He hated that her voice shook as she spoke. This was just another day for him, but it had taken years of training to get to the point where this was normal. She was a desk jockey who didn’t run into dangerous situations.
“Good. We’re moving out now.”
“I’m outside the door,” Chase said.
Bean stepped out, turning to the left. He trusted Chase to watch his back, thus watching Garnet. The rest of the guys were looking for the one person left that they hadn’t found. The guy could be anywhere, even hiding in this area. Bean just hoped he could get Garnet out of the building safely.
“You coming out?” Stanley asked.
“We’re about fifty feet away from the exit,” Bean said.
“All’s quiet out here,” Link said.
They moved the last few feet down the hall, headed outside, and to Garnet’s freedom. She hadn’t been held long, but still, anything could have happened to her. He hoped she could get past this and move on.
The door was only a few steps ahead. Once outside, they would be in the open for about thirty yards before they made itto the trees. He was about to step out when Stanley sounded the alarm.
“Hold back. Four people moving closer.”
“I’m outside in the back,” Keel said. “I’ll check them out.”
Bean put his hand on Garnet’s shoulder. “We need to stay in here. Someone is blocking our exit.”
Fear flashed over her face, but she nodded, accepting that they were trapped inside. He wanted to comfort her, but he could do that later. For now, he had to make sure whoever was out there didn’t get inside. If they did, they sure as heck wouldn’t like that they were rescuing Garnet.
Chapter 8
Garnet still hadhold of the guy’s pack. He was talking to someone else, but she couldn’t hear them. She closed her eyes for a moment, trying to clear away the fear.
Focusing on her breathing helped. Normally, she was very level-headed. But this wasn’t a normal situation. Everything was wrong, and based on the layer of smoke on the ceiling, something was on fire. It wasn’t a huge fire, and the smoke might be from the earlier explosion. Still, there was fire somewhere close.
Coming to Beirut had been a mistake. She’d taken the request in stride, thinking it normal for her to be called in even when there were people on site who could take care of the issue. Nothing about her being called to help had been normal.
“I think there is a double agent in the embassy,” Garnet said.
The man helping her turned to face her. “What?”
“I shouldn’t have been requested to come to Beirut. Their usual tech employee could have done the job. Sure, it was intricate, and the level of difficulty was high, but I think they sabotaged the system.”
He nodded. “We’ll go over that in the chopper, before we land in Beirut. For now, we just have to focus on getting out.”
“If I don’t make it, I-I—” her voice cracked, and she felt tears building again as she talked about not making it out. “I need someone to know to look at the tech guy stationed in the Beirut embassy.”
The man pulled her close for a hug. She was surprised, but his arms around her felt good. She clung to him, hoping she had the chance to thank him.
“You’re going to make it out of here, Garnet. We’ll make sure you make it home.”
Her throat closed with emotions, and a strangled sob erupted from her lips. She had never been in a situation like this, and she didn’t like it. She was a computer nerd, not a fighter.
Gunfire erupted outside, and the man let go and turned to the door. She had to believe they could keep her safe, but all the gunfire scared the crap out of her, and she feared this would be how her life ended.
Bean was amazedthat Garnet was thinking of others while they were in the middle of heavy action. She understood the risks and the possibilities. They could be shot. The risk wasn’t zero, and she wasn’t wearing body armor. He kept himself between her and the door, but a stray bullet could pierce the walls.
Stanley kept them updated about everything happening outside. They’d taken down three of the four people approaching the building. It seemed like they were about to take down the fourth, then they could move out.
The other person who had been inside this building hadn’t been found. The rest of the team had cleared every room. Itbugged him that they’d only found three people. That left one person still out there.
He hoped Garnet had gotten a good look because they would need them to be described in depth.
