Securing avery, p.15
Securing Avery, page 15
“The sooner we get out of here, the happier I’ll be,” Ace mumbled.
Rex couldn’t agree more with that statement. They were all aware that the person who’d wanted Avery dead was most likely right there on the base with them. He could even be watching them now. It was unsettling, and he’d feel better about Avery’s safety when they were gone.
“There was an army unit that went home a week ago,” Bubba said, as if he could read Rex’s mind. “It’s possible our man has already left to go back to the States. There are both naval and army units heading home in a few weeks as well.”
“So we’ve got some time for Avery to look at the pictures before we have to worry too much about her safety,” Rocco said. “Since the army unit that already left is from Texas.”
“That doesn’t mean the traitor won’t come to California to silence Avery,” Rex said.
Avery held up her hand to halt the conversation. “Stop,” she said with a bit of force behind her tone. “Before any of you suggest it, I’m not going to live my life barricaded behind my apartment door, hiding. I don’t need a bodyguard either. I’m very aware that I could still be in danger, but I can’t live my life hiding. I’m going to go back to California, see what I can do about identifying the man I saw, and be very, very careful as I start working my shifts at the hospital again. I refuse to let him scare me.”
Rex didn’t like it. Didn’t want her to be vulnerable when they got back to Riverton. He agreed that she shouldn’t hole herself up, but he also wasn’t sure it was a good idea for her to resume her life exactly as it had been either. The bottom line was, until they figured out who the traitor could be, she was in danger.
But it was Bubba who did his best to make her understand how her life had changed. “That’s all well and good, but you can’t just go home and pretend that nothing happened. That you weren’t targeted because of what you saw. You aren’t naïve, and you can’t put your head in the sand. Things are going to be different for you, either until this guy makes a mistake, or you ID him. No one said you needed a bodyguard and no one said you couldn’t go back to work. But, you have to be smart. You should get an alarm if you don’t already have one. You shouldn’t be alone at the hospital. You need to talk to your commanding officer and let him or her know what’s going on. In other words, don’t take chances. I have firsthand knowledge that sometimes the last person you expect to be the bad guy, is exactly the person you have to be most worried about.”
Avery opened her mouth to speak, but Bubba spoke over her.
“It’s none of my business what’s between you and Rex. But it’s more than obvious there’s a connection there. Don’t push him away because you think you can look out for yourself or because you’re trying to prove a point. Don’t confuse what he feels for you as pity, or think he just wants to keep you safe because he’s obligated.”
“Bubba, enough,” Rex said in a low tone.
“No, it’s fine,” Avery said, holding up a hand to Rex and staring at Bubba. “I suspect your story is fascinating, and I wouldn’t mind hearing it someday, but right now, I don’t know you and you don’t know me. I’ll clarify, though, just to be clear.
“When I said I wasn’t going to let this guy scare me, I didn’t mean that I was going to be one of those idiotic horror-movie heroines either. I’m not going to skip around Riverton as if I don’t have a care in the world. I’m not going to leave my door unlocked and take the same route to work every day so a third grader could tail me and kidnap me. I don’t want a bodyguard, I wasn’t lying about that, but I’m not opposed to having a badass Navy SEAL hanging out with me either. If Cole and I see each other when we get back, it’ll be because I’m interested in him as a person, not because of what he can do for me. Got it?”
Bubba was grinning, as were Rocco and Ace.
“Yes, Ma’am,” Bubba said, saluting her.
Avery rolled her eyes. “You’re all a pain in the ass, you know that?” she said with a shake of her head.
They were out in the open, where anyone could see them, so Rex couldn’t do what he wanted to. Namely, put his arm around her shoulders and pull her into his side. But he did step a little closer, making sure he was in her personal space when he said, “We are going to see each other back in Riverton. You already asked me out, and I’m not going to let you go back on your word. And I’m looking forward to hanging out with you. I won’t be your bodyguard, but I wouldn’t mind being your boyfriend.”
He loved the pink that blossomed in her cheeks. But she didn’t back away from him. “Boyfriend sounds so…middle-schoolish.”
“What would you call me then?” Rex asked.
“I don’t know. My friend? My manfriend?”
Everyone laughed at that. “Not sure that works either,” Rex said as he used the pressure of his hand at her back to turn her toward the clinic again. “How about we just leave it open for now?”
“I definitely think we need to keep an eye on Avery, but I think the more pressing issue will be Phantom. We’re going to have to sit on him to make sure he doesn’t overdo it, and to make sure he doesn’t get a bug up his ass to take himself to Timor-Leste,” Ace said.
“First line of business when we get back is to have a team chat with Commander North,” Rocco agreed.
“You know he’s going to slip away if he gets any indication Kalee is still alive, right?” Rex said.
“Which is why I’m going to have a talk with Tex as well,” Rocco replied. “I know Phantom already told him to keep his ear to the ground. I’m going to ask him to please run anything he finds by me or the commander first, so we can do some damage control and come up with a plan for controlling Phantom.”
“You think you can control him?” Avery asked with a quirk of her eyebrow. “It seems to me that you’re all underestimating your teammate. Besides, if I was this Kalee person, I’d want Phantom to come find me as soon as freaking possible. If she’s really alive and has been in the middle of that civil war for as long as she has, every second might count when it comes to her mental and physical health.”
Everyone was quiet for a long moment. They reached the door to the clinic, and Rocco held it closed with his hand on the handle for a beat. He looked down at Avery and said, “You’re right. I know you are. But it’s not in our nature to act alone. We’re a team.”
“You might be a team, but this sounds like something Phantom has to do. He feels responsible for not recognizing what he saw that day when you guys were there. I’m not suggesting you just let him go off on his own, then sit around and wait for him to get back, but you need to give him some space to process everything. I’m guessing he needs to prove to himself that he’s not the kind of man his mother and aunt tried to tell him he was. A loser. A waste of space.”
Rex inhaled sharply. They all loved Phantom like a brother. He’d never given any indication that he felt anything other than pride at being a part of the SEAL team, but then again, maybe Avery had a point.
“It’s not safe for him to interject himself into the middle of a civil war,” Bubba argued.
“I never said it was. But it wasn’t safe for you guys to split up when you were rescuing me, either, was it? But you did it anyway. I just don’t think you’re seeing this from Phantom’s side. He feels like it’s his fault Kalee wasn’t rescued. And he feels like he needs to right that wrong.” She turned to Rex. “How would you have felt if you’d stopped removing rocks right before you got to me because the insurgents came up the mountain minutes earlier? Then you later found out that I was inside, but you didn’t move that last rock?”
She was right. Exactly right. He would’ve moved heaven and earth to get back to rescue her. “Point made.”
“We don’t even know if she’s truly still alive,” Rocco said. “So it’s all a moot point at this juncture. But you’ve made a good argument, and I’ll keep it in mind if and when the time comes.” Then he pulled open the door and gestured for Avery and the others to enter the building.
For the rest of the afternoon, they visited with Phantom in his small recovery room. Gumby headed off and got lunch for all of them, and they had a sort of picnic in the room while they were waiting for Phantom’s doctor to sign him out.
It was late when they headed to the airstrip to get on the plane that would take them out of the country. They had a few stops to make along the way back to California, but the second the wheels lifted off the hard-packed ground of the runway, Rex breathed out a sigh of relief.
He looked over at Avery and saw she was staring out the window at the mountains in the distance.
“You okay?” he asked quietly.
Avery shrugged. “I was excited to come over here and help out the locals. Women’s health is a serious concern, and I was all fired up to help empower them to look out for themselves. But I’m somewhat ashamed to admit that I haven’t thought about the women I met before I was taken captive. I’m also very glad to be leaving, and I never want to come back. And that makes me feel like a bad naval officer.”
Rex touched her hand and was pleased when she immediately grabbed hold of him. He squeezed her hand and said, “It makes you human, Avery. And above all, before your duty to your country, you have to do what’s best for you.”
She didn’t turn her face away from the window, and they watched the countryside get smaller and smaller as they gained altitude, but she did grip his hand tightly. He knew she’d heard him.
Ensign Scott Wheatland watched the plane take off, carrying the SEAL team and the bitch who’d seen him. He was glad to see them go, and he had to think the fact that the military police or a naval master-at-arms hadn’t come to haul him off to the brig was a good sign.
But he wasn’t about to let his guard down. Because he worked security, he had access to a lot of information he wouldn’t otherwise. He was allowed to go out into the town and talk with the locals to try to gain information. It was how he’d made his connection to get his supply of pills when he needed them.
All he had to do was lie low the next three weeks until he got back to the base in California. Then he’d dig a bit and see what was happening with the bitch. He knew she worked in the hospital, and he could check up on her. It was a miracle he hadn’t run into her in the past. Especially considering how much time he’d spent at the hospital. First with his own injury, then the countless times he’d had to bring in suspected drunk drivers to be tested.
And of course, he’d faked being sick time and again to try to get prescriptions for more painkillers.
He had a feeling she’d recognize him now. And everything would come crashing down if the lieutenant narced on him.
It was exactly why he’d told his contact to kill the bitch as soon as he could! But instead…look what happened. She’d been rescued, and now Scott had to worry every second about being taken to the brig for his role in the attack on the convoy and the death of the two privates. Not only that, but he had a million bucks he couldn’t touch.
“Enjoy the next three weeks,” he mumbled to himself as the plane disappeared into the clouds high above the base. “Because they’ll be your last.”
Chapter Twelve
Avery sighed in relief when the wheels of the plane touched down in Southern California. The last leg had been a long flight, and she’d stayed awake to make sure Phantom was all right, and that he wasn’t experiencing any kind of setback from the altitude.
She felt bad that Cole had stayed awake with her. She knew he was probably extremely tired, but he didn’t let it show. He brought her snacks to keep her energy up, forced her to drink lots of water, and they talked for hours.
They discussed everything under the sun. What they liked to read, what they did in their free time and, interestingly enough, what they were looking for in a partner.
Avery wanted someone who wasn’t afraid to let her take the lead every now and then, but who didn’t hesitate to take control when the situation warranted it. Cole had shared that he was scared to death of marriage. He didn’t want to end up divorced like his parents. He’d seen so many SEAL marriages fail and was petrified his would end up the same way.
Avery could understand that, though she pointed out that his friends seemed to be doing very well in their own relationships, and that there needed to be compromises made on both sides if a marriage was going to work.
He then admitted that when he’d been in the river, and he’d had that vision of a little boy, he’d had red hair and green eyes…which had led to a whole discussion of whether they wanted children (they both did), their religious beliefs, and if they believed in premonitions.
It was an intimate conversation for them to be having so soon in their relationship, but Avery didn’t feel the least bit weird about it. Cole was easy to talk to, and the more time she spent with him, the harder it was to even think about going their separate ways when they got to California.
But now they were here, and Avery wasn’t sure how things would proceed.
Rocco’s words ended some of her speculation on that front.
“This homecoming is very low-key,” he told the group. “Our women haven’t been informed we’re back, so feel free to call and let them know that you’ll be home soon. Avery, your parents are here. The Red Cross notified them of your rescue and arranged for them to be here.”
She gasped in surprise and pleasure. “Really?”
“Really,” Rocco told her with a small smile.
“I take it you’re not upset,” Cole said from next to her.
“No!” Avery said with a vigorous shake of her head. “I haven’t seen them in forever! I was so worried about how they’d take my capture. Are they all right? Was my sister notified?” she asked Rocco.
The other man shrugged. “I don’t know anything other than what I just told you. But you’ll find out for yourself in a few minutes.”
Avery leaned over and looked out the small window of the plane, but didn’t see anything other than the building they were pulling up next to.
“Phantom, sorry buddy, but you’re headed straight over to the hospital to get checked out,” Rocco said.
The SEAL scowled.
“I know, but it’s necessary,” Rocco told him.
“It really is,” Avery chimed in.
“When can I see the commander?” Phantom asked.
“Tomorrow morning,” Rocco said. “Arrangements have already been made. We need to go in and make our formal report about the mission and afterward, we’ll have a private meeting with Commander North. I believe Rear Admiral Creasy will be there too.”
Phantom sighed, but nodded.
“And me?” Avery asked.
“You’ll go home with your parents tonight and get a good night’s sleep. Rex’ll pick you up in the morning after our meeting and bring you to the police station. You’ll be set up in a room where you can start going through the records of all the men who were stationed or worked at the base in Afghanistan two weeks ago,” Rocco told her.
Avery felt Cole’s hand on her arm, but kept her eyes on Rocco. “How long do I have to identify him?”
“As long as it takes.”
Avery frowned. “But I’m assuming the faster I make the ID, the better?”
“Of course,” Gumby interjected. “But this isn’t something that can be rushed. You need to be one hundred percent sure of the person you’re accusing. It’s better to take your time than to rush the process.”
“Your captain has been notified of your return, and you can go back to work as soon as you think you’re ready,” Cole told her from his spot beside her.
Avery sighed in relief. She’d been worried about that. “Good. I’m ready now.”
“You should take some time,” Cole said.
Avery shook her head. “No, seriously, I need to go back to work. Be busy. Otherwise I’m just going to sit around all day, bored out of my mind.” What she didn’t say was that she would probably sit around all day thinking about what had happened to her and worrying about who the traitor might be.
As if he knew exactly what was going through her mind, Cole said, “There’s no shame in getting some psychological help.”
“I know,” Avery said, and she did. She knew quite a few psychologists who worked at the hospital with her, and knew how important it was for soldiers and sailors to talk to someone to try to lessen the hold PTSD could take on them, but she really was fine. If she needed to talk to someone, she would. But for now, she needed to be busy, and to go through the pictures of the men stationed in Afghanistan.
“I just want to say, before that door opens,” Bubba said, “thank you to Lieutenant Nelson. We never know what’s going to happen when we set off on a mission, and we certainly never would’ve predicted that the person we went to rescue would end up saving not one, but two of our team. I’ve known these guys since almost the first day of our naval careers, and I can’t imagine being a SEAL without them by my side. So thank you.”
The others all echoed his thanks and Avery knew she was blushing bright red. “I didn’t do anything anyone else wouldn’t have,” she protested. “I was just in the right place at the right time.”
All six of the men shook their heads and rolled their eyes at her.
“Rex, if you’d do the honors?” Ace said with a head nod to his friend.
Avery turned to see Cole holding something out to her in the palm of his hand.
She looked down to find a pin. A pin she recognized easily.
It was a Special Warfare Insignia, also known as the SEAL trident, or the Budweiser. She knew it was given to members of the US Navy who’d completed the rigorous BUD/S training, SEAL Qualification Training, and had been designated as a US Navy SEAL.
What she didn’t know was why he was holding it out to her.
