“No such video exists—” the general is cut off by Liz, growing more inpatient by the second.
“Then why do you look like you’ve been caught? If you have nothing to hide, you would have told me to release it, called mybluff, but you didn’t. Approve what Alex asked for, and we will be on our way. You can look like a hero when Riley returns home safe, or don’t, and the world will know you’re a traitor and a coward.”
“I will be keeping you all on a short leash.” he chokes out, reaching for the crumpled list of demands. “We will meet at the bunker before and after each mission. I will expect a full report the moment you return, and, since you are down a man, I have someone joining the unit.” he states, looking directly at Alex, clearly expecting him to nod dutifully and go along with whatever he says.
“With all due respect, sir, their home is off limits,” he says quickly, glancing over to Liz. Only able to put out one fire at a time, he continues, “We will come here for our meetings. That bunker belongs to Riley, and it is not my place to bring you there without him.”
“Fine,” the general says through gritted teeth. “If you insist on doing things here, I am going to insist on seeing you work here, too. You do not get to hide away, working from that hole, only setting foot on this base when you need something. You are soldiers for god’s sake. You may be a special operations unit with your own set of rules, but this is still your job!”
Alex gives him a slight nod and steps back into formation, placing his hands behind his back, waiting to be dismissed. The four of them exchange glances, unsure of what else is to be said. They did it, they got what they needed, and they are free to gather their resources and pile into the next plane to Russia.
“Now, who exactly is joining us? How much training do they have? I need to know everything about them before I can re-work the plans, and we can’t leave until I get that done.” The questions pour out of Tyler.
Liz steps away from the desk, striding back to Mikey’s side.Her anxiety spikes. There is no telling what she will do if she is not near someone who will stop her from ruining everything.
“I’m glad you asked,” he says with a sneer. “Matt, come in and meet your new team,” he shouts toward the door. Nausea rises as the handsome man standing outside strides in. This answers all the questions she had when she first saw him. If he is hand picked to join the team, there is no doubt in her mind he knows exactly what kind of man the general is. Now, this mystery man is on their team, and she is expected to just trust that he won’t kill her the first chance he gets.
“Meet Matthew Solano. He just returned from a mission along the border of Kazakhstan and Russia. He has outgrown his current unit, and I believe he will make a good addition to this one. Matt will be an asset to you, and you will show him the same respect you have shown Riley’s little stray,” he says, sneering at Liz, smiling to himself as his insult lands.
Anticipating her next move, two strong arms wrap around her waist, pulling her back and pinning her against a hard body. Mikey leans down and whispers, “Think of Ry, darlin. If you do anything right now, he will back out.”
She relaxes slightly, furious how he’s right.
“That was uncalled for, sir,” Matt says, winking at Liz as he steps further into the room. “I think it’s honorable that she is so willing to fight to find her commanding officer. Especially after he publicly rejected her in front of all the men and women she now has to work with. That takes a strength not many have.”
Liz seethes at the backhanded compliment, ready to turn her anger on him. The loosened grip retightens. Mikey knew the moment her body went rigid things were about to turn explosive.
“Well, thanks for this. I’m going to take this one and start gathering supplies. Alex, text as soon as plans are set and we will meetyou on the runway.” With that, he pulls her out the door, steering her back down the hall before dropping his hands.
CHAPTER 3
While Alex and Tyler hang back to go over plans with the general, along with their newest addition to the team, Liz reluctantly agrees to stay with Mikey and gear up. Their first stop is the central issue facility to finally get her some gear that fits. Men and women cleanly march from one building to the next while jeeps whiz by. Everyone has a purpose they execute with a scary precision.
Her head drops, feeling out of place, so she resorts to watching her feet and the dust kicking up around them rather than all the people moving too close for comfort. A deep sadness settles on the long walk across the base. They both know Mikey should not be the one beside her, getting her ready for her first real mission.
When they reach the small brick building, Mikey pulls the door open, ushering Liz inside. The noise from the rest of the base fades away as they make their way deeper into the facility, nothing but squeaking shoes and the dull hum of an air conditioner to fill the silence. Rows of shelving are spaced along one section, holding all the clothing anyone could need, all a mix of blacks andcamouflage. On the far side is a wall of shoes with shelves upon shelves of various accessories.
“C’mon, we don’t have much to get. You need some real boots and a vest that fits. The rest of what you wear should be fine,” he says, guiding them toward the shoes waiting in the back. He begins looking through the boxes, trying to find her size.
“So, I don’t have to wear the army uniform?” she asks, picking through boxes to help speed up the process. The boxes thunk onto the discolored tiles as they start to pile up. Liz isn’t even sure what she is actually looking for, she just knows she needs shoes in her size.
“Nope. That’s one of the many perks in being in a super secret spec ops unit. It’s definitely unfair, but we can dress in whatever works for us, although that usually means black to stay hidden. Sometimes we need to be in full tactical gear, but not very often,” he says, picking a box and holding it above his head like a trophy.
Finally having what they were after, they make their way to the racks holding hundreds of kevlar vests. Finding a vest in her size goes much faster than the shoes. The third one Mikey forces her to try on fits like a glove. He tosses it over his arm, tucks the shoe box into the crook of his elbow, and weaves through displays until they make it to the large desk in the middle of the room where a man waits.
“Hey, Ted. I’m snagging these for her,” Mikey says, nodding his head in Liz’s direction. “Just throw them on my account. Alex should have sent over his list of demands if you don’t mind getting everything together for us.”
Liz watches the man with caution even though he is fully engaged with Mikey. The man seems to only be in his late forties to early fifties with neatly cut grey hair and deep wrinkles around his eyes. He turns to walk away when she sees the prosthetic leg. Liz pulls her eyes away, hoping she wasn’t rude for noticing.
“He said we are in hangar two. If you could get someone to deliver everything there, I would really appreciate it.”
Ted stays silent, giving Mikey nothing more than a nod before walking off, list in hand. A sharp chirp rings out from Mikey’s pocket. He slides out his phone and checks the message, not bothering to reply before stuffing it back into his pants. They leave Liz’s new gear on the desk and step back out into the controlled chaos outside.
“The guys are done, and apparently Scott had some info he was holding onto that helped pinpoint where Ry is being held. We have just over an hour until we can gear up,” he says, guiding her once again through the endless stream of people and vehicles roving around. “We don’t have time to go back home. Are you good at eating in the mess hall? Ty and Alex will meet us.”
Her shoulders drop at the thought of being around so many strangers. Despite everything, she still gets nervous around crowds, especially when she does not know anyone or their intentions.
“Yeah, that’s fine. Honestly, though, I don’t think I’ll be able to eat anything.”
