“If you are not designated to a team, you are just men on the ground, you will be clearing a path to the cells ahead of Liz and I. If you see someone being held anywhere other than the cells, get them out. Leave no prisoner behind. Understood?”
“Yes, Sir,” the team says in unison.
He glances over to Liz who is watching him prepare their team. She may be proud and appreciate how he stepped up, but she hates herself for knowing someone else should be standing where he is, giving those orders. Alex walks to the back of the plane, pushing a big red button on the wall. The door behind them slowly falls open, filling the room with deafening winds. Everyone stands, forming two lines, ready to hurl themselves into the air.
“Riley is down there. He has saved every one of our asses more times than we can count. Right now, finding him is our top priority. The general doesn’t know we are here, so let’s keep it that way.We get in, get what we’re here for, and get the hell out,” Alex shouts over the wind whipping through the cabin of the plane. “You know your roles, don’t fuck it up. Let’s bring our boy home,” he says, giving Liz a sad smile.
The wind is near deafening when Liz approaches the edge of the ramp. Nine people have jumped safely, but now that it is her turn, fear grips her and refuses to let go. This should not have been her first solo jump in action, the stakes are too high to not be strapped to someone more experienced. Any longer and she will be holding up the line, throwing off the flow of the whole mission.
Her eyes close and she takes a deep breath. Her toes balance on the edge, and with one powerful push, she is flying away from the plane and falling to the ground. The static line breaks free, opening her chute. She opens her eyes, seeing nothing but black and the red smoke signaling where to try and land.
With the few minutes she has before reaching the ground, Liz goes over the battle plan one last time. The moment she lands, she needs to get her chute harness off. Her gun comes out and stays up, even while she finds Alex and the handful of soldiers going ahead of them. It is a four-mile march to reach the perimeter of the camp. Luckily, it’s the middle of the night and no one knows they are coming.
Somehow, Mikey managed to secure the entire unit night vision goggles, making everything go smoother than they had originally planned. After an estimated four minutes, Liz pulls the goggles over her eyes, pushing the button to turn them on as she does.
The world below her illuminates into different shades of grey. Men and women on the ground scramble to find their teams and head off to their destination. Too busy spotting her team from the air, she miscalculates the landing. The air is thrown from her lungs as her body slams into the ground. She takes a few gasping breaths,trying to force oxygen back into her body while she fumbles with the straps. Embarrassed, she climbs to her feet and makes her way over to the huddle, pushing past her own feelings to focus on finding Riley. She sticks as close to Alex as she can, picking her path carefully, stepping as quietly as possible
It’s not long before they reach the river, where just across it lies Dmitri’s first camp, and somewhere inside is Riley. Gun over her head, she wades into the waist deep water, crossing just as Alex had demonstrated on the plane. The moment they are free of the trees, Liz sees the compound lit up in the distance.
“Hold positions. Everyone down.” Alex’s voice comes over the small com built into her helmet.
The team drops onto the ground in unison, waiting for their leader to give his next order. Liz peers at him as much as she is able through her goggles, watching intently as he looks through some type of binoculars. He reaches for his helmet, fumbling with a dial on the side before speaking again.
“Everyone hold. They have four men patrolling the front. Lauren, can you see them from your side?”
“Yep,” a confident voice replies.
“On three, we drop the ones on the right, then left,” Alex says, pulling the sniper rifle from where it has been perched on his back.
Liz watches in amazement as he pops out the attached bipod, holding the gun steady while he aims. He counts to three and releases two, simultaneous muffled shots. She can’t see if they hit their mark, but the following shots tell her they must have. They remain, holding their positions, inching their way forward, waiting to see if any reinforcements come after their downed men. Every step they take sends her heart racing. She knows she should not be doing this. It has barely been six months since she was rescued, and even she knows that’s not enough time to be doing what she is. It does not matter if shehas been training ten hours a day nearly every day for six months. It has taken the rest of them years to be doing what they are.
Finally, they make it to the scattered buildings surrounding the towering abandoned structure at the center of it all. She flips her goggles up and follows her team into the light, trying her best to follow orders and hang back, allowing them to do what they do best. That works for a while, staying behind and sweeping each building they pass as gunshots fill the air around them. Screams ring out from all directions and Liz ducks into the next door. A towering figure jumps out of the dark, running toward her, wielding a knife the length of her arm. A deafening crack explodes from her weapon, followed by a sickening gurgle from the man as he falls to the ground, blood pooling. Bile rises in her throat. She hunches over and vomits onto the floor, heaving to catch her breath.
Alex pulls her back, spinning her around so she is no longer looking at the man she just murdered. Liz didn't think she would have such a horrible reaction. She has killed men before, although each time was out of desperation.
“You’re okay, but we need to move. Now,” he says, guiding her out of the building. Her gun is back at attention, checking the rest of the buildings, shoving the image of the man and the way his eyes glazed over out of her mind, trying to replace it with one of Riley.
It feels like hours have passed when they reach the looming structure in the distance. An abandoned hospital, Alex had told her. Dmitri had the entire construction crew killed when the massive stone frame was complete. Bodies litter the ground around her as she walks next to Alex.
“All teams should be here by now. They are clearing the floors of hostiles. If they find him, they will tell us, but we need to keep looking until they do. You take the left, I’ll go right. Thisfloor should be safe, but keep your gun up no matter what,” he says into her helmet.
She gives a small nod, lifts her gun, and starts down the long hall, checking each room as she goes. Whatever team went through before her did one hell of a job.
“Floors two and three are clear,” a voice Liz doesn’t recognize says over the radio. “Headed to four. Seems like less and less the higher we get. I think we are almost completely clear.”
“Tunnels are also clear. We’re coming to you, Alex,” Mikey’s voice rings in her ears. Relief floods her until he speaks again. “Saw some guys come through the back on our way, so keep your eyes up.”
The soft crunch of footsteps sound from down the hall. Liz ducks into the next room, making sure it is empty before she presses her back to the wall, listening to a mix of people walking toward her.
It may be Mikey, but she is not willing to take any risks. They are running out of time, and hiding isn’t going to find Riley any faster. Liz takes a deep breath and steps into the hall, gun up and ready to fire. Her anxiety eases when she comes face to face with Mikey being trailed by two others she has yet to meet.
He gives a small nod, and they continue down the corridor, breaking off and searching each room on their own in an attempt to speed things up. She hears whispers when she steps into the next room. Unable to speak or signal for help, she proceeds on her own, cautiously stepping around fallen debris. The room is empty. Unable to shake the uneasy feeling, she goes to the open space where a window should be, ducking to stay hidden.
Tall bushes twisted in growing vines have had all the windows blocked from whatever is on the other side. Her blood runs cold. Whoever is out there isn’t speaking English, and they are most definitely notwith her.
Not thinking, she leaves the room, looking for a doorway that leads to where the men are. Three rooms down, she finds what she is searching for.
“I found a backdoor. There are a few men outside, but I can’t tell how many. I am going to check it out,” Liz announces.
