SEAL Warriors

by Katie Knight

  Eerie silence followed the firefight, soon broken by the wail of approaching sirens. Tears stung Sam’s eyes. She wanted to look, wanted to see the state of things for herself, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it. She wasn’t a coward, far from it. But seeing Jack on the pavement, bleeding out, or worse, would kill her.

  The sound of the front door of the SUV opening spurred Sam into action. She’d do whatever was necessary to protect Glory, even if it meant taking on her father and all his henchmen directly. The gun Jack had left her was still in the glove compartment, too far away now. All she had were the keys in her hand. Not the best weapon in the world, but effective enough if used properly. Thankfully, she’d taken her share of self-defense classes over the years. She held the keys through her fingers, ready to jab out the eyes of her attacker, despite the horrible shaking in her free hand. With her other arm, she held Glory closer, doing her best to use her own body as armor for her infant.

  Just as Jack’s head popped in through the front door, the back door of the SUV opened and there stood the tall guy with the baseball hat she’d spied earlier at the gas pumps. He looked from the keys in her hand to her face, his smile small and genuine. “Miss Engel? I’m Deputy Marshal Zeke Taylor. Jack’s friend. The rogue agents are in custody. You’re safe now.”

  Sam’s gaze darted from Zeke, to Jack, who was peering at her over the front seat, and she didn’t think she’d ever seen a more welcome sight in her life. She dropped the keys and promptly burst into tears, same as Glory.

  Jack cursed under his breath and disappeared from view, changing places with Zeke to take Glory from her, then help her out of the car. He kissed the top of her head. “Are you okay? Did they hurt you at all?”

  “No.” She sniffled against the soft flannel of his shirt, inhaling his good Jack smell and taking comfort in his warmth and strength. She wasn’t some helpless female, but she’d been on her own, been strong for so long, that it felt good to have someone else share that burden, even if it was only temporary. Summoning all her fortitude, Sam pushed away from him and wiped her eyes, taking Glory. “I’m fine. We’re fine.”

  For the first time, Sam took in the scene around her. Police cars filled the lot now, lights flashing, as the two rogue agents writhed on the ground, handcuffed, and both bleeding a bit from a couple of nonlethal gunshot wounds.

  “What’s next?” she asked Jack.

  “Next, we’ll take you into the local marshal’s office in Omaha for a debrief before you go back into witness protection,” Zeke said. “Jack, we’ll need to talk to you too.”

  “Fine.” Jack put his arm around Sam’s shoulders and started to lead her over to the minivan driven by the woman in the hoodie.

  Much as she loved having him so close, Sam knew that the end was near. Best to prepare herself now. She shrugged off his arm and walked on ahead, doing her best to ignore the hurt in his eyes. “Thanks for your concern, but I got this.”

  21

  To say Jack felt on edge would’ve been the understatement of the century. Of course, the way Sam had all but shut him out after what happened at the gas station didn’t help either. Then there was being inside a stuffy government building. He felt caged and restless and ready to gnaw through a wall to get to Sam and Glory in the next room. The ride to Omaha had been quite and tense.

  “You okay, man?” Zeke asked from across the conference table, his dark eyes narrowed and far too perceptive for Jack’s comfort. “You look a bit… rough.”

  Jack felt a bit rough too, especially after how close those two rogue agents had come to shooting the two women he loved most in the world. If he hadn’t managed to wrestle the gun away from the one guy while Zeke and his team moved in on the other…

  He shuddered at the thought of what might have happened.

  Nope. Not going there. SEALs were trained to stay present, stay in the now, react to what they saw and heard in the moment. That’s what kept them sharp. Jack might’ve lost a lot from his SEAL days, but that much was ingrained in him so deep it had become part of his bones, his marrow. He shook off his churning emotions as best he could and concentrated on the discussion happening around him.

  “I’m fine,” he said to Zeke, then stared down at the file in front of him. “So, you’ve got someone on the inside of Engel’s circle?”

  “Not one of ours. FBI. Guy’s been under deep cover with Engel for a year now. He’s been feeding us intel when he can though. Until Engel managed to get a few marshals in his pocket, the intel was enough to help us stay one step ahead with Sam and the baby, moving them whenever Engel got too close.”

  Scrubbing a hand over his face, Jack exhaled slow. He’d always known that Stefan Engel was bad news. But what kind of monster was willing to kill his only daughter and infant granddaughter to keep himself safe? Stefan Engel, apparently. Jack’s gut knotted tighter as he stared at the transcript of the FBI agent’s last intelligence on the mobster. Engel’s plans to deal with Sam and Glory were laid out in excruciating detail. Find them. Eliminate them.

  “What about the rogue agents? You get anything from them yet?” Jack sighed and closed the file, squeezing his tired eyes shut. He hadn’t gotten a decent night’s sleep in days. He doubted he would for a while either, at least until Sam and Glory were safe. If they’d ever be safe while Stefan Engel was still alive.

  “They aren’t talking.” Zeke shrugged, his dark skin contrasting with the white of the button-down shirt he’d changed into once they were back in the office. He and Jack had weathered some of the worst fighting in the Middle East and Syria together. Putting your life on the line like that forged strong bonds of trust. That’s why Jack had been willing to put his life—and Sam and Glory’s—in his hands. “Engel’s put the fear of God in them. Rightly so. That guy’s a real piece of work. He’s ruthless and relentless. If he’s managed to breach our defenses here at the marshals’ office, who knows where else he’s got people watching. As such, I think it’s time we kicked this security detail to the next level.”

  Relief flooded Jack’s system. Finally, Sam and Glory would get the protection they deserved. He sat back and rolled his stiff neck and shoulders, cringing as his arm still stung from the bullet graze wound. “I’m listening.”

  “We’re going to put more agents on her and limit the information trail.” Zeke sat forward, clasping his hands on the table. “We won’t enter her into the database under her real name this time and I’ll select the people on her team myself. She’ll be as safe as we can possibly make her, Jack. I swear.”

  The door to the conference room opened and Sam walked in carrying Glory. The female agent from the gas station followed her inside and closed the door behind them. Sam had stepped out to change and feed the baby. She took a seat at the table a bit apart from Jack, still keeping her distance. His heart yearned to reach out and pull her closer, even though he knew he shouldn’t. Their time together was done. Zeke would take over the security detail from here and Jack would go back to his regular life in Rally. End of story. The fact Sam was pulling away from him was good. Less pain at the end.

  No matter how awful it felt now.

  “What did I miss?” Sam asked Zeke.

  He went over the same information he’d given Jack, leaving out the part about her father wanting her dead. Jack was pretty sure Sam was well aware of that anyway. The thought only made him want to hold her and comfort her all the more.

  Jack crossed his arms and forced those urges deep down inside him. He needed to be strong for Sam and their daughter, now more than ever. Turning into a sappy idiot wouldn’t do either of them justice. They deserved better. He’d give it to them, regardless of the emotional cost.

  “We need to act fast though,” Zeke said, his gaze darting to Jack. “Before word gets out we captured those rogue agents. I’d like to get Miss Engel and the baby settled in their new safe house by this afternoon.”

  “Right, sure.” Jack forced the words out past his constricted vocal cords. He needed to
treat this like any other SEAL mission he’d had over the years. Recovery and return. Do his job and move on. The fact he couldn’t seem to keep Sam and Glory in the emotional boxes he needed only reinforced how incapable he’d become. Having Zeke in charge was the best thing for all of them. The weight of Sam’s stare on him burned a hole through the side of his head, but he couldn’t look at her. If he did, she’d see all his hurt and inner conflict in his eyes and he didn’t want to break down in front of all these people, Zeke included. “Can we have a minute to say goodbye?”

  “Sure thing, man.” Zeke stood and ushered the other agents from the room. “Let me know when you’re done.”

  “Thanks.” Jack waited until the door closed behind his friend before finally meeting Sam’s eyes. In them, he saw wariness and a hint of the same pain searing inside himself. “So, I guess this is goodbye.”

  “Yeah.” She lowered her head, resting her chin atop Glory’s head. The baby was staring up at the ceiling, seemingly fascinated with the fluorescent lights. “Thanks for everything. And I’m sorry about all the trouble I’ve put you through.”

  “I don’t give a damn about any of that, Sam.” Jack blinked hard against the sting in his eyes. “I’m just glad you’re safe. I’m glad that Glory will be away from this danger and have a chance at a normal life. I’m just sorry I won’t be around to see it.”

  His chest squeezed tighter with sorrow. How he’d walk out of here and leave his child behind, he wasn’t sure, but he would. To keep her safe.

  After a long moment, where all the things he wanted to say hung heavy in the silence between them, Jack pushed to his feet and walked over to Sam. She stood too and they shared an awkward hug, Glory pressed between them. Then Jack bent and kissed his daughter’s head. They’d had such a short time together, but those days would mean more to him than anything else in this life. He took a deep breath, inhaling her good baby scent, committing it to memory, to comfort him on the long, lonely days ahead. When he straightened, he found Sam watching him, her eyes bright with unshed tears.

  Fingertips itching to stroke her cheeks, Jack stepped back before he couldn’t restrain himself anymore. “I’m, uh. I’m going to go. You and Zeke have a lot to get done. I wish you all the best, Sam. Always. And if you ever find yourself in Rally again…”

  He let those words trail off because they both knew that was impossible. As long as her father was alive, he and Sam had to stay apart. Any contact between them would blow her cover and he would never want to put them in danger like that again.

  Jack cleared his throat and put his hand on the doorknob. The cold metal was a shock against his heated skin. “Goodbye, Sam.”

  She met his gaze, her tears flowing freely now. “Goodbye, Jack.”

  Then he was out of there, walking down the hall and outside into the fresh air, feeling a gaping black hole in his chest where his heart used to be.

  22

  “Oh my gosh, baby!” Jillian Williams rushed over to hug her son tight. “I was so worried about you. I’ve been trying to call you for days. Where’ve you been? Did you hear that your cousin George’s cabin burned down?”

  Yeah, Jack had heard. Hell, he’d been there. Not that he’d tell his mom that. Instead, he just hugged her tight in return, feeling exhausted to his core. “I’m fine, Mom.”

  When she released him at last, he flopped down into one of the chairs at her kitchen table while she fussed around him, getting him coffee and a slice of apple pie that she’d brought home from the diner in town where she worked. He’d not eaten since that morning, but his stomach was still in knots. During the drive back to Rally from Omaha, he’d done nothing but rerun that goodbye with Sam in his mind. The way she’d looked. The way she’d sounded. The haunted, hurt expression on her face.

  They’d both known whatever was between them was temporary. So why did it feel like his whole life was a lie now?

  “You look like you’ve been ridden hard and put away wet, son,” his mom said, setting the pie and coffee in front of him, then taking a seat beside him at the table. “I stopped by your farm to see you after you didn’t answer my calls and talked to that neighbor of yours who’s watching the place. He said you got called away suddenly. It wasn’t something to do with that SEAL team of yours, was it?”

  “No, Ma,” he said around a mouthful of pie. The apples were soft and tart, and the sugar and cinnamon in the mix sparkled on his taste buds, but honestly, he could’ve been eating dirt for all the attention he paid. All he was craving right now was Sam and Glory, but he couldn’t have them. Could never have them again. Everything seemed so pointless and useless and dull. “It wasn’t my SEAL team.”

  “What was it then?” She cocked her head to the side, studying her son closely. “Aren’t you hot in that flannel? There’s grease on it too. Best take it off and let me wash it for you while you’re here.”

  Jack did as she asked, knowing his mom might be small in stature, but she was big in stubborn. People around Rally thought she was as sweet as the apple pie he was eating, but she had a core of iron. She’d needed it to survive losing his dad, Hank, when Jack had been just a kid.

  He slid his arms out of the plaid flannel, then winced as the wound on his arm pulled.

  “Jack, what did you do to yourself now?” his mom scolded. “How in the world did you hurt your arm like that? Best let me take a look at that too. Those bandages are soaked through.”

  He sipped his coffee and ate his pie while his mom flitted about, starting the washing machine, then fetching her first aid kit. She still treated him like a ten-year-old instead of a seasoned war veteran with hundreds of successful missions under his belt. It was kind of nice for a change.

  As she cleaned and rebandaged his wound, her chatter about the town and the latest gossip about the folks living there helped relax him as nothing else could. But as the tension in his muscles eased, the ache in his heart grew. For the last few days, he’d been living on nothing but adrenaline and the rush of the chase. Now, he felt burned out and used up in the worst possible way.

  “Jack, honey,” his mom said, closing up the first aid kit after she’d finished. “That neighbor of yours, the one watching your place. He said that he found a bunch of tire tracks in your fields. Found some shell casings outside your house too. Want to tell me how you got shot?”

  Surprised, he looked over at her.

  “I was married to a Marine, honey. I know a bullet wound when I see one.” His mom chuckled, then patted him on the forearm. “Are you in some kind of trouble, son?”

  “No.” Unless you counted trouble of the heart. “I can’t really talk about it.”

  “I see.” His mom put the first aid kit back in the bathroom, then returned to the kitchen. She refilled his coffee and cleared away his empty plate, then took her seat beside him again. “You know, your father used to share some of his mission details with me back in the day. It was all classified stuff, but he knew I could keep a secret. I still can, son. Not that I want to force you to talk to me, but I’m always here for you. No matter what.”

  He knew that, he did. He just didn’t want to put any more people at risk from Stefan Engel’s violence and rage. And he would never jeopardize Sam and Glory’s well-being. But he also needed to get some of his emotions out, needed to share them with someone. Otherwise, he feared they’d eat him up inside until there was nothing left. He couldn’t tell her specifics, but he could talk in generalities.

  “There was a woman,” he said, staring down into his cup instead of meeting his mom’s gaze. “We…” He paused. “Well, we were together about a year ago while I was away on a mission. Just one time. Then I ran into her again last week. It’s been a rough couple of days since.”

  “Oh, honey. I’m sorry. Did she break your heart?”

  “Yeah. But not in the way you think.” He shook his head, still trying to wrap his head around the whole situation. “She’s got problems. Family problems. And a kid.”

  My kid. That made
him choke up a bit. He swallowed a huge swig of coffee to wash the sadness down. His mom would’ve gone nuts over Glory. She’d been bugging him for years about grandkids. He could just imagine his mom doting on little Glory, dressing her up and parading her around Rally, bragging to all her friends.

  “Anyway, she had to leave to take care of these family problems and there’s just no room in her life for me.” He scowled down at the tabletop, picked at the edge with his fingernail. “It was best for us to be apart, so I came home.”

  “Huh.” His mom sat back and crossed her arms, frowning. “Interesting. That still doesn’t explain that injury to your arm though. Unless you made her so mad, she shot you.”

  Jack chuckled, smiling for the first time since he’d walked out of the marshals’ office earlier that day. Sam was feisty enough to take him to task for anything he might do, but he doubted she’d ever fire a weapon at him. Not that he’d ever get a chance to see her get good and mad—or cranky, or giddy, or anything else, ever again. The reminder smacked him hard upside the head and he inhaled sharply. His mom was still watching him and the weight of the world crashed down on his shoulders. “I love her, Mom. I really love her. And now she’s gone.”

  “Aw, honey.” His mom reached over and placed her hand over his, giving it a squeeze. “I’m so sorry. Believe me, I know your pain. After your father died, I thought my life had ended. I wasn’t sure how I’d go on without him.”

  “How did you?” Jack asked when the constriction in his throat eased enough that he could. “How did you find the strength to move on?”

  “I had to, honey.” His mom gave him a sad little smile. “You were only ten. I had to be strong for you. It wasn’t easy and there were a lot of days when I wanted to quit, but then I’d see you smiling and happy and it made me happy too. Eventually, my grief over your father faded to a dull, sweet ache and life went on. The sadness of losing someone you love never leaves, but maybe that’s a comfort somehow. A reminder of what you had to treasure.”