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HAILEY BLINKED IN SURPRISE when she woke up, staring at the bright lights above her. Her head hurt and her ribs throbbed, and she realized that she was in a hospital room. There was an IV in her arm, some sort of bandage wrapped around her ribs, and probably stitches in her forehead, judging from the way her skin felt tight and uncomfortable.
“How are you feeling, Ms. Fletcher?” a military nurse asked in a no-nonsense tone, walking over to her with her chart in hand.
Hailey looked over at the woman in scrubs. “My forehead hurts. And my side.” She looked down, realizing she was in a hospital gown. When had they changed her out of her clothes? She barely remembered anything that had happened tonight, aside from Grayson.
Grayson.
Somehow he’d found her in that building. He’d picked her up and carried her out of there like she weighed nothing at all. With the fire and smoke around them, she’d been terrified. Dazed from hitting her head, in pain from however she’d fallen and hurt her ribs. He hadn’t even seemed concerned—he’d just kicked her door aside and gotten them out. Then carried her the entire way out of the building.
“You needed ten stitches for your head wound, and you also fractured three ribs. We already did x-rays to check for additional broken bones. You’ve been here sleeping for several hours. What do you remember?”
“Not much about what happened,” Hailey admitted. “I’d just gone back to my room and was changing when I heard something crash outside. Then there was a loud explosion. The next thing I remember, Grayson was picking me up and carrying me out of my room. I don’t even know how he found me. He’d come running to search my building.”
“He brought you to the medics and gave them a brief rundown of your condition. You’re very lucky that he found you as quickly as he did. They’re still searching the building for the injured right now.”
“What’s going to happen?” she asked, wincing as she moved slightly.
“You’re being sent home,” the nurse said.
“Home?” Hailey asked, blinking at her in surprise.
“Medevac’d out. With your fractured ribs, you’ll need several weeks to recover. You won’t be able to sit at a desk and continue to work. It sounds like your year-long assignment is almost up anyway, and they’ve decided to send you home early.”
“Oh. Wow.” Conflicting thoughts danced through her mind. She was in so much pain at the moment, she knew she couldn’t concentrate on work even if she wanted to. And she was thrilled to get to go home and see her family and friends again. She’d have to stay with her parents temporarily since her things were in storage and she no longer had an apartment in Arlington, but she’d be moving out to California soon anyway. Now she could actually spend a little time at home first, and then maybe have more time to get settled out in San Diego before she started her new position.
“Will I go through Germany?” she asked. Hopefully they’d wait a day or two to transfer her. Grayson had said he’d come by tomorrow, and she wanted to see him, to thank him for saving her life.
“Yes, you’ll be flown out later in the morning with some of the others. The most severe were already medevac’s out.”
“In the morning? But I won’t be able to say goodbye to anyone.”
The nurse smiled sadly. “I’m sorry. A lot of patients are being moved out quickly because of the bombing. No one can live in your building right now, and there were a large number of injuries. It’ll be better for you to recover at home. You don’t need a lengthy hospital stay, but you do need your rest.”
“Of course,” she said. “I understand. Can I call a friend of mine on base? Is she allowed to visit?”
“Yes, you can have a visitor,” the nurse said, looking at the door. People were rushing by in the hallway, and Hailey wondered if there were a lot more victims of the bombing that were coming in.
“Okay,” Hailey said, breathing a sigh of relief. “I’ll call my friend Kim.” The nurse nodded, checking some of her vitals. Hailey’s heart suddenly began to pound as she thought about her friend. They lived in the same building. What if she’d been injured, too? Hailey hadn’t even considered that at first, she’d been too shocked at waking up in the hospital and learning she was being airlifted out.
“Let me administer your medicine first, and then you can make the call.”
“Can I make sure she’s not here in the hospital? Kimberly Turner. She lives in the same building—I wasn’t even thinking, but she could’ve been hurt also. She won’t have to come visit me if she’s already here. Oh my God, I hope she’s okay.”
“I’ll check. Let me just put this into your IV. It’s a pain reliever, and you’re due for your next dose.”
“Okay. What time is it anyway?”
“Four a.m. You’ve been asleep for several hours. I know you’ve been through quite a lot, so it’s good that you got some rest so that your body can begin to heal. We’ve wrapped your ribs a bit, as you probably noticed. They’ll take the stitches out of your head wound either in Germany or back in the States. I’m guessing they won’t keep you long in Landstuhl, so it will most likely be when you’re back home.”
“Okay.”
Hailey’s mind was a whirl. The past twelve hours or so had been crazy. She’d gotten off for the day, gone to the cafeteria for dinner, met Grayson.
Grayson.
Goodness.
He’d said he was busy tomorrow. Well, today now. Was he going off on some type of mission? Not that she had the clearance to know. She hoped he’d be safe though. What would he think when he came back to check on her and she was gone?
The thought made her heart pound.
Clearly, he had a million things on his mind that didn’t involve her, but she had the feeling he’d come check on her since he’d said exactly that. Especially after he’d gone into a burning building to rescue her. And she wouldn’t be here. Should she leave him a note or something? That seemed silly. He wasn’t her boyfriend or anything—she hardly even knew him.
Hailey had been terrified last night though, and he’d held her so carefully as he’d carried her out. Grayson had helped her not once yesterday, but twice. She’d be a fool to ignore the chemistry that had been sizzling between them. Maybe it was presumptuous of her to write him a note. He could just have felt obligated to say he’d check up on her.
Blowing out a sigh, she looked over at her monitor.
She was lucky to be alive. The fact that a hunky military man had come to her rescue made her heart pound, but the reality was, they lived in different worlds. They led different lives. She’d write him a note to thank him, but she wouldn’t expect anything after that. Maybe she was moving to California, but she couldn’t really expect anything to happen.
He may not have admitted it, but she was certain he was Special Forces. He had missions to go on, other people to save. Just because he’d wanted to have dinner together didn’t mean something would come of it. And she needed to get better. To check on her friend Kim. And then fly home and move on with her life.
***
GRAYSON DROPPED TO the ground at oh six hundred, crouching by the Humvee for surveillance before they stormed into the village. Blake spat on the ground beside him, cursing as they saw women and children gathered near the first house. Their team was a good distance away, ready to roll in, but again, it almost seemed like the enemy knew they were coming.
How else could they explain the fact that children were up and outside at dawn?
The villagers knew the U.S. forces wouldn’t harm innocent civilians, which made the fact that Sayed was hiding in the village all the more frustrating. He thought nothing of harming Americans, but he also seemed to care little about his fellow Afghanis. He was probably hiding amongst them, forcing the joint forces to search every home.
The first Army Ranger platoon assigned to the mission began to roll into the village, their large trucks and Humvees rumbling through. They’d go in first to secure the streets, and then Grayson’s team of SEALs would begin moving door to door, near where intelligence had most likely indicated Sayed to be.
The other Ranger platoon would begin searching the opposite side of the village, methodically moving door to door as they sought out the enemy.
If all went well, they’d be bringing Sayed in for interrogation. Another leader would always spring up after his capture, but the crippling of the enemy’s leadership would go a long way in protecting U.S. forces in the meantime.
Ethan walked over, swinging his rifle back around in front of him. “They knew we were coming.”
Blake grunted. “It sure the fuck seems that way. The general has bigger problems than Sayed if there’s a goddamn mole on base.”
Troy spoke over their headsets from the second Humvee. “What’s the word? Are we ready to roll in? The Army platoon on the other side of the village is in position and ready.”
“Affirmative. We’ll search every house, but the women and children aren’t to be harmed. Don’t shoot anywhere near them unless your own life is in danger.”
The men all responded affirmatively.
No one liked dealing with villages like this—there were too many unknowns. The insurgents’ camps at least let them know who they were up against. No one felt guilty about putting a bullet between the eyes of a terrorist, but this?
They protected the innocent, and having women and children used as human shields was unconscionable.
“Get into position,” Blake ordered.
The rest of their SEAL team jumped out of the second Humvee, the drivers ready to move forward along with the men as they searched the village. Blake spoke briefly with the Army platoon officer, readying to move in at the same time.
The villagers of course knew they were here, but it’s not like they’d run in with their weapons blazing. Not when there were innocent bystanders everywhere.
Grayson gripped his rifle, already beginning to sweat under his body armor and helmet. It was hotter than hell here, even in the early morning.
“Let’s move in groups of three. Ghost and Everglades are with me.”
“And I’ll take point with our group,” Troy said.
“The Rangers are in position and ready,” the officer said over the headsets.
“Roger that,” Blake said. He looked over to his team and signaled them. “On my count. Three. Two. One. Move!”
The men began rushing forward, the platoon in the middle of the streets standing guard as the SEALs went door to door. Grayson pounded on the first door, ready to breach it before an elderly woman opened it.
Cursing under his breath, he brushed past her as the men moved inside. Two children were huddled on a bed, and a pregnant woman sat off to the side, watching them. Blake stood guard in the doorway, but as Grayson moved through, he realized there were no men inside the home. “Clear,” he said into his mic.
It might be a coincidence, but given that some villagers were waiting outside, it appeared they had warning.
The second house was no better—a mom with two kids, and a set of elderly grandparents. The team quickly searched the home, but it appeared the able-bodied men and teenage boys had disappeared.
“Second home is negative for our tango. SITREP?” Blake said.
“Moving in to our third house,” Troy said over the headsets. “We’ve only encountered elderly men, women, and children so far.”
“They fucking deserted their families?” Grayson asked in disbelief.
“Maybe they didn’t have a choice,” Ethan said as they exchanged a glance.
Grayson nodded. It could be that Sayed had forced them to take up the fight of the insurgents. They could’ve been the men in the camp that had quickly moved out yesterday. Leaving an entire village of women, children, and elderly seemed risky too though. Someone else could easily come in and harm them.
They moved out of the next house, Ethan’s voice coming over the headsets. “Fourth house is clear.”
“Our team has spotted something,” the Army officer said into the headsets.
“Roger that. Go ahead,” Blake said harshly.
“They’re breaching the door now. It doesn’t look good—there’s an awful smell emanating from the house. Shit. Five bodies.”
“Men, women, or children?” Blake asked in a clipped tone.
“Five men. They appear to be teenagers or possibly in their early twenties. Looks like they were all shot at close range.”
“Fuck,” Grayson said. “Sayed had them killed?”
No one answered, but that’s what they all suspected. Nothing about this mission was making sense. Someone had to be feeding the enemy their moves. Normally they snuck in, completed their op, and snuck back out without any notice. This time they’d arrived on a large military base unannounced, yet the enemy seemed to be a step ahead of them at every moment.
“They knew we were coming,” Blake said with a frown. “Any sign of Sayed?”
“Negative,” came the multiple replies.
Troy spoke for the other half of their team. “We’ve searched six houses on this side of the road. There hasn’t been a man in sight.”
“God damn it!” Blake yelled. “We’re on a fucking wild goose chase.”
“Should my men continue searching?” the Army officer asked over the headsets.
“Yes, finish your section. We’ll continue on while I report back to the general. It sounds like this op is FUBAR.”
Blake stormed off to the next house, Ethan and Grayson following behind. The men eyed each other, ready to move in on Blake’s word. “You think it’s someone in the general’s office leaking intel?” Ethan asked.
“It would have to be. These missions are highly classified,” Blake ground out. “Most people had no idea who we were or why we were here.”
“Hailey guessed we were Special Forces,” Grayson commented.
“Yeah, well, I imagine she sees all sorts from her position. Every team that meets with the general moves through there. She wouldn’t have access to our missions though,” Blake said.
“Agreed. I wasn’t implying it was her or that she was in any way involved. But she does see a lot. I wonder if she’d have an idea as to who the traitor is—if she noticed anyone suspicious in the office.”
“We’ll share our concerns with the general before we check in with her.”
“Absolutely. She’s in the base hospital anyway. She just had more insight than I expected. I shouldn’t have been surprised—she seems intelligent and quite aware of her surroundings.”
“You two take point while I update the general,” Blake said, nodding at the door of the house where they were standing. Ethan pounded on the front door with a fist, but a young mom opened it before they needed to break it down, a baby in her arms.
“Fucking hell,” Grayson said, looking around at the scene inside. There were kids sitting there and another young mom, but it was the same as all of the other houses. Women, kids, and elderly grandparents. But not a man or teenage boy anywhere in sight.
