Sarah put her bags of groceries into the back of her mini cruiser and slammed the trunk shut. Spaghetti squash with tofu meatballs sounded amazing for dinner tonight. The vine-ripened tomatoes and fresh basil she’d grabbed would make a quick and easy sauce. She’d open a bottle of vino and be all set for the night.
Although she preferred shopping at the local farmer’s market, it was only open on the weekends. Still, it was a sacrifice she’d been willing to make for a fun weekend at the beach. Relaxing on the sand yesterday with Morgan had been just what she’d needed—never mind that Morgan had laughed at her for slathering on SPF 55 sunscreen and bringing the biggest umbrella on the beach.
She drove home, pulling into the driveway of her townhouse. Ivy climbed up the wrought-iron trellis she’d put near the steps, and the day lilies bloomed from the flower bed beside it. She’d love a huge yard someday where she could plant tons of flowers and a vegetable garden, but this suited her for now.
It had been a busy day at work, but she loved all the patients she had. Watching the progress some of her kids had made always left her feeling proud.
Her cell phone buzzed as she was carrying her groceries in, and she set her bags down on the counter. As she pulled her phone from her hobo bag, she was surprised to see Rebecca’s name flash across the screen as a missed call.
“Hey! What’s up?” she said when Rebecca answered. “I’m just carrying groceries in.”
“Hey Sarah, I’m so sorry to be calling like this. I was wondering if you could watch the kids tonight?”
“Oh, sure. I can come over. Is everything okay?”
“Alison’s in labor. Evan left this afternoon with the rest of the team—”
“They left?” Sarah asked, pausing. So much for her plan to call Patrick tonight. But they couldn’t really be going after the missing American woman, could they? It had just been on the news this morning. Certainly things like that required planning and preparation. Maybe the team could deploy quickly, but as for actually carrying out a mission? That had to require time.
Still, it would be too much of a coincidence if they deployed today, wouldn’t it?
“They left this afternoon. You know those guys have no warning when they need to deploy. And Alison’s a few weeks early. I guess she was on her feet a lot today in the ER and went into early labor.”
“Oh no. Hopefully they can stop her labor from progressing. Is she at the hospital now?”
“Never even left,” Rebecca said.
“I guess that’s one advantage of working in the ER. Will they send Evan home?”
“Not for something like this I’m afraid—they can’t turn around the plane carrying the entire SEAL team. I can’t even get a hold of Patrick. I spoke with Commander Mitchell, and he’ll get word to Patrick when they land. It will be up to him as to when he tells Evan though—I mean it could very well turn out to be nothing if they can get Alison’s labor to stop. And distractions on the mission can be dangerous to everyone.”
“Of course. I can come over and watch Logan and Abby for you if you want to go be with Alison. I’m sure she’s freaking out right about now. Are you at your house or Patrick’s?”
“Patrick’s.”
“It’ll be at least an hour with traffic, but I’m on my way.”
“I know. And thanks. I really appreciate it!”
The two women disconnected the call, and Sarah looked around her kitchen. She’d put her groceries away. Pack an overnight bag. Then head back the way she’d come less than 24 hours ago.
A knot formed in the bottom of her stomach. Something about this entire thing felt off.
***
Ryan took a sip of the scalding hot coffee at 0300 and rubbed his eyes. Moving this entire operation up was a big fucking mistake. Because the Delta team was there ahead of time, the Pentagon was insisting on moving up the timeline for the mission. As soon as his SEAL team had landed, they’d hopped in an armored convoy to their forward-operating base and geared up to go rather than waiting until the following night.
A middle-of-the night assault would catch the enemy off guard, but hell.
His men needed time to assess the situation and plan accordingly. To go over it all with the men from Delta. To catch a couple hours of shut-eye. Nothing like a fourteen-hour flight to the Middle East and then immediately charging in, guns blazing.
Shit.
He watched the massive screen in front of him as the men strapped on their gear. He was like a goddamn fly on the wall with the sophisticated comms they had. He could hear every word and watch nearly every move they made via the feed from the headsets.
“You checked the coordinates, Flip?” Patrick asked, calling Evan by his nickname.
“Yep, programmed right into everyone’s GPS. We’ve pinpointed the hut the American woman is suspected to be held hostage in within a matter of inches.”
“Good. We can’t leave a damn thing to chance. There’s been a lot of movement around the camp today, and SecDef is worried the insurgents know how valuable their hostage is. He could just be projecting, but recent chatter indicated they were raising the ransom to $100 million.”
“It’s on the news,” Christopher said, walking over in his flak vest and gear. He rested his HK416 assault rifle on the table spread with maps.
“Shit, already?” Evan asked.
“All over fucking CNN,” Patrick confirmed. “They ran a story this morning saying an American woman is being held hostage, but it’s been nonstop coverage all day.”
“Guess we know why they moved up this rodeo,” Matthew drawled, adjusting his headset. He shucked his flak vest on, glancing down at the maps.
“They said a rescue mission is underway,” Christopher confirmed, adjusting his gear.
“Damn it,” Matthew said.
“Is Delta team on their way?” Ryan asked into the headset. “They flew in earlier than you and should be ready to roll out.”
“Affirmative. They’re gearing up and will be here in five for a last-minute debrief.”
“Let’s get this fucking show on the road,” Brent said, eyes blazing. “Every minute we waste is another minute harm could come to the hostage.”
Ryan pressed his lips together. Every man on the team knew how precarious the situation was. Any woman taken hostage would be in danger. If the insurgents had ascertained she was a high-value asset, it could either work to her advantage or work against her. Connections to Washington could possibly buy her time as they demanded more from the Pentagon. But it could also put her in greater danger. Make them quicker to pull the trigger or cause her harm if their demands weren’t immediately met.
“Is everyone clear on their roles?” Ryan asked. “Cobra and Gator will sweep the perimeter,” he said, referring to Brent and Matthew. “I want Flip and Blade on the inside. And Patch is with Ice in retrieving the hostage in case immediate medical attention is required.”
“Roger that,” Patrick said coolly into the headset. “Patch, you have all the medic gear?”
“Roger.”
Another group of men came into the room, decked out in most of their tactical gear. Ryan recognized Hunter “Hook” Murdock, the hardened man who led SEAL team Delta. Some of the men on Ryan’s Alpha SEAL team knew Colton from the Delta team and shook hands, and introductions were made to the rest of the men.
“The Alpha team will be sweeping in from the mountains,” Patrick said, pointing to the map. “We believe the hostage is being held right here.”
“We’ll be infiltrating the camp from the opposite side,” Hunter said, his voice deep.
“Hell yeah, we’re our own desert storm!” one of the men shouted.
There were a few grunts of affirmation before Hunter continued. “C-4 and I will head for the hostage in case something goes wrong on your end. The other men will be back-up as we sweep through the camp.”
“If everything goes FUBAR, head for the mountains,” Ryan said. “We’ll track your coordinates via GPS. Black Hawks will be sent in after you hunker down. Priority number one is rescue of the American woman.”
“Any updates on her condition?” Mike asked.
“Negative. Sat images haven’t shown her leaving the tent, but it’s still being guarded 24/7. Drones showed someone entering earlier, possibly bringing food or water. It doesn’t seem like they’re letting anyone near her.”
“Maybe that’s a good thing,” Hunter glowered.
“Hell, I’ll carry her out myself if I goddamn have to,” Patrick said, his voice steel.
“There’s no fucking way we’re leaving without her,” Brent said.
“Roger that,” Hunter spat out. “This shit is ending tonight.”
“The SITREP from 1900 indicated movement of some of the vehicles around the camp. Several are lined up by the perimeter. It’s possible they’re prepping to move out in the morning. We grab her tonight,” Ryan said.
“Understood,” Patrick said.
“Roger that,” the others agreed.
The two teams parted ways, with Patrick leading his team into a waiting Black Hawk. The feed turned grainy as Ryan watched the video through the night vision. The guys jumped into the helo one by one, helmets and headsets on, assault rifles in their hands. Good God there was a lot hanging on this op. Retrieval of the hostage, for one, but pressure from Washington loomed over their heads as well. The Senator wouldn’t be pleased if they fucked up and weren’t able to rescue his daughter. If any harm befell her. No one knew what condition she was in or how she’d been treated during captivity. And with orders sent down from the top to conduct the rescue mission, the weight fell squarely on Ryan’s shoulders.
It was going to be a damn long night.