Page 96 of Keeping Zita

“It doesn’t seem real that just days ago, I was in a room on that ship. But you know what? I knew you’d be doing everything possible to find me.”

“Damn straight. I love you, Zita. The second you didn’t respond to my texts, I knew something was wrong, and I also knew it had to do with Silas. I’m just so damn relieved he didn’t…” His voice trailed off, not able to verbalize his fears that she’d been killed before he could get to her.

“I know. Me too. I thought when he had his hands around my neck that he was going to end things right then and there. But I stabbed him in the eye with my thumb…as you know from what I told the detective.”

“And scratched the shit out of his face. That was smart, and I’m prouder of you than I can put into words that you didn’t give up.”

“How could I give up when I had you to return to?” she said quietly.

“When I get back, I’m going to show you just how much you mean to me. I’m going to lock us in our bedroom for twenty-four hours straight.”

“Sounds perfect to me,” Zita said with a smile.

The doctor had said that if she felt well enough, sex wasn’t off the table, but it was obvious to Obi-Wan from the way she was moving so stiffly that she wasn’t ready. Which was okay, he could wait. Would wait as long as it took to love her the way she was meant to be loved.

“Be safe on your mission,” she told him.

“Of course. I’ve got you to come home to. I’m not sure if that will change my mindset when I’m flying, but I don’t see how it couldn’t. I need to talk to Casper and Buck about it. See how they reconcile the danger of what we do, and doing what needs to be done, with worrying about coming home to their loved ones. And now that Casper is going to be a father, I bet he’s even more aware of how much is at stake every time he gets behind the controls of a chopper.”

Zita nodded. “You and your friends are damn good at what you do. And I highly doubt you’ll do anything differently now that you have girlfriends. Do what you always do, Sage.” She grinned. “Be all that you can be.”

Obi-Wan chuckled and rolled his eyes. “You know how corny that is, right? Using an Army slogan in your little pep talk?”

“Yup. But it made you laugh, which was my goal. Now…you need to pack. I’ll help.”

“I’ll call Tex first, but yes, I do need to pack. I love you, Zita. You’re my everything.”

“Back atcha, Sage. Come on, let’s get you ready to save the world.”

“Not the world, just a tiny little portion of it.”

“But for the people who you’ll be helping, it’s their entire world.”

She wasn’t wrong. Because that’s how he felt about her. Getting into that damn room on the abandoned ship and seeing her alive, was like being given the entire world.

He hoped the colonel was right and this mission would be fast. Because he was ready to get back home and start a new chapter in his life…with Zita by his side.

EPILOGUE

Pyro was amped up. He was ready for this mission. He didn’t like sitting at home in Virginia waiting to be sent somewhere. He lived for the adrenaline of the missions he and his fellow Night Stalkers were sent on. He’d joined the Army for the adventure, the danger.

Growing up, his life had been tough. He was a foster kid, one of thousands of unwanted children in the US who were shuffled through the system year after year. He’d been well aware that when he turned eighteen, he’d age out, and knew he needed a plan. Somewhere to go. A job. And his way out had been the military. He hadn’t really planned on becoming a pilot, didn’t really think someone like him—with no connections, so-so grades, and a chip on his shoulder—would ever be accepted.

But his drill sergeants had seen something in him that Pyro never had. The Army agreed. The structure of the military was something he’d never experienced, and he’d thrived. He rose through the enlisted ranks quickly, learning as much about helicopters and other military vehicles as he could through his MOS.

Then he’d met a Night Stalker pilot one day, and he’d apparently impressed the man enough for him to become a friend of sorts. He’d been the one to encourage him to reclassify his MOS and go through the channels to become a Night Stalker, himself.

One of the worst days of Pyro’s life was the day he heard that his mentor had been killed while on a mission. He’d vowed right then and there to become the best pilot the Army had ever trained, in order to honor the man who’d seen something in the scrawny former foster kid that no one else had bothered to see.

He’d done that and more. Pyro thought about his mentor every time he got behind the controls of his MH-60 with Casper, his copilot. They were damn good at what they did, and this mission in Africa would be no different.

They were in Gabon, tasked with evacuating US personnel from the embassy in the capital city of Libreville. Tensions had been high in the country leading up to elections for president. Corruption and poor governance were tearing the country to pieces, and just about every political figure and governmental agency engaged in corrupt activities, bribes, embezzlement, forgery, and extortion.

Some people might ask why in the hell anyone would go to the country in the first place, but Pyro admired them. Embassy employees, Peace Corps volunteers, those in the oil and gas industry, security, healthcare and even technology, they were all there trying to help humanity…and make a living while doing so.

He’d been on the receiving end of gracious and kind workers like those trying to make the lives of Gabonese citizens better, and he had a soft spot for them. It wasn’t their fault the government was corrupt, or the locals had finally had enough and were fighting back, using violence as a way to voice their displeasure.

The mission would be a challenge, because there was no guarantee those fighting the government wouldn’t turn their ire against the US citizens being evacuated. Against the helicopters swooping in to rescue them. It had happened in the past, and would happen again in the future. Mobs had a mentality that was unstable and unpredictable. Pyro and all of his teammates would need to get in, load up the evacuees, and get the hell out as fast as they could.