by Gunn, Autumn
“So this girl has had either the strangest set of reoccurring coincidences, for which she has no knowledge, or she’s up to something.
“Triple bingo.”
“She should either buy a lottery ticket or she’s a super spy of some sort.”
“That’s exactly how I see it.”
“So how do we know if we can trust her?”
“We don’t. That’s where you come in.”
“Did I just unknowingly and unwittingly sign myself up for an op?”
Laura laughed. “You most certainly did.”
“But I’m no longer active duty.”
“There are no former SEALs, Jax. Time to put your boots on.”
“I can’t wait to dive into this. Believe me. I can’t wait to feel alive again. Except…”
“Except now you have feelings for her.”
“What makes you say that?”
“Come on. You think I can’t sense it in your voice? A women’s intuition is never wrong.”
“Fair enough. I’m not even going to pretend like I don’t. I do.”
“Well you can, but in the meantime we have to figure out if we have some sort Homeland meets The Americans type situation, but in real life.”
“And I’m the man to find out.”
“Yes, you are…yes, you are.”
Chapter 12
I had my popcorn and had just sat down in my seat directly in the center of the theater. I was ready for Mission Impossible 5 to begin. It had been nearly four years since Mission Impossible 4 and I was excited to see what Ethan Hunt and the IMF were going to get into this time. As crazy as it sounds these types of movies gave me ideas and got me fired up. I was still thinking about what Laura had told me, and was hoping this movie could get my mental wheels spinning in a way that can solve complicated real life puzzles. These types of movies always did that for me. It seems like I’m sitting down on the job, but it’s anything but. I was ready to see how this movie was going to play out and see if I could take anything from it for my own case.
My phone vibrated.
three echo sierra charlie
I sat the popcorn on the seat next to me and looked at the message again. Someone had just used my operative name and I wasn’t happy about it. Only a few people in the entire world know my former unit’s designation, and I’m one hundred percent sure none of them would text me like this.
Sierra Charlie are the NATO phonetic alphabet code words for situation critical. Someone was in a life or death situation.
Based on everything that had happened recently it could be real or it could be a trap. I had enemies all over the world and one of them could be baiting me. That didn’t make sense though. All our missions had ended swiftly and surely. If I had any enemies they’d be locked up or dead, and no way they’d know my operative name.
One thing was for sure though. Whoever had my mobile number and my operative name knew who they were contacting and wanted to get my attention…and they had. Maybe I could work this in my favor. Turn it around and gather some intel on the sender.
Who are you?
I’m not a guy who scares easy and I’m definitely not paranoid, but I knew I wasn’t going to be able to watch this movie now. I stood up and walked outside the theater.
“Sir, no readmission once you leave.”
“I’m not coming back.”
“But sir, the movie hasn’t even started yet.”
“Tom Cruise is going to pretend to save the world by himself today. I’m about to do the real thing.”
A line that sounds corny in hindsight especially if it isn’t delivered with the appropriate corresponding body language, but I wasn’t thinking about looking back. I knew something was about to happen and the only way was forward. And that’s why it wasn’t a line. I meant it one hundred percent.
Sure enough. I was right.
Kong
It couldn’t be Kong. I landed three rounds square in his chest at Daepo Jusangjeolli Cliff. Watched him fall backwards more than 40 meters into the East China Sea. There was no escaping death.
Even though it couldn’t be Kong, it must be someone aware of the situation. The list of people who were still upright with knowledge of that night was awfully short. It’s not Kong, but it’s someone who knows the situation and knows my operative name. I need to figure this out. I’ll play along.
What do you want?
Watch your luck run out.
How’s that?
Try and save Jerry and Kate. Interested? Don’t worry. Uncle Kwang-jo taking good care of them. Pacific Palisades. Thursday they ship out to start their new careers.
I hit one on my speed dial. Kate’s number went unanswered. I hit two.
“Thought you were at the movies?”
“Cole, did Jerry send you any text messages today after school?”
“No, strange too. I promised yesterday to show him a new move. Usually he gets excited and asks me about it all day beforehand. He seemed really fired up. Everything OK?”
“Gotta run. Going to Jersey.”
“What’s going on?”
“I’ll call you if it escalates. Please take care of Jasmine.”
“Of course.”
“Thanks, brother.”
I hung up. I knew I didn’t need to get in a long conversation with Cole. He gets it. He’s also Jasmine’s godfather, and although I would never take advantage of that, I knew Cole was always looking out for her, not matter if I asked him to or not. That’s what SEALs do.
This sounded like a trap, but someone had way too much information about that night in South Korea and I was in way too deep.
On the way. Don’t touch them.
Would never damage the merchandise. First time is biggest money.
I could feel vomit enter my mouth. I can’t remember the last time I had a mission that felt so personal. I wasn’t even active duty anymore, but this was going to be my biggest mission ever. I jumped in the Jeep and headed straight to the airport. Unexpected trip to Jersey.
Chapter 13
Now
I u-turned and bee lined it back toward town. I had to get to Target.
Kong had just said he had Kate and Jerry, but Kate just spoke with me. This didn’t make sense. When I got to Target I was going to straighten this out once and for all. Who is Kate Koval and why is she involving me in this sick game? Part of me thought she was a lunatic, the other part of me was only concerned with how Kong got my number…and how he was even alive.
I pulled right to the front doors of the Target and ran inside. I saw the security guard sitting just where he always was. He looked like he was about ready to settle in for an afternoon nap. Lovely.
“Sir, I’m a military veteran. Have you seen a woman about 5’5”, curvy, brown hair in this section trying on sunglasses?”
“Sir, that describes half of our shoppers in the woman’s section.”
“In the last five minutes. Anyone that fits that description and anyone strange speaking with her?”
“No one’s been in sunglasses for at least 10 or 15 minutes. Clouds came out, people aren’t thinking about sunglasses now.”
“No one. Were there any dispatch calls to this area?”
“Nothing. Quiet as usual.”
That would partially explain why he was about to fall asleep in his chair. It didn’t explain where Kate went.
I hit one on my speed dial. It immediately went to voice mail. Where was she? What had happened in the last three and a half minutes?
“Thanks for your help.”
“Don’t mention it.” Believe me, I considered it. How could this guy be so asleep at the wheel? I went outside and stood on the front curb. Everything looked fine. People coming and going. Nothing unusual. Now all I had was Kate’s last call and Kong’s texts to go on. Which should I believe, if any? Neither seem to make sense. At this point it doesn’t matter. A child and possibly a woman are in danger. It’s not about being a SEAL. It’s not about being a good Sa
maritan. It’s about being a man. And being in love, and protecting those that are closest to you and those that are closest to them. It was time to act.
Chapter 14
I touched down early on the red eye and went straight to the rental cars. Before I even hit the kiosk I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket.
Hope you got rest on flight.
It’s you who I’m going to put to sleep.
Had your chance. Blew it, froggy.
I went through a mental checklist of that night. Everything had went as planned. The U.S. military men in South Korea were becoming a little too fond of the red light district. We had solid intel that one of the top Kkangpae was planning on kidnapping a whole nightclub full of our guys. It’s not like it would be difficult. Some of their gentleman’s clubs, and I still never understood why they call them that, held up to a few hundred occupants. If a guy was separating or switching duty stations it was almost a given that the night would start at a restaurant, turn into a drunk fest, and then finish in the red light district. If the guy was popular, or in one of the larger units, there could be enough guys with him to fill the entire club.
Taking a couple hundred U.S. service men hostage would be a PR nightmare for the government, and the Kkangpae bosses knew that. They’d surely be able to quickly negotiate a huge ransom so the U.S. would avoid international humiliation.
The guy we had our eyes on was Kwang-jo Kong. While most Korean mafia focused on extortion and loan sharking, Kwang-jo preferred people. Specifically underprivileged people he could sell. He was the most despicable of human beings. I wouldn’t even call him human. He was the underworld prostitution boss in Korea. Running everything from simple strip clubs close to military bases targeting G.I.s to high-end escort services offering private jets for weekend visits by Chinese billionaires. He had the market cornered from all sides, and now he was going for his biggest play. He wanted to flex his muscles and show how powerful he really was. Show off to all the other seedy characters, not only in Asia, but across the world. Even if the U.S. avoided public humiliation and paid a hefty ransom, Kong would secure his status forever amongst the scum of society. He would instill fear in smaller bosses and quickly expand his territory and easily recruit other bosses’ key henchmen in the process. From there he could secure arms distribution and a whole host of other illegal activities and money laundering activities operations such as construction and waste disposal. He would surely become the biggest, and most powerful, mafia boss the world has ever seen. The U.S. government, with the help of a few Navy SEALs, wasn’t going to let that happen. Our intel discovered he often had a helicopter drop him at Daepo Jusangjeolli Cliff after the park closed so he could practice his Taekwondo forms on the ledge. We had surveillance pictures. They were stunning and would have made the best martial arts magazine cover ever. He would practice for exactly 88 minutes at a time; eight being a lucky number in Korean culture. Nearly an hour and a half gave us options. We could stick with our specialty, a sea entrance, but then we’d need to scale the cliff. We could go for an air assault, but it would likely be noticed by surveillance. As can often be the case, the best answer was to hide in plain sight. We entered the park during the day as tourists. Our job was to wonder off and get lost. It wasn’t hard. We had a small drone drop off our gear before sunrise so all we had to do was retrieve the gear, assemble the pieces, and terminate the target.
We ran some projections before the op to estimate how the Korean, and global, underworld would shake up after the termination. We saw a simple transition of power within Kong’s group with little chance of retaliation against the U.S. The military also imposed strict curfews in the days leading up to, and after, the op. It was a simple, efficient plan that was executed to perfection with the aftermath playing out exactly as we thought. Until tonight. Until the SMS in the movie theater. Kong didn’t have a son, so there was no chance the reference to Kong in the messages pertained to his direct family. His father had already died years earlier when he tried to tangle with a bigger mafia boss over a territorial dispute.
As much as I thought about Kong, I hadn’t asked myself the bigger question. Why were the Koreans interested in Kate and Jerry? If anything they had connections to Russia or Ukraine. Korea was worlds apart. I couldn’t put the pieces together.
There were questions everywhere, but the biggest of all of them was simple. Do I trust Kate? I thought about our time together, the way I felt about her, and the way I thought she felt about me. I thought about my past, my issues with women, my issues with trust, and the combo platter and my personal demon…my trust issues with women.
That was the question that was driving everything in my life at the moment. I thought about how she made me feel when we were together. And how I felt when we were apart. There’s no denying it was night and day. My life had been flipped upside down when I was forced to leave the SEAL Teams after my injury. I wasn’t going to pout about it, but I didn’t know if something would ever bring me that much joy again. I still don’t know. It’s a particular kind of joy. What I did know was Kate was that light back in my life. She was that reason to wake up in the morning with a smile on my face. She was the reason I wanted to travel and see the world. I wanted to see it with her. We could travel alone, as lovers, and we could travel with the kids, as a perfectly imperfect family. It seemed so right. I knew I wanted it. I knew I had to have it. And I knew…I trusted Kate and was going to do everything to get her back and protect her and our kids forever.
Now what? Want to play? I’ll play. Ante up, buddy.
Ross Dock Picnic Area. 10pm.
I knew this area. It was just over the George Washington Bridge in Fort Lee, New Jersey. It offered a number of quick exit points and was in public view. It was risky meeting in such a public spot, especially on a summer evening when families might be packing up after an evening picnic. What was Kong planning? I needed to get over there this morning and take a look around without being seen. I picked up a rental car and headed to a strip mall to look for a fishing hat and some sunglasses.
I hadn’t crossed the George Washington Bridge in years. At the time it was built it was the longest main bridge span in the world, nearly double the Ambassador Bridge in Detroit. It would hold this record for six years until the picture perfect Golden Gate was completed. I always liked the thought that America could build such engineering and visual masterpieces despite being in the deepest depression of the 20th century. It’s that forward looking, pull up your sleeves no matter what attitude that I liked the most about my country. Eternal optimist we are.
Traffic flowed smoothly at 45mph. Just before I exited I put on my hat and sunglasses. I quickly found myself at Ross Dock. It was a peaceful day. Not too many people. Just a few families having an early lunch and some kids playing catch. I surveyed the area to look for possible entry and exit points, trying to visualize what Kong might be planning. Where would he have Kate and Jerry? Probably not even on site, unless he needed to draw me out. I decided I would arrive early and get in position. 1800 hours gave me four hours to setup and wait. Kong would call and I could spot him with my binos and call some shots. I definitely didn’t want to be in a defensive position. I was ready to go on offense.
I decided to head back over the bridge and book a hotel close by to rest up. I crossed the bridge and the toll operator kindly asked for fourteen dollars. Fourteen dollars? To cross a bridge? No wonder I lived in the Midwest. I’m trained in about 57 ways to blow up a bridge, but I can barely afford to cross one on my salary. Go figure. I reluctantly handed her the money and headed into New York. I took the first hotel I could find. It looked run down and without many guests. Perfect. I could get some sleep. I pulled out my travel bag and looked at the bottle. I had a prescription, but hadn’t relied on it since I was active duty. You have to get sleep when you can and sometimes you need a little help. I popped two Ambien and set my alarm for 1600. I wanted the deepest sleep I could get for the mental clarity I was going to need tonight.
Chapter 15
The alarm sounded at 1600, but I was out cold. It went for 10 minutes before my backup alarm kicked in. I shut them both off and stumbled to the kitchenette. Put the water on boil and dropped in the 12 eggs. Off to the shower. I knew the mental haze would wear off in about 30 minutes and then I’d be sharp as a tack.
I got out of the shower and a cracked the eggs and mixed them with a tomato and some salt. I ate a few handfuls of raw buckwheat in between bites of eggs. What I liked about buckwheat was that it actually wasn’t wheat in the traditional sense. It had no gluten and was lighter in my stomach than oats or barley. Protein and some carbs, but light. I was ready for whatever the night had in store.
I geared up and then went through my checklist. Hotel empty? Check. Knife in place? Check. SIG SAUER P226 Navy concealed? Check. Binos? Check. I continued on down the list until I was sure I was good-to-go. Out the door to the parking garage and back over the bridge. Thankfully no toll in this direction. I could literally feel my wallet was lighter from the last crossing.