“I’m not running this out of my hospital room.” Troy opened the door. “Tim, make sure they have enough bodies to treat the wounded. If they do, tac uniform. Trask, same for you. Ian, would you accompany me to Gavin Anderson’s room?”
“Yes, Mr. Minor, it was a drone. I put two into it. I saw it dropping beyond our cement roadway divider east of Tower 1. We’ve got two, and Oscar has two critical. Um, got to go. Mr. Chase and Bremen are walking in my door,” Gavin Anderson said into the phone.
“Mr. Bremen, I blew it. I’m sorry.” Gavin groaned as he tried to sit up taller.
“First, what are the doctors saying about you?” Troy always focused on his personnel first.
“Surgery, but I’m stable. They’re running antibiotics, and when the other guys are stable, it will be my turn.”
“Walk me through.” Troy pulled up a chair.
“Ms. North put in a request for an escort.” He explained what Gwen told her about Will Cook. “Mr. Brennan hand-signaled she was in charge. We walked out to Major Cook’s vehicle, a large Chevy sedan. It was odd; Ms. North suddenly slowed her pace.
“Cook popped the trunk. I saw a shadow approaching—a drone. As I said that, Cook flung Ms. North into the trunk. The drone sprayed fire at the trunk, while Broderick and Yang threw themselves toward the car. I shot and dropped the drone. Drew and Engel moved to protect Mr. Brennan. A second man shot Mr. Brennan, Drew and Engel. The man grabbed Mr. Brennan and threw him across the back seat. Because of Ms. North and Mr. Brennan, I didn’t take aim at the car, but as Cook shot me, I got him in the left flank. He got into the passenger seat, and the second man pulled out.”
Troy pressed his lips together. “Dante Olivetti will be down here to assist you with calls to your family. He will also assist you in making calls to Engel’s and Yang’s families. We have assistance policies that he will explain to the families. He will also take your full statement once more. I want you to stop beating yourself up. You did well out there. See you later.”
Troy stopped and pinched his brow. “Next stop, my office.”
Chapter 38
Gwen estimated they’d driven an hour when they came to a stop after driving over bumpy pavement. A man dressed all in black and wearing a black balaclava pulled her out of the trunk by wrenching her elbow behind her back. Adjusting her eyes to the sunlight and her legs to support her, she saw a MATV, an all-terrain vehicle. Kip sat propped up against one of the tires.
“Oh my God, Kip,” she called, slipping free from her captor and running toward her injured boss. The sound of guns being racked came from behind her.
“Don’t shoot her yet. She has intel. Shoot him,” a familiar voice followed her.
Gwen threw herself in front of Kip. “You hurt him more, I’ll never tell you what you want.” She rotated her body to face Kip. “How bad?” she whispered.
“Through and through. Will’s friend is a pussy of a shot,” Kip whispered in return.
Gwen undid Kip’s tie and ripped his shirt sleeve. Carefully she swiped away any threads in the wound and bandaged the wound that was just below the shoulder.
“Gwen,” Kip called the warning.
Another man, dressed as the previous, grabbed her by her hair and pulled her to her feet. “That’s enough, Gwenny. We need to get moving, or we can return to the old days. Do you still give great blow jobs?”
“Not to you, you piece of shit.” She kneed him in the balls.
“Your last warning, whore.” Will, holding his side with his left hand, struck her with a closed fist against her cheek.
Her head turned, and bloody spittle exploded from her mouth. She careened to the floor. Two men yanked Kip to his feet and pushed him inside the ATV.
“Gwenny, get in.” Will reached over her, yanked her to her feet and shoved her in beside Kip. A man with a Glock sat on either side of them.
“How are you doing?” Kip looked at her rapidly swelling face.
“Pissed,” she said. “Do you know a good dentist?” She spit a piece of tooth at the captor beside her.
Will sat facing them. “After all you’ve been through, you’re still beautiful. Well, before you fucked up again. But we know bruises heal, don’t we, baby?”
“And you’re a bigger piece of shit than I thought you were,” she huffed, her speech heavy from the facial swelling.
“Ah, Gwenny, I guess you don’t remember what happens when you speak that way to me.” Will leaned closer to her.
“No, I remember, but it doesn’t matter anymore. I have a question for you. What did I do for you to hate me so much you sold me to ISIS? And when I didn’t die, you aided ISIS in trading me to the CIA? What did I have?”
“My poor Gwenny. You’re having trouble figuring out reality from fantasy. You were held by ISIS,” he soothed. “The Israelis found you and brought you home to us.”
