“How’re you doin’?” Saxon asked Rick softly. He didn’t want everyone listening. He wouldn’t embarrass Rick by letting the others know his guy struggled with the revelations Noble and Max had just laid out for them. But he also wouldn’t let Rick off the damn plane if his head wasn’t in the right space. He’d give Noble a heads up to keep him grounded if he had to. If Rick got hurt… His pulse jumped, and adrenaline rushed into his system as if he’d been given five seconds to disarm a bomb on its final countdown. Nope, he needed to know what Rick had to say.
Rick scratched his forehead between his eyes. “Kinda fucked to find out my family hated me that bad.”
He could practically see Rick mentally slide a bar of mental steel down his spine. “Yeah,” Saxon nudged his side. “Remember what we said this morning?”
Rick reached for his go-bag and the rag and oil he had stashed there for cleaning weapons. “I do.”
“Good, don’t forget it.”
It was a good thing breaking down a gun was second nature. Rick’s eyes had the weirdest film blurring them. Bah, no feelings allowed. Not right now. “As long as you don’t?”
“Deal.”
All around them team members spoke softly. Flicked through screens and maps. Going over plans, learning what routes they could take. It all felt so fucking normal. Mission Flight 101. Only time would tell if this mission would go to hell in a hand basket like the rest of his life appeared to be doing. He shoved it all aside. Damn it. He began reciting in his head the one thing guaranteed to slam the warrior that lived inside him back to the front of his brain. The Navy SEAL Ethos. Maybe, just maybe with his background and his brothers in arms to ground his soul, by the time this plane was on the ground, he would be ready for battle.
I will never quit. I persevere and thrive on adversity. My Nation expects me to be physically harder and mentally stronger than my enemies. If knocked down, I will get back up, every time. I will draw on every remaining ounce of strength to protect my teammates and to accomplish our mission. I am never out of the fight.
We demand discipline. We expect innovation. The lives of my teammates and the success of our mission depend on me--my technical skill, tactical proficiency, and attention to detail. My training is never complete.
We train for war and fight to win. I stand ready to bring the full spectrum of combat power to bear in order to achieve my mission and the goals established by my country. The execution of my duties will be swift and violent when required yet guided by the very principles that I serve to defend.
Brave SEALs have fought and died building the proud tradition and feared reputation that I am bound to uphold. In the worst of conditions, the legacy of my teammates steadies my resolve and silently guides my every deed. I will not fail.
Chapter Fifteen
North of Peshawar, Pakistan
Billows of dustrose behind the two trucks as they sped along the off-grid track through southern Afghanistan. The closer they got to their target location, the more Rick understood why Noble had been reluctant to bring him with them.The legacy of my teammates steadies my resolve and silently guides my every deed. I will not fail. The words gave him the strength to focus. However, stuffing his mental crap into the box in his head was kinda hard when that mental box was already full to the brim. “This damn place never changes.”
“Kabul has.” Saxon told him. “They have Starbucks these days.”
“I rarely made it to the green zone.” Rick couldn’t tell him much about the missions he had done. But places, locations, and similar stuff, those he could talk about. They both could. “The border is just up ahead.”
“You worked here a lot?”
“Recon, intelligence, and surveillance,” Rick grinned at him. “Kinda stupid for my father to arrange a drop in an area I know as well as I do the backyard I grew up in.”
“Probably better,” Drax snorted. “When was the last time you saw that backyard?”
“Fifteen years ago, next Christmas.”
“I can’t see what’s up ahead with those low-lying clouds.” Zenko turned his arm so Noble could see the screen without taking his eyes off the road.
“Call TOC. Tell him to fix this shit.” A bump in the road made the truck bounce and jerk, and Noble’s head hit off the driver-side door. “Ow.”
“Yes, Sir.” Zenko replied. He pressed the button and called Max on the coms unit. “TOC, Ambra One, we keep losing visual behind those clouds, switch over to radar.” He listened for a second, before swearing softly, “Fuck.”
“Don’t say fuck to me, Zen, tell me what’s happening.”
“Boss, TOC is having issues with the radar.”
“Can we wait ‘til the clouds shift?” Saxon placed his hand against the roof to avoid being thrown forward when Noble gunned the truck over a small gully that crossed the road.
“No if we deviate or change from the plan, we might miss the drop.” Zenko replied. “The window is tight.”
“I was afraid of that.”
The satellite feed on the computer Zenko held blinked a couple of times before the swirling circle of death appeared on the screen.
