Peace - A Navy SEALS Novel (DeLeo's Action Thriller Singles Book 3)

by Bernard Lee DeLeo

  Four Seal Teams, and various Delta Force Ranger groups, had been operating inside Iran, with CIA special ops units for three months. Once Red China had been eliminated as the source of bio weapons and dirty nuke material, the decision to sponsor a resistance movement inside the real culprit’s country began immediately. Colonel Martine had named Iran as the sponsoring nation, and provided proof of his accusations. His statements, coupled with the Iranian tanker used as transport in the failed attempt at sending a WMD cargo across the border between the United States and Mexico, acted as the catalyst for a full scale special ops venture to overthrow the Iranian Mullahs.

  For three tortuous months, the various special ops teams had contacted key resistance figures along the Iranian border with Iraq, and deep into Iran. Using the already established military bases in America’s newest emerging friendly nation in the area, Iraq, the special ops teams equipped the growing resistance in Iran with weapons and training. The Mullahs constantly harangued the United Nations to intercede; but member nations, who had opposed America unsuccessfully before in Iraq, were hesitant to further alienate their most powerful member. After successful establishment of democratic governments in Afghanistan and Iraq, and the capitulation of Libya as a threat, the hostile countries of Iran and Syria were the lone backers of terrorist action in the world.

  A successful clandestine campaign on the Syrian border, where Peace, and Seal Team Six initially worked with Dave’s CIA special ops group, had frightened the ruling clan there to the point they were reduced to verbal attacks in the safety of UN chambers. Iran, now a visible backer of ongoing WMD terrorist operations, stood alone. Red China, after being apprised of how they were almost drawn into a nuclear war, the facts of which were confirmed by their two representatives from the Iranian tanker incident, refused to even consider a motion in the UN Security Council, sponsored by Iran.

  Russia waited, as they so often did, jockeying into position to play both sides against the other. In the end, it was common knowledge amongst world leaders of America’s commitment to overthrow the government in Iran; but opposition to the mission was presented in typical neutered UN language. America had declassified the operation in Mexico, outing the Iranian, and Mexican involvement. The President of Mexico had resigned under threat of a trial for treason. A special election was to be held within days, and the favorite was the man who had exposed the traitorous actions by high up military figures in the government: Julio Sanchez, newly married to Consuella Matuse.

  The special ops groups, with their partners in the resistance, now surrounded the capital city of Tehran. With major strongholds in Hamadan, Demavend, and Arak, the resistance forces struck out at will against the demoralized government troops. Air support, in the form of fighters, bombers, and helicopter attack groups, out of bases in Afghanistan and Iraq, now owned the air over Iran. Rumors of a last ditch effort to defeat the Iranian resistance fighters with a massed attack on their main base at Hamadan had brought Seal Team Six, and their CIA special ops cohorts, out of their newly won base at Arak. Special Forces groups would be involved in pincher movements out of Arak in the South, and Demavend in the North, once any major action started in the Hamadan area.

  Using runners, and satellite uplinks by way of laptops with each team, communication over the airwaves had been avoided for the prior two weeks. The teams moved mainly by horseback. Air support had been on high alert for the past twenty-four hours, as a pitched battle to draw the government troops out raged on only a mile from where Peace and Tony lay in wait. Lieutenant Commander Righter, leading Seal Team Six, and their CIA special ops partners, initiated a hit and run campaign using a large force of Iranian resistance fighters. Peace and Tony were one of six teams, made up of Seals, and CIA special ops team members, ringing the area of the trap. Once the size, and nature, of the government force was established, air strikes would be called in to assist in the ambush. This was to be the deciding battle.

  Peace waved their Iranian contact into the dugout, as he and Tony continued to watch the hit and run battle being waged now only three quarters of a mile away.

  “Peace,” the young Iranian named Samud repeated breathlessly, “Dan wants you to begin shooting with your sniper rifle to cover their retreat. The other teams have been told too. Your commander wishes to be well past the desired trap site though, when your machine guns are to be used.”

  “What about air support, Sam?” Peace asked in the same language. “They’re rolling tanks into this final fling too. It looks like the trick worked.”

  “Yes,” Samud replied excitedly. “The government is throwing everything into their attack. They are worried Tehran will fall if they do not achieve a great victory soon. Our forces have been moving fast, after hitting the government position, to stay out of tank fire range. Commander Dan told me he will break radio silence once the government army believes we are in full retreat, and commits their tanks.”

  Samud’s English was improving; but still hard to understand, so Peace interpreted Samud’s message to Tony.

  “I hope Dan doesn’t wait too long,” Tony commented, still watching the on-going battle. “This could get ugly if the tanks catch up.

  We need the Warthogs on the way right now, or they won’t make it in time.”

  “Dan knows what he’s doing, and he had Dave with him,” Peace replied, taking his sniper rifle up, and jockeying it into position smoothly. “Let’s see if we can slow down the ground pounders a bit.”

  “Sam, you relax for a while,” Peace told their courier. “There’s no need for you to go back down there right now.”

  “May I watch with your scope, Peace?” Samud asked, indicating Peace’s viewfinder.

  Peace handed it over to him with a smile, before returning his attention to the sniper rifle. Tony began giving Peace coordinates, as the resistance force moved more into the shallow valley, using whatever cover they could find in their retreat. As government forces targets became visible, sniper fire began raining down from the overlooking positions. Lead elements of the government force began taking heavy casualties, stalling the speed of their attack. A huge dust cloud announced the arrival of the government tank force. The old Russian tanks spread out along the plain as they approached.

  “Peace,” Tony said, “we may have tipped our hand too quickly. Look, the tanks are just waiting for the troops to be shielded before turning around. They’re on to us.”

  “We better get some air power in here quick,” Peace replied, continuing to fire at targets of opportunity. “They’ll be all the way back in Tehran, or one of their hidey hole bases in between. I don’t think our other forces from Arak or Demavend are close enough yet to cut them off.”

  Samud, who had been watching and listening with growing despair, now gripped Peace’s arm.

  “Peace,” Samud said urgently in Arabic, “they will massacre everyone in their retreat. They…”

  “Easy, Sam,” Peace replied sympathetically. “We’re going at it the best we can. I’ll…”

  Their satellite phone beeped. Nick grabbed it up, and answered.

  “Good morning, Iran resistance speaking,” Tony quipped, causing Peace to laugh, in spite of the seriousness of their situation, as Samud looked on in confusion.

  “Cut the crap, T,” Dan rebuked him sharply, although he was holding back laughter himself. “Put Peace on.”

  Tony handed Peace the phone with a smile and shrug.

  “Peace here.”

  “Feel like a little riding this morning?”

  “That horse hates me,” Peace replied.

  “Get over it. You and Tony get loaded, and see if you can get ahead of our tank party. Think you can slow them down?”

  “Just the two of us?” Peace asked, as he gestured for Tony to mount up.

  “What happened to one terrorist army, one Seal?” Dan joked.

  “That’s one riot, one Ranger, and it refers to the Texas Rangers,” Peace corrected, remembering a similar conversation with Chuck not s
o long ago. “You need to get cable, Dan, so you don’t have to constantly be watching Walker, Texas Ranger reruns.”

  “Maybe you’re right,” Dan acknowledged with a short laugh. “You guys are the closest. I’ll send the others too. Just get moving as fast as you can while we chase from the rear. I’ve already called Uncle for help.”

  “Just so they know who the friendlies are,” Peace commented, getting to his feet, and gesturing for Samud to stay where he was. “We’ll be hittin’ the trail just as soon as my Chinese porter gets the lead out. Damn, these coolies are slow.”

  Dan could hear Tony laughing at Peace’s send-up in the background. “Turn on your position signal so they don’t wipe you out. No sense worrying about who knows where we are now. This is the big one, Peace. You and Tony take care, and I’ll see you guys on the other side.”

  “Roger that,” Peace replied, signing off, and looking down at an expectant Samud. “You stay here, Sam. Me and Tony are going to go kill the Iranian army, and get this over with.”

  “I wish to go with you, Peace,” Samud pleaded, jumping to his feet.

  “No can do, my friend,” Peace shook his head, as he shouldered his sniper rifle. “If you want, you can find Dan again. They’ll be following the retreat. You’ve been up riding back and forth for the last day and a half. Get some rest.”

  Samud followed Peace down the hill, where Tony held their two horses while Peace loaded the gear. Tony clamored up into the saddle, and Peace handed up the M60, and the reins of his horse. Tony, his smaller M10 slung, held on tightly as the skittish creatures, stamped nervously at the sound of explosions and gunfire in the distance. Tony tied down the M60 to the rig he had made up on his saddle while Peace shushed and calmed the horses. Peace then vaulted into the saddle.

  “Yooooooooohhhhhhhh,” Tony called out, holding his hand up in the air as if he were leading a cavalry charge.

  “Have I told you how much I hate riding horses?” Peace asked by way of an acknowledgement.

  “So much so, that I get a barf reflex when I hear you mention it,” Tony sighed, getting his horse moving.

  “I will follow you,” Samud stated, turning to get his horse.

  “You heard what I said,” Peace admonished him. “You take orders, soldier, now if you insist, go catch up with Dan. I’ll see you later.”

  Samud nodded reluctantly, and Peace gave him a little salute before quickly setting out to catch up with Tony. The two Seals threaded their way carefully down the slope until they could start paralleling the retreating army on a more level surface. After reaching a travel safe surface, the Seals urged their mounts on to as fast a speed as they dared.

  An hour later, the sounds of the tank column had grown very loud, and then quieter as they passed them by. Riding on, they searched in earnest for another elevated pass they could make their first stand from. A granite rise in the distance, which looked to be nearly in line with the on-coming Iranian column, drew a gesture from Tony. When he saw Peace nod in agreement, the two Seals made for the rocky island. With the Iranian army over a mile away, Peace and Tony hurriedly tied their horses, and hobbled them. Climbing the nearly two hundred foot high escarpment with their equipment took them precious minutes they could ill afford. Growing dust clouds, coupled with the cacophony of nearly a hundred diesel engines, spurred the Seals on to complete their deadly preparations. Peace finished prepping his sniper rifle while Tony began sighting in the front line of the retreat.

  “How’s it look?” Peace asked, settling in next to Tony.

  “Like we need a bigger boat,” Tony replied, as he began calling out targets to his friend. “It looks like the tank guys think they can ride out in the open.”

  Peace squeezed off a round, reducing the head of the lead tank’s officer to pulp, taking down Tony’s first choice. Tony grunted in admiration as Peace fired rounds through the slits in the tank’s armor, bringing it to a halt. As the hatch opened on their victims’ tank, Peace executed the men he allowed to exit, including the wounded.

  “You’re mean, partner,” Tony whistled.

  “And then some,” Peace replied. “Next?”

  The Iranians had no idea where the sniper fire came from. The deadly missiles, raining down on every exposed target, slowed the column almost to a halt. Peace began shooting to wound, causing havoc in the ranks. Rescuers were shot, leaving the Iranian commanders with little choice but to ring the tanks around the growing body count strewn across the field of fire. Peace continued at every opportunity to fire into the tanks, with Tony’s precision guidance. The tank crews began firing wildly in every direction, hoping to hit their tormentors. Every officer, who exposed themselves in search of the sniper team grew a third eye. Soon, other teams arrived to rake the column from other directions.

  It became apparent they would be stalled indefinitely without some action. The tanks moved out in a protective spearhead formation, with the bulk of the army struggling to keep pace within the formation. Although Peace continued to hit exposed targets, it became clear the Iranians would not stop, and they drew nearer by the minute.

  “Think I should open up with the 60, Peace?” Tony asked.

  “Yea, we’ll go down where you can set it up, and you can have some fun for a while,” Peace replied, bundling up his rifle and pack. “We’re lucky we were up here. The other teams must be firing at them from right next to the column. We’ll have to hit and then move. It won’t take them long to zero in on us.”

  “With those old tanks,” Tony laughed, as they hurried out of their position. “We’d have to go stand in front of them.”

  The two Seals climbed down to where Tony had positioned his machine gun. By the time they readied the gun, the Iranian column rolled within a hundred yards of their nest. Tony opened up on the column with deadly effect. Peace had taken over the spotting duties, looking for openings in the retreating formation. Suddenly, Peace gripped Tony’s arm in a vise like grip, causing Tony to stop firing.

  “They’ve got Bull,” Peace said, grabbing up his MAC 10.

  A few seconds of searching brought into focus a squad of Iranian soldiers, dragging a bloodied Bull towards their tank column. Tony could see the Chief’s shirt was in rags, and his vest had been blown off. Bull went to his knees, and one of the guards kicked him viciously in the ribs as his comrades pulled the Seal stumbling to his feet. Tony looked back to ask Peace what he wanted to do; but Peace was already moving down the remainder of the slope.

  “Hey,” Tony called out, bringing Peace to a halt. “What do you want me to do?”

  “Wait until I get the Chief, and then give them something else to think of besides me. Don’t forget to change positions after you get their attention.”

  “Do you have any smoke grenades, Boss?”

  “Good thinking,” Peace replied, hurriedly checking his shoulder pack. He looked up and nodded. “Yea, I got three.”

  “Good luck.”

  “Keep the horses safe, pal. I don’t want to have to carry Bull any further than I have to,” Peace said, waving at Tony while hurrying on.

  Tony followed Peace’s progress, alternating between Bull, his captors, and the rapidly moving Peace. The Iranians were within twenty-five yards of their column when Peace caught up to them, executing the stunned Iranians with his MAC 10. The squad of soldiers died without ever knowing what had happened. Peace threw smoke grenades one after another into the tank column, causing plumes of colored smoke to blanket the area.

  Peace quickly looked over Bull’s wounds. The Chief’s back, and backs of his legs were lacerated. Blood oozed from numerous shrapnel wounds. Bull looked up groggily, his face a bloody mess from the beatings he had taken.

  “Well, I’ll… be damned… Wolvy? Is that you?” Bull rasped through broken teeth, a bloody froth bubbling out between his lips.

  “It’s me, partner,” Peace confirmed, shifting down, and under the Chief’s bulk. “Climb aboard. Your horsey’s ready. You saw to that.”

  “Wait
… I… got to kill me… some Iries,” Bull said haltingly, as he tried to get to his feet.

  “Save your strength, you knucklehead,” Peace ordered. “Now get aboard before Tony blankets the area with his M60.”

  Bull clutched Peace around the chest as Peace kept his MAC10 at the front. When he had Bull firmly in place he began to zig-zag towards Tony’s last position. Just as he heard shouting behind him, and shots ringing out, Tony opened up with his M60. Peace smiled grimly, hearing the screams of dead and dying enemy soldiers. Just as the tanks began firing wildly through the smoke, the M60 stopped firing.

  “Tony… held it just right…” Bull gasped out, clenching his teeth against the pain of his wounds. “Another few… seconds… and they’d have had him.”

  “Tony thinks they can’t hit the broad side of a barn with those old Russian tanks,” Peace said, breathing evenly as he concentrated on the terrain ahead of him.

  “They got me… and Ibrim.”

  “Tell me about it… when I get you back to where Tony is,” Peace replied haltingly, his voice jumping as he jogged along.

  “We… were… too close.”

  “Ya think?”

  Tony met them, leading the horses at a fast paced run. “Hey Chief, what’s up?”

  “The usual… Tone,” Bull replied, gritting his already damaged teeth as Peace and Tony lifted him up into the saddle.

  Peace stopped, listening intently, and then he pulled himself up behind Tony, who had already mounted. “We have to get moving. The Air Force is here.”

  “How…” Tony began, just as the whisper of death passed over the area in the form of Stealth fighters. “Oh, shit!”

  Chapter Forty-Nine

  Casualties

  The massive explosions in the midst of the Iranian ground force nearly threw the Seals off their mounts. Peace grabbed Bull to keep him from falling sideways off his horse, as the creature stomped nervously. Bull held onto the saddle horn with a death grip as Tony urged his mount away from the tank column, with Peace pulling the reins of Bull’s horse to get it to follow. They heard the helicopter gunships arrive shortly after. The Seals halted only when they had the slope of their former position between them and the column.