Mission--Memory Recall

by Virginia Vaughan

  “He was supposed to be working with her. In truth, he was working for himself. He was recruiting soldiers to work for the enemy. I believe he was the one who leaked the information about our mission that night.”

  Again, they all looked confused at his accusation. Colton stepped forward. “And you’re claiming that Levi is working with him? That’s some accusation, Marcus.”

  “It’s the truth. They attacked us in the barn. Levi grabbed Bethany and Dillon told me if I wanted to see her alive again then I had to come alone to the old drive-in theater.”

  “Sounds like a trap,” Matt stated.

  Marcus nodded. “I know. That’s why I need your help.”

  They all looked stunned and Marcus wondered once again if they would believe his tale. These men had two years of bonding among them and Marcus was the outsider. Maybe they had once been his friends and teammates, but he didn’t even remember them. How could he expect them to trust him against one of their own?

  Marcus waited for someone to speak to give him some sense of what was on their minds. His was already working through plans to rescue Bethany on his own if need be. Whatever they said, whether they believed him or called him a liar, he was going after her. Even if she never wanted to see him again, he was going to make certain she was safe.

  Finally, Colton moved. He grabbed his phone and started dialing. “I’m calling Levi.”

  Garrett stood. “I’ll get dressed.”

  He and the others disappeared upstairs and Marcus still had no idea whether or not they believed him.

  Marcus rushed to the weapons locker and opened it. He would need serious firepower to defeat Dillon and Levi. Even then, without the help of the rangers, he did not know how he could save her.

  He fell into a chair as the hopelessness of the situation leveled him. She was in this situation because of him, because of his past. How could he have betrayed everything he’d joined the military to fight for? He didn’t understand it. Bowing his head, he buried his face in his hands. He’d been so certain that when the truth was uncovered, he would find that this had all been an enormous mistake.

  He lifted his head. “I can’t do this alone,” he whispered. He needed the help of the rangers to rescue Bethany and bring Dillon and Levi to justice. It didn’t matter that he didn’t deserve their help. All that mattered was Bethany, and he would do anything it took to bring her through this safely.

  Please, God, please keep her safe.

  Suddenly, Garrett appeared in the doorway and pushed past Marcus to reach for a weapon.

  Marcus stared at him. “Does this mean you believe me?”

  Garrett sighed. “Honestly, I’m not sure, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to let you walk into an ambush without backup.”

  He followed Garrett into the kitchen. The guys had a map spread out on the table, and Matt and Blake were poring over it while the others were gearing up.

  “Our first move should be to scope out the drive-in. What do we know about it?” Matt asked.

  Blake spoke up. “Colton and I are familiar with it. It’s been abandoned for years. But our one advantage is probably that we know this area better than they do. Laura was kidnapped and held there last year. Only two buildings are still standing and we blew out the door to the projector room to rescue her.” He rubbed a hand along his jaw. “That means they would have to be holed up inside the concession building. It’s long and narrow, but there are a lot of rooms, including an old freezer, where they could be hiding.”

  Colton moved to look at the aerial map. “We should assume that if he’s not working alone he’ll have a sniper perched somewhere high, probably on the frame of the old screen.”

  “Agreed,” Matt said. “Someone will have to take him out.”

  Josh stepped forward. “I’ll do it.”

  “No,” Matt said. “Garrett is the best shot.” He looked at Garrett. “Take out whoever is up there then take his place. We may need our own sniper before this is over.”

  Garrett nodded, but Marcus noticed how not one of them mentioned Levi by name. Was it because they still weren’t convinced it was him? It didn’t matter. As long as they were there, they would learn the truth on their own.

  “We’ll take three trucks. Me, Josh and Colton will enter through the east side and find our positions. Garrett, you and Blake get on the scaffold and take out that sniper.” Matt looked at Marcus. “You’ll go in alone just as they told you to.”

  “Do you think they’ll believe I’m alone?”

  “Not if they’re smart. They’ll know you would never come alone, but maybe they have actually convinced themselves we wouldn’t help you.”

  That was the very thing Dillon had warned him about and, in this respect, he was glad Dillon had been wrong. They might not completely trust him, but they were going to help him rescue Bethany.

  “There’s something else,” Marcus said. He hoped it wouldn’t affect their decision to help, but he knew he couldn’t pull them into this battle without telling them the truth. “I came here searching for answers about my past. Well, Dillon told me I was working for him, selling secrets to the enemy. He claims I was one of the soldiers he recruited. I thought you all should know before you risk your lives for me.” He glanced at each of their faces expecting revulsion and an immediate walkout, but they didn’t.

  Colton looked at him. “Listen, this guy Dillon sounds like bad news. How do you even know you can believe what he says? Maybe he was lying.”

  Marcus hadn’t considered that. Was it possible he had only been trying to lure Marcus in when he’d told him he was a traitor? If he’d really only wanted to kill Marcus, he’d had his opportunity in the barn.

  Josh spoke up, too. “I honestly don’t know what I believe. I have a tough time believing what you’ve said about Levi. I’ve known him for years and I never would have believed this. It’s possible he’s involved. It’s possible you both were involved with this CIA guy. I just don’t know. What I do know is that there are some situations you can’t wait around to find out all the details about. You just have to act.”

  Matt nodded but added a warning. “Rest assured, if we find out you were involved in any kind of treachery, we will take you out, too.”

  Marcus couldn’t blame them. They were cautious but still willing to help. He breathed a sigh of relief. He might not be able to escape the consequences of his past choices, but hopefully Bethany wouldn’t have to pay for them.

  * * *

  The cold concrete was the first thing Bethany was aware of as she slipped into consciousness. She lifted her head and immediately groaned at the pain. She was suddenly aware that someone else was with her. And then the entire situation came rushing back to her.

  She jumped up. Levi was pacing, his gun in hand. He looked jittery and Bethany knew that wasn’t a good sign.

  “Where are we?” she asked.

  “Somewhere safe.”

  The way he gripped his gun and the wild look in his eyes made Bethany worry. She fumed that she’d even entertained the idea that Levi had been trying to help her. Of course, he’d been leading her into a trap. But she wasn’t going to get out of this by calling him names. Now was the time to be smart. He’d probably once been a decent guy. Most people that joined the military and made it all the way to becoming an army ranger were full of patriotism and the idea of justice. Somehow, he had allowed Dillon to get into his head, but she had no clue how that had happened. Nothing she’d uncovered in her investigation would have led her to believe Levi was vulnerable to recruitment.

  Maybe if she could get him talking, she could find a way to play on his sensibilities and get out of this mess alive.

  “What’s the plan here, Levi? What’s the exit strategy?”

  He glared at her but she continued. “You always have to have an exit plan. How are you going to get out of this? Marcus knows y
ou’re the mole now. He’s going to tell everyone. Your time is up.”

  “Marcus knows, but if you think the other rangers are going to believe a word he says then you’re crazy. I’ve spent two years with these men and they’ll believe me over him all day long. He’s the one who’s alone in the world, not me.”

  Her heart clenched at the thought of losing Marcus, then she remembered that she’d already lost him. He was a traitor, a turncoat, an enemy to his country. And he’d betrayed her. She knew it was the truth now. Still, she could not let him walk into a trap. Surely he wouldn’t come alone. But was Levi correct about the others? Would they believe him when he told them how Levi and Dillon had kidnapped her?

  Her hands were bound with duct tape. Hard to break so she needed to find something sharp to cut it. She glanced around while Levi was otherwise occupied. Her heart leaped when she spotted something that might work to cut the duct tape. With her back against the wall, she pressed into the railing and rubbed her hands against it.

  Levi spun around and saw her. “Stop that!” he shouted, grabbing her and pulling her away from the railing and more toward the center of the room. He dropped her and returned to the window.

  So much for that, but she wasn’t giving up. She had no fantasy that she was going to make it out of this alive and she was determined, if she was going to die anyway, she wasn’t going to go down without a fight.

  The door creaked open and Levi spun around, raising his weapon, ready to shoot.

  Dillon sauntered inside. “Put that away,” he barked at Levi. “One of these days, you’ll accidentally shoot me.”

  He stared at Bethany then knelt beside her, his face close to hers as he gave a smug grin.

  She’d never wanted anything more than she wanted to wipe that snide look off his face.

  “You gave us a good run, Bethany, but let’s face it. You’re out of your league.”

  “You sicken me.” She stormed at him. “You’re a liar and a traitor to your country.”

  “I’m a businessman. An entrepreneur. I provide a service and, like any good businessman, I provide it to the highest bidder. Unfortunately, that’s never the US government.”

  “And what about the men you’ve turned into criminals?” she demanded. “How can you live with yourself?”

  “I provide opportunities. I don’t force anyone to participate”

  “You seek out the vulnerable and trap them into your service. You turn men, good men, into criminals.” She scowled at him. “How did you convince Marcus to do your bidding? Nothing I found proves he needed the money. How did you lure him in?”

  Dillon flashed her another evil grin then stood. “Marcus?” He laughed. “Do you know what his nickname was among his ranger team? They called him Boy Scout. I never even tried to recruit Marcus. I knew he wouldn’t be receptive to my proposal.”

  She was confused. “Then how—how did he come to work for you?”

  “He didn’t. He never worked for me.”

  This revelation thrilled her and devastated her all at once. She’d thought the worst of him and he’d never done anything to deserve it. But that information raised another question. “I don’t understand. If he didn’t work for you, then why are you trying to kill him? And why did I overhear you tell him he did in the barn?”

  “He compromised my operation. He overheard me and Levi talking the night of the ambush, and he figured out what was happening. I couldn’t let him go back and tell everyone what he’d heard. You understand I couldn’t withstand that kind of spotlight. I had too much at stake to let him walk away. So I shot him, but not before he’d gotten in a few shots of his own. He shot Levi pretty badly. I thought I’d killed him, so you can imagine my shock when you actually found him alive.”

  Anger burned inside her. “You followed my investigation. You were the one who encouraged me in it.”

  “Well, I had a vested interest in making sure the man was actually dead, didn’t I?”

  “Then why—” She fumbled over her words. “Is that why you started a relationship with me? To use me?” It was the worst kind of betrayal and the same thing she’d accused Marcus of doing to her.

  “Well, that wouldn’t have lasted much longer if you hadn’t found him. I was fairly certain he wasn’t coming back and I had plans to tell you things just weren’t working out for us when you returned from Texas.” He grinned. “It’s funny how things work out, isn’t it?”

  “You could have killed him in the barn. Why didn’t you?”

  “Because I’d already shot him once and it didn’t take.” He stood and paced the room like an anxious animal ready to pounce. She had never before seen Dillon so agitated. “When you told me he had amnesia, I thought it was a joke, a ploy on his part. When I realized it was actually true, I saw an opportunity. Sure, I could have just taken him out then and there, but I’m an opportunist, Bethany. If I have to kill Marcus to keep him from spilling his guts and bringing attention to my operation, then I will. But I want more than that.”

  “More? What more can you possibly want from him?”

  “I want him to actually get his hands dirty for me.” His eyes gleamed with excitement. “Can you imagine it? He’s already officially dead, so he can go anywhere and no one will be looking for him. I can use a man like that in my operation. If I can convince him to work just one operation with me, then I’ll own him. He’ll have too much to lose if he goes to the Feds. He’ll be forced to work with me.”

  “And how do you think you’re going to accomplish that?”

  “You are the answer. Marcus will do whatever I tell him to do in order to keep you safe. You are my bargaining chip, Bethany. He’ll do whatever I command as long as it saves your life.”

  She glared at him. “I’m not foolish enough to believe you’re going to allow me to live and neither is Marcus. We both know your identity now.”

  He flashed her a long, sly grin. “I knew you were smart, Bethany, but you’d be amazed what the power of fear can do. He might not do it to save his own life, but to save yours, he just might.”

  She pulled at the binding on her hands and understood his meaning. No one was getting out of this alive.

  * * *

  Marcus turned onto the dirt road that led him to the old drive-in. His hands tightened against the steering wheel as he passed the boarded-up ticket booth. He wasn’t alone and he knew it. But that didn’t still the apprehension that gripped him at the thought of what Bethany might be going through. If Dillon or Levi had hurt her, he didn’t know how he would control himself.

  A voice in the earpiece calmed him. “Rangers, are we all in position?” Matt’s calm, commanding voice seemed familiar and the responses to his shout-out reassured Marcus that despite his own lack of knowledge of them, his instincts were correct that he could trust these men.

  “In position,” Colton responded.

  “I’m here,” Josh said.

  Marcus felt better hearing their voices and knowing he didn’t have to face this alone. Of course, Marcus knew he wasn’t really alone and never had been. He’d had God on his side all the time he’d trekked through Afghanistan and Iran and all the way back to the US. It was a marvel that he’d made that journey without incident. Without God on his side, he would likely be sitting in an Iranian prison, a captive, or more likely dead.

  Finally, Blake’s voice sounded in his earpiece. “We’re here, too.” Then, after a moment’s hesitation, he stated, “No one is here. There’s no sniper’s nest.”

  There was a moment of silence when Marcus was certain they would all decide he was crazy or lying and would pack up and leave. But a second or two later, Matt came back on the headset. “Take your position and be on the lookout.”

  Marcus let out the anxious breath he’d been holding and gripped the steering wheel again, thankful they were still there.

  He wasn’t leavi
ng here without her.

  “Report your condition,” Matt stated again.

  Each man came back with an answer of “All clear.”

  “I have eyes on the entire area,” Garrett stated. “I have zero enemy visibility.”

  Levi wasn’t showing himself, but Marcus felt in his gut that he was out there somewhere and would eventually appear.

  The dirt road opened onto a cleared lot with two buildings. One was an old shed with the front part of it partially blasted away. Blake had told him about how they’d blasted it open in an effort to save Laura, who’d been trapped inside with a madman. The other building was a long concrete structure that looked to still be intact. He could see from the front that it had once housed the concession stand. Glimpsing an SUV parked on the far side, he pulled up beside it and stopped.

  “Don’t worry,” Garrett’s voice said in his ear. “I disabled the SUV. They won’t be going anywhere in that vehicle.”

  That gave Marcus a feeling of satisfaction, knowing their only escape had been cut off. Thank you, rangers.

  He stopped the truck and got out, spotting a figure hiding in the shadows of the concession building.

  “That’s far enough,” Dillon stated as Marcus walked around the front of the SUV.

  The rangers’ voices in his ear responded back and forth that they could hear Dillon talking, thanks to Marcus’s mike, but not one of them could see him. But Marcus could. He had a perfect line of sight to the man. Dillon was still dressed in his shiny loafers and slacks. He still looked to Marcus like a slicked-out used-car salesman on the lookout for his next prey.

  One thing he noticed that caught his eye was that Dillon appeared to be unarmed. Marcus had yet to pull his gun, but he had it on him, ready to use, the weight and feel of it as familiar as his own arm.

  “Where’s Bethany?” he demanded.

  Dillon flashed him a grin. “She’s inside. Come on. I’ll take you to her.”

  Marcus pulled his weapon to drive his own point home. “Yes, you will.”

  “Now, now, Marcus. There’s no need for that. I’ll gladly take you to see your girl. I want to give you both a chance to say goodbye to one another.”