Capture Tomorrow

by Ann Heathman

  “Raul has something he wants to discuss with us.”

  Arianna looked over and saw Raul standing beside the desk, a somber look on his face. “What’s wrong, Raul?”

  “Have a seat, Arianna.” Harold pointed to a chair.

  Her heart froze in her chest, and she ignored the chair. “Is this about Zach? Has something happened to him? Oh, God, Raul, please tell me he’s all right.”

  “No, Zach’s fine.”

  She let out a huge sigh of relief.

  “It’s you I’m worried about. I’m afraid this meeting is about you.”

  “Me? What about me?”

  “He knows about the threats, Arianna,” Harold said. “He’s been talking to me about new security precautions.”

  “What!” Arianna turned and shot an angry look at Harold, believing he’d ratted her out. “You told him? You promised me you wouldn’t.” She glanced over at Kevin. “And you? Did you betray me, too?” It had to be them. The text on her phone had disappeared, so he couldn’t have seen that.

  Kevin threw up his hands in denial. “Not me.”

  Harold came around from behind his desk. Putting his arm around Arianna, he said, “Now, just relax. It doesn’t matter how he found out. He has. Please have a seat. We need to talk.”

  She shrugged off his request and turned toward Raul. “So now you know. We’ve had some threats. And so far that’s all they are. Threats with nothing behind them. We don’t know who sent them or if they’re even serious. They could just be the act of some prankster trying to scare us.”

  “I’ve seen the note that was posted on the door and heard the voicemail left by CAIR,” Raul said. “I have to assume they are serious and take appropriate actions.”

  “Appropriate actions? Such as…”

  Raul leaned back against the desk. “Everyone, please have a seat. We have a new security plan in place. I’d like to go over it with everybody.” He waited while they all were seated.

  “First of all, a counter-terrorism agent from the FBI will be arriving tomorrow to meet with everyone. Arianna, you have to understand, if he believes you’re a serious target of some radical group, I expect he might ask you to go off the grid until this dies down.”

  Arianna shook her head no. She wasn’t going anywhere.

  “In the meantime, we’re doubling the security beginning today. A second bodyguard is arriving late this afternoon. He’ll be working with me to accompany Arianna everywhere. Also, we’ve hired an additional security team to watch this office twenty-four -seven.”

  “And our film? Arianna asked. “It’s due to air in two weeks. You’re not going to try to cancel that, are you?” She waited fearfully for his answer.

  Raul exhaled deeply. “Not at this point. As long as there is no physical threat, you may carry on as usual, and the documentary will air as planned.”

  Arianna jumped up and hugged him. “Oh, thank you. Thank you. Thank you.”

  “Hold on now. Don’t get too excited. I’m not finished.” He turned toward Harold and Kevin. “In order to assure everyone’s safety and the safety of this film, it’s imperative you inform me immediately if any new threats arise. There can be absolutely no more secrets. Everyone clear on that?”

  They both nodded.

  “Okay, good, but,” he said turning back toward Arianna, “if there are any physical threats, or any possibility that a threat may actually materialize, then I’ll have no choice but to escort you back to the island and cancel this entire project until further notice. Do you understand?”

  There was complete silence in the office, everyone waiting for Arianna’s response. She turned and walked to the window. How had this gotten so complicated? She hadn’t thought her story was so controversial. Evidently the topic had ticked off someone or some group. Good. In her mind, that was all the more reason to get this thing on the air.

  After several minutes of staring out the window, she turned and asked, “Does Zach know what’s going on?”

  “I’m in complete charge of your security,” Raul responded, “and I’m responsible for making all arrangements necessary for insuring your safety.”

  She looked at him point blank. “That’s not what I asked.”

  He faltered as if he didn’t want to answer. Finally, he said, “I believe Mr. Acevedo is out of the country and incommunicado.”

  What a cop out. She didn’t know if she believed him. This had Zach’s fingerprints all over it. But maybe not. If Zach wouldn’t contact her, certainly he wouldn’t talk to Raul either, would he? No way to know for sure, but it didn’t matter anyway. It didn’t change anything.

  “Well, I guess it’s settled then.” She walked toward the door. “When do I meet my new bodyguard?”

  “He’ll be here this afternoon.”

  “Okay, in the meantime, Kevin you still owe me lunch. Raul, if you’d be so kind to escort us, we’re out of here.”

  Boredom set in fast as Zach waited for the team members to complete their mini sub training. This entire op was moving much too slow for his liking. He looked at his phone, thinking what he always thought… how he longed to talk to Arianna.

  He didn’t know why he did it. He’d always had the ability to do so, but never had, that was, read any of her text messages. But today, something told him to look at the messages and there it was. A text, threatening her with bodily harm.

  This shook him right out of his state of boredom into an instant state of alert. The threat likely stemmed from the content of the documentary she was producing. The one about the treatment of women under the Taliban. He wasn’t surprised. He understood the whole Islamic, Muslim equation. Speaking out against the tenets of Islam was bound to get someone riled up. He didn’t know if the threats were serious or not, but he couldn’t take the chance.

  It was early morning in New Jersey when he reached Raul who was shocked to hear from him and surprised to learn of the threat. Obviously, Arianna had failed to inform him of the threating text. Zach ordered him to get an enhanced security plan in place immediately. As far as the film was concerned, as long as no one took any overt action to make good on these threats, it could be aired as scheduled. Should any physical threats materialize however, Raul was to pull the plug and get her out of there.

  Maybe he was being overly cautious, but looking at things through the prism of the world he lived in, the world he worked in, he knew these radical fanatics were serious about their threats. They believed it was their duty to punish those who insulted Islam. He guessed Arianna would fight him tooth and nail should the need arise to quash the debut of her film, but he didn’t care. He understood the danger. She didn’t or at a minimum, didn’t want to. He’d do what he had to do and hope to justify his actions later if it came to that.

  The second call he made was to Veritas. This call was a request for him to use the powers of the Agency to kill the personal interview portion of the documentary. Given these threats, the last thing she needed was more notoriety, and more importantly, the last thing he needed was for the spotlight to be shown on him and his connection to the story. He didn’t like doing this, but he knew it had to be done.

  “What’s wrong?” Tony asked, returning from a workout and seeing Zach on the phone.

  He mouthed the word, “Arianna” and held up one finger to tell him to hold on a minute. When he finished his call, he turned to Tony and said, “I found a threatening text on Arianna’s phone over the airing of her documentary. That was Raul. I called him because knowing her, I was pretty sure she would keep it to herself for fear he might get overly protective and not allow her story to go on the air.”

  Tony laughed. “I know it’s not funny, but you know her so well. I’m betting you were right. Well, Raul’s a good man. He can handle it.”

  “I was right. She’d not said a word to him. She’s a fearless little thing, but being brave is one thing. Being stupid is another. These people don’t play around. I have to protect her for her own good.”

  “
Roger that,” Tony said, sitting down beside him. “So don’t beat yourself up over this. You’re doing the right thing.”

  He got up and kicked a chair with his foot and began to pace. “Damn! I’m so tempted to break my own cardinal rule… something I’ve lived by my entire military career.”

  “Uh, oh. Let me guess. You’re thinking of calling her. Well, it would be a first. But you know, we’ve had that policy for good reason. Some of our colleagues have paid a heavy price when their heads weren’t in the game because they got too involved in drama back home.”

  Zach nodded. The fact he even considered calling her was a testament to how much he loved this woman. In all his previous deployments, he’d never, ever, considered calling any of his past girlfriends.

  He was better off not knowing what was going on at home, but that ship had sailed. He knew, and now it would be hard for him not to be worried, but it was essential he keep his mind on the mission.

  “EVERYONE,” THE COS said, as the team sat eating their evening meal, “I’d like you to meet two of the newest members of our team, Quinton and Aaron.” He motioned two men in the back of the room to step forward.

  “Hey, pretty clever,” Juan said. “We’ve got Q and A going on this trip. Get it? You don’t mind if we call you Q and A, do ya, fellas?” he asked.

  They both laughed.

  “Hey, man. Call us whatever you want,” Quinton responded. “Just don’t do anything to screw this op up.”

  “Funny you should say that, Q,” Tony chimed in. “We were thinking the same thing… don’t do anything to screw this mission up. We usually use our own people. People we can count on.”

  Aaron cleared his throat. “Look. We’re all brothers here. We went through SEAL training just like you. We’re brothers, and we want to execute the mission and go home just the same as you.”

  Zach was disappointed his request to use two of his own men had been turned down, but he had to deal with it. He walked up to the two new members.

  “All in. All the time. Welcome aboard.” They exchanged high-fives. “I’m Zach, team leader. This is Tony and Juan, two of my team members. And this is Clare.”

  Following Zach’s lead, Tony and Juan stepped forward and greeted them. “Welcome. Let’s do this thing.”

  Clare followed with a polite hello. “I’m running comms on this op. Welcome.”

  “Okay, the chow’s over there, fellas,” the COS said to the two new guys, “and I wanted to tell everyone, we’ve got some weather coming in, so looks like we’ll be holed up for a couple of days. Make yourself comfortable, study, work out, relax— whatever. I’ll let you know when we have the all clear to execute the mission.”

  This brought on a lot of low grumbles from the group. Especially Zach. The last thing he needed was more time to sit around and think about problems at home.

  Clare squeezed in next to him at the dinner table. She had been taking advantage of every opportunity lately to be next to him. In the beginning, it had been all business, and Zach didn’t know if it was just his imagination, but she seemed to be getting just a bit overly friendly lately.

  At first there was a lot of small talk at the table. Questions went back and forth between the new guys and the team who’d been at Sigonella for a couple of weeks. Q and A were curious about the dry submersible. They had some experience with the dry sub and wanted to know some particulars about this one. Their role in the mission was to guard the boat until Zach and the team returned from dropping the transmitter. In the unlikely and unfortunate event no one ever returned, their job was to get the sub out of there and back to the mothership.

  “How about some cards?” Quinton asked after dinner. “Texas hold ‘em? Who’s in?”

  The men all gathered around, ready to play.

  “Clare. You in?” Aaron asked.

  “Only if Angela, our assistant chief of station, joins us. Being the only female with all you randy SEALs is more challenge than I’m up for.” She pulled a chair up next to Zach. “Come on, Angela. And don’t even think about turning this into strip poker.”

  Quinton started shuffling the cards. “What? You don’t like your odds?”

  “That’s right, so shut up and deal.”

  Cards were dealt. Bets were made. Fortunes switched back and forth, and the players sipped wine and tossed back shots of whiskey as they played. Everyone was happily taking Eric’s advice to stand down and relax for what might be the last time before the launching of the mission.

  The more the night wore on and the more Clare drank, the more her hands seemed to be connecting with Zach’s body. If someone made a joke, she reached over and caressed his arm or rubbed his back, laughing it off. If she won a hand, she used that as a chance to sneak in an excited hug. Zach found it mildly irritating, but chose not to confront her about it. Some people got lovey-dovey like that when they drank. Harmless enough for the moment, so he tried to ignore this drunken flirtation.

  “I see you and Clare have made peace,” Tony said to Zach when they both stepped to the side to refill their drinks.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Man, she can’t seem to keep her hands off you. You two have come a long way from that first testy meeting.” Tony had a cheeky look on his face. “You know, I think you could get in there,” he said in a teasing manner.

  “Are you kidding me?” Zach asked, giving him a slight shove.

  It was a ridiculous thought, and Tony knew that. Zach was totally faithful to Arianna, but girlfriend or not, he never bedded sloppy drunks. She didn’t interest him anyway. Couple that with the fact she was one of his team mates, and he the team leader… the end result was, nothing was going to happen. He wouldn’t take advantage of a situation like this, nor tolerate any of his men doing so either.

  It wasn’t late, but Zach decided it was time for him to cash in his chips and call it a night. He couldn’t take the sitting around anymore and wanted to go for a run. Tony and Juan jumped up to go with him while Q and A, Clare, and Angela, continued to play on.

  “I repeat,” Tony said as he ran alongside Zach.“This op is messed up. I think if I have to sit around here one more day, I’m going to go nuts.”

  “Can’t fight the weather,” Zach said jogging between Tony and Juan. “They’re paying us a ton of money to get that transmitter into Tripoli. Makes this delay a little easier to take.”

  “If not for the big payday,” Juan chimed in, “I’d be tempted to tell them to take that damn transmitter and stick it up their ass, and I’d be out of here.”

  Everyone laughed and mockingly said, “Hoo rah!”

  “They’re paying us a lot of money,” Zach said, as they rounded the corner, “because the State department wants plausible deniability should the transmitter be discovered. No made in the USA fingerprints on this operation. Also, since we’re private operators, they don’t have to come to our aid if anything goes wrong. Works out well for them.”

  “Yeah, it’s our asses on the line,” Tony said. “Lucky us. A tough way to make a living, but it sure as hell pays well.”

  “They also hired us because they know we’re the best at what we do,” Juan chimed in. “If you want the best, you gotta pay.”

  When they arrived back at the villa, they could hear laughing and whistling going on inside. Zach walked in to find Clare sitting at the table in only her bra and panties, twirling her shirt above her head and saying, “I raise you one t-shirt and call.”

  Zach was instantly furious. “What the hell! Gentlemen. This card game is over. Cash yourselves out and retire for the evening. Clare, put your clothes back on and go sober up.”

  The guys threw their hands up in the air.

  “Don’t look at us. We told her to stop,” Quinton said.

  Clare stood up to leave but stumbled into Zach. “Whoa! I think I had one shot too many. Feeling a bit tipsy now that I’m standing up.” She wobbled and grabbed onto Zach for security.

  Zach put a hand out to steady her. She to
ok another step and started to black out. Zach caught her before she hit the floor and scooped her up into his arms.

  “Fuck,” he said, as he carried her up the stairs to her bedroom. He kicked the door open with his foot and started to lay her on the bed. She held onto his neck and attempted to kiss him, refusing to let go.

  “What the fuck!” he pushed her down and away from him. “You need to sober up fast. You’re really messed up.” With that he turned and abruptly left the room in disgust.

  CLARE FELL back on the pillow, disappointed Zach had not returned her kiss. Yes, she was drunk, but not so drunk she didn’t feel the sting of rejection. Who refuses to kiss a woman who is lying there in only her panties and a bra? Zach Acevedo evidently. Maybe if he had had more to drink, he might have returned her kiss.

  She wished. She’d never worked with anyone like Zach. Beyond his amazing good looks, she saw a strong, intelligent leader who exuded sex appeal out of every pore of his gorgeous body. He made her weak at the knees every time he looked at her with those dark, ebony eyes.

  Tonight was an epic failure though. Her head was spinning and regrets began to flood her mind. What had she done?

  Tomorrow when she saw him, she would apologize and beg his forgiveness for her drunken behavior. Her amorous behavior. She’d blame it on the booze. She needed to reassure him it was the alcohol at work and nothing more. In truth however, she would continue to search for ways to spark a real relationship with him. She’d just be more sophisticated about it the next time. He was the most exciting man she’d ever met, and she intended to become his new girlfriend no matter what it took.

  BY SIX a.m., Zach was up and meeting with the COS.

  “Okay, Eric, let me tell you how it’s going to be,” he said. “Clare is out. She’s too unsteady to work with. She’s gone as of today, and you’ve got twenty-four hours to replace her or you can find someone else to deliver this package.”