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She gave him a narrow-eyed look. “Just how sure?”
“He can have my back any time he wants. Is that good enough for you?”
Stinging beneath his warning growl, Lauren knew when an operator said the person could have their back, it implied trust. Total trust. That the operator was good and wouldn’t screw up in the midst of a hot firefight. “Yeah, it’s good enough.”
“I’ve got a dirty suspicion you’re not really coming clean with me regarding this op,” Hunter said, holding her stare. “And I think what it comes down to, is your attitude. You’ve been in the Corps and have gotten saddled before with people you didn’t like, but you damn well worked with them anyway. And you successfully carried off those ops without a hitch.”
Anger riffled through her. She stiffened. “I have told you the truth!”
Gage shook his head. “No… no, I sense something more is behind this, Lauren. And frankly, I could give a shit less what that is.” He jabbed his finger toward her. “You’ve got your orders. YOU make this mission work, whatever your issues. I need my very best sniper on this op, and that’s you. So, if you want to get pissed, get pissed at yourself because you’re so fucking good at what you do. Dismissed.”
An hour later,after Alex had finished cleaning all the weapons he’d pack for the op, he decided to go back and talk to Hunter. Alex saw the door was open, knocked lightly and stuck his head in. “Do you have a moment, sir?” he asked his boss.
Hunter scowled. “Not you, too?”
Alex gave him a confused look.
Hunter made a sharp gesture for him to get his ass in the office. “Get in here and close the door.”
Alex stood close to attention in front of Hunter’s desk. “Sir,” he said, “I respectfully ask to be removed from this op.” Alex knew he could be fired over this. He could lose the job he loved, and desperately needed. He had no other source of income.
“Shit.”
Alex looked down at Hunter, who was shaking his head. “You know what? I don’t know what the hell is going on between the two of you, but you’re damn well going to address the issues and fix them. Do you understand, Kazak? If you’ve got a personality conflict with Lauren, then FIX IT. Got it?”
Gulping, Alex came fully to attention. “Yes, sir. I will, sir.”
“Now get the hell out of here. You’re wasting my time.”
“Yes, sir.” Alex did a smart about-face and reached for the door knob.
“You’ll find her out at the firing range.”
Alex hesitated, and then twisted the knob and opened the door. “Yes, sir,” he said again, quietly.
“Leave the door open, Kazak.”
“Yes, sir.”
Alex girded himself. He pulled the black baseball cap out of his pocket and settled it on his head, walking out through the rear of the facility, toward the firing range. That meeting hadn’t gone well at all. Obviously, Lauren had talked to Hunter earlier. And that probably hadn’t gone the way Lauren had wanted, either. Grimacing, Alex followed the concrete walk toward the bunker area. The firing range was above and below ground. State of the art. The above ground section was for rifles and sniper shooting. The pistol range was located on the first of two underground floors. His senses told him Lauren was on the upper firing range. Probably putting center-mass shots into the paper target, and visualizing it was his face on that cardboard cutout.
The morning sunlight was bright and he wore wraparound sunglasses. As he stepped into the bunker area, huge walls of dirt in all four directions, looking like massive earthen dikes, he spotted Lauren below. She was firing a .300 Win mag sniper rifle. The boom of the rifle, when fired, echoed like rolling thunder within the enclosed area. He was sure she had earplugs in because the sound would destroy a person’s hearing over time. She lay prone, legs spread, her baseball cap on backwards, the brim brushing between her shoulder blades. She was shooting at a thousand yards, and Alex watched as Lauren caressed the trigger, and then the ripple effect throughout her entire body as the bullet left the chamber. It was a big, powerful rifle. She was tall, and heavier than most women, and Alex could see her entire body absorb the powerful recoil from the shot.
He walked around from behind her so she could easily spot him. She did.
Alex saw Lauren’s head suddenly snap up. She had dark glasses on, so he couldn’t see the anger that he was sure was in her eyes. As he approached, she sat up into a kneel, resting back on the heels of her combat boots. He slowed, making sure there was plenty of room left between them. Taking off his sunglasses, Alex crouched down in front of her. The way her mouth was set tight, the tension in her body, told him to be prepared.
“We need to talk,” he began quietly, opening his hands. “We cannot go on this op like this. I think you know that, Lauren.” He watched her grow more tense, if that was even possible. The feeling radiated off her, like a tidal wave, toward him. He felt her fear, her frustration and hatred. So many dark emotions. All aimed at him. “I know you hate me,” he began awkwardly, casting around in his head for the right words in English. This was a struggle for Alex because, if he had been speaking in his mother tongue of Ukrainian, he’d have been far more eloquent and persuasive and, most likely, would have been able to win a reprieve from Lauren. Right now, he felt foolish, unsure of his words, feeling her rage aimed at him. “I do not hate you. I respect you, Lauren. You are a woman of many skills and I admire you—”
“Dammit, I don’t hate you! So, let’s just get that off the table, shall we?” Lauren jerked off her dark glasses and tucked them into the upper pocket of her cammies. Pulling the cap around, she jerked the bill down, shading her eyes from the sunlight.
“Oh…” Alex swallowed hard. “You do not hate me?”
Lauren scrambled to her feet, dusting off her knees and lower legs. “What did I just say, Kazak? Are you hard of hearing, too?”
Befuddled by this sudden, unexpected admittance, Alex remained crouched. Something told him to seem smaller than he normally did. He suspected Lauren was scared of his height and bulk. She stood there, breathing harshly, her hands on her hips, glaring down at him. “No, I hear okay,” he said, keeping his voice low and even. Lauren was like a wild steppe pony from the rugged, mighty Mongolia in Central Asia. Or perhaps like the steeds the Russian Cossacks rode: those hardy, wild-eyed, hot-blooded horses who were akin to the mustangs here in America. “I just asked Mr. Hunter to remove me from this op,” he admitted. He saw Lauren’s mouth drop open. She quickly shut it. “But,” he offered sadly, “he said no. He said we must talk to one another and do… well…,” and he searched in his mind for the word.
“Sort it out,” Lauren provided, the anger draining from her voice. She stared at Alex, seeing how open and vulnerable he was toward her. She had been ripping into him with a passion. What was wrong with her? The guy had just tried to remove himself from the op because he knew she was uncomfortable around him.Shit!Turning, Lauren walked away about ten feet, her mind and emotions in utter turmoil. She hated herself for taking her issues out on Alex. The guy didn’t have a clue as to why she couldn’t stand being around him.
