“Just a minute. Lynch, you said this guy was trustworthy.”
“Yeah, why?”
“Then why are there four tangos tracking us?”
“What the fuck? Are you sure? Naif? What the fuck is going on?”
“Nothing. I made some inquiries as you asked. That is all. I did not mention the Americans. Or about your president.”
“Who did you talk to?” Jake wasn’t as laid back as Lynch. They didn’t have time for this shit, they only had two hours and twelve minutes left.
“It was after morning prayers. I asked a few of the men in my Mosque. Then I sent my driver to the airport to pick up your men.”
“We need the names of everyone you spoke to at the Mosque. Write them down and give them to Lynch. Rafe, you and Murph go take out our company. Then meet us at the van.”
“Copy that, Boss.”
Cam kept watch as Rafe and Murph took out the tangos one at a time.
“Now, Naif, I want to know everything you learned and don’t leave out any details. If we find out you turned, you’ll never see daylight again,” Lynch said. If his asset had gone bad he could say goodbye to his career, especially if they lost POTUS.
After Naif told them everything, Jake questioned him on some of the details. Making sure nothing changed when he asked him several times. Then they left him and Lynch to do whatever and went back to the van. They needed to get out of there. It wouldn’t be long until the dead men were discovered, and they wanted to be long gone.
Naif got behind the wheel with the instructions to drive them back to the airport. It was obvious that Jake didn’t trust him and wanted to make sure he didn’t know any more about their plan than necessary.
“What’s the plan, Boss,” Cam asked. They were huddled in the back of the van. Unless they were bugged, no one could hear what they discussed.
“We’re going to split up. I don’t like it but we’re running out of time. Rafe, you take Murph and Ryan and check out the Mosque. Naif mentioned a guest house that’s had a lot of activity lately. I think our buddy Azfaar might be holed up there.”
“Copy that.”
“Cam and I will search the Royal Terminal for any sign of explosives. I’ll report back to TOC. Set your watches, rendezvous behind the terminal in forty-five mikes.” When the van stopped at the next traffic light, they opened the door and blended in with the crowd.
By the time they got back to the airport, they’d burned another twenty minutes due to traffic. He and Jake walked through the main terminal doors and split up. They’d meet up at the rear of the Royal Terminal and start searching for the bombs.
As he and Halo moved through the airport, he watched for any sign they were being followed. They made it all the way to the entrance of the Royal terminal wing before picking up a tail. Cam wasn’t sure if it was the Royal Secret Service or the new ISIS Al-Qaeda team trying to take him out. Ducking out of sight, he picked the lock on a door marked “employees only,” Cam and Halo slipped inside, and it was sheer luck that it was filled with janitorial uniforms and carts.
Changing into one of the uniforms, he tipped the cart for Halo to jump inside the garbage can and grabbed a second uniform for Jake. Not the best plan but it should give them access without standing out.
“Eagle 1, this is Eagle 5. I got us a couple of janitor uniforms.”
“Copy that. Location?”
Cam told Jake where to find him and within minutes he was at the door. After he changed, they exited out the back of the room and into the terminal each with their own cleaning cart. Jake took the west side and check the adjacent area. Cam took the east side of the terminal where Air Force One was supposed to land. As soon as they were clear, he let Halo out of his hiding place.
The rest of the team hadn’t reported in and Cam wondered what they’d walked into. It was never good when they split up the team. They each had their strengths and were better together. Jake must have been thinking the same thing because moments later Jake’s voice came over the com.
“Eagle 2, this is Eagle 1. Give me a sitrep.”
At first, there was no answer. Cam kept searching but listened intently hoping to hear a response. Finally, Rafe responded.
“Eagle 1, this is Eagle 2. Birds have flown the coop, burned the plans. Looks like their mission is a go.”
“Eagle 2 copy that. Return to the airport. Rendezvous with Eagle 5. We need to find that device.”
“Eagle 1, from what we found here it looks like there’s more than one.”
“Eagle 2, copy that.”
Fuck. So much for eliminating the threat before it got to the airport. It was probably already there. But so far they hadn’t found anything. The clock was down to one hour and seventeen minutes. They needed to find the devices before the plane landed.
Chapter 3
Chrissy and the pizza delivery guy showed up at the same time. Even better, she came bearing ice cream and three bottles of Moscato. Miranda wondered if any of them would be able to stand up by ten p.m. It was her first girl’s night ever, so she hadn’t known what to expect.
While they were waiting for Chrissy and the pizza, she and Meghan picked out a bunch of movies, some Miranda hadn’t seen. They had a mix of chick flicks and action movies with hunky men. It was a tossup about which would be better.
“I think we should start with the hunks. Let’s save the girly movies for ice cream,” Chrissy voted when Meghan asked for a preference.
“Sounds good to me. Which one should we go with?”
“How about Thor?”
“Hell yeah, and Loki isn’t hard on the eyes either,” Chrissy said and laughed. Miranda liked her already. Who knew that an FBI analyst could be so much fun?
While Meghan started the movie, she grabbed a slice of pizza and settled into the corner of the couch. Chrissy poured the wine and handed Miranda a glass. They gabbed more than watched the movie, commenting on abs and six packs. Loki was cute, in an evil sort of way, but damn that Chris Hemsworth was one sexy man and reminded her of Cam. She ‘d tried not to think about where he was or worry about what he was doing. As much fun as she was having with Chrissy and Meghan, she’d been looking forward to seeing him.
“Hey, no moping. This is girl’s night. We drink, eat too much, and laugh our asses off until we can’t breathe. Those are the rules,” Meghan said, and Chrissy nodded as she took another bite of pizza.
Determined to have a good time, she smiled, took a huge swallow of wine and asked, “How long have you known each other?”
“Me and Chrissy? Hell, we grew up together. So it’s what? Almost thirty years?”
“At least,” Chrissy agreed.
“Thirty? I didn’t realize you were that much older than Charlie.”
“He’s the baby of the family and Lizzie is the oldest. I’m the problem child in the middle. Or at least that’s what Mom used to say. I’ll be thirty-two this year.”
“I didn’t mean you were old.”
“I didn’t take it that way.” Meghan smiled and refilled her wine glass. “Now drink up. We have two more bottles to finish.”
“We’re going to drink all that wine? Three bottles?”
“The only rules are to have fun, remember? That’s all that matters.”
“Miranda, haven’t you done this with your friends?” Chrissy asked.
“Not really. We’d go to the movies, out to dinner, but never anything like this. I guess it was partly my parents, they were always strict about who I could be friends with and what I did. They called it being careful, I called it being overprotective and stifling. Then when dad became a senator there was security all the time. It was easier to just stay home until I joined the missionary group.”
“Holy shit. Seriously? That doesn’t sound like much fun,” Meghan said.
“It was okay. I didn’t think about it. It was just my life.”
“You’re not against drinking, are you? I know Charlie doesn’t but it’s not because of his faith, he just do
esn’t like it much. But I didn’t even think you might not want to drink.”
“Oh no, it’s nothing like that. I’m not religious like that. I joined the missionary group to help build schools for the girls. I wanted to give back and it was a good option. Actually, it was how I got my father to agree. Although he didn’t expect me to go overseas. That didn’t go over well.”
“I bet it didn’t. I’d have loved to see the look on their faces when you told them,” Meghan said.
“Yeah, it wasn’t pretty. But I needed to do it for me. I want my own life. But after the abduction, it got worse. My mother practically loses it whenever I’m out of her sight. I told you how she wanted me to stay home and just have him visit.”
“Fuck, that wouldn’t have been much fun with her watching your every move.”
“I’m too old for that. I have to make them understand it’s time for me to live my life.”
“Good for you. They’re going to freak out when they find out you’re going back, aren’t they?” Meghan mused as she refilled their glasses.
Miranda didn’t want to think about it. “I think we’ve talked enough about me. Let’s drink to sexy movie stars, wine, and lots of calories.”
Meghan and Chrissy raised their glasses, and Miranda drained hers in one huge gulp and hiccupped. “Oh, shit. Excuse me.”
“Holy fuck, I’m rubbing off on you. You said shit,” Meghan said and started giggling. “Your parents are going to kill me.”
“I’ve said it before. I’ll say it again. Shit, shit, shit, damn, shit and hell.” That set them all off and soon the movie was forgotten. Chrissy and Meghan told stories of all the trouble they’d gotten into in high school and college.
By the time Meghan brought out the ice cream, Miranda was stuffed on pizza and tipsy from all the wine.
“If I eat that I’ll definitely lose it. I’m so full.”
“Okay, I’ll put yours back in the freezer, but I swear it’s the perfect dessert after all of this.”
“She’s right you know. You think you can’t, but you can.”
“I’ll pass for now. I’d rather have another glass of wine.”
“Woohoo, look at you,” Chrissy said as she passed the last bottle of wine to Miranda.
“Holy crap, we finished the other two already?”
“Yup. I told you,” Meghan said with a giggle. “It’s girl’s night. Oh and what happens here, stays here. We don’t share with the men.”
“Gotcha. No sharing with the men,” Miranda said as she held up three fingers in the scout's honor salute, which made them all laugh again. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d laughed so much, and her ribs were hurting a bit. It was taking them forever to fully heal, but she’d handle the pain for this much fun anytime.
“I don’t have to worry about that. No man for me,” Chrissy said and pushed out her bottom lip in an exaggerated pout.
“Why not? You’re beautiful, smart, funny,” Miranda asked.
“That’s the problem, I’m too smart. It intimidates most of the men I’ve dated,” Chrissy said.
“That’s because you date a bunch of fucktards. You need to go out with Ryan, I know he’s interested,” Meghan responded.
“Ryan? The SEAL medic?” Miranda asked.
“Yes. When he and Chrissy are both here, he can’t take his eyes off of her.”
“He was very gentle with me and I agree, he’s really handsome. Not as gorgeous as Cam but still.”
“I don’t think it’s a good idea.”
“Why not?” Miranda and Meghan asked in unison.
“Because if it doesn’t work out it will be weird when we try to hang out. I don’t want to not hang out with you and he and Rafe are so close.”
“That’s bullshit. Besides, you don’t know it won’t work out.”
“No, but with my track record, it’s pretty likely. Besides he’s a fuckin’ SEAL. He can screw any woman in Norfolk. Why pick someone that’s in his inner circle?”
“But you never know,” Miranda asked. It didn’t make sense to not try. Life was short and full of surprises. “I think you like him. You should take a chance. After what I just went through, it taught me that tomorrow isn’t guaranteed and if you want something you need to go for it.”
Chrissy seemed to consider what she said and nodded. “That’s true. But to tell you the truth, I like my life the way it is. I don’t have to worry about anyone else, it doesn’t matter if I work long hours or weekends, no one is there but the cat to care.”
“And you think Ryan wouldn’t understand about that? Hell, they’re gone at a moment’s notice.”
“I think you’re just making excuses. If you want to be single, that’s cool, but if you like him then I say go for it. I know I don’t know you well yet, but you said we can say whatever we want tonight.”
“That’s true. You caught on quick.”
“I might be sheltered but I’m not stupid.”
“We never thought you were.”
“I think I’ll have that ice cream now.”
“You got it,” Meghan went to grab it from the freezer. Chrissy turned to her when they were alone. “How are you doing for real? I know you said you were okay, but you went through a lot.”
“I did, but I’m okay. Having Charlie to talk to helps. I still have nightmares but they’re happening less often.”
“Good. Meghan has them. Rafe told me, she’s stubborn too. You are a lot alike.”
“Stop talking about me, I can hear you.”
“What? We’re not saying a thing.”
“Yeah. Yeah. So Rafe told you I was having nightmares?”
“Maybe.”
“Well, I didn’t tell you.”
“He wanted me to make sure you were okay while he was gone. That’s all.”
“He’s a good man,” Meghan said with a huge smile.
“Yes, he is.”
“So is Cam,” Meghan added.
“I know. It doesn’t seem real sometimes. Life is strange.”
“I’ll drink to that,” Chrissy said, and they finished the last of the Moscato and dug into their ice cream. Miranda definitely needed more female companionship. It was time for her to make some changes.
The clock was ticking, with less than an hour left, they still hadn’t found any trace of the explosives.
“Eagle 5, this is Eagle 1, sitrep.”
“Eagle 1, negative for the explosives. Halo hasn’t picked up anything.”
“Copy that Eagle 5. I’m negative here too.”
“Eagle 1, this is Eagle 2, we’re at the terminal.”
“Copy that Eagle 2. Come through the maintenance door and rendezvous with Eagle 5.”
“Copy that, Eagle 1.”
“C’mon boy,” Cam called Halo as he headed toward the rear of the terminal. He was starting to wonder if the intel had been wrong and there weren’t any explosives.
Rendezvousing in the cover of the luggage carts, they discussed their next move.
“I don’t get it. If there were explosives we’d have found them by now.”
“Maybe we’re looking in the wrong place,” Rafe said. “The guest house had bomb-making material spread out across two tables. Someone was making explosive devices.”
“But no sign of Azfaar?”
“Nope,” Murph responded. “But he might have been warned by the guys we took out at the coffee shop.”
“We’re running out of time and JSOC is giving the captain a rash of shit. We need to either verify the all clear or find the threat.”
“What if they aren’t out here yet?” Cam asked.
“What are you thinking?” Jake responded.
“If they were tipped off that we’re here, they wouldn’t have them planted where we could find them.”
“Plausible. So what, suicide vests?”
“Maybe, or maybe they’ll use something to approach the plane after it’s landed.”
“Good point. We haven’t found any trace out
here or around the terminal. If the intel is good, then the tangos are most likely inside the terminal waiting to be activated,” Jake said.
“Cam, you and Halo continue to search the perimeter. Halo would be the first to detect explosives. Ryan and Murph take the right side of the terminal, Rafe you’re with me. If we find any tangos, we need to take them out quietly. We’re not here.”
“Copy that.” Ryan and Murph slipped back inside the terminal. Jake called the captain to give him a sitrep and advise him of the updated plan.
“And you were bored,” Rafe said and grinned at Cam.
“Yeah, well. That’ll teach me to bitch out loud.”
“Fucking yeah. But it’s not every day we get to save the leader of the free world.”
“If we can find the threat in time.”
“We will and no one will know but us.”
“Exactly,” Jake said as he came up behind Rafe. “Let’s go. Cam, you good?”
“Of course.”
“Advise asap of any persona non grata.”
“Copy that. Notify asap of PNG activity,” Cam confirmed as he and Halo slipped into the shadows to check the perimeter. Staying hidden, they rechecked every nook and cranny they could find that would be large enough to plant an explosive. It wouldn’t take much to ignite the plane. Just one spark near the fuel tank and it would go up like a roman candle on the Fourth of July.
It was frustrating, knowing that the threat existed but being unable to find it. It’s not how they operated. Find the threat, eliminate it, and move on to the next one. The lack of any sign of explosives made Cam wonder if it had been a false trail to take them off the scent of the real threat. Maybe it would be a bomb directed toward the presidential motorcade.
That’s when he saw it. The fueling tanker. It approached what looked like one of the Saudi prince’s planes on the other side of the terminal. It made perfect sense. It wouldn’t take more than a small ignition to turn the tanker into a bomb.
SEAL's Sunshine - Lynne St Jame Page 3