Whatever this sick production was, Ethan had no doubt Mancuso and his daughter were expected to play a starring role.
Ethan cast a glance over his shoulder at Karly. She looked scared and uncertain. But not scared enough. He’d outlined the basics—honestly, no bullshit—but she clearly didn’t understand the implications this new development had for the mission.
“We’re fucked,” Jake said with his usual talent for summing things up.
Ethan handed the binocs to Lucas, who lifted them to his face for another look. He gave a low whistle. “Damn. I don’t like these numbers.”
“Me, neither,” Ethan said. “Hey, Owen, what’s the ETA?”
For the assault team, he meant. Ryan Owen had just gotten off the radio with their commanding officer, who was stationed on a frigate offshore.
“Twenty-five minutes for them to spin up and get here,” Ryan said.
Ethan shot a grim look at Jake.
“We need to go now,” Ethan stated.
No one looked surprised. No one except Karly. Her mouth dropped open, and she stepped closer to their huddle.
“But what about your team?”
“They’re not here. We are. And we need to strike hard and fast, no warning.”
“But . . . there are only four of you!”
“Three.” Ethan glanced at Jake.
“What?” She looked baffled. And Ethan saw the moment when understanding hit. “Wait, no way. Don’t even think about leaving someone back here to guard me.”
Ethan didn’t say anything.
“Give me a damn gun, and I can guard myself!”
Jake looked at Ethan and lifted an eyebrow. No one liked the idea of being a man down, but the moment they launched their attack, at least some of the terrorists were sure to flee, most likely into the jungle, where there was a chance they’d cross paths with Karly, creating yet another potential hostage situation. Or worse.
“No one’s guarding me. I’m fine by myself.” Karly folded her arms and lifted her chin defiantly. If it weren’t for the pink bikini and bandaged feet, she might actually look capable. But instead, she looked like what she was: an untrained, extremely vulnerable, extremely female civilian.
“Dunn, can we have a word?” Jake jerked his head toward the trees, and Ethan and his teammates stepped away from Karly to hash out the plan.
“We have to leave her here,” Jake said. “No choice. We can’t spare a man.”
“I know.” Ethan gritted his teeth. Meanwhile Ryan grabbed the binoculars and took another look at the situation unfolding down the hill.
This wasn’t their plan A. Or their plan B. Or even their plan C. But they had considered this contingency. They had plotted out what would happen if for some crazy reason the SR team had to go in and get the hostages out. Of course, even that plan hadn’t involved quite the shitty tango-to-SEAL ratio they were currently facing.
Ryan lowered the binoculars. “The leader and the film crew just entered the ambo’s cabin.”
Jake muttered a curse.
“We need to move now,” Lucas said.
“I want to help with the op.”
All four of them turned to see Karly standing behind them. Ethan would have laughed if she hadn’t looked so deadly serious. Her posture was ramrod-straight, and she had a determined fire in her eyes.
“You’ve only got four people,” she pointed out. “I’m able-bodied. Give me a job.”
“We appreciate your offer,” Ethan said. “But it’s not possible.”
“I insist.”
“Ma’am.” Jake reached out and touched her arm. “It’s not in the cards.”
She shook off Jake’s hand, and Ethan suppressed a smile.
“There’s got to be something I can do.” Her gaze locked with Ethan’s. “Come on, Ethan. Give me the binoculars. I can watch from up here and give you guys the play-by-play.”
Everyone’s eyes turned to Ethan. He could read his teammates’ thoughts. It wasn’t a bad idea. In fact, it was pretty good. Under normal circumstances, they definitely would have had a man on that task, but right now, they were severely manpower-constrained.
Ethan gave a brisk nod, hoping he wouldn’t regret the decision.
He already regretted it.
“I’ll show her the radio,” Ryan said, and then took Karly aside to do just that.
Meanwhile, Ethan, Jake, and Lucas reviewed the plan they’d gone over ages ago in the briefing room, the plan they’d never truly expected to have to put into action.
Then everyone geared up. They arranged equipment, weapons, ammo. Ethan checked his pistol and slid an extra magazine from his vest.
“Just talked to the CO,” Ryan said, handing off the radio to Karly. “The helos are ready. We need to move.”
Ethan pulled Karly aside. “You understand the comms?”
She nodded. “And when I hear the all-clear over the radio, I’m to meet you at the fishing pier, near where the helicopters will be landing on the beach to evacuate people.”
“Wait for the all-clear.”
“I know.”
Ethan took the handheld radio from her and clipped it to the waist of her cutoff shorts. “You ever fired a pistol?”
She glanced down at the gun in his hand. “At a friend’s ranch once.”
Once. Jesus.
Ethan demonstrated how to release the mag, then shove it back in. “It’s ready to go. Ten rounds. All you have to do is pull the trigger.” He took her hand and folded her slender fingers around the grip.
She took a deep breath and nodded.
He tucked the extra mag into her back pocket. “Extra magazine.”
“Dunn, go time,” Jake said.
Ethan stared down at Karly. “Stay hidden,” he commanded. “If anyone threatens you, do not hesitate to shoot, you understand?”
She nodded.
“Aim for center body mass. Just make sure it’s not one of us.”
She nodded again.
Dread filled his gut as he stared down at her. He’d never felt this way before an op. He did not feel good about this. And she must have read his expression, because the brave look on her face faltered.
“We’ll be fine.” He put his hand on her shoulder, because he knew it reassured her. “In twenty minutes, it’ll all be over.”
Her eyebrows tipped up at the word over. Maybe that sounded too ominous.
She stepped closer and clutched his vest with her free hand. “Will you be careful?”
Careful? No. Careful was not in the plan, and he couldn’t lie to her. She seemed to read his look again, and her grip tightened.
Ethan kissed her.
He had to. Anything to get that look off her face. Her hands were gripping his vest and his gun, so it was all him, tipping her face back with his fingers and licking into her sweet mouth. She tasted so damn good. And desperate. A voice in the back of his brain told him this was a bad move, for way too many reasons. He was kissing a woman he was supposed to protect with his life, a woman totally dependent on him for survival. Everything about it was wrong, but it felt completely right.
She kissed him back, sliding her tongue against his. It was hot and potent, and he could have spent hours tasting every inch of her. He wanted to. He would, provided he managed to get out of here in one piece.
“Dunn, let’s go.”
He pulled back.
She blinked up at him, dazed now. But the worry was gone.
“Don’t forget to wait for the all-clear.”
She nodded.
He touched her cheek. “I’ll see you soon.”
* * *
It was like watching an action movie—with the bone-chilling knowledge that the good guys could actually get killed.
There was no guaranteed outcome here, and Ethan had give
n this a one-in-ten chance of going to plan.
Well, that was the original plan, which was already blown to pieces. Instead of a whole platoon, they had only four men. Versus more than thirty.
It was impossible. But Ethan and his team seemed bizarrely hopeful, because they still had the all-important element of surprise.
Karly watched through the binoculars as the two pairs of SEALs slipped closer to the target buildings—the restaurant and the ambassador’s cabin. Only two men per building, two guys with the impossible task of neutralizing all the terrorists while making sure not a single hostage got caught in the cross fire.
Karly’s heart thrummed as she trained her gaze on Jake and Ethan. Shock and awe, he’d said.
She waited, holding her breath. Ethan crept closer and closer to the restaurant, and with every step, her fear intensified, until she could hardly think. Or watch. He was so close to the terrorists now he could practically reach out and touch two of them. And yet he was invisible, just part of the shadows.
“T minus ten,” a voice said over the radio. She recognized Ryan Owen, the tallest one, who was approaching the ambassador’s cabin on the opposite side of the resort. She swallowed nervously and shifted her focus to the restaurant.
“T minus five.”
Karly’s chest squeezed.
T minus four . . . three . . . two . . .
Boom!
A sudden flash made her see stars. She’d forgotten to lower the binoculars for initial assault.
Boom! Boom!
More stun grenades as the two teams of SEALs stormed the buildings, and then the rat-tat-tat of machine-gun fire as they took aim at the terrorists.
Pandemonium broke out across the resort. More gunfire. More muffled explosions. Karly watched through the binoculars, on alert for any dangers she could report.
“Dining room secure!”
It was Jake’s voice over the radio. His words were followed by a loud burst of gunfire, and Karly’s shoulders tensed. What was going on? Who was shooting?
“Kitchen clear!”
Ethan. The sound of his voice sent a rush of relief through her system. But the relief turned to dread as a renewed barrage of gunfire came over the radio.
Two black-clad men darted from the back of the restaurant and raced past the pool.
“Two tangos running from the restaurant!” Karly said over the radio. “I repeat, two men running north into the jungle.”
A SEAL sprinted after them. Was it Jake? Ethan? She couldn’t tell, but the idea of only one of them being left alone with the surviving terrorists made her heart flip-flop.
“Ambo’s cabin secure!”
She veered her binoculars toward Mancuso’s cabin and watched for any fleeing bad guys.
“Ambo and his daughter secure. I repeat, the ambassador and his daughter are both secure.”
Karly’s knees went weak with relief, and she wanted to slip to the ground. But she had to keep watching. She scanned the resort for any more fleeing terrorists.
“Squirters neutralized.”
She recognized Jake’s voice. The SEAL emerged from the trees and ran back toward the restaurant, where Ethan was alone with civilians and the bulk of the terrorist fighting force.
Movement near the pool caught her eye.
“There’s a man on the patio. A tango moving from—”
The man dropped to the ground before Karly could even finish her sentence. She didn’t know where the bullet had come from, but the guy was clearly dead.
“Charlie, report.”
“We are clear in the restaurant. What about the cabin? Over.”
“This is Bravo. The cabin is clear. Over.”
“That’s an all-clear,” Ethan said over the radio. “Karly, are you listening? I repeat, all clear.”
“I heard you!”
“Let’s get the hostages to the beach.”
Karly’s heart hammered inside her chest. All clear. She couldn’t believe it. The terrorists were neutralized, and everyone was about to get taken out of here. For a long moment, she couldn’t even move. She simply watched through the binoculars as a line of hostages filed out of the restaurant, led by Jake. With Ethan’s help, he guided them past the pool and onto the beach.
A distant sound caught Karly’s attention. She glanced up, searching for the pair of helicopters she’d been told to expect. She couldn’t see them yet, but the ever-increasing noise told her they were getting closer.
“Karly, it’s Ethan. Can you hear me?”
“I hear you. I’m heading for the beach now.”
“Get to the pier, and we’ll get you aboard the bird.”
Karly scanned the resort through the binoculars. She spotted him on the beach, facing her position on the hillside. He raised his hand to signal her, and she waved back, even though she knew he couldn’t see.
One of the helicopters came into view. Ethan and his team jumped into action, getting the hostages in position as the chopper hovered over the beach.
A flash of light caught Karly’s eye. Something near the docks. She skimmed the area and spotted it again. Someone was in one of the boats. Karly watched in shock as the boat began to move.
“Ethan, wait! There’s a boat taking off! One of the tangos is escaping!”
Karly stared, horrified, as the boat exited the little cove and turned toward the beach.
“Ethan! The boat . . . it’s coming back. It’s headed for the beach!”
Static over the radio.
“Ethan? Can you hear me?”
More static. “—repeat? Over.”
“Ethan, the boat is moving toward the beach. There’s at least one tango on it, and it’s coming your way!”
Karly lowered the binoculars, pulse pounding. She fought her way through branches and vines until she reached the path, and then she took off running, desperately trying not to trip in the darkness with only the moon to guide her. But it was a straight shot down to the beach and the fishing pier where Ethan planned to meet her.
The helicopters thundered louder and louder as she neared the shore. The path disappeared when her feet reached sand, and she ran through the last row of palm trees onto the open beach.
Grit stung her face as the powerful downdrafts swirled around her. She squinted and tried to find Ethan or one of his teammates.
“Ethan!”
He was running for the fishing pier. Karly rushed toward him, trying to shield her eyes from the sandstorm.
He reached her side and took her arm. “What is it? I couldn’t hear—”
“A boat!” she yelled over the noise. “One of the tangos is in a boat, and he’s coming this way!”
Ethan grabbed her hand and ran, pulling her with him in a flat-out sprint for the nearest helicopter. The second chopper was already filled with hostages and lifting off from the beach.
Rat-tat-tat.
Karly’s heart lurched at the sound of gunfire. She didn’t know where it was coming from, and as she turned to look, she tripped to the ground. Ethan grabbed her and hauled her to her feet.
Their helicopter was right there on the beach, maybe fifty yards away. Someone was strapped to a stretcher and being loaded onto it now by a pair of commandos. Karly caught a glimpse of long dark hair.
Natalie.
Karly couldn’t tell if she was conscious or not, but she had to be alive. Had to. She also caught a glimpse of Drew in his bright green swim trunks, climbing into the chopper.
“Faster!” Ethan yelled, pulling her along beside him.
And then Karly saw it.
The motorboat was stopped now, not far off the beach. She could see the shadowy silhouette of a man as he lifted a giant gun to his shoulder and aimed it at the helicopter.
“Now, now, now!”
Rat-tat-tat. Rat-tat-tat.
A SEAL leaned out of the helicopter, yelling at Ethan and motioning frantically. Karly couldn’t understand what he was saying, but then the helicopter’s engine changed pitch.
Ethan grabbed Karly around the waist and swung her into his arms. Several SEALs reached for them as Ethan lifted her up. She felt her arms and legs being seized by strong hands as she was hoisted aboard and deposited on the floor.
“Ethan!”
He grabbed a teammate’s arm and hauled himself inside the helicopter just as they surged into the air.
A loud hiss.
The floor tilted.
“Son of a bitch!”
Several men rushed to the other side and aimed their guns down at the boat.
Rat-tat-tat. Rat-tat-tat-tat.
“He’s got an RPG!” Ethan shouted.
RPG. What the—?
Rocket-propelled grenade. The words registered in Karly’s brain just as another loud hiss filled her ears. The helicopter tipped sideways, and Karly slid. She screamed and grasped for a hand as she careened toward the opening. Ethan lunged, grabbing her arm just as her legs slipped out the door.
“Help!” she shrieked. Terror flooded her as her legs dangled in thin air.
“I got you!” Ethan yelled. “Grab my arm!”
Ethan held one of her arms with both his hands in a death grip. Karly reached up and grabbed his forearm, clutching desperately as he tried to pull her back inside. But the floor was still tilted, and gravity was working against him. He was on his knees now, held inside the chopper by several big SEALs. Others were reaching for Karly, trying to get hold of her as most of her body dangled from the helicopter.
“Ethan!”
She tried to swing her leg up, but the force of the air was too much. She glanced down at the open water below.
Oh my God! It was way, way too far down. She was going to fall to her death.
“Karly, look at me!”
She looked at Ethan, his eyes intense, his face tight with strain as he gripped her arm. Shouts surrounded them as dozens of hands reached down. Finally, someone managed to snag the waist of her shorts, and she felt her body swing up.
Cover of Night Page 5