“Virus, flesh wound”
“Hack”
“Worm”
“Bull”
“Ace”
“Mercury here. I have some bad news,” Everyone was listening with weighted breath for him to finish his report. “The satellite radio has been hit. I don’t think we will be able to use it to get evacuation.”
“Damn! What the Hell are we going to do?” Tank exclaimed when they had all gathered up. “It will take us days to get out of here on foot. Even longer with the wounded. We will never make the rendezvous point on time and we have no way to arrange a different extraction point.” The team sat in silence as they contemplated their situation.
“Well sitting here whining about it isn’t getting us anywhere,” Mercury stated after several minutes.
“You’re right. Let’s get on the move,” Deadeye instructed the team. The men helped the hostages to their feet and encouraged them to hurry as they moved through the rough terrain.
That was three long days ago. They were slowly making their way back toward the safe zone where hopefully they would encounter friendlies and get word to command that they were okay. However, the trek had been difficult. The young women were having a hard time keeping up. It had made the journey much longer than it would have been if the team was on their own.
As they trekked through the jungle, Ace’s mind drifted to Daisy. He was suddenly regretting his decision to make her his next of kin. He knew that before he came along, she had a death wish and would volunteer for the most dangerous of assignments. While she had promised him, she wouldn’t do anything rash while he was gone, he was now concerned that if she thought he was dead she would run head long into danger once again.
The journey was slow going to get back to civilization. Despite his worry for Daisy, Ace kept a close watch out for danger. The last thing he needed to happen was to let his guard down while he was thinking about Daisy and get himself or one of his team killed. Deadeye moved up to his side as he was thinking all these things over. They continued to scan their surroundings while they discussed their next move.
“It’s going to take at least another couple of days to get back into friendly territory at this pace,” Deadeye told Ace what he already knew. Ace just grunted in agreement. Tank clicked the mic on their ear pieces three times, letting them know that the way ahead was clear. Ace wanted to keep pushing on, but it was obvious they were going to have to stop for the night. The young women were exhausted and the wounded needed a break from their trek.
“Ace, how about you and Tank go on ahead? See if you can double time it back into the friendly zone and get us some transportation for these wounded?” Deadeye asked Ace. “I know we usually stick together, but this is torture. Elise will be worried sick and I know Dr. Robertson will be worried too. I’m sure Charlotte has driven Hawk crazy by now. The two of you can get back faster and you can send them back to our location.”
“It’s a good plan, Deadeye. I will track down Tank and we will go all night. We should make it back by mid-day tomorrow,” Ace declared. He shook Deadeye’s hand. “See you soon, brother.”
Ace headed off into the desert, moving fast and low. Ace felt an urgency much like he did when Daisy’s chopper was shot down. He knew that he was the one in danger right now, but something wasn’t right. The faster he could get back to her the better he would feel.
It took longer than expected to get back to base camp. A group of insurgents blocked their path and with only the two of them they had to go around instead of taking them out. Once they arrived, they were forced into a quick debriefing and then out on the choppers to bring the rest of the team and targets back to base camp. The military would not notify any family members until they were all accounted for and safely back at base. Ace was so ready to get home, to get back to Daisy.
Back state side…
The next few days were torture for Daisy. She tried to stay busy checking out the addresses for Luke, getting regular updates from Hawk, but she was slowly dying inside. The longer Ace and the team were MIA the harder it became for Daisy to be hopeful. The last update from Hawk was much the same as it had been the last 10 times he had called: No News. They were continuing to search for them, but they had not made contact at this time.
On the fifth day of the team being MIA, Daisy had set up to watch the driveway of a small cabin that was on the list of addresses Luke had gotten in association with the name his tech friend had given him. Daisy had been there for a couple of hours when she saw a car approaching. She watched from her hiding spot. It was the man from the video at the ATM in the driver’s seat. Wait! Was that Marley in the passenger seat? Daisy perked up. What was going on here? That was definitely Marley and she looked scared.
Daisy tried to call Luke but it went to voicemail. Daisy hung up without leaving a message. What would she say anyway? She had no idea what was going on. Could Marley be working with someone to get at Luke, or had she been taken hostage? Daisy needed more information before altering the authorities. Once the car had disappeared down the drive, Daisy moved on quiet feet to scope out the house. From her hiding spot, she saw the man drag Marley out of the car. He hit her hard when she tried to resist going inside the house. Marley was definitely not here of her own free will. Fear gripped Daisy. Nausea and a cold sweat erupted on her skin. Marley was in serious trouble. Daisy was her only hope. She needed to get her out of that house as fast as possible.
Daisy sprinted back to her vehicle. She had to get some things together before she could move in to get Marley to safety. Daisy got extra ammo for the 9mm she had strapped to her side. She had a Ka-bar knife that she put in a sheath on her boot. Daisy called Luke again, still no answer. She decided to leave him a message this time. It was a real possibility she might not make it out of the house alive. She needed to let him know she loved him and would do anything for him. When the voicemail beeped, Daisy left her message.
Daisy then called Ace’s cell phone. She knew he would probably never hear her message, but she needed to tell him what he has meant to her.
“Ace, it’s Daisy. I...I miss you so much. I am so sorry that you are missing. I am afraid that you being with me has brought you bad luck. I pray that you make it home. I have never been as happy as I was during our time together. I’m not meant to be happy, Ace. I knew that, but God you made me want it so badly. I will cherish our time together until my dying day. I heard a song today, that made me think about us. If you make it home listen to Meghan Trainer’sAfter you.It says it all. I will never love another after you. I do love you Ace, more than you can ever know. Thank you for giving me the happiest time of my life. Be safe and be happy. Until we meet again,” Daisy hung up the phone and headed toward the cabin to free her brother’s love from the clutches of an asshole.
Chapter 21
Daisy snuck toward the cabin, keeping low to the ground and out of sight. As she moved up the side of the small structure, she peeked into a small window. She could hear voices, but not what was being said. She couldn’t see anything through the window, so she moved toward the back of the house. Looking in the back door, she could see Marley sitting in a chair. Her face was bruised, and she looked scared, but she was sitting up straight. She wasn’t cowering in front of the man holding her hostage. The man was pacing back and forth in front of her with his back to the door. He had a pistol that he was waving around as he yelled at Marley. Daisy could hear him clearly now.
“Tell me who you told about our plans, bitch,” the man yelled. He stopped his pacing and got in Marley’s face. “I won’t ask this nicely again. I know you overheard my conversation with my colleagues. You should have disappeared when we ruined you financially, but instead you had us investigated. I know you are not just some innocent waitress. Who do you work for?” The man growled in a menacing voice.
“I swear I don’t know anything about you. I don’t even remember waiting on you!” Marley cried out when the man backhanded her across the face. “Please I didn’t have anyone investigate you. My friend has a security company. When he heard about my financial problems, he just started looking into what happened.” Again, the man hit her. “Please, I don’t know you or anything about what you are talking about” Marley cried as she tried to convince the man. She was shaking and tears were pouring down her face, but she was trying to be brave.
Daisy had to figure a way to get inside and over power the man holding Marley before he could hurt her further. Daisy was praying that Luke got her message soon and sent help. The man was obviously crazy, and Daisy was very afraid that he would lose patience and shoot Marley before she could get inside to save her. Daisy jerked back to look at Marley as the man began to yell again.
“You do know! You were there the day I met with my contact,” the man ranted. “Two days later he was apprehended by the FBI. They took our bomb making materials. It put us back at square one and my contact is rotting in a Federal prison. I have to carry out the mission on my own now, thanks to you, bitch. Now you are going to tell me everything you know, so I can get my supplies back and finish this mission.” The man is raving like a lunatic. Daisy decided it was time to act. She quietly slipped inside the back door. Marley saw her, her eyes widen briefly in surprise, but she quickly schooled her features. She began to distract the man from what was happening behind him.
