Major Flament stood up and said, “Very good, Sir. I’ll be right outside.” Then, looking at Missy he smiled. “Miss Smith? Or, I guess now it’s Private McCrea, right? It’s really great to have the three of you here again.” She smiled back at him and, once again, he found her green eyes were mesmerizing. “I hope this visit will be another big success the way the last one was. I understand that Michael Jones, the other member of your group … I hear he’s not coming this time. I hope he’s okay and doing well?”
Missy said, “Oh, yes! He’s fine, except for how much he’s missing me. He’s my boyfriend, actually.”
Once the major left, Colonel Chory looked at Missy and said, “You made it very clear this Mike …your boyfriend … Mike Ryan, actually … that he was not to be part of this. Are you still okay with that? I realize he’s … ah …” He paused, trying to find the best way to word things. He wasn’t that clear about their so called mating bond. “Your file states you can send him messages somehow.”
“Oh, yes. But this time, communications can all be done the normal way so that’s not necessary. It’s better that he not be here now. I won’t get distracted.”
Marsha told the colonel, “Missy can always feel whatever emotions Mike is experiencing. Or, at least she can when he’s within five hundred miles or so.” Looking at Missy, she asked, “How about now, Missy? I haven’t thought to ask you about that.”
Missy said, “To be honest, I feel as though a huge part of me has been ripped out and torn away. This is the first time in more than a year that I can’t feel him, can’t tell you exactly what his direction is or how far away he is. It happened on the flight coming over. Things were okay until I fell asleep. Then, all of a sudden, I woke up and he was gone. It was worse than any nightmare I’ve ever had.”
“Wow, I had no idea! Are you sure you’re okay? We can send for him …”
“No, no … don’t send for him. I’ll manage. And, it’s really better that I do this on my own. I’ve blocked the pain so it’s only a dull ache now. You know how I can always block any pain.” Missy looked at Colonel Chory. “That’s in my file, right?”
“There are so many things in your file, Private McCrea, I can’t say I truly have processed all of them. Until recently, I had no idea there even were people like you.”
Missy laughed. “According to my buddies Les and Marsha here, there aren’t. I’m rather unique. The other twelve werecats in the world … at least, the ones they know about … they’re all men and none of them are witches.”
They then discussed her assignment. He’d been told why she was coming for this mission and what it was hoped she might do for them. They were being asked to destroy that base and she was the source for much of the info they had about it. In particular, there was interest in whether or not there were any other prisoners now being held there and, if so, what to do about that. If there was any way to rescue them -- or, to at least avoid killing them while destroying the base -- that would be good.
CAW teams were going to be placed at all the entrance and exit points, so having her once again do some recon to determine if there were any additional ones would be very helpful. They were relying on what she had reported six months ago. What exits might have been added since then? And, how well were all these now being guarded? Back then, the Taliban had considered their secret base to be relatively safe. Now, because those Germans had been rescued, they knew they might be a target.
What other Taliban forces might be in the Korengal Valley now? Lately, area sweeps had been conducted by the Taliban with increased frequency, forcing CAW teams to move around. That suggested not only that the Taliban were concerned about possible surveillance but that even more Taliban forces might be in there. If Taliban reinforcements were indeed nearby, this clearly would need to be dealt with. In order to destroy the base, the area surrounding it had to be completely neutralized.
Once that had been accomplished, General Blake’s plan was to storm the Taliban base entrance and sweep through the various rooms and caves, one by one. With the Taliban all trapped inside and unable to escape due to CAW teams positioned at every exit, they would be forced to either surrender or else die fighting. The Afghan military would be there with vehicles to cart away all the prisoners of war and they would assist with blowing up the caves after they’d been cleared. They would be taking the credit for the complete destruction of this base. The U.S. teams, as far as how this would later be explained to the outside world, would only have been there as advisors.
Concurrent with the sudden departure of an Afghan military convoy, driving over from Asadabad and bringing trucks, tanks, armored vehicles, jeeps and so forth down into the Korengal Valley, there would be a combat assault right into the valley with Afghan troops brought in by helicopters. U.S. helicopter gunships would be there providing support. While the U.S. would not be sending in any fighter jets for airstrikes, using these helicopters was definitely part of this plan. Once the area had been secured, with the base isolated, the plan to then storm the entrance could begin.
To avoid any hint of the planned movement into the valley and attack on this base being leaked ahead of time, the U.S. military had asked the Afghan military to gather in Kabul for support of an entirely different plan. Recapture of the cities that had fallen was being proposed while defense of key cities not yet taken, such as Asadabad, was also being discussed. All this was highly visible and being debated constantly in the press.
Execution of the actual plan would all be at the last minute, taking advantage of all these troop movements. The Afghan buildup in Kabul and positioning of forces at Asasabad would take another three weeks. Could Missy perform her recon in that amount of time?
Once the sudden invasion of the Korengal Valley began, all the CAW teams would be fighting along with the Afghans. Each team would have specific objectives, after which they would move into positions around the base. Then, Team Twenty-Two would be one of the teams storming the entrance. Having her along would provide added assurance. She could exercise her own best judgment on how to participate and yet not reveal any of her supernatural powers and abilities. She assured the colonel she fully understood about that.
Missy asked, “Will I be able to have all the weapons I asked for?” She had requested not only an M4 rifle and an M9 pistol but also an M24 sniper rifle with M3A telescope. These were the weapons she’d become familiar with at the academy and she figured she was better off with these rather than bothering with anything else.
“Yes, you’ll have them tomorrow when you go over to Camp Phoenix. Warrant Officer Morley will issue them to you and arrange for your getting out on the firing range where you can zero in each one of them. He’s the assistant commander for Team Twenty-Two. He and the other guys on the team who didn’t go out with Captain Grimes are very interested in meeting you.”
“Thanks, Sir! That’s great. I was able to bring my knives over with me but there wasn’t time for anything else.” Missy had been given two special throwing knives a year earlier along with sheaths she could wear for carrying them. They’d been a gift when she’d earned her third degree black belt. She was proficient from all her martial arts training in high school with using all sorts of weapons. Since she had once defended herself during an attack by actually throwing a knife, her “P” Branch friends had thought this gift would be appropriate. They had joked she wouldn’t need to take the knife away from the bad guys the next time.
She had done exactly that, taking a knife away from one guy and using it on another. After subduing five guys and not killing any of them, she’d then waited for “P” Branch to arrive and take them into custody. They’d all ended up in witness protection programs. Only by actually becoming informants and going into the program had they avoided being turned loose and identified as FBI informants. That option would of course have been a death sentence.
Colonel Chory said, “I don’t recall seeing anything about knives in your file. Oh, wait … you did say something on that v
ideo tape … about being accurate with a knife … when you threatened those cadets.” He actually blushed, recalling that tape. She’d only been wearing a bra and panties, after all.
Missy smiled and said, “Well, a girl has to have some secrets! But, since you have watched me on that video, Sir, I’m feeling rather exposed here.” She giggled. “My knives were a gift. I haven’t actually used them, as yet, to stab anyone. But I’ve practiced with them quite a bit and can be far more accurate throwing them than with other knives I might just find lying around.”
Les said, “And, if she throws a knife, people won’t see that as being anything supernatural. Of course, she also can just point her finger …”
The colonel nodded his head, recalling how she’d actually done that -- killing a man -- while rescuing the three Germans. As he’d told her, it was all a lot to process. Hard to believe. “What else do you need?”
-----
July 7, 2019
Captain Grimes looked up at Sergeant Hernandez after reading the latest messages. “She’s on her way. She’s coming out tonight.” It was now getting dark and Williams and Town had just returned from up on the ridge after sending out the team’s report and downloading all the latest from headquarters via satellite link.
Murphy and Heimbold were at the OP, having just replaced Carter and Harold who were in the back of the cave, settling down to get some sleep. They were both still awake enough to listen to what Grimes and Hernandez were saying.
Hernandez said, “So, this mystery woman will finally be joining us. I assume we’ll have to go secure the LZ, right? When will the chopper be bringing her out?” He, along with most of the team, was not at all pleased about having some female assigned to their unit. They were definitely unhappy about her coming out there to join them on this mission.
Grimes had said she would be doing some special recon. Supposedly, she was very special and higher ups back at the Pentagon were insisting on this. And, again supposedly, she could also take care of herself, whatever the hell that meant. As for other details, he’d only said they should just wait and see for themselves. While the captain had seemed pretty confident this would all work just fine, the others were all a bit nervous. Crap like this was what got people killed.
“Nope, that’s not how she’s coming. I don’t even know which LZ she plans on using. And, to avoid any chance her arrival might attract any attention from the bad guys, she’s jumping. From 5,000 feet above us. Sometime around midnight.”
“You’re shitting me!”
“I shit you not, Sarge. That’s what it says in this message. She’ll choose where she’ll land based on infrared and thermal scans from the aircraft. She wants to make sure her LZ is cold. Then, once she’s landed safely, she’ll come and find us. Probably sometime tomorrow morning.”
From the back of the cave, Carter said, “Nobody can jump at night and land safely anywhere around here, especially not from 5,000 feet. None of the LZ’s are big enough for that. She’ll either get tangled up in the treetops or smash down the side of some rocky cliff. Please tell me we won’t need to go out searching for her.”
Grimes said, “Actually, we’re instructed to not do that, no matter what. Even if she’s late. We’re only to stay alert, keep an eye out for her and report once she’s finally here. Until then, carry on as usual.”
Just then Williams announced, “Hey, Murphy and Heimbold are heading back from the OP. We may need to clear out of here.”
A minute later, Murphy and Heimbold joined them. Sure enough, Murphy said, “There’s a Taliban squad heading this way, maybe twenty minutes out. They’re coming up from the south so we better head north, like that last time.” When they’d gone north, a month earlier, they’d had to wait almost two days before it had been safe to return.
Hernandez said, “Let’s go. Williams, go double check the latrine and make sure it’s covered up good. We’re outta here!” Everyone was already scrambling, grabbing their gear and backing out of the cave. Harold was the last to leave and he dragged a branch across the dirt areas to obliterate any footsteps.
Carter asked, “What about Sergeant Sally or whatever her name is?”
Grimes said, “She’s a private, not a sergeant, and her name is Missy McCrea. She’ll just have to find us. That’s one of the things she can do. I told you guys she was special, right?”
-----
July 9, 2019
“So, still no sign of her,” said Les. “I almost wish she was wearing that GPS collar like last time.” They were in Colonel Chory’s office and had just gotten the latest report from Team Twenty-Two.
The colonel looked at them both with raised eyebrows. “GPS collar?” He was very uncomfortable with this whole snafu. He did not want to be responsible for having the government’s werecat going missing on his watch. He had not been at all pleased with the decision for her to parachute out high above the mountains in the middle of the night.
Marsha looked at the colonel and said, “He’s only joking, Colonel. That’s how we tracked her last time. Except, of course, when she was inside the base and there was no signal. This mission is completely different. She’ll find your team and send back reports through them.”
Les and Marsha had been reassuring him ever since they’d all learned how Team Twenty-Two had been forced to evacuate their position before Missy had arrived and were now still waiting to go back there. Taliban search squads were still prowling through the area. One might almost wonder just how good the security had been concerning Missy’s midnight jump. Was it possible the Taliban had heard there might be someone out there?
Colonel Chory looked at the two of them. “Just don’t start telling me how she has nine lives, being a cat and all …”
-----
Murphy looked up as the Afghan woman approached. She was alone and apparently unarmed but he wondered why she would be wandering around up here rather than tending to her livestock down in the valley below. She was dressed the same as all the other Pashtun locals he’d seen and only part of her dark tan face was visible. Once she got closer he noticed she had green eyes with a bit of a yellow glow to them. Green eyes were not uncommon for Afghans.
He stepped out into the pathway from his hiding place and pointed his rifle at her. “Halt. Hands up.” He didn’t know if she understood English but she stopped and raised her hands so that was good. He warily walked around her, checking that no one else was coming along and then pointed with his rifle for her to move ahead, continuing along the path. He wanted to search her for explosives but figured he’d get one of the others to help him with that, while he kept her under guard with her hands up.
They moved a hundred yards along the trail until reaching a spot fifty feet below a cave on the hillside. He called out to his team, “I’ve got someone down here. Looks like a local but we need to check her out.”
Hernandez appeared up above and then Grimes came up behind him. They both came down the slope while other team members came out of the cave and looked on. Hernandez said, “Did you search her yet?”
“Not yet. She just walked up and I … well …”
“I know she looks harmless but we can’t take any chances.” Hernandez looked at the woman, a young girl actually, and asked, “Can you speak any English?”
The girl smiled and that somehow transformed her whole face. Her features no longer appeared like those of the locals. She had a really beautiful smile, with vertical crease lines in her cheeks, like dimples. Her eyes began to sparkle and she clearly was highly intelligent and fully understood everything that was happening.
She nodded at Grimes and said, “Private McCrea reporting for duty, sir.”
“Fuck!” Murphy couldn’t help saying it. He was just totally shocked.
Missy looked at him and asked, “Does that mean I can put my hands down now?” She was definitely enjoying herself.
Murphy stopped pointing his rifle at her and took a step back. He couldn’t recall what he’d expected their new female
team member to be like but this sure as hell hadn’t been it. She was just a young girl, probably still in her teens!
Grimes said, “Of course, of course. We’ve been expecting you. Only … that is … we were expecting …”
“Hey, you guys are all dressed like locals here and have your grizzly bear beards. I hope you weren’t expecting me to grow a beard!” Missy laughed and the others did as well. She removed the scarf she’d been wearing so now her dark red hair was visible, framing her face.
“What I meant was … we knew you made that jump two nights ago. Where’s your gear, anyway?” Grimes looked her up and down. Then, he looked up at the others still at the cave entrance and waved them down.
“I buried my chute and then hid all my gear in a cave. Up near LZ Hancock, actually. That’s where I decided to make my landing. There were too many people over where you were supposed to be. They seem to be patrolling out there. Is that normal?”
“Actually, no. We haven’t been able to return and have been hiding over here, waiting for them to stop searching. How the hell did you find us? Oh, wait … I’m still trying to get used to this. That is …” he lowered his voice, “get used to you. To what you are.”
Missy smiled and looked around as the rest of the team approached. “You did tell them I’m not a normal girl, right? I realize all this is super secret stuff but, still … how much have you told them?”
Grimes said, “Hey, everyone, this is PFC McCrea, our latest team member. She’s asking how much I’ve told you guys about her. She knows how unusual this assignment is and all. I told you she was special, right?”
Carter said, “Yeah, Captain, but you forgot to mention she was also gorgeous!” This got several laughs and Missy laughed right along with them.
Grimes then introduced everyone and, after sending Murphy back down the road to continue his sentry duty, he had the rest of them go back up and enter the cave. Missy was starved, of course, and asked if she could have some of their MRE’s. She promised she’d pay them back since she’d brought along a month’s supply for herself. She was looking forward to getting back out as a cat so she could hunt for fresh meat. MRE’s just didn’t satisfy her all that much. She considered eating those to be her greatest hardship for this mission and hoped she didn’t end up losing too much weight.
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