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Midway Island
Cal Martin was at the forefront of Decker’s mind as she made her way through the thick vegetation toward the President’s possible holding location. Although she had faith that Cal could handle himself, she worried about him. She had wanted him to stay with her as they rescued the President. Not only so she could watch his back, but so she could keep him from doing anything brash.
And yet they were apart again. Cal had formulated a plan after Graves turned on them, and she knew there was no changing his mind. She had seen that look more times than she cared to count. Cal was going to do what it took to win or die trying. She both loved and hated that about him.
The more Decker learned about their situation, the more she regretted not sticking with her gut in the first place. She had let Cal’s boyish charm persuade her into six of the best months of her life, but she knew that if they had brought the thumb drive forward earlier, this attempt on the President’s life would’ve been averted.
But still, part of her thought that Cal might have been right. If they had just stayed off the radar and minded their own business, they would still be living their lives happily together, and she wouldn’t be wandering around a deserted island wondering if she’d ever see the man she loved again or even make it off the island at all.
Decker pushed the thoughts out of her head and focused on the task at hand. She would likely spend the next days, months, or even years questioning herself, but for now, she resolved to focus on rescuing the President, and then finding Cal again.
She continued through the wet sand and thick vegetation. She was soaked from the rain, but it had finally slowed to a light mist. She could see the lights of several vehicles off in the distance. Decker realized they were running out of time.
Reaching the cluster of buildings Graves had told them about, Decker stopped and crouched low in the vegetation. She tried to get a good idea of where the foot patrols were and where potential threats might be. As she surveyed the building, a Humvee sped by, heading toward the building where Graves had taken Cal.
Decker adjusted her chest rig and readied her rifle as she watched the lone guard on the east end of the building. Cal’s rifle was still slung across her back. It was good to have in case her own rifle failed or by some miracle, she found more agents being held near the President.
Decker took a deep breath as she raised her rifle and flipped the select fire lever to single shot. She and Spectre had discussed it briefly before they separated. Once she made it to the holding location, stealth was no longer an option. She had to move quickly and aggressively.
She moved quietly out of the tree line and into the open. As the guard turned, she fired twice, hitting the guard in the chest both times and dropping him. The register of the AK-47 was deafening. All or nothing now.
As the guard fell, Decker ran toward the building with her rifle held high, sweeping left and right for threats. She expected a horde of enemy fighters to emerge at any moment. When none did, she continued to the doorway where the guard’s body was.
Her training kicked in as she prepared to enter. She had to move quickly, avoiding the “fatal funnel” of the doorway where bad guys tended to direct their fire. She checked her rifle again and opened the door, peeling off to the right to clear before turning back left.
She rode the wall as she progressed down the hallway, but stayed six to eight inches off it as she had been trained. Her instructors had driven home the point that bullets often ricocheted and traveled along the wall, making it important to avoid leaning against them for cover.
As she moved against the far wall, a man emerged holding a rifle from a doorway to her left. Decker fired three times as she continued moving toward him. He had apparently not heard her shots outside and had been unaware of her presence. One shot hit the doorjamb behind him, but the other two struck the man in the neck and shoulder and sent him stumbling to the floor.
Decker approached the doorway cautiously but quickly. She moved in an arc, “slicing the pie” as she had been taught to give her the best vantage of any attackers in the room. As she moved around the arc toward the doorway, she saw a man with his rifle up moving toward her. She fired two more shots and dropped him as she continued forward.
Entering the room, Decker cleared the near wall first before turning toward the rest of the room. There were no other attackers, but a group of people bound and gagged lying on the floor.
Decker hurried back to the doorway to ensure there were no immediate threats and then ran to the nearest man. She pulled the gag off and used the knife Cal had given her to free him from the restraints.
“Thank God,” the man said.
“Can you use a rifle?” Decker asked immediately.
“Yeah, I was Air Force Security Forces before I got into communications and ended up on Air Force One,” he replied.
Decker pulled the AK-47 off her back, handed it to him, and then gave him two of the magazines from her cargo pants pockets. “Take these and watch the hall while I free the other two,” she ordered.
“Yes, ma’am,” he replied as he shoved the magazine in his Air Force dress blues pocket and headed to the doorway. The man posted against the wall and kept watch over both doors as Decker moved to the next two men and unbound their hands while removing their gags.
“Are you guys ok?” Decker asked. There was an older man and another middle-aged man in the room. They were both wearing Air Force dress blues, but their ties had been removed.
“We’re fine,” the older man said. “Thank you.”
“Do you know where Eagle is?” Decker asked as she returned to back up the former skycop.
“We haven’t seen her,” the older officer said. “They’ve kept us in here. I think we’re what’s left of the crew.”
“Ok, we need to keep moving,” Decker said as she reached down and grabbed the rifle off the dead guard. “One of you take this. There’s another on the guy in the hall. When we get to him, we’ll cover you while you pick it up.”
“Questions?” Decker added.
“Where’s the rest of the rescue force?” the older man asked.
“You’re looking at it,” Decker replied. “Now let’s move.”
“Contact left!” the skycop said as they emerged into the hall. The rifle was still in automatic as he fired a six-round burst, peppering the approaching hostile and the door behind him. “Clear!”
“Get the rifle,” Decker directed as she stood back-to-back with the skycop, clearing both ends of the hallway. The middle-aged man reached down and picked up the rifle.
“I’m just a flight attendant,” he said. “I’ve only qualified on an M-16 once.”
“I want you to put your hand on his shoulder and keep your rifle pointed that way,” she said, pointing at the door behind him. “Don’t let anyone sneak up on us, got it?”
The man nodded nervously as Decker motioned for her makeshift team to move. Decker maneuvered them into a diamond formation, having the skycop take the left and the older man take the right as the middle-aged crewman covered the rear. It was the best she could do with relatively untrained people as they moved forward.
“Door left,” the skycop said. Decker was relieved he was at least trained. They approached the closed door and stopped short of it.
“Ok, everyone keep your rifles up and cover those doors,” Decker said. “You, what’s your name?” she asked the skycop.
“Master Sergeant Frank Lee,” he replied as he held his rifle steady on the closed door.
“Ok, Lee,” Decker said. “You and I are going to enter the room. You’re going to kick it in and pick a direction. I’ll take the other direction.”
“I remember how this goes, ma’am,” Lee replied.
“Good,” Decker said. “The rest of you, shoot anybody that comes through those two doors. Alright, Lee, on you.”
Decker moved close to Lee with her rifle down as he stepped back. He kicked the door in violently and let the momentum carry him in the room. Decker followed close on his heels, turning left as he turned right.
“Clear,” Lee called out.
“Clear,” Decker replied. The room was empty except for a woman and two men. Decker started to remove the Flexcuffs from the woman, only to realize that woman was dead. She appeared to have bled out on the floor of the room. Decker pushed her feelings aside and moved on to the next man, removing his restraints with her knife and then moving on to the next.
“Are you two okay?” Decker asked.
“My God, she’s dead,” the man gasped.
As the light hit the man’s face, she realized he was one of the reporters from their cabin on Air Force One. The Chinese had segregated the hostages by group. She realized this had to be the group Cal had talked about, which likely meant the pilot he talked about was in trouble.
Their group was slowly becoming too big and cumbersome to continue. She needed a light and nimble force to help her find the President. Three people in a six-person team that were nothing more than dead weight wouldn’t work. She needed a plan fast.
“Are either of you comfortable with a rifle?” Decker asked.
“I was carrying a handgun when we got captured,” one of the reporters spoke up. It was David Williams, a reporter Decker had briefly spoken to as they waited for Air Force One to take off.
It didn’t inspire confidence that they were captured while he had a weapon, but it was better than nothing.
“Ok, here’s what I want you to do,” Decker said. “We’re going to go out in the hall and you’re going to pick the rifle up off the body near the doorway. Once you’ve got it, the four of you are going to go down the hallway and exit. You’ll turn left and run straight for the trees. It will be easy to see, don’t worry. I want you to go to the trees and wait for me, got it?”
“What about you?” Williams asked.
“We’re going to get the President,” Decker replied. “If you see bad guys, start moving along the tree line. Stay hidden and wait for help. Understand?”
“I think so,” Williams replied.
Decker walked to the doorway as Lee and the others stacked up behind her. “Is the hallway clear?”
“Yes,” Williams said.
“Ok, here’s the plan,” Decker said. “Lee and I are going to come out and cover left. Once we’re out, I want everyone else to go out the doorway to the right and run to the tree line. Understand?”
“Got it,” Williams said.
“Let’s go,” Decker said as she and Lee came out of the room with rifles up. “Get out now!”
The two reporters and Air Force One crewmembers took off running toward the door. Lee turned around to cover their escape as Decker covered the near doorway. Once they were outside and clear, Lee called “Clear” to Decker.
“Ok, I don’t know what’s on the other side of that door,” Decker said. “We don’t have the time or luxury to figure it out. We have to treat this like an active shooter and keep moving forward until we find Eagle. I know I should’ve asked earlier, but if you’re not up for this, you can join the others and help them get to safety.”
“Ma’am,” Lee said without looking over. “I’ve been doing this for almost seventeen years. I’m not bailing on the President. Lead the way.”
They moved to the door. Decker stopped short. Lee put his hand on her shoulder as he kept watch down the hallway. Moments later, he squeezed her shoulder, signaling that he was ready.
Decker pushed through the doorway as she brought her rifle up and turned left. Lee followed out behind her and cleared to the right before joining her. The warehouse was completely empty and the giant folding doors were open. The sound of a diesel generator running near the door was almost deafening. The floor showed fresh marks from equipment being moved. Decker could tell they had recently cleared it out. The Chinese were beginning their final preparations to leave. Decker was running out of time if it wasn’t already too late.
With no cover or concealment to go to, Decker continued moving forward toward the next set of doors to the opposite wing of the building. The two stacked up on the door just as before.
Decker pulled the door open and Lee bolted through, firing four rounds at the first man he came into contact with. Decker followed closely behind, firing two more shots as the man fell. A man behind the first returned fire, narrowly missing Decker as she dropped to a knee and shot back.
The man ducked into an open room and fired, peppering the walls behind Decker and Lee. The two moved simultaneously toward the gunshots. It went against every instinct they had, but it was an essential part of their law enforcement training – move toward the sound of gunshots.
Decker stopped short of the door with Lee in trail. As before, she started “slicing the pie,” but this time she moved slowly in the arc, leaning slightly to her right to get a shot at the hostile without exposing herself to him. As she moved slowly around the arc, Lee covered down the hallway.
Decker’s heart was racing as she tried to slow her movements. She had to be methodical and slow against the known threat. With each movement, she saw more of the room from behind the sights of the AK-47. As she moved farther around the arc, the man suddenly came into view. He had his weapon trained on the door, waiting for her to appear. Decker fired two rounds, hitting him in the shoulder and chest and dropping him to the floor. As he fell, Decker ran forward into the room and moved right as Lee followed and moved left.
“Clear,” Decker announced.
“Clear,” Lee repeated as he kicked away the rifle from the dead man’s hands.
In the corner of the room, Decker found the President bound to a pipe. As Lee covered, she freed the President and removed her blindfold and gag.
“Madam President,” Decker said, still trying to catch her breath. “I’m glad you’re ok.”
“Is it over?” the President asked weakly.
“No, ma’am,” Decker replied. “We still have to get you out of here.”
“Ma’am, you need to look at this,” Lee said, staring at a large object on the other side of the room.
“What is it?” Decker asked as she helped the President stand.
“I’m no expert, but it looks like a bomb,” Lee said, staring at the three-foot tall object with wires and a keypad on the top.
“They said they had a nuke,” the President said.
“Looks like it’s on a timer,” Lee said as he examined it. “Two hours, forty minutes and fifty-one seconds. Shit!”
“We’re going to get you off the island, ma’am,” Decker said.
“What about my staff?” the President asked.
“I’m not worried about them right now, ma’am,” Decker said. “Let’s get you out of here.”
“No,” the President replied as she held her ground. “We have to save them.”