Chapter Three
Aden
I felt steadier by the time the briefing rolled around. My flirty nature was in full effect as I chatted with Staff Sergeant Rory Shipmond and Sergeant First Class Kali Adler. They were the other two members of Delta Squad taking part in the mission.
“We leave to go down to Brazil at zero five hundred tomorrow.” Rory said.
“Oh, go down, huh?” I said with a wink. “I’ve heard that’s your favorite thing to do.”
“Bare it and we’ll share it,” he shot back.
“Oh, right here in the conference room? You want me to whip out my cock and let you suck me off right here?”
“Yeah, do it.”
“No thanks, I don’t want to get court-martialed over a blow job,” I said and leaned back on the back legs of my chair.
“Get court-martialed for what exactly?” Captain Mayfield asked as he came through the door.
“Rory and Aden are going to blow each other on the conference table,” Kali said flatly.
“That’s enough of that,” Captain Mayfield said bluntly. “We’ve got a dangerous mission to complete, and the last thing I need is my men thinking with their cocks.”
“I think you’d benefit from us thinking that way,” I said before I could stop myself. “And might I add that your uniform fits you just right in all the right places. I think you could join us for a little celebration once the mission is over.”
“Cut it out,” Zane said, but I saw a hint of red in his cheeks. One side of his mouth twitched like he was about to smile, but he reined it in. “Don’t make me bring you up on insubordination charges,” he said sternly, but it was obvious the threat was hollow. “If you weren’t one of the best snipers that Delta had ever employed, I wouldn’t put up with your disrespectful ass.” That time he barely contained his smile. “Now, put those chair legs on the floor and sit like a soldier. Attention.”
At that, we all sat up straight and saluted. I may have pushed it over the line a little too much, but at least I almost got Zane to smile. That was something I’d never seen anyone else do before. He was normally the most buttoned-up, formal soldier I’d ever met. The rest of us told constant dirty jokes, but not Zane.
I opened my dossier folder and took a second look. I couldn’t believe we were going to Brazil. Sure, the mission was dangerous and we could possibly die, but if we didn’t, I was busy imagining taking a couple of days of R&R in the sun as a celebration.
“Okay, listen up,” Zane said, and I closed the folder. “We’re going to Parati, Brazil. It’s a small tourist town that is both very beautiful and now home to one of the most dangerous drug cartels in the world. Javier Mendez, the ringleader of the White Snake Cartel, lives in an old colonial plantation just outside of town. There is a barn and a warehouse on the property that have been converted for use as a drug production and distribution center. The cartel specializes in the production and sale of heroin and black-market hormone enhancers and suppressors. The hormone drugs are illegal in many places, and they are definitely illegal in Brazil.”
“Sir.” Rory’s hand shot up.
“Yes, Staff Sergeant. Go ahead.”
“The hormone drugs are legal in our country now, aren’t they?”
“They are,” Zane said. “But those types of medication require a prescription. I don’t see Javier’s men checking for a doctor’s note before they sell that stuff to confused kids, and the heroin is still very much illegal.”
“Sir.” Kali’s hand went up.
“Go ahead.”
“Is it just the four of us?”
“Yes,” Zane said. “There is an issue with the plantation, and the mission has to be handled delicately. The barn and warehouse are used for the drug business, but Javier has a family. There are no less than eight children who live on the property, and the government does not want them harmed. Javier’s wife and mother also live there. We would like to protect them if we can as well. As far as the government is concerned, the children are innocent and cannot become collateral damage. Is that understood?”
“Yes, sir,” the three of us responded in unison.
I can’t lie and say that our mission to capture a man who supplied the drugs I used didn’t make me nervous or upset. I think Zane noticed the distress on my face. He patted me affectionately on the back on the way out of the conference room, but thankfully he didn’t ask me about what was on my mind. I doubt I would have been able to lie to him.
Once I got back to my bunk, I started packing for our mission. I needed to get my pills into my bag while no one was around. I kept them in a vitamin bottle, but I still didn’t want anyone seeing the bottles. It was just better if I didn’t give anyone a reason to go snooping.
I grabbed both bottles, and my stomach dropped. I thought I had one partial and one full bottle, but to my dismay, the second bottle was empty. I’d completely forgotten that it was used up. I’d allowed myself to get too distracted. I only had a few pills left.
It was a good thing we had a long flight ahead of us because I sat up all night staring at my phone. My dealer wasn’t getting back to me, and by morning I knew I was screwed. My only hope would be if I could grab some suppressants when we took Javier into custody. The thought of stealing the drugs made me sick to my stomach. That’s not who I was, but what was I supposed to do?
I rubbed my tired eyes with the backs of my hands and prayed to the goddess that half doses of my pills would keep me out of heat until the mission was over. Things did not look good for my military career.