by KaLyn Cooper
Tex’s hands flew across the keyboard as maps and pictures appeared on all four screens in front of him. He rolled his hand, indicating to Rafe to keep the conversation going.
“Who is the other woman?” Rafe asked
“Her?” Her Valez pointed the camera toward Mary. A single drip of blood ran from the end of a darkening gash and skittered down the duct tape covering her mouth.
Two men dressed in army fatigues held down Truck as he seethed with anger in silence.
Valez filled the screen once again. “She’s no concern of yours.” The young man gave the kind of heartless chuckle Jacin had heard far too many times while working in Colombia. “She is the reward I have given my men for capturing your woman. She will be their pet until they tire of her. Then…” Valez shrugged one shoulder.
Truck stood and nodded to the colonel as he quietly exited. The door had not completely shut before the man’s anguished roar began. Jacin wanted to join him. He felt the exact same way. He couldn’t wait to beat the shit out of Valez and anyone else involved in kidnapping Melina.
At the sound of Valez’s voice, Jacin tore his gaze away from the now closed door.
“I’ll give you thirty minutes to get to the airstrip.” Valez sneered.
“That’s not enough time,” Rafe protested. “It’ll take me at least an hour to get there.”
“One hour then. Don’t be late.”
The phone screen went blank.
7
Rafe was in Texas, and he was coming for her. In many ways, Melina wished it was Jacin coming to save her. She glanced over at Mary and not for the first time worried what would happen to the young woman, especially if Pablo Valez took Melina to the airport.
“Change of plans,” Valez announced. “I need a little more security to make sure that son of a bitch will come with me.” He dug in a backpack and extracted a small container. When he opened it, she caught the lettering on the lid.
CHAZ.
Melina’s heart sank. This was the most lethal nonnuclear bomb on the planet. She’d seen it in action a few weeks ago. Harper had used a small slice, the size of a quarter, to obliterate Turi Solis at his own birthday party. There had been nothing left of the man for a DNA sample.
The explosion had given Melina the perfect cover to save the only man she’d ever loved in her life, Jacin. While the hundreds of people attending the party panicked, she and two of her other agents had searched Solis’s house until she had found Jacin tied to a concrete wall in the basement. Under the guise that their friend had been too close to the explosion, Melina and her men had gotten Jacin safely to her home on the other side of Cali. A few hours later, Rafe and Harper had shown up needing Melina’s help to escape Colombia. They’d helped her get Jacin into the car. Half out of his mind with pain, he’d gutted his way into guarding the parking lot while she, Rafe, and Harper, took out several cartel members so they could steal a helicopter. That was the last time she’d seen Rafe until his picture appeared on Valez’s phone.
Melina couldn’t take her eyes off the waxy rectangle as Valez casually lifted it from the airtight container. As explosives go, Chaz was very stable, until connected to a detonator. Then it became a destroyer of worlds. As Valez set the soft plastic-like brick in Melina’s lap, she tried to wiggle away. There was enough Chaz to bring down a city block.
Valez had no intention of trading Rafe’s life for hers. He would be sacrificing himself for nothing. The thought brought tears to her eyes. Melina’s only regret was Mary would be taken in the blast as well as probably dozens of unsuspecting civilians.
“Pablo, don’t do this,” Melina begged. “Rafe will show up. We both know he’s that kind of man. You’ll have what you want. You don’t have to kill us.”
“Shut up, bitch.” Pablo then looked at Scarface and TT. “I need Segundo to think I am going to kill Melina if he doesn’t do exactly what I say.”
She saw the corners of his mouth quirk up as he bent his head to attach an electronic device to the detonator. “I’m going to tell him this is connected to my cell phone and if he doesn’t come with me I’m going to blow her to hell.”
When he lifted his head and looked at Scarface and TT, his grin should have been reassuring. “Don’t worry, it’s all fake.” He pinched off a corner of the malleable wax and popped it in his mouth, chewing loudly. “See? You don’t have anything to worry about.”
Except dying.
He stood and instructed the men, “Hand me that duct tape.” As Valez fastened the edge to one side of the chair and brought it over Melina’s lap, covering the bomb with silver tape, he continued his orders. “Be prepared for my call. I’ll need you to show Melina to make sure Rafe understands I mean business.” He made one more loop around Melina’s thighs and the chair before he ripped the tape and smoothed down the edge, rubbing up her hip in the process.
Melina had to do something. Scarface and TT were probably her best bets. Valez was hell bent on killing her and Rafe. But she doubted her captors understood the destruction of the bomb in her lap. They no doubt trusted Valez. Big mistake.
“I’ll text you when we’re in the air on our way back to Columbia.” Valez glanced at Mary. “Once we’re off U.S. soil, you can do whatever you want with her.”
Melina cringed at the hungry look in both men’s eyes.
Valez then added, “Segundo has seen her, too, so don’t you dare touch her until I say you can.”
As soon as Valez left, Melina went to work on Scarface and his friend. “Don’t believe him,” she modulated her voice to exude truth. “Valez is a liar. He’s going to kill us all. This bomb is real.”
“It’s fake.” Scarface looked at her as though she was an idiot. “Valez does not want to kill his best men.”
TT agreed, “We have worked for his family here in the United States for years. We’re valuable to him and the other cartel capos.”
“Valez doesn’t give a shit about you or anybody else. You worked for Carlos Narváez, not this upstart wannabe,” she insisted.
Scarface looked at his friend and announced, “I’m hungry and tired of listening to this bitch.”
“I could eat.” TT nodded in agreement and the two men left the room closing the door with a slam that jarred Melina’s ears.
As soon as she was sure they were gone far enough not to hear them, Melina looked over her shoulder at Mary who shook in her chair. Leaning forward so her feet were firmly on the ground, Melina hopped toward the other woman. “I’m not getting personal, but I need to use my teeth to rip the duct tape off your mouth,” she said just above a whisper.
Mary nodded her head vigorously. It took a few tries, but Melina was finally able to loosen one corner. With several twists of their heads, Mary was at last able to remove the tape.
“If a facial waxing feels anything like that, it will be a long time before I have one.”
Melina loved that Mary could joke at a time like this.
“Were you telling the truth? That’s a real bomb?”
Melina could see the fear in Mary’s eyes but refused to lie to her. “Yes. This is a very unique bomb. I’ve seen it in action, and I can tell you truthfully that if it goes off there will be nothing left here but a big hole for at least 100 yards.”
“That’s what I call going out with a blast.” Snark was obviously Mary’s method for handling adversity. At least she wasn’t bawling and screaming uncontrollably. Melina hated weak women.
“Let’s hope we get out of here long before that happens. Now let’s try this again. I’m going to hop around to your back and see if I can get you out of your bindings.”
Scarface had added several more passes of tape around Mary’s wrists. Deep in concentration, trying to see the starting point, Mary’s words startled Melina. “Talk to me. I don’t care what you tell me. Just talk to me.”
There it was. The edge of the tape on the far side of her hands. “What do you want to know?” Melina maneuvered her way to the back of Mary’s chair.
“Have you ever been in love?”
What an opening question. As was everything with Melina’s life, the answer was complicated.
Bumping into Mary’s chair, Melina set hers down on all four legs then went to work. “Yes. I’ve been in love. I am in love. How about you?”
“I can’t allow myself to fall in love. I couldn’t do that to a man.” Mary took a deep breath and moved her bound hands closer to Melina’s fumbling fingers. “How did you know it was real love?”
Okay, if Mary needed a girl talk, she could do that. Melina searched her feelings for Jacin as she dragged her fingernails over the sticky tape trying to find the edge. “He became the most important thing in my life. His needs and happiness became more important than mine. I’d do anything for him.” And she had. She had lied, stolen, and even killed for Jacin. Several times she’d put herself in harm’s way to be sure he was safe.
Her nail finally caught the edge and Melina celebrated a silent victory. She could do this. If they could get free of the chairs, she could take out Scarface and TT by breaking the wooden chairs and using the pieces as clubs and spears. Primitive but effective.
Melina felt so guilty that just by her proximity, Mary had been kidnapped. She couldn’t allow the young woman to be killed before she knew the joy and pain of love. She promised herself they’d make it out of there. Both of them.
The war room remained quiet until Tex finally said, “We’re clear.”
A map of Killeen took up the center of the big screen then zoomed in on one area. “The call came from this neighborhood. I’ve got it pinned down to these few streets.”
Without turning away from his computers, Tex announced, “We’ll take a look at the video once again, but my impression is the women are being kept in an empty house.” Typical real estate photographs filled three boxes in front of them. “These three are in that neighborhood and for sale.”
One of the houses blipped away. “These two have tornado shelters.”
“Excellent work, Tex,” General Lyon complemented. “I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, I’m glad you’re on our side.”
Mumbles of agreement from around the conference room reverberated like a bass guitar preparing for concert.
Alex stood up and took control. “Clock is ticking. Rafe, you and the Guardian men will head to the airstrip as team Bravo.” A current satellite view replaced the map of Killeen. “The grass in this area is approximately three-feet tall. As you approach the airfield, you’ll need to slow down so my men will roll out on the far side then belly crawl through the hayfield to cover you.” Alex looked at the four men who sat together at one end of the table. They all nodded as though approving the plan.
Alex stared directly at Jacin then over at Truck. When the team leader’s gaze returned to Jacin, he knew what was coming. “You two are too emotionally involved to lead the raid and rescue.”
“No fuck—” Jacin was cut off when Alex held up a hand and spoke over him.
“You are going in as part of the team, but Griffin is in charge of Alpha team.” Alex indicated the tall man the size of a college receiver. “Harper, you’re on Alpha Team. Colonel Olson, I’d like to have your Delta team backup Alpha. They can go into the neighborhood first and do a sneak and peek to see if we can determine which house the women are being kept. I’ll remain here in the command center.”
Alex paused for a moment then spoke to General Lyon. “Do these guys have the new communications units we used in Iraq last month?”
“They’re in the gear I sent on the transport plane that brought you to Texas.” The general continued to point out, “Those are still in the test phase so they are highly classified.”
“Jonathan, did you find them?” Alex asked the sandy haired man on Bravo team.
“No, sir,” he replied. “I’ve been through everything they sent us. There were a few boxes that didn’t seem to belong in our shipment. Would you like me to go check those?”
The general grinned. “If you didn’t ask for the new headsets, I wasn’t going to offer them. They’re in a box labeled feminine hygiene products. I knew no self-respecting special operator would go digging through that box.”
“We will from now on.” Alex returned the grin. His gaze swept the room. “Gear up. Vehicles role in ten.”
“Alpha, with me,” his new team leader called over the bustling in the room.
“Sir, my equipment is with my team.” Truck indicated the separate room where the Delta team was headed. “I’ll be waiting for you at the vehicles.”
“Very well. We’ll brief on the way.” Alpha team leader turned to Jacin. “Griffin Mitchell.” Instead of extending his hand, he squeezed Jacin’s shoulder. “I understand you were a SEAL. Me, too. We’ll talk about that later. I hear Rafe is one of us, also.”
“You hear right.” Jacin tried to get the hierarchy set in his mind. “So you work for Alex?”
Griffin pointed to the last door on the right. “Yes. I’m the manager of the Guardian Security Miami Center. You looking for a job?”
“Already have one.” Jacin followed Harper into a special operator’s wet dream. Metal tables were filled with every piece of black ops gear imaginable. Rifles of every make and model lined the walls with loaded magazines stacked on shelves underneath. Row after row of handguns were attached to the wall by pegs, their matching bullets on the shelf next to them.
The sandy haired man appeared beside Jacin who was frozen to the floor. “Radical, huh. Christ, I love working for this outfit. I’m Jonathan O’Neal. I work for Alex out of the Dallas office.” He pointed to a stack in one corner. “He had me pull this for you. I’m glad to see you already have boots. The night camouflage is a medium, but other sizes are over there. Be sure to grab a vest and a helmet. You’re welcome to take any gun and rifle. Fact is, grab anything you feel comfortable handling. There’s more firepower in the vehicles. Sorry, man, but you really need to get a move on.”
Jacin quickly changed his clothes, found a vest that fit well enough, and for three minutes browsed what was available for death and destruction before grabbing several items.
When he stepped outside, men casually checked weapons and chatted as though it was just another day at the office. Jacin remembered days like this, and for the first time in years, missed the camaraderie found only on a team that worked hard and played hard together.
When Alex emerged from the building, Jonathan was beside him holding a small cardboard box. At a hand signal, everyone moved in. “Grab a com unit. They are already set and synchronized with the command center. Because all of this has to go down at the exact same time, you’re all linked. Additional briefings will take place in route, so they will not be activated until your team leader gives the signal. Time to roll.”
8
Melina tugged at the duct tape as Mary picked her wrists up once again. After she’d peeled the third round of tape off, they fell into a system.
The thump of boots on the stairs was their only warning.
Mary grabbed the growing ball of tape from Melina’s hands and hid it within her own.
“How the fuck did you get over there?” Scarface thundered as soon as he stepped in the room.
Melina immediately cupped her hands over the top of Mary’s.
“Oh, look, they’re holding hands,” TT mocked. He stood in front of Melina and leaned over, getting so close she could smell the jalapeno peppers he’d eaten for lunch. “You ready to make another movie? Pablo says it’s almost time.”
Time was one commodity they didn’t have. Maybe she could reason with him. “This bomb in my lap is real.” She hoped by saying it slowly, it might sink in.
Scarface walked over and stood beside TT. “No fucking way. You saw Pablo eat a piece.” The man looked down at Melina’s hands. “Nice ring. Is that a Colombian emerald?”
Thinking fast she offered, “Yes, it is. You know it’s worth a lot of money. I’ll give it to you if you’ll let us go free.”
It was the most precious thing she owned. But if it meant their freedom, she’d give it to him.
Scarface ripped it off her finger. He examined the large emerald closely. Green dots painted the gray walls as he rolled her ring under the stark lights of their cell.
“I will keep this.” He slid the jewel into the front pocket of his jeans.
“Then you’ll let us go free?” Mary asked in a rush.
A deep chuckle burst from his chest. “Hell, no.” He stepped over to Mary and ran a finger down her cheek grabbing her chin when she tried to pull away. “I’m looking forward to spending time with you.” He slid a glance to TT then returned his gaze to her. “We’ve already decided I get you first while Juan tames the tiger behind you. He likes it when they fight. Me…not so much.” With his other hand he cupped one of her breasts.
Mary’s chair shook and Melina hoped the other woman could hold it together for just a little while longer.
“You going to be a good little girl for me aren’t you?” Scarface taunted.
“Don’t touch me, you pig!” She shouted.
The crack of his slap was deafening in a small room.
“You’ll do exactly as I say.” Anger permeated from the man’s voice.
Mary’s squeal of pain filled the room and pierced Melina’s heart. “I’m sorry, Mary. I’m so sor—”
The door flew open. Melina expected to see more of Pablo’s goons, but broad shoulders dressed in black camouflage filled the doorway. With an M4 rifle at his shoulder, the man ordered, “Step away from the women and live.”
Scarface reached for the gun at his waist. Before he could get his fingers wrapped around the handle, brain matter coated the wall.
A second person had stepped in while Melina was distracted, pistol pointed at TT after quickly sweeping the room left to right. As Terrible Teeth pulled up his arm, gun in hand, two pops put the man on the floor.
