Because of You: Covert OPS 1

by Kymber Jones

  Roger shook his head. He couldn’t believe Crystalline Hopkins was helping him to escape his hell. She was one of three young women called the Triple D’s, each belonging to an elite Division in the Special OPS called the Covert Ops.

  Tales of the Covert Ops were told in revered tones by each of the different Special OPS groups worldwide, no one knowing precisely who the Covert Ops worked for. Some people even said the group was just a myth, made up among the Special OPS to give their recruits something to strive for. However, others swore that this group was legit and only operated under cover of darkness. If anyone were unfortunate enough to meet one of the members, they would be dead the following night. Though if that was the case, how anyone found out the girls’ names and leaked them was a complete mystery to Roger.

  Back at her hiding spot, Chrys quickly gathered up her backpack and weapons then started to lead everyone deep into the heart of the Congo Rainforest.

  Three hours passed when the group came upon a small village. Walking cautiously up to a young boy sitting at a campfire, Chrys gently asked, “Je! Wazazi wako wako hapa? Je! Vipi kuhusu mzee wa kijiji chako (Are your parents here? What about your village elder?)?”

  The boy jumped up surprised, shouting, “Wageni! Wageni wa ngozi walio na rangi (Strangers! Pale skinned strangers!)!”

  Kneeling in front of the boy, Chrys held her hands out, showing him she meant him no harm.

  “Tunakuja kwa msaada. Wazazi wako wako hapa (We come for help. Are your parents here?)?”

  Looking up at Chrys, the boy pointed towards the opposite end of the village, where several men had sat around a large communal fire telling stories. When they heard the boy shouting about the strangers entering their town, they had hurried to gather their weapons and greet these interlopers.

  Smiling at the boy, Chrys reached into a pocket and withdrew a candy bar, tossing it to the boy for his information before facing the oncoming men.

  “Tunakuja kwa msaada. Natafuta mtu anayeitwa Bwana Mkubwa. Niliambiwa atakuwa hapa kunisaidia nitakapofika. Mimi ni Fuwele Hopkins (We come for help. I am looking for a man named Bwana Mkubwa. I was told he would be here to help me when I arrived. I am Crystalline Hopkins.).”

  A large man with several different animal skins sewn together and wrapped around his shoulders stepped forward.

  “No need to translate. I speak fluent English,” the man said. “I am Bwana Mkubwa. You are the Captain’s daughter.”

  Chrys nodded. “I am. And my father sends his thanks for you helping me out. He said to tell you he owes you one now.”

  “That is nonsense. It is I who owes your father a life debt, one that can never be repaid. Now, let’s get all of you some food, then we will get you into our vehicles and take you to the airport where your flight is waiting for you.”

  “Thank you. We appreciate your help. My father told me many great stories about you and his time here, but I always thought he was making those stories up. Now I can see he wasn’t exaggerating about your greatness.”

  Bwana Mkubwa smiled. “No, he wasn’t exaggerating about any of the stories he told you. As for my greatness, however, I am only as great as the next man. I do my best to help my people and pray it will be enough. Now come. Let’s eat, then get you to safety. Are you all going to the same place? Or do a couple of you wish to go somewhere else?”

  Chrys turned to the captives with her and asked the question that was put to her. She already knew the Doctor, Nun, and Captain were going with her. She had orders to get two of the three back to Base, and she would not leave without the third now that she knew about him. The other captives were from here. This was their home, regardless of what they went through, so Chrys didn’t want to assume she knew what they would choose.

  “Waliua mume wangu na watoto. Sina nyumba ya kurudi. Nitaenda na wewe, Miss ikiwa inaruhusiwa. Utatupeleka Amerika, ndio (They killed my husband and children. I have no home to go back to. I will go with you, Miss, if it is allowed. You will take us to America, yes?)?” The woman that had been raped asked tearfully.

  Chrys nodded. “Ndio (Yes.).”

  Another spoke up. “Siwezi kuondoka. Wana watoto wangu. Lazima niwe hapa ikiwa wataweza kutoroka. Walimwua mume wangu, lakini lazima niwe na matumaini watoto wangu watakuwa sawa na wataweza kutoroka na kuja nyumbani kwangu (I can't leave. They have my children. I have to be here if they're able to escape. They killed my husband, but I have to have hope my children will be okay and be able to escape and come home to me.).”

  “Nitakupeleka kwenye kituo cha jeshi hapo ndipo utakapokuwa salama, na unaweza kungojea huko kwa watoto wako hata hivyo itakubidi muda gani. Ikiwa watoto wako watatoroka, wataenda kwenye kituo kama wakimbizi (I’ll take you to the military base where you will be safe, you can wait there for your children however long you have to. If your children escape, they will make their way to the base as refugees.).”

  “Asante, Bibi (Thank you, Miss.).”

  “Hakuna haja ya kunishukuru, ninafanya tu kazi yangu. Je! Ni sawa na nyinyi wengine? Je! Unataka kukaa hapa? Au nenda nami (No need to thank me, I am just doing my job. Is it the same for the rest of you? Do you want to stay here? Or go with me?)?”

  No one else wanted to stay, saying they wanted to go to America with Chrys when she left.

  Bwana Mkubwa nodded. “Very well. I will let my driver know we are all going to the airport. Do you need to call your father?”

  Chrys smiled. “Yes. He’s going to be going crazy if I don’t check in soon. Uncle Stone will be keeping him updated, but it’s not the same.”

  “No, it’s not.” Bwana Mkubwa agreed. “Sit, all of you. Here are some bowls of soup and some meat. There’s plenty. When you are done, we will leave.”

  “Farijika, nenda kwenye chumba changu upate dawa ninayotumia kusaidia kuponya wagonjwa wetu. Haraka, mtu huyu anahitaji sana uponyaji (Farijika, go to my room and get the medicine I use to help heal our sick. Hurry, this man is in great need of healing.).” Bwana Mkubwa told the boy who had moved to stand next to him.

  Chrys looked up at Bwana Mkubwa in shock. There was no way this boy was the same Farijika her father had spent years looking for, was there? Was this the boy he adopted when he married the boy’s mother, only to have him stolen away by the Gorillas when they killed his wife, the boy’s mother?

  “I see you know who Farijika is. Yes, this is the Captain’s son. I have him ready to go when you are. I did not tell the Captain he is here because anything could happen, but you are here now. You will protect the boy and make sure he goes home where he belongs.”

  “Y...Yes. Yes, absolutely. My father will be thrilled to have him home finally. He has never stopped thinking about him. We even have a room set up at our house for him, just in case he’s ever found.”

  “Ah, yes, thank you, boy.” Bwana Mkubwa told Farijika in English when he returned with the required medicine. “Now, I want you to meet your sister. This is Captain Theo’s American child. Her name is Captain Crystalline Hopkins. She will be taking you home with her to meet your father.”

  “My American father, yes?” Farijika asked, his eyes wide and full of wonder now that he realized the young woman who came into their village was the sister he heard so much about.

  “Yes, your American father. He promised your biological father he would get you to America and raise you there, where you would be safe. He’s been searching for you for a long time.”

  Farijika nodded. “The Gorillas, they had me. We went a long way. Bwana Mkubwa and his men fought the Gorillas. They won, but many good men died. Bwana Mkubwa kept me here, he hid me from the Gorillas when they tried to return, but the men fought them off again. Bwana Mkubwa promised to get me to my American father, and now you are here! He kept his word!”

  Chrys smiled. “Bwana Mkubwa is a great man. He does many beautiful things like helping save people. He worked with our father many times over the years. Are you excited to go to America and meet your American father?”

  “You bet!” Farijika cried.
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  “Good! Your dad is going to be beyond thrilled to see you finally!”

  “Really?”

  “Really.”

  “Will he take me to baseball games and play what you Americans call soccer with me?” Farijika asked excitedly.

  “I think he’ll do that and more. And so will the other guys. They’ll all love having you there.”

  “I can’t wait to meet my American family. Bwana Mkubwa says everything will be good. Do you think everything will be good?”

  Chrys nodded. “I know everything will be great. Dad is going to be so thrilled to have you home; he’s going to spoil you for the rest of your life.”

  Farijika looked at Chrys, confused. “But I don’t want to be spoiled. If I am spoiled, my American father will have to throw me away with the garbage.”

  Trying not to laugh, Chrys shook her head. “No. Spoiled means giving you everything you want. He will be so happy to have you home; Dad will be giving you everything you could want for a long time. He won’t ever get rid of you. I promise.”

  Farijika nodded as he watched Chrys, but he still looked skeptical. He didn’t trust this spoiling. He would have to make sure his American father didn’t spoil him so that he had no reason to change his mind and get rid of him later.

  After everyone had finished eating, and Bwana Mkubwa had given some medicine to Roger, three Land Rovers were packed, with everyone heading off to Kinshasa Airport. There they had a military plane waiting for them where they would fly over to Djibouti. Then they would drop off the captive that wanted to stay in hopes of seeing her children again, but everyone else would be flying out almost immediately once again to London, and from there, they would split up and go their separate ways. Chrys would make sure Roger would get home personally, but after that, she would be bringing her adoptive brother back to their father, who had searched for him for the past four years.

  “You, Miss Chrys, are good luck for your family.” Bwana Mkubwa spoke after a couple of hours of silence.

  “Why do you say that?” Chrys asked, smiling.

  “You follow your father well and get the job done. The Captain is very proud of you.”

  “Thank you,” Chrys replied. “I try to make him proud. I try to make all of my family proud.”

  “That is the mark of a good child. But you do not need to prove yourself. You have already done that many times over.”

  “I appreciate you saying that, Bwana Mkubwa. It means a lot to me.”

  Suddenly their Land Rover shook, bouncing back and forth from one side to the other.

  “Holy shit!” Chrys swore. “What the fuck just happened? Is everyone alright?”

  Bwana Mkubwa shook his head. “We are under attack. The Gorillas, they have found us.”

  “So I figured.” Chrys snarled. “Roger, can you shoot?” She wanted to know.

  “Just give me something to take these bastards down with!” Roger replied angrily.

  “My backpack has my toys. Take your pick.”

  Eagerly Roger tore into Chrys’s backpack. When he saw the different guns and knives in the top pocket alone, he let out a loud whoop of joy.

  “Oh Princess, you do know how to play, don’t you?” He teased.

  “That’s just a glimpse of what I usually carry on me. I had to keep it light since I would have all of the captives with me this trip. Now quit jerking off and get to work. We need to clear the path to the airport.”

  “Yes, ma’am.” Roger grinned, making sure the weapon he chose was good to go before taking aim and starting to shoot at the Gorillas firing at them.

  Taking out two men, Chrys watched as Roger managed to shoot the driver of the Humvee, chasing them. Instantly the driver lost control and started to veer off course, flipping the Humvee in the process.

  “Well, that’s four bastards down with that fancy shooting you did.” Chrys said.

  “But we still have two more Humvees coming upon us.” Roger told her.

  “Can you take out the other drivers?” Chrys wanted to know.

  “If I could get a shot, but I can tell you now, the Bastards aren’t going to give me that chance.”

  “We need to get to the city and lose them in the streets so that we can outrun them to the airport.”

  “Easier said than done. They know these streets better than any of us, I’m afraid.”

  “It doesn’t matter. We either take out the drivers and, in the process, the vehicles, or we get ahead of them and lose them in the city. They’d be less likely to create the mayhem they are searching for in a small town or a deserted road.” Chrys paused. “We just have to keep them back.”

  “Do you have enough ammo?”

  “I have the ammo. Who has the better aim? You or me?” Chrys asked. “Because one of us has to shoot while the other keeps reloading.”

  “I’m good,” Roger admitted. “But I’m nowhere near the expertise any of the Triple D’s have from what I’ve heard.”

  “Then let’s change positions, now. I need to be able to aim at these Bastards properly.”

  Climbing over Roger, Chrys maneuvered into the back of the humvee then waited for him to adjust himself into the front seat, keeping his head below the windows.

  “How much longer is our ETA?” Chrys asked Bwana Mkubwa.

  “We’re only ten minutes out.”

  “Can you push it to five?”

  “We can try.”

  “Do it. We’re covering everyone. Balls to the walls, man, and leave it there!”

  Seven minutes later, the three Humvees came barreling up to a chain-link fence surrounding a runway. Instead of stopping, Bwana Mkubwa plowed right through, stopping when he was close enough to let Chrys out to speak with the attendants.

  Only, as Chrys took a step toward the men in US Army uniforms, the Land Rovers chasing Chrys’s group managed to get close enough to let off a couple of rounds from a Fabrique Nationale FN Mag, better known as a General Purpose Machine Gun, or a GPMG.

  “Taking enemy fire! Return fire! Return fire!” One of the US Soldiers cried.

  “Get on the plane! We have to get this bird off the ground now!” Another Soldier cried from up in the cockpit.

  Before anyone could reply, Chrys looked down at herself, a look of anger catching the Soldiers by surprise.

  “Well, fuck.” Chrys swore before collapsing into one of the Soldier’s arms closest to her.

  “Doc! Soldier down! We have a Soldier shot!”

  Running off the plane, the man the Soldier called Doc took one look at Chrys and winced. First of all, she wasn’t a Soldier; Chrys was a Sailor, and if the Soldier couldn’t tell the difference between his uniform and other branches’ he needed some serious help. Secondly, she was Special OPS; she wasn’t just a Sailor. He’d worked with a group of Sailors and Soldiers in a joint task force once upon a time, and she had been a part of it, along with her Team. And every man in her group had been beyond protective of her. He did not want to be the lucky son of a bitch to let her father or other family members know she was dead if she didn’t survive.

  “Get Captain Hopkins on a plane, now! It’s not a through and through. I have to perform immediate surgery! Let’s go! She needs attention now!” Doc ordered.

  “What about the other packages?” The first Soldier shouted, firing at the Land Rover that was quickly departing.

  “If they’re not on the plane in five, we leave without them! Captain Hopkins is our first priority!”

  Chrys groaned. “No,” She mumbled. “Get the captives. And the boy. Put them on the plane. I’m not leaving without them.”

  Doc grumbled. “Damn stubborn Special OPS. Get everyone! Put them on the plane while I get the Captain situated. Be ready to leave in five.”

  “Thank you.” With that, Chrys looked up at the man holding her, one lone tear tracking its way down her face, and promptly passed out.

  Chapter 2

  “How is she, Doc?”

  “She’s damn lucky, is what she is.”
The Doctor told the men standing in front of him for the latest update about Chrys’s condition. “She’s touch and go right now. The nurses are moving her to ICU, where she will remain for the next two hours. If she makes it through that, we’ll move her to her own room, where you’ll be able to go in and visit her. Until then, I suggest you grab a cup of coffee, find a church, and pray, anything to keep you occupied for the next couple of hours.”

  “But how does it look for her?”

  The Doctor shook his head. “Honestly? I’m damn surprised she made it here the way she did. The medic saved her life. There’s no question about that. If she makes it through the next couple of hours, though, she should be out of the woods. We’ll keep her here for the next day to keep an eye on her, but we can discharge her and send her back home after that as long as she takes it easy and doesn’t go back in the field any time soon. I’ll be giving her a couple of months of light-limited duty to help her recover. Make sure she uses it and recovers properly.”

  “Believe me, Doc, that won’t be a problem. She’ll be getting all the LIMDU she can handle and then some. I’ve already called her father and told him her status. He’s getting everything set up for her back home. Once he’s done with that, he should be meeting us here and helping us take Chrys home.”

  “We’ll have her prepared for going home once she’s out of ICU and stays here overnight. Until then, do something to take your mind off the girl. I have a feeling you’re all going to have a long night, so go have a decent dinner.”

  “Thank you, Doc.”

  The Doctor left, leaving a room full of men to stand around staring out the dirty windows of the hospital unit at Djibouti.

  “What’s the next step, Commander?” One of the men asked the Commander, who had just spoken to the Doctor.

  “We do what we do best. We wait. Then when they’re ready to move her, we’ll go to her room with her. I want at least two men with her at all times, is that understood?”

  “Aye, Commander.”

  “Good. I suggest everyone get something to eat if they’re hungry. As the Doc said, it’s going to be a long night.”