I focus through the scope and take a look at the hostage.He’s about five-ten, with dark hair and an olive complexion. My gut twists and I see Abba in my eyes.
Focus! Focus, Maya. This is why you do this.
"No clean shot," Sierra says through the comms.
I look again.
"I have a shot, but it will be close," I say, my voice tight. Clearing my throat, I try again. "Captain, I have a tight shot."
"Sierra, how about you?"
"Negative, sir. I don't know what she sees, but she's wrong. There is no clean shot."
That’s twice he’s identified me as a female over the comms, and everyone is silent, waiting for the hammer to drop.
"Sierra, Team One, please remember your radio protocols."
"Captain, Bravo has no shot!" he grits out.
I can hear his teeth clenching over the comms, and I wait and hope.
The hostage-taker hits the hostage in the side of the face with the gun. My vision blurs and I'm taken back. The anger, the pain, and the distance all swell. I will kill him.
"Captain, this is Victor, Team Two, Bravo has a shot," Derek says in frustration.
"Team One, disengage. Bravo, you are now Sierra, Team Two. Prepare."
"Yes, sir." I control my breathing. Three big breaths and I let it all out, then I squeeze the trigger and watch.
Duncan
I turnas I hear the order given and watch the hostage-taker’s head explode in a fine pink mist of blood and brain matter.
"Who the bloody hell took that shot?" I yell at the captain.
"My sniper!"
That was an impossible shot for a military-trained marksman. I don't know at what distance she was, but I do know it was a lass. When I pulled up earlier to offer my assistance, I saw the smaller person with the group, but I never would have pegged her as a woman.
The ERT entry team clears the area, and I watch as Raul walks out among the hostages and right up to me. The hostages are being checked over. Emergency personnel are treating the one who was held at gunpoint; his shoulder was nicked by the sniper’s bullet.
After about twenty minutes the team's transport pulls up. They tried to push me back behind the barriers again, but because of Raul I got to stay close by. I can't get close enough to the officers, so I watch from our SUV.
"Sierra and Echo, Team Two, head back to the precinct to give your reports, then you're off for the mandatory twenty-four hours. Bravo and Victor, Team One, reports and then my office. I want to know why you changed your position," the captain demands.
"Hey, Williams, drinks at Murphy's later? Bring Aaron," one of the team members asks the tall figure with the woman as they prepare to load up into another transport.
I want to see what she looks like. I want to ask her about the shot. Something keeps me fixated on her. She turns and her eyes immediately focus on me. My body tingles and I'minstantly hard. I know it's been a while, but I can't even see this woman's body.
"Hey, Aaron, awesome shot." Another team member thumps her on the back and her eyes soften behind the balaclava. "What was that, like seven hundred yards?"
"Something like that." Her voice is muffled.
I make the decision then and turn to find a cab, leaving the SUV for Raul.
"See you back at the hotel, Raul." I sprint off toward the perimeter, not waiting for his response.
An hourand a half later I'm about to change my mind when the loud pipes of a Harley draws my attention to the parking lot. I watch as a sleek, black V-Rod motorcycle pulls up. The rider swings off the bike and I watch, my eyes bulging with each reveal.
