Brandy’s heart was beating full of gratitude when Dorie returned to the kitchen area, chasing Jessica.
“Well, that makes six for today. Honestly, she’s got the same appetite as her father,” said Dorie breathlessly.
“Well then, seems only fair to make him do the cooking, then. If you’re supposed to do the changing, I’d say that’s a fair tradeoff,” laughed Christy.
Jessica had turned several knobs in the kitchen, and they smelled gas. Christy was quick to turn them back to off. Jessica was on to pulling open the drawers and slamming them shut.
Dorie raised her shoulders. “Christy, you re-thinking about having Jess come over to play with your two? You’d better put a helmet on them.”
“No, that only happens when we have little Ali and Griffin come over. Our rules are that Ali’s slingshot has to be checked at the door like any other weapon.”
Dorie touched her belly. “Oh, I just felt one of them move again. Wow.”
Brandy knew she’d been concerned about not feeling movement, even though her ultrasounds had been normal and she was reassured the babies were kicking. She hoped that would give her some relief.
“Let me see,” Brandy said, placing her palm against Dorie’s belly. She felt a slight movement like someone had moved an elbow or heel against the insides of her stomach. “I feel it too! That’s cool!”
Christy had taken Jessica outside to the backyard, holding her hand. With the gentle guidance, Jessica walked calmly beside her, her arm outstretched, chattering partial words as she pointed out grass and flowers and followed the motion of a bird.
Dorie turned. “I think you and Tucker are going to be really happy here. What a great neighborhood. You’re surrounded by much bigger homes.”
“I know it’s the right thing to do. Maybe eventually make this a separate unit up top. Give us a little income.”
“Good idea. If not, what a great room to paint in.”
“I know. Already got the paint!”
When they headed out to the yard, Christy was on the phone but still holding Jessica’s hand. Dorie quickly took over.
Christy hung up and then addressed Brandy. “Can you come in to see my loan guy tomorrow morning? He wants to take the application and run the credit.”
“Sure.”
The three women took turns holding or walking with Jessica as they got to the beach, until she fell asleep in Brandy’s arms.
“Today was a good day,” said Dorie.
“By now, the guys are probably having coffee and waking up, if any of them slept,” added Christy.
Sandpipers escaped from the fast-moving surf as they foraged for sand crabs and other little burrowing creatures. The western sky was turning bright pink.
“Never gets old, does it?” asked Brandy. She rocked from side to side and then took a seat on a large log that was stuck in the sand. Jessica repositioned herself.
“Looks like she’s completely out,” whispered Dorie.
Brandy gave her a thumbs-up.
Christy surveyed the empty beach and the pink glow of the horizon. “When my mom moved here, this was the first thing she showed me. She’d bought one of those apartments at the Millennium complex. One of the first owners. She loved it here.”
Brandy agreed. There was something magic about this place.
The next morning, after filling out the paperwork for her home loan, Brandy called her Dad and invited herself to their house for a quick lunch. She was anxious to hear from Tucker, so spending time with her father and Jillian, his fiancé, would keep her worried mind active with other thoughts.
As they sat down, she told them about the house.
“Only a couple blocks from the beach, and everything around it is huge and remodeled. Dad, I think we stole it,” she said.
Jillian smiled as she dished up salad. “That’s what I thought when we bought this place. And I was right. Even if it’s small, hang onto it and use it as a rental. Don’t sell it.”
“Not planning to,” Brandy returned. “Dad, you’ve got to come see it one of these days.”
“Just arrange it. I’m pretty free.”
Jillian brought up the topic Brandy had been avoiding. “When do you hear from Tucker?”
“Actually, we’re expecting a call anytime now. Everyone’s on pins and needles,” she answered.
“Where are they going this time?” her dad asked.
“Not sure,” Brandy lied. “But we’re not supposed to talk about it, either. All I know is that they are going back to get someone they didn’t get before.”
“You mean like a bad guy?” her dad asked.
“You know I can’t talk about that. Honestly, we’ve been through this, Dad.”
“Steven, stop that. You know the rules.”
Her dad patted her hand. “Sorry, kid.”
“You been to the doctor since we saw you last?” Jillian asked.
“Tucker and I saw the baby’s heartbeat last week. It was so cute to see such a big guy cry. Kind of touched the little technician, too.”
They ran out of things to talk about if they were going to avoid talking about Tucker being gone. She promised she’d arrange a time so they could inspect the house.
On the way home, she got the call she’d been waiting for.
“Hey there sweetheart. We’re here, safe and sound.”
“That’s great. How was the flight over?”
“Private first-class jet charter. I recommend it highly,” Tucker said. “Of course, it would probably mean we couldn’t buy that house.”
“I’m glad. But I’d rather have the house than the ride.”
“Probably the only time in my life I’ll get to fly that way. Sat next to the Norwegian Special Forces guy, Sven, remember?”
“Yes. I’m glad he’s going with you.”
“We are too. So how was your day?” he asked.
“I took Dorie over to the house yesterday. Jessica was a handful, but between the three of us—”
“Three of you?”
“Christy was there too.”
“Right. I forgot.”
“Anyway, she fell asleep on me as we were walking down the beach. Then this morning, I had lunch with Dad and Jillian and told them all about the house. Tucker, I’m even more convinced it’s the right place. It’s just magic.”
Tucker was quiet, more than she expected. He presented a big yawn and apologized.
“You probably didn’t get any rest on the way over, did you?”
“Nope. Sven and I got to talking about stuff. So, honey, if you don’t mind, I’m going to sign off and hit the sack.”
“No problem, Tucker. Great to hear your voice.”
“I’ll try to check in again tomorrow, if I can. But there’s a chance we’ll be dark for a couple of days, so don’t worry, okay? Just not sure what the schedule is.”
“No worries. Now get some rest. Think I’ll turn in early too. I hope Kyle gives you the day to catch up.”
“Oh, forgot to ask, anything about the house I need to know?”
“Not yet. Inspections are in about a week. We might have to make some decisions after we get the reports. I filled out the loan papers this morning, and the broker doesn’t think there will be much problem.”
“I still can’t tell anyone here what we’re paying for it,” Tucker whispered.
“It’s none of their business anyway.”
“Okay, well, it’s in your capable hands. I’m exercising for all the work you’re gonna make me do when we own it.” He yawned again. “Hey, I’m gonna have to cut out, or I’ll fall asleep here on the phone.”
“You go. Get some rest. I’ll talk to you tomorrow or whenever. Thanks so much for calling, Tucker. It means a lot to me.”
“Nite, sweetheart.”
Brandy pulled up to her house, parked the car, and headed to her front door. There was a small package left on the landing step addressed to Tucker. Someone had written on the outside of the box “Baby Gift.”
Bringing it inside, she sat on the living room couch and tore open the paper. Inside was a shoebox. When she opened the lid, she found a doll dressed in a sleeper. It wasn’t the type of doll she’d ever seen anywhere for sale in the large local stores, and she was surprised by the fact that it wasn’t really babyproof, either. Plus, it looked slightly used. She scrounged around the packing paper for a card but found none.
She pulled the doll out of the packing and held it up. The eyes opened and closed when she lay it down and stood it up. She spread the doll’s legs so that it would sit on the coffee table in front of her. She went to straighten the arms up into a searching position, like she wanted to be picked up.
But one of the hands on the doll was sliced off.
Chapter 9
Tucker never liked sleeping during daylight hours, but he was used to forcing himself. He finally gave up two hours later.
The Team had been housed in a large home not too far from the compound they were going to invade this evening. In fact, Kyle had insisted they drive by it early this morning when they landed.
The lush island was a favorite for Brit vacationers but wasn’t as well traveled by American tourists. Parts of it felt like the Caribbean, and other parts, like the crumbling older parts of the city, looked Portuguese or Spanish with the red tiled roofs and stone fencing. He recognized the Spanish Civil Guard uniforms, all well-armed and very visible.
But on top of the hill, where the blue water of the Atlantic contrasted with huge puffy white clouds and overgrown vines with tons of flowers in bright shades of fuscia and coral, it wouldn’t take much of a stretch to understand why—for some—it was paradise.
Several of the team had doubled up, but Tucker got a bedroom to himself. Instructions went out that all cell phones were to be turned off and there would be no calls home until after the raid. Kyle told them to try to get a little sleep, and then they’d have a meeting to go over the plan.
He asked Kyle for a moment of his time and was asked to wait. He was waiting for an update from Spec Ops.
The conversation on the flight over with Sven bothered him greatly. He knew he had to inform Kyle, and he was glad Sven didn’t make him swear he wouldn’t, so that was what he was going to do first chance he got. He couldn’t stand the thought of bringing his brothers into a situation they weren’t one hundred percent up-to-date on. That was always the problem, getting accurate intel. The relationship of the Special Agent to the victim and her father was something his team should know about.
Now he had second thoughts about Sven. Perhaps he’d been played. Though he liked the guy, perhaps he wasn’t the dude Tucker originally thought he was. He was telling the truth when he told Sven he never liked the politics of the job. He was just there to get it done. Politics was a dirty word, as it was for most the team guys. It was just not a factor, even in today’s situations. It muddled the decision-making dangerously. A fighting man got orders. He wasn’t supposed to think about the consequences. Likewise, it wasn’t fair to make him fight with one hand behind his back or without accurate information. Having to think too much about the consequences gave a tactical disadvantage to the team on a mission.
Tucker tried to lie back again to get some sleep but gave up after a few minutes. He got up, changed his tee shirt, slipped on a pair of pants, and ran downstairs barefoot in search of his LPO.
Special Agent Fielding was still up, having a cup of coffee and studying a topography map. It completely caught him off guard, and before he could retreat back upstairs to find Kyle, she spotted him.
“Morning, Tucker. You can’t sleep either?”
He looked for something, anything to focus on other than her young face. He knew she was going to try to extract questions of him, and that’s not what he wanted until he talked to Kyle.
“Nah. Your old friend, Sven, kept me up.” He poured himself a coffee that had been freshly brewed.
“So I heard.” She slowly rose and walked into the kitchen with her mug in hand, extending it for a refill. He obliged, still not making eye contact.
He turned his back on her, looking for some milk or cream in the refrigerator and was happy to find it well-stocked with everything, including chilled wine, beers, fruits and vegetables and milk. There also was a quart of half-and-half, which he grabbed to top off his coffee.
The warm liquid felt like vitamins this morning. He took another long gulp and nearly finished off the mug. She was watching him, not letting go. Now he’d have to deal with her, and he felt ill-prepared.
“Tucker, I—”
“Save it,” he barked, which he could see surprised her. “I don’t like what Sven told me, and this little act you two are playing is very, very dangerous.”
Her eyes filled up with water.
“It’s not an act. These are horrible people, Tucker. My only hope for getting Jenna out is your team.”
“Tell me how that works. You disable the team you say is your saving grace? Just how are any of these guys, who you’ve weaponized to be your family’s fighting force, to put their lives on the line for someone who doesn’t give a damn about giving them the truth? I’m all ears, Kelly.”
She sucked in air as if he’d punched her. Here was another example why having a woman on a mission was a bad idea. Tucker grew more furious as he talked to her. She wasn’t the hardened, seasoned professional he was used to seeing in combat zones, the CIA operatives he’d seen do interrogations. Those ladies were tough and mostly well-respected. It was obvious she had no military training like the CIA gals did. Even the language specialists could defend themselves and had lots of marksmanship and combat training.
This lady looked like she read Cosmo and had her nails done regularly.
“I get it. What I was about to say was I wanted to tell Kyle. And I think we should, this morning first thing.”
“You think?” Tucker spit back. He poured another cup of coffee and added more cream.
She followed him to the living room but they both remained standing. He glanced around him to make sure no one else was up to overhear their conversation.
“What’s this thing with Sven?” he asked.
“You jealous?”
Tucker nearly threw his coffee at her. His blood boiled. He inhaled, closed his eyes and waited for the anger to fade away.
“That was cruel of me. I’m sorry.”
“Your attitude sucks, lady. You think this is some kind of game? How the hell did you get your little ass on this mission? Now we have to protect you, as well as get your clueless sister-in-law.”
Kelly sat down and focused on her knees. After a few tense moments, she murmured, “You’re right.”
Tucker wasn’t a complete asshole, and he realized perhaps she’d been drawn in with the best of intentions, but it was a plan created by a non-combat type individual, and it was a very bad idea.
“Jenna lacks common sense. She ran off to Africa without her father’s permission. She’s never been smart. If she survives, life will change for her.”
“But she has a father with billions to waste on operations he thinks he can plan. This kind of world, this arena is not one you can do this in. This isn’t a corporate takeover or some boardroom proxy war. These are big-time major drug and human trafficking, cartels. Heads of governments are all in on it, even the police or armed forces. What I’ve seen over in Nigeria and what I’ve been told is horrible. You have no idea how those people live. You can’t just go in there and be a ‘nice person.’ These people—” He stopped because he could see his point had already been made. Kelly was nodding her head.
“I get it.”
“So Sven. What’s up with that? I need to know.”
“He’s the one who found Dad. Sorry, I call Mr. Riley dad. I know that’s offensive to you.”
“Oh, cut the crap, Kelly.”
“When he contacted him, that’s when Mr. Riley told him about me.” Kelly looked up at Tucker, and, although he was still boiling with anger, he did fe
el sorry for her. Just a smidge.
“Go on.”
“He agreed to bankroll an operation on the condition that I was to remain part of the team and was to be protected.”
“And?”
“And because of my language training.”
“But you don’t know anything about these people.”
“But I do. My husband—he got involved with some guys I thought were just locals. He used drugs recreationally. I was just getting started with my State Department final phase. I was worried I’d not pass a background check. I moved to Washington D.C. to complete my training, and we separated for a short time. That’s when he overdosed. I was devastated, and I thought it would end my position. Turns out, they knew all along.”
“Geez. Who the hell is running things, anyway?”
“We agreed to go forward, and I reverted back to my maiden name so there wouldn’t be any taint. I’d study the drug and human trafficking businesses, and eventually help them identify the bad actors. I was to provide background and research for our diplomats who were risking their lives to try to work out arrangements with leaders in foreign countries, specifically African countries. And I’m still motivated to do that. I feel I owe it to Jack.”
Tucker sat across from Kelly. The wheels were turning. Tucker found her convincing, but he knew this information had to get to Kyle without delay. “Do you think Jack was targeted at all?”
“You mean, because of his dad?”
“Exactly.”
“I wondered about that, but I have no real way of knowing for sure. That’s always been a question Sven’s had too. He asked it in the briefing, remember?”
“Yup, I do.”
“Jack’s father was always a heavy anti-drug guy. He’s contributed to many organizations to combat opioid abuse in the Northwest. I think Jack was a bit naive about what he could handle. He always wanted his dad to set him up in a business he could run, but Mr. Riley was lavish with the donations and stingy when it came to his kids. They’d had a falling out. Who knows who knew what was going on there? He went downhill fast, after I left.”
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