head lolled. Fear ripped down his spine. There was a syringe and the needle pricked his arm.

  He barely registered it.

  “Tell me your government’s plans.”

  He laughed softly. He had no memories for them to access.

  He blacked out, and whe
n he woke up, he was being dragged between two men. He was in a different location and he shivered with the cold. They hauled him through ornate doors that closed behind him with a great, terrible boom.

  Many people thought hell was hot.

  But they were wrong.

  It was cold. Very, very cold.

  Epilogue

  Tank paced in Jordan’s hospital room, waiting for them to take him into the operating room for exploratory surgery. Alyssa grabbed his hand and forced him to sit.

  “That’s not going to make them move any faster.”

  Tank scowled at her.

  “That’s not going to help either.”

  Jordan crunched on ice and played his handheld video game. He looked up. “She’s right,” he said.

  As if on cue, the doctor walked into the room, and she looked grimmer than she’d ever had. Tank’s gut churned. What now?

  “Mr. Hunt. You don’t have cancer.”

  There was complete silence in the room. Tank’s anxiety deflated like a balloon. “What did you just say?”

  “It seems that when you went in for your stomach distress, and had your blood test, there was an unfortunate incident. Your records were mixed up with someone else’s. You don’t need any more tests or any kind of treatment…well, except for an antacid.”

  “What?” Jordan said again.

  “Antacid. You had heartburn the day you came into the ER. Bad heartburn, but not terminal.”

  “It was a mix up. I don’t have cancer?”

  “No, you’re very healthy.”

  “Thank you. Can I go home now?”

  “Yes, you’ll be discharged and there won’t be any charges for today. I’m sorry about all the tests,” she said. “I can’t waive those, but I can waive my fees. Take care, Mr. Hunt, and I apologize once again for the mix-up.”

  Tank got up and leaned across the bed and hugged his brother hard.

  It was a typical Southern California day: sunny, mild, perfect for a charity softball game.

  “Batter up,” Alyssa shouted. Two teams. Nine players each. Ruckus was one team captain and Wicked was the other. The stands were full of patrons who had paid to see them play. All the proceeds would go to her MWDF charity.

  Alyssa was up to bat first with Ruckus pitching. He had a mean fastball, but she’d grown up with all kinds of sports under her belt. She wasn’t intimidated. Dana, his wife, was at first base, Dan on second, with Cowboy holding tight at third. Dragon was right field, Hollywood left field with plenty of ribbing, and Scarecrow center. Tank was catching, and Paige was at shortstop.

  Alyssa’s team was up by one run.

  Ruckus put one over the plate. Becca made chicken noises and called it foul.

  Ruckus shook his head. “Ump, you need glasses.”

  “Don’t make me throw you out of the game, mister,” she said, looking cute in her mask.

  “You tell him, honey,” Dan called from second.

  “Whose side you on?” Ruckus groused.

  “I don’t have to go home with you.” Dan grinned.

  There had been plenty of trash talking and shenanigans, like Tank lifting people off base so they could be tagged. The second inning was not exactly pro ball. The opposition team was made up of Kid on first, Alyssa pitching, Jordan hugging second, Kia on third. Wicked in right field, Pirate in center and Hemingway, Paige’s little brother, at left. Sara Campbell, Dana’s boss, was at shortstop, and she’d proved to be quite the baseball player. Alyssa hadn’t missed how hard it was for Jordan to keep his eyes on the ball and off the beautiful reporter.

  She got another sheer wash of joy knowing that Jordan was not only going to become a vet, but when he graduated, he was going to partner with Alyssa.

  The afternoon progressed, and the two teams battled it out. In the final inning, the score tied with two down, Tank hit a clean line drive to right field. Deciding they had to use any tactic at their disposal to stop him, the outfield swept in and brought him down in a gang tackle as he rounded second base, then tried to hold him down so he could be tagged. The outcome was an infield brawl, with Tank finally making it to third with Alyssa on his back.

  Hollywood came to bat, pointing with an obvious warning to the backfield fence with his bat. Grinning at Alyssa with an open dare, looking so damn handsome it should be outlawed, he told her she’d better deliver the best she had. She suckered him on the first pitch, but he suckered the whole team on the second. They expected a hit deep in center field. He delivered a perfectly placed bunt that brought in the winning run.

  Back at his…their house, Tank flipped burgers and guys drank beers calling out their orders. A volleyball net had been set up, and a group of people had started a game.

  There was squealing, and someone held up Becca’s hand. Dan called out, “Becca and I are engaged.” There were hoots and congratulations in a raucous chorus. He shook his head. “Pretty crazy, right?” Jordan said as he hooked Tank around the neck.

  “I never saw that relationship coming. But what the hell…they love each other.” He wasn’t going to let the fact that he’d boffed his brother’s soon to be wife bother him…much.

  “I know we’ve had our differences, but you were here for me every step of the way.” Jordan glanced a Dan and Becca holding each other and smiling and talking. “Here for both of us. We’re brothers. That’s all that matters.”

  Tank grinned when he saw Sarah looking at Jordan. With his acceptance into the University of San Diego, he was on his way and maybe something was brewing for him with Dana’s pretty boss. “Someone has her eye on you, little man.”

  He squeezed Tank’s neck and said, “Who you calling little?”

  Tank laughed as Jordan let him go and headed for Sarah. Tank walked over to the two lovebirds. “Congratulations you two,” he said, hugging them both.

  Alyssa showed up beside him and grabbed Tank’s hand, her eyes sparkling. “Could you excuse us,” she said to Dan and Becca.” She looked up at him, giving him a soft kiss. “I have something for you.”

  He looked at her quizzically but allowed her to draw him down the driveway to the front of the house. Ruckus got out of the car, a huge grin on his face.

  He went to the back door and opened it.

  Echo, who had been lying down on the back seat, sat up. Tank’s throat closed up when he saw his buddy. A tremor coursed through him, the rush of emotion so intense it was almost unbearable, and he clenched his jaw against it, his eyes growing moist.

  There was a collective sound of surprise from everyone who was riveted by Tank’s reaction. He stared at Echo, then turned to Alyssa. God, but he loved her. So much. So very much. Tank drew a deep, painful breath as he grabbed her and hugged her hard. She slid her hand up the back of his neck with infinite tenderness. Pressing his forehead to hers, he whispered. “Thank you.”

  “He’s yours. I put in for adoption and I’ll care for him when you’re deployed. He’ll have the home you always wished for him.”

  Moved beyond words, he blinked away his tears.

  Echo made a half bark, half whine as he jumped down from the vehicle. He recognized Tank, and there wasn’t a dry eye in the group as he started to run/limp across the lawn to get to Tank.

  He rushed forward and went to his knees as the joyous dog danced around him. Other than Blue home safe and sound, he had everything he could ever want.

  Later that night as they lay together in bed, Echo taking up the end, Tank said, “You’re going to regret letting him sleep with us. He’s a bed hog.”

  Her eyes twinkled. “I think the first night it’s not going to hurt.”

  Echo might move a little slower, but he still got around pretty damn well, a testament to his determination and to Alyssa’s skill in patching him up. And better yet, he was home to stay.

  In the days that followed, they went on with their routine until Tank was summoned officially to Washington where he and Echo received their medals, their family, friends, and teammates proudly watching. T
ank told the President that he was just the handler. His partner had saved all those lives, including Tank’s. Echo was the true hero.

  As they were drifting off, Tank’s cell phone buzzed. He grabbed it and looked at the display. This was the alert he was waiting for. Alyssa woke, her voice groggy. “Blue?”

  “Yes. We’re going after him.”

  “Call me when you can. We’ll be here when you get back.”

  As he drove to the base, gathered what he needed, got Bronte, and headed for the airfield, Tank had no doubt that they were going to find him and rescue him. Then he would come home, too. To Echo and his growing family. To his beautiful, warm, and giving Alyssa.

  Look for Blue, the next book in the SEAL Team Alpha series. Blue’s in the enemy’s hands and SEAL Team Alpha will have to pull out all the stops to rescue him. What will Blue have to endure? Will he lose himself in his trauma and grief? And will his healing get a boost from the most exotic and forbidden woman he’s ever met?

  Glossary

  BUD/S - Basic Underwater Demolitions/SEAL training

  Comm - The equipment that SEALs use to communicate with each other in the field.

  CO - Commanding Officer

  DoD - Department of Defense

  DZ - Drop zone, the targeted area for parachutists.

  HALO - High altitude, low opening jump from an aircraft.

  HVT - High value target

  IED - Improvised Incendiary Device

  Klicks - Shortened word for kilometers.

  LRRP - Long-range reconnaissance patrol.

  LT - Nickname for lieutenant.

  LZ - Landing Zone where aircraft can land.

  Merc - Mercenary - guns for hire.

  MWD - Military Working Dog

  MRE - Meals, Ready-to-Eat, portable in pouches and packed with calories, these packaged meals are used in the field.

  NATO - North Atlantic Treaty Organization

  NCIS - Naval Criminal Investigative Service