Dying on his terms was far preferable to rotting in prison, subjected to countless interrogations, deprivations of food and light and sleep if he didn’t cooperate. After that there would be a long, drawn out legal process. When they found him guilty, he would receive the death penalty. No. He would not accept defeat here.
He raised his chin and took a defiant step forward.
“Malik, don’t—”
Something clattered against the dirt floor up ahead. A metallic, rattling sound.
Grenade.
Malik barely had time to whirl away and cover his head before it exploded.
Smoke and debris swirled through the air, the concussion of the blast in the confined space making his ears throb and his head spin. He’d barely pulled in another breath before more clatters reached him. They exploded with a blinding flash of light that seemed to sear his retinas. Roaring in surprise, in fury, he covered his eyes and mouth. It was no use. The tear gas was already flooding the length of the tunnel.
He yanked his shirt up to cover his face. Too late. The chemical burned his eyes, nose and throat until he couldn’t breathe, couldn’t see. Blind, he lurched away from the smoke, heading back the way he’d come.
He slammed into someone crouched on the ground. Stumbled. Pitched forward in the darkness. He threw out a hand to keep from falling, gasped for air. The flashlight was long gone, but he still had his weapon. His fingers curled around the grip like talons, his index finger on the trigger.
Running footsteps sounded behind him at the cave entrance. The tread of heavy boots vibrated up through the ground.
“Malik.”
He whirled at the unfamiliar voice. Blindly raised his pistol.
A shot rang out and a searing pain burst through his left hand. He screamed and dropped his weapon. The gas burned the moist edges of the wound as his blood pulsed from it. He clamped his jaw shut out of sheer force of will and crouched to frantically search for the gun. A hard weight slammed into his back. He flew forward. Smashed face down on the ground with enough force to expel the air from his already aching lungs.
Coughing, tears and snot streaming down his face, he was helpless as the soldier grabbed his arms and wrenched them behind his back. He screamed as the fiery burn in his wounded hand bit into him. The man pinned him to the ground with his weight and yanked a pair of flex cuffs around his captive wrists.
Denial and disbelief swirled like a numbing fog around him.
Captured. A prisoner.
“Verify target,” the man pinning him growled.
Solid footsteps approached. A light shined into Malik’s face. He squeezed his eyes shut and wrenched his head away as a deep voice rolled over him. “Affirmative. We have Sand Viper.”
Sand Viper.
They’d code named him after a deadly venomous snake indigenous to the area. How appropriate. A bitter laugh clogged his throat. One of them searched him, found the thumb drive suspended around his neck and removed it.
Everything else faded away. He stopped listening, didn’t even bother fighting as he was unceremoniously hauled to his feet and frog marched down the remaining length of the tunnel. His eyes and nose were still streaming when they dragged him outside.
The sudden bright light pierced his eyelids. He squinted then forced his lids open to look around. Through his blurry vision he made out six hard-looking, bearded men clustered around him.
“Sir, got someone for you to see,” one of them called out to a group of men standing near where the vehicles were supposed to have been. Even if he’d managed to get out of the tunnel, there would have been no escape, Malik realized bleakly.
The searing pain in his hand was making him light-headed. Someone roughly wrapped a bandage around it and squeezed hard to slow the bleeding. Malik bit back a scream. He’d rather die right here than give these bastards the satisfaction of seeing him as weak.
Anger and frustration bombarded him, nearly thick enough to choke on. A man detached himself from the group and stalked toward them.
Malik straightened and held himself rigid, unwilling to have anyone see him trapped and afraid. He wasn’t afraid. He was disgusted. With both himself and the entire situation. The frustration ate at him like acid. He’d been so damn close to making it. His dream was dying, right in front of him. And there was nothing he could do about it.
The man came close, closer, until Malik’s blurry vision finally made out the camouflage painted facial features. Dark, trimmed beard, short dark brown hair sprinkled with gray. And silver eyes that seemed to pierce right through him.
Alex Rycroft.
Malik held back a sneer of contempt as the man approached and halted a step or two away. The bastard wore an extremely satisfied smile as he took in Malik’s humiliation. Enjoying it. A snarl of outrage built in his throat. He barely stayed the impulse to spit in the man’s face.
“Well, well, Malik. I finally get to meet you in person. You and I have a lot to talk about, don’t we?”
Malik glared a hole through the other man’s face and remained silent as he looked beyond those broad shoulders to the group he’d been standing with. Familiar faces stared back at him. Hunter Phillips, Gage Wallace, Jake Evers, Blake Ellis and a clean-shaven man he didn’t recognize.
All members of the Titanium Security team he’d been so sure he could wipe out today. All lined up before him, very much alive and savoring their victory while he stood in chains.
Standing beside the sniper, Ellis, the unfamiliar man on the far right shifted. A shaft of sunlight lit his clean-shaven features and Malik was stunned to realize he was looking at a female. “A woman?” he spat at Alex in disgust. The legendary operative had resorted to bringing a woman onto the team to replace Sean Dunphy? He sneered at the absurdity of it.
The smug smile on Rycroft’s face turned hard, sharp enough to cut, and those silver eyes chilled to glacial. The icy hatred there burned him. “Yeah, how about that, a female spotter. Damn good one, too, since she’s a big part of the reason you’re standing there in cuffs right now.”
Furious, humiliated, Malik clenched his jaw shut and moved his gaze out toward the valley where the distant bodies of fallen Taliban fighters lay baking in the intensifying sunshine.
“Get him outta here,” Rycroft muttered to the men holding him.
Someone yanked a black hood over his face, blotting out all light. Bound and helpless, he had no choice but to stumble along as they dragged him to the waiting helicopter that would take him to whatever dark hole they planned to throw him into.
****
Jordyn had never been on an op to capture a high value target before, and she’d certainly never been around to see that kind of prisoner up close when they were detained. The SEALs or Delta operators who’d brought Hassani out of that cave had put a hood on him and she was glad. For a second she was sure those streaming, swollen eyes had locked on her with a look of pure loathing.
Standing between Blake and Gage, she watched the hardened warriors take the terrorist to the Chinook waiting out in the open valley, its huge twin rotors still turning slowly. The moment the detail cleared the buildings, the pilots powered up. The big helo’s engines rose to a shrill pitch and the thump of the rotors beat against her eardrums.
Blake set an arm around her waist and squeezed. She glanced up at him and smiled. His eyes were so full of quiet pride and respect as he gazed down at her it warmed her all over.
Alex strode up to them and caught her gaze. “Hassani didn’t like finding out that our female sniper team member had a part in his capture. Not at all.” A pleased smile curved his mouth.
Jordyn snorted. “Not surprising, since he’s a corrupt, evil, misogynistic piece of shit.”
The others laughed. Blake squeezed her tighter, even though the move must have hurt him. “You’re one of a kind, angel.”
The obvious pride and affection in his voice made her blush. She ducked her head a little, embarrassed by the public praise. “So, are we out of here now?” she asked Alex.
Because she desperately wanted to be. She wanted to be able to relax her guard and not worry about her or one of her teammate’s being shot at. And she wanted a long, hot shower to scrub off all the dust and grime and sweat. Then a bed and some privacy so she could take care of Blake the way she desperately wanted to.
So many things were still unresolved between them. She knew his disastrous relationship with Melissa had left him wary of commitment. I-love-yous aside, she needed answers about where he saw things going between them from here.
Alex nodded. “I’m going with Hassani. Evers, you’re with me and the ST6 boys.”
So it was the fabled SEAL Team 6. Another successful mission to add to their impressive record. Alex must’ve pulled some very impressive strings to have them on standby for this op.
“The rest of you hop on that Blackhawk,” he said, indicating one of the two sleek birds waiting near the Chinook. He turned his gaze on Blake. “I’ll meet you at the hospital.”
“To see Dunphy?” Blake asked in confusion.
“That too, right after you get yourself checked out.” Blake opened his mouth to argue but Alex cut him off. “Not up for debate, Ellis.” He looked at her. “You’re in charge. Make sure he goes and gets looked at. A few x-rays and a CT scan at the minimum.”
Thank you, Alex.
“Will do.” She shot Blake a warning look and raised her eyebrow.
“All right, all right,” he relented with a scowl. “No need to threaten me. I’ll go, dammit.”
Oh, there was every need. He was a stubborn-ass alpha male and she knew all too well how they operated. But she was glad it wouldn’t be a fight to get his ass to the hospital.
Apparently satisfied with Blake’s answer, Alex nodded and addressed the group, looking every bit the SF NCO he’d once been. “Mission accomplished, guys. Good job. See you back in Islamabad.” He grinned and shifted his M4 in front of him as he turned and jogged out to meet the group heading for the Chinook, Evers right behind him.
“All right, let’s get outta this dump,” Hunter muttered, and motioned for the rest of them to follow him. He started out past the low houses clustered in front of them. The Rangers were still doing their thing out there, flushing out any remaining militants from the tunnels and caves. Two stood guard by the edge of the village, nodded to them as they passed.
Hunter was in the lead, her behind him, then Blake, and Gage brought up the rear. She held her rifle in front of her, muzzle down, index finger resting on the trigger guard.
“I get dibs on first shower when we get back,” Gage called from the back of the line.
“Fuck you, no you don’t,” Hunter shot back. “I’m team leader. I get first shower.”
“What about me?” Jordyn demanded. “I’m the only female. Don’t I get any kind of special consideration after roughing it out here with you guys?”
“Only if you conserve water by showering with me,” Blake said behind her, too low for the others to hear.
She shot a mock glare at him over her shoulder, fighting a smile. “Yeah, I’ll be happy to—right after your x-rays and CT scan come back clear.”
He grinned and conceded with a nod. “Deal.”
God, he really was too adorable.
“I heard that, Ellis,” Hunter called back, but the amusement in his voice told her he wasn’t the least bit disapproving of the flirtatious comment. Jordyn was pretty sure the guys had already figured out what was going on between her and Blake.
“Heard what?” Blake asked, all innocence.
“That lame come on you just laid on Jordyn,” Gage answered wryly. “That was fuckin’ sad, man.”
“Yeah, Gage, we got some time. Why don’t you give him a few pointers while we walk?” Hunter suggested as they trudged over the sun-baked ground. “Considering he’s a sniper, that line was a huge miss.”
Gage’s snicker reached her. “Hey, good one—”
She caught the faintest blur of motion between the houses they were passing. A man appeared in the narrow alley, brandishing an AK. He aimed right at them. The weapon was raised to his shoulder, ready to fire.
Jordyn reacted. “Gun!”
Whirling, she dropped to one knee, aimed and fired twice, all in one motion. The report of her weapon ricocheted off the mud-brick walls. The round hit the man square in the chest. He dropped like a sack of sand and twitched once, the deadly AK now useless in his open hand.
“Jesus Christ,” Blake breathed, clearly as shaken as she was.
Jordyn swallowed and kept her gaze trained on the body, though she was sure he was dead. The others were deathly quiet, all of them absorbing what had almost happened while they’d been joking around.
Before she could move, Gage stalked over with his rifle at the ready and kicked the fallen weapon out of the dead man’s hands. He reached down and felt for a carotid pulse, then looked up at them. “Dead.” His expression was hard, but as his light blue gaze landed on her, it softened into a grin of admiration. “Okay, you can totally have first shower.”
A nervous laugh bubbled up inside her. Her heart was pounding sickeningly against her ribcage and all her muscles were still frozen. She felt queasy all of a sudden.
Blake’s comforting hand settled on her shoulder for a second. He held his other out in front of her, palm up. She took it and allowed him to help her to her feet, trying to ignore how shaky her legs felt. If she hadn’t seen that guy, he might have killed them all with one burst.
Pounding footsteps had them all spinning around to face another possible threat, but the voices called to them in English. Seconds later, the two Rangers who’d been standing guard at the village entrance ran up. Hunter explained what had happened and they immediately called for backup to do another sweep of the houses.
“All right, everybody fucking watch their sixes,” Hunter growled, checking around them for any remaining threats that might be lurking in the shadows. “Let’s not get dead when we’re two minutes from getting on the goddamn helo, huh?”
Jordyn was very much on board with that plan.
Hunter strode forward and led them through the rest of the village. Everyone was tense and on full alert as they cleared the last building and walked out into the open. Hot, bright sunshine flooded down on them. Even with some Rangers providing overwatch, none of the team members relaxed their guard until the helo was wheels up and gaining altitude, taking them soaring above the Spin Ghar Mountains and back toward Pakistan.