Page 285 of Unexpected Hero

Chapter 54

Brick by brick

TOMER

My team is pissed at me for leaving HQ in the middle of an op, but I can’t find a single fuck to give them. If they aren’t ready to rescue Lettie, that’s too damn bad. I’m done waiting.

She’s inside this house.

I know it with every cell in my body.

And judging by the horrific images I’m picking up as I scan the outside of the structure with a body heat-detecting radar, every second she stays inside is another second she’s being hurt. Violated. Beaten. Tormented.

Bile rises as my stomach clenches, leaving an acrid taste in my mouth.

My sweet Lettie is in there.

Mia’s voice, steady and calm, sails through my earpiece, telling me that Alpha team is four minutes out.

“I’m not waiting four more minutes.”

Mia objects, “Hold for infil. Charlie Mike recon efforts only. We have no reason to rush this. No alarms or cause for panic. Hold steady. Backup is coming.”

I outrank her. Plus, I’ve got no fucks to give for other opinions.

I’ve identified a viable ingress point via the northwest bedroom window. “Shades are drawn. The window has a strange lock on the outside that needs a key, but I think I can pick it open and get inside.”

Ignoring my update, Mia cuts back in. “Hold for the other team, Tomer. We have time.”

If we delay, we risk forfeiting a stealth entry. That’s our best bet. I’m happy to go in guns blazing, but in the interest of protecting the captives inside, a smoother infil is preferable. Right now, we have the upper hand, but that can change in an instant.

Gritting my teeth, I pick the lock while defending my position over the radio. “Yeah, but we don’t know how long until the tangos come into this room for a girl or two, and my patience is officially spent. I’m not losing our fucking entry point. We have the tactical advantage but might not if we wait.”

Over the comms, a few of the team members take Mia’s side, attempting to dissuade me from entering, but fuck them too. If they were in my position — with the woman they love on the other side being beaten and worse — they’d do the same.

They’ll fall in line. Or they won’t, and I’ll do it myself. Don’t care. All that matters is getting my sugar bear out.

When I hear that sweet clicking sound of metal gears rotating, my heart rate picks up. That’s one step closer to my girl.

The window looks like it hasn’t been opened in a long time, so I remove a small canister of lubricant from one of the pockets on my tactical vest to grease the track. Last thing we need is for a squeaky fucking window to announce our presence before we’re ready to pounce.

“Listen for alarms, guys. I disabled the lock. Once I open the window, I’ll peek inside to get a visual of the room. Popping open the window in three, two, one.”

A resolute focus settles over me, silencing everything that doesn’t serve my mission. In the space of a few seconds, I visualize how the situation could play out and sort through various contingency plans.

I’m ready.

My hands are steady and controlled as I stealthily raise the window in one smooth motion. Thankfully, it opens without any audible alarms.

In a scant whisper, I alert the team of my next move. “Scanning interior before I enter.”

“Fuck. Tomer, be silent as a mouse,” Mia warns unnecessarily. It’s not like I planned to go in with my cymbals and a snare drum in tow.

Damn. Even my thoughts are hostile. I need to get a fucking grip.

At least her next order is useful. “Shep, watch the kitchen tangos for movement toward the bedroom when Tomer enters through the window.”

“Wilco,” he responds.

---