by Bella Juarez
Alex applied the paddles and ordered. “Get the atropine ready, Isabel. Clear!”
Izzy quickly calculated the dosage and prepared the syringe. Alex applied the paddles and shot the electricity through Juan’s body. They waited a few seconds for a response. There was none.
“Give him the atropine and prepare another dose of epinephrine. This time give him the full dose, Doctor,” Alex snapped.
“Alex, you could kill him—” Isabel started.
“He’s already dead!” Alex snapped. “Now, do this my fucking way!” He applied the paddles once more. “Clear!”
Isabel did what she was asked this time. She prepared the epinephrine and administered it as they tried the defibrillator a third time. They worked another fifteen minutes to try and revive the young medic. Heaviness settled over the area as each of the team members looked at Juan’s lifeless body. Alex placed the paddles on the crash cart and Isabel looked at the clock. She watched Alex close his eyes in frustration and release a heavy sigh. The junior medics assisting hung their heads slightly because this was an especially sobering moment for them. They’d just lost one of their own.
“Three twenty,” Isabel said quietly.
Izzy’s voice seemed to reverberate off the walls and sounded louder than it really had been.
“What was that?” Alex asked.
“Time of death is 3:20 a.m. You’ll need that for the death certificate. Cause of death is gunshot wounds sustained during battle. I don’t think you want to announce to his family that he’d been infected with a pathogen,” Isabel said as she turned away.
Izzy turned to the other patients needing her attention as calmly as she could. She needed to tend to those who were still living no matter how crippling Juan’s death had just been for her. She could hopefully save the others. Something she knew Juan would’ve wanted her to do. She looked over PO Pentamore. He was spiking a high fever and was about to go into shock and she needed to act quickly to save him. She ordered one of the medics working with the other patients to go retrieve the antibiotic they had in reserve for this situation. When both patients were undergoing their infusion of medication, Isabel went back to her room, ordering the medics to update her every hour and sooner if the patients were not responding.
As Izzy closed the door and sank slowly to her bed, she second-guessed every move she’d made in surgery, recovery, and when they were administering advance life support to the now-dead Juan. She closed her eyes. Juan, sweet, Juan. He was such a gentle soul. He’d been the one taking care of her needs when she had been a patient. I failed him. She’d grown to like him very much. Kashi had brought her a backgammon board and Juan had been the only one in the hospital interested in learning the game. They had played every evening after rounds except for yesterday because he’d already left for his mission.
Isabel squeezed her eyes shut against the tears that were stinging them. Juan had family, a wife and two daughters, and she remembered him telling her he was from California. His parents had been migrant workers. She recalled him telling her how proud they were when they first saw him in uniform. She’d laughed at his stories about sharing shoes with his brothers and growing up poor. He’d seen humor in such a hard, difficult life and was always so optimistic, positive, and funny. Izzy picked up her pillow to stifle the sobs that erupted from deep within her because she’d just lost a friend. She barely heard the soft knock on her door.
* * * *
Alex gently knocked on Isabel’s door. He was depressed and tired because it was never easy losing someone. It was especially hard when death was sudden and unexpected. Unfortunately he knew the feeling too well and had experienced it too many times. Chief Petty Officer Juan Villalobos was a good man, a good father, and a damn good SEAL. Alex heard the door handle move and watched as the door opened. He looked into Isabel’s puffy hazel eyes and melted because the look on her face was one of the saddest things he’d ever seen. Izzy’s grief mirrored his own feelings at losing a friend. Alex felt a lump start to grow in his throat.
“Can we talk for a minute?” Alex asked, clearing his throat. Isabel opened the door wider and stepped aside, allowing him access to the room. “Are you okay, Isabel?” he asked, concerned.
“I’m fine,” Izzy said shortly as she turned away.
“I’m sorry if I was ugly to you earlier. You did everything right,” Alex said.
Isabel stared at the bookshelf where all the medical journals for the resident doctor were lined.
“I should’ve listened to you,” Izzy whispered.
“You did the right thing, first do no harm. I know what happened and looking back it wouldn’t have mattered. There was no saving him,” Alex said gently.
Alex heard Isabel suck in a jagged breath. He knew she was fighting to stay strong in front of him. He wanted to reach for her and comfort her because he needed her to comfort him as well. It had been easy for Juan to befriend her because he didn’t want to fuck her every time he looked at her. Alex couldn’t get her sultry voice out of his head, so he intentionally distanced himself from her because his attraction was becoming an obsession. Alex knew he could be dangerous in that sort of mood.
“Izzy,” Alex said gently, reaching for her. “I know how you feel. Please don’t second-guess what you did. It was all right.”
Isabel turned around and looked at Alex when he touched her shoulder. He stood still, waiting to see what she would do. He held his breath. He knew if he touched her again he might lose his precarious control. She closed her eyes and he watched the tears she could no longer contain fall silently.
Alex was lured to her. He encircled her with his arms and closed his eyes when he heard the heart-wrenching sobs that escaped her. She buried herself into his body. This was new for her. He was sure Isabel had seen some of her patients die, but she never knew them or cared about them and none of them had ever cared for her.
“It’s okay, Izzy,” Alex soothed as he held her.
“Alex…” Isabel choked.
“Shush, angel. Just let it all out,” Alex said, stroking her back.
Alex needed this release as much as she did. Comforting her was his way of taking care of his own grief. They held each other for some time until Isabel’s sobs turned into uneven breathing. Her relaxing body let him know that she was coming to the end of her crying spell.
“I can’t do this. I can’t watch some else I’ve gotten close to die,” Isabel whispered.
“I know it’s hard, Izzy,” Alex said, kissing her forehead as he pulled her close again.
“I can’t…” Isabel said, looking up at him.
Alex cupped Izzy’s face in his hands and stared at her a moment. He wiped away a few more tears as his control slipped away. He bent and kissed her with all of the restless, pent-up frustration he’d been feeling for some time now. She was bringing him to her mercy with her own intense response. He finally let her breathe as he played with her lips and gently explored her with his tongue. Isabel wrapped her arms around him and pulled him closer while he delighted at how good she tasted.
Alex’s cock was painfully hard and screaming to be let loose. He was considering every way to make that happen without letting anyone know what was going on inside the room. His own common sense was fighting to be heard. He needed to stop. Now. He was waiting for Isabel to come to her own good sense and get really pissed off at him for making such an overt pass at her. Instead she was encouraging him, pulling him closer as she played with his mouth.
Fuck it! I need her.
Alex pulled the scrunchie holding up her hair and let the long black sheet fall down her back. He let his fingers tangle into the soft mass and gently grabbed a fistful as he lightly pulled her head back. He ran his lips and tongue along the hollow of her throat and planted a kiss in the center. She moaned as he nibbled at her jugular. He stopped and pulled away slightly.
“Izzy, stop me,” Alex whispered huskily.
“Alex, please…”
Isabel’s sultry
voice was spellbinding and it was amazing what her voice did to him when he actually heard it instead of dreaming it. He shivered slightly as the sensual whisper curled his toes. Her eyes were closed in delight as Alex locked his mouth onto hers once more and tightly encircled his free arm around her waist, pulling her as close as he could. Her luscious body pressed into his. He reached lower and found her perfect ass. He grabbed it and pulled her hips against him. He was past thinking, as his drive to possess her took over, and he needed to get a little control before he stripped her and fucked her standing right where they were. He moved Isabel toward her small bed. As she sat, he knelt in front of her and she cupped his face in both hands, pulled him closer, and kissed him.
“Come to me,” Izzy released him.
“Angel, I want you but any further and I won’t be able to stop,” Alex whispered quietly.
“Don’t stop,” Izzy said as she leaned forward and kissed him.
Alex lifted her scrub top over her head and dropped it beside him. The white bra she was wearing seemed to glow brighter against her mocha skin. He rose up slightly and placed a kiss in the center of her throat. He was rewarded with one her low, sexy moans and remembered how thin the doors and walls were. Her fingers ran through his hair and pulled his head closer to her.
Alex moved her onto her bed and climbed into the small space with her. He continued covering her throat and upper chest with kisses. He laced his fingers with hers and pushed her hands over her head. He was a natural hunter and could smell her juicy pussy calling to his cock. The visions of tasting what he smelled haunted him because he sensed it wouldn’t come to pass. As he worked his way down her chest he heard a sudden knock at the door. Isabel stiffened underneath him.
“I need to get up,” Izzy whispered.
Alex put his finger to her lips and leaned in next to her ear.
“Quiet, angel. They can hear you,” he said so only she could hear.
As Alex moved off of her, Isabel picked up her scrub top and quickly slid it over her head. She got up, went to the door, opening it enough to see who was there, but not enough to allow anyone to see into the room.
“Yes?” Alex heard Isabel ask.
“There’s been no change either way, Doctor. I’ve got the shift until seven. May I suggest that I come back only if there’s a change?” one of his medics asked.
“I guess only if there’s been a change would be fine,” Isabel answered.
Alex smiled at the response. Even though she wanted him to stay, it was over for now and he needed to get up and leave before this really got out of control. This wasn’t the place to take her the way he wanted. He sat up at the edge of her bed.
“Okay, Doc. Oh, have you seen Senior Chief?” the medic asked.
“I’m sure he’s around,” Isabel said.
“Good night, Doc,” the young medic said.
“Good night, thanks for the update,” Isabel said as she closed the door.
As Izzy turned around, Alex stood and took her in his arms. He gently stroked her back as he held her. Her arms wrapped around his waist and he wanted to melt into her because it felt so good and right. When she touched him it seemed to ease his restlessness and fade the constant sounds of war into the background. He wished they were anywhere but here.
“I should go, angel,” Alex whispered. Isabel nodded as she snuggled into Alex. “You’re making it hard for me to leave.”
“I don’t want you to leave,” Isabel said.
Something in the way Isabel was behaving seemed out of place because she held nothing back. There was no coyness, no guessing, no games. She gave back as much as he gave. Alex took a step back and took a closer look at her. She looked so innocent and he realized Izzy didn’t know how to play him. She truly didn’t understand what she was doing to him. She lives with her father. She went to school in Miami. She’s a young hospital doctor so she has no life. Christ! She really might be a little naïve.
Alex knew that Isabel had major trust issues just from the psychology of what her mother had done to her at such a young age. It was the very reason she was so defensive and didn’t want anyone close to her. They’d been drawn together and he wasn’t the only one feeling this alluring pull. He also knew his personality, his career, and his way of thinking went against every grain in Isabel’s lovely body. They were polar opposites in every sense of the phrase. It didn’t matter because nothing in his life ever felt so perfect.
Alex had to find a way to make this work because when they were together it was magical and pure. Isabel was drawing emotions from him that he’d tried to suffocate. He was just as lonely and isolated as she was. Alex had never met a woman he couldn’t walk away from and not look back until now. He had to have Isabel. He needed her like his body needed food and water to survive. The revelation frightened him because it was so overpowering. He needed to get out of there and think. He kissed her softly and smiled.
“Don’t worry. We’ll find the right time,” Alex said, releasing her. She smiled. “Good night, angel. Try and get some sleep,” he said, kissing her again.
Isabel let him go and nodded. Alex walked outside into the passageway and closed her door behind him. It took every ounce of strength he had to walk away and not look back.
Chapter 6
Majles-e Khebregan-e Rahbari (Council of Experts)
Assembly Room
Tehran, Iran
April 26, 2009/0855 Zulu
Azad and General Ivanov walked into the assembly room for their meeting with the Council of Experts. Azad had been on edge the entire trip because Ivanov was on the verge of a bloody stroke. Iran wanted to retaliate against the Americans for taking out two of their forts, or observation posts, along the border with Afghanistan.
Israel was throwing a bloody tantrum about the test Iran had run on a bunch of goat herders in the Shindand Valley. When they found out Iran had the balls to do it near an air base controlled by the United States, they really went mental. The United States in true fashion had lit a fire under the Israelis and the Israelis were arming themselves to the teeth. They were demanding that Russia do something about the situation before they yanked the lucrative oil deal they were about to engage in and bomb Iran back to the bloody Stone Age.
The president and the Supreme Leader had already seated themselves and were in quiet conversation when Azad and Ivanov stepped into the room. The president looked up and smiled at Azad. He waved Azad to come closer.
“Wait here, General,” Azad said to Ivanov.
Azad always felt as if he was being thrown in with a live tiger whenever he met with the president. The man was cunning and noticed the smallest details or mistakes. He was a brilliant man and well educated. But bloody mental as hell!
“Salam,” Azad said, bowing slightly before the Supreme Leader, the ayatollah.
“Khosh amadid, refight,” the president answered with a warm smile and an embrace.
“Blessings upon you my, son,” the ayatollah said in his hushed voice.
“Thank you for your warm greeting, Mr. President,” Azad said.
“How is your health? Are you recovered from your unfortunate accident?” the president asked.
“Yes, thank you, sir,” Azad said.
“How are the Russians treating you?” the ayatollah asked.
“Very well, most Supreme One,” Azad answered.
The ayatollah nodded in satisfaction. The president, however, continued his calculated stare. Azad had given an incomplete answer and was counting on a more private, intimate meeting with the president later. He noticed the assembly room had filled completely. The rest of the Russian delegation had arrived and it was time to start the meeting.
Ivanov and the Russian delegation managed to get the Iranian supreme leadership to agree to issue an apology for the errant missile and explain that the strike was in no way directed at the NATO forces serving in Afghanistan. Instead the trajectory had been directed north and west of the area where it should’ve landed at a test
site in Iran. They did however demand an apology from NATO forces, specifically the Americans, for the attack that Iran sustained as a result of NATO retaliation for the errant strike. So far, NATO hadn’t announced to the world the contents of the lethal weapon.
Russia agreed to back Iran’s claims and explained that the faulty navigation device had been produced in Russia and a full investigation was underway. Meanwhile Iran would refrain from any further missile tests unless they consulted Russia. As Azad was leaving, the president’s aid stopped him. He directed Azad to follow him. Ivanov looked concerned when he consented.
“We are returning tonight,” Ivanov said.
“I know, General. Please let me see what he wants,” Azad said.
Azad left the Russian delegation and followed the president’s aid. They walked beyond the large assembly room to the back where some of the offices lay. The president was looking at a mosaic when Azad stepped into the room.
“I wanted you to speak freely. I have the feeling you have something else to say,” the president said.
This was one of those moments in an undercover agent’s life that was most dangerous. Azad needed to lay the groundwork for MI-6 and its American allies to take down Bakri and the Russians. Iran didn’t have the technology to produce the weapons it wanted without the Russians’ help. MI-6 needed Bakri free to accomplish their mission.
“Azad, I know your family. I know how difficult it was for you growing up in Britain so far away from your true home. I know you miss Iran very much right now. But your country needs you. Please, if there is something I need to know, tell me,” the president said.
“Your excellency, I am concerned about how the Russians are treating Minister Bakri right now. They are not showing him the proper respect of his position,” Azad said carefully.
“I haven’t heard from Nayyaf and he promised to call after his meeting a couple of days ago,” the president said.
“Perhaps, Mr. President, you could call him to Iran, without a Russian escort, and speak with him privately,” Azad offered.
