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RYKER SPAT ON THE GROUND and walked into the command center of the forward operating base in Afghanistan. Sweat dripped down his face, and he swiped it off, gripping his weapon in one hand. His heavy gear was hell to haul across the desert—not that they hadn’t done it a million times before.
Kevlar vests, helmets, combat boots, weapons—they were fully armed, ready to take on whatever enemy they encountered. And he had one mother-fucking terrorist asshole he’d like to shoot right between the eyes.
Damn him for thinking he could kidnap and harm an innocent woman.
He rested his assault rifle against the table and took a swig of water from his canteen. His combat boots scuffed against the gritty ground, sand damn near everywhere in this place. He’d probably be scrubbing it off his skin for a week after he got back—that stuff always got in all his clothes and belongings.
It sure made a man miss the salty ocean air.
“The Coronado team will be landing at twenty-two hundred local time,” Hunter said, his voice gruff as the men gathered around him. “They’ve received the updated aerial imagery and know their approach when we move in. They’ll land at the airstrip and come straight here on the helos. We’ll briefly meet and then it’s go time.”
Ryker nodded, his gaze narrowing. “Tell us the plan.”
Hunter laid a map of the compound on the wooden table, pointing at it as he spoke. “Raptor’s team will be breaching the south side of the compound. Ryker and Noah will be surveilling the perimeter from the east, providing cover as necessary. The helos will be landing on the west, which is where I’ll move in with the other men.”
“And the mountains?” Jacob asked.
“We don’t believe any of the insurgents will exit that way as the terrain is rough. In all likelihood, they’ll be heading straight toward Ryker and Noah.”
“And we’ll be fucking ready for them,” Ryker smirked.
Hunter nodded. “The goal is to move in, get the girl, and move out. We’ll fly back to base and then get Emily whatever medical attention is needed.”
“What about the infrared scans? Do we have an idea of where exactly she’s being held?” Ryker asked. His gut churned, not liking that they were still taking a shot in the dark at where specifically the woman was being held. What if the kidnappers escaped with her, and she slipped right through their fingers one more time?
He didn’t think he could stomach letting a helpless woman fall prey to enemy hands once more.
“Negative,” Hunter said with a frown. “There are multiple women and children living at the compound—we have no idea which building Emily is being held in because there are just too many bodies. We want to avoid civilian casualties, so we’re going to have to search every damn one.”
“Understood,” Mason said. “And we’re just leaving the other women and children behind?”
“Not much we can do,” Colton said with a frown. “They’re not American citizens. We’ll have to move them into one secure location as we conduct our search, but they’re not our mission.”
“Fucking hell,” Ryker muttered. “I can’t believe we have to just leave other women and kids there.”
Hunter’s gaze locked with his. “They’re not our priority. We’ll take out whoever we can when we breach the compound, but ultimately, this is a rescue mission to get an American hostage. She’s been in enemy hands for too long. This ends tonight.”
“Damn straight it does,” Ryker said, clenching his fists.
“Let’s get those bastards,” Jacob said, glancing around at the other men. “They can’t take an American citizen and get away with that shit. They’re going down tonight.”
“Hoorah!” Noah shouted, as the other men whooped and hollered.
“Ready up, men,” Hunter said, listening to a voice over his headset. “The Coronado team will be landing in thirty.”
***
RYKER STRAPPED ON HIS remaining gear, checking his K-BAR knife and night vision goggles. The whomp, whomp, whomp of helicopters coming in sounded in the distance. “Sounds like the boys are here,” he said, glancing over at Jacob.
“Hoorah. Do you know Raptor?” Jacob asked, adjusting his headset.
“Nope. Heard a hell of a lot about him though.”
“He’s badass,” Jacob said with a chuckle. “One scary mother fucker.”
Ryker’s headset crackled, and then a deep voice spoke. “This is Raptor. We’re en route, approaching base right now. ETA is one minute.”
“Roger that,” Hunter said over the headsets. “The Delta team is ready and waiting. We’ll quickly convene for a SITREP, and then it’s go time.”
“Roger. Over and out,” Raptor said.
Ryker grabbed his weapon and stood with the other men, watching as two helicopters landed and the Coronado team jumped out. They jogged over to the small command center. A tall SEAL with dark stubble across his jaw lead the way in, his dark gaze sweeping around the room as he instantly took everything in.
“Welcome fellas,” Hunter said. “For those of you who don’t know me, I’m Hunter ‘Hook’ Murdock. These are my guys on the Delta team based out of Little Creek,” he said, briefly introducing the men.
Raptor nodded. “I’m Blake Reynolds,” he said, nodding at them, “but you can call me Raptor. Jacob and I already know one another. This is my team,” he said, calling out each of the guys standing behind him.
Ryker’s gaze slid over the other men. Troy “T-Rex” Harrison looked vaguely familiar, and he wondered if they’d gone through BUD/S around the same time. This was no time to journey down fucking memory lane though. They had an op to run. A woman to save.
“The woman being held is a special agent with State,” Raptor said.
“Affirmative,” Hunter replied. “She’s highly trained and could probably hold her own in other circumstances. We don’t know her condition though or if she’s even capable of walking out on her own.”
“Understood,” Raptor said. “We’ll move in for rescue and retrieval.”
“It’s unknown how many insurgents are at the compound. We’ve got a rough count of people, but some are believed to be women and children.”
“Fucking hell,” Troy said, his green eyes blazing. He had light stubble across his jaw, but Ryker couldn’t see his hair beneath the helmet. He was probably blond, not to mention tan, like a typical California boy. Typical save for the murderous look on his face and thick muscles to rival any of the men on the SEAL team.
The Alpha SEALs from Coronado may be used to life on the west coast, but they were just as deadly and highly trained as the men based in Little Creek.
“We don’t know if the women are being held against their will,” Hunter continued. “Some are the wives of the leader—they might not take well to us breaching the compound. We have to treat everyone like a potential threat.”
“It’s not like they have a goddamn choice in the matter,” Raptor said, his eyes blazing.
“Everybody understand where you’ll go once we land?” Hunter asked.
There were several grunts of affirmation and “Hoorahs” from the men.
Hunter nodded. “Comm channels are open. We’ll keep each other apprised of all updates as we search the compound for the missing American. Let’s move out!”
Ryker and his team jogged to one of the waiting helos, jumping on board. He and the other men crouched down, readying for liftoff. Adrenaline pumped through his veins, and he clenched his jaw, ready and alert. Nothing like the beginning of an op to make a man feel like he could take on the entire world.
The chopper began to lift off the ground, and then they were flying toward the compound under the cover of night.
He looked out at the terrain below using his night vision goggles before glancing around at the other men. They were fully decked out in their gear, ready to charge in, weapons blazing. Hopefully they didn’t scare the hell out of the hostage when they burst into the compound, but she had to be used to military if she’d been at the U.S. base in Afghanistan.
Hunter’s voice came over his headset. “ETA is five minutes. SITREP?”
Noah responded. “Aerial surveillance still shows minimal movement. One lone guard was patrolling the interior perimeter of the compound.”
“Let’s hope everyone is all tucked in for the night,” Hunter quipped.
There was no movement at the compound as they approached, and then they were jumping out of the helicopters and moving forward. Ryker and Noah headed to their respective vantage points to watch the compound through the scopes of their weapons. The other men on both teams ran off in different directions.
A voice came over his headset. “All quiet on the south side,” Raptor said. “My team is moving into position.”
“Roger that,” Hunter replied. “We’re readying to move in here. Are you in position, Bulls Eye?”
“Affirmative,” Ryker said, crouching down in the sand and setting up his gear. He laid down on the ground, the compound coming into view through his scope. There was no movement around the perimeter, and his own team was approaching from the other side.
“If any of those mother fuckers come running, you take them out,” Hunter replied.
“With pleasure,” he said, watching as Noah crouched down twenty yards away.
Ryker’s gut churned. Normally he relished watching from the distance, taking out hostiles who didn’t even know he was there. Tonight felt different though. He was on edge. Eager to retrieve the woman. He wished like hell that he was charging the compound with the other men. He was the best shot of everyone, but the woman who’d been taken hostage had been niggling at the back of his mind for a month. It was insane, but a part of him wanted to be the one to rescue her. To haul her to safety.
Which was fucking crazy.
He didn’t know her. Hadn’t even seen her. Sure, it was intriguing that she was a special agent with the State Department—that was a hell of a lot different than the woman he was usually with. She was probably bossy, brash, and boyish though—not a feminine bone in her body.
The delicate necklace he’d found suddenly flashed through his mind, contradicting all of that.
Hell.
He needed his head in the game, not on some damn fucking mystery woman he’d probably never see again after tonight.
“We’re in position,” Hunter said in a low voice. “Raptor, are your men ready?”
“Roger that,” he said as the other men affirmed their positions over the headsets. “Let’s do this.”
“All right, on my command. Move in!” Hunter said, and Ryker heard rustling as the men charged forward. He clenched his jaw, watching the compound through the scope of his weapon. There was a thump over his headset as the men breached the wall and landed on the ground on the other side. He wished he had eyes on what was happening inside. He had a perfect view of the exterior though. No one who emerged would make it past him.
Ryker heard the sound of a door being kicked open. “Building one is empty,” Raptor said. “Men, move forward and search the next.”
“We’re on the other side of the compound. Entering now.” A door was smashed open, and Ryker heard a woman wailing. “Stay down, stay down!” one of the SEALs commanded in Arabic.
“We’ve got another woman with children here,” Colton said. “Three young kids. Move them over to the side. Let’s keep searching!”
“Fucking hell,” Ryker muttered.
Gunshots pierced the air, and the men returned fire. “Two hostiles down,” Hunter said. “Repeat, two hostiles down. Moving in to another building.”
Ryker narrowed his gaze as he saw movement atop the wall before one of the enemy combatants hauled himself over. Ryker aimed directly at him and took the shot, watching as the man slumped to the ground. “Just took out one guy trying to escape out the east side,” he said in a low voice. “No other movement here.”
“We’re entering the third building,” Raptor said, and there was a crashing sound as his team breached another door. A child started crying, and someone cursed over the headsets.
“Mason and I see what looks to be a small storage building close to the perimeter—no windows. Hell, that looks like blood on the ground,” Hunter said. “Moving in.”
“Damn, that’s definitely fresh blood,” Mason said in a low voice.
The door was kicked open, and gunshots sounded again. “One hostile down,” Hunter said. There was a scuffle as the men moved in and kicked away the dead man’s weapon.
Ryker’s gaze swept the exterior of the compound again, fully alert as he waited for additional information. His finger grazed the trigger of his weapon, ready to fire if anyone else came over the wall.
He held his breath, clenching his jaw. If the kidnapped woman was dead, it would be on them. Their job was to move in and rescue her. To get so close and have her injured or killed now?
It was unfathomable.
Hopefully just some jackass terrorist had been injured. But finding fresh blood on the ground? Something was up.
“Holy shit,” Mason said over the headsets. “We’ve found the hostage. Repeat, we’ve found the hostage.”
“Condition?” Raptor asked.
“Unconscious. She’s lying on the ground out cold. Looks like an abrasion and lump on her forehead, and her pulse is weak but steady.”
Blood pounded through Ryker’s veins, thumping in his ears with every heartbeat. He released his breath, ready to go tearing over that goddamn wall himself if they needed him. “Grab her and go,” he said roughly. “We’ll circle around and meet you at the helicopters.”
“Damn it,” one of the men on the Coronado team exclaimed into the headsets. “They’ve rigged this section of the compound with explosives. We have to move out another way.”
“Head over to where we entered on the west side,” Hunter commanded. “We’ll rendezvous there and all exit together.”
“Negative,” Colton interjected. “They’ve laid a tripwire here—probably that jackass that we just killed. We’ll have to go out where Ryker and Noah are positioned.”
“Roger that,” came the reply.
“SITREP?” Hunter asked.
“No movement here,” Ryker said. “Not a goddamn soul in site. I’ll provide cover when you come over the wall in case some other insurgents approach. There’s one dead body on the ground.”
Mason grunted over the headsets. “I’ve got the hostage—let’s move on out.”
There was a muffled sound as the men began moving away, and Ryker heard the sound of a woman and several children wailing in the background.
Jesus Christ.
“Did you find the leader of this goddamn place?” he asked into his mouthpiece.
“Negative,” Colton replied. “He’s either still hunkered down somewhere, hidden, or he managed to escape. No time to stop and check now though—the hostage needs medical treatment.”
“We’re approaching the wall,” Hunter said in a clipped tone. “Don’t fucking shoot us when we come over.”
“Roger that,” Ryker said. “I’ll stand down.”
“Hook, I see you up ahead of us,” Raptor said, calling Hunter by his nickname. “We’re right behind you.”
Ryker saw two hands gripping the top of the wall through his night vision goggles as one of the SEALs began to scale it. A moment later, Jacob was hauling himself atop of it and reaching back to assist.
Ryker glanced over at Noah, who nodded and signaled to him, and then Ryker was running forward to help collect the injured woman. Two other SEALs came flying over the wall, weapons ready, and then Jacob was lowering the woman into Ryker’s arms.
He grunted, dismayed by the sight of the angry gash and lump on her forehead. Her eyelids fluttered slightly, and her face looked far too pale against the shock of her dark brown hair, but then he was turning and moving away with her in his arms. Gunfire sounded in the distance, and he shifted positions, hauling the fragile woman up and over his broad shoulder.
His arm locked around her slender waist, holding her in place, and he jogged toward the waiting helos, not liking the moans that she made.
She was alive though. Secure against his shoulder. No one else would fucking touch her.
And nothing was stopping him from getting her the hell out of there.
