Page 32 of Beaches

“We have to leave,” said Alec. “Is there anything you can tell us that might give us some idea of where Kaplan is hiding?”

“We only saw him a few times,” said the Russian. “We were trying to rescue some Russian girls from a brothel. The conditions were horrible, and we just wanted to get in and out. It was overwhelming for all of us. We never expected to be taken. But the girls. The girls were…”

“We’re aware. We burned one to the ground and got the girls to safety. Where was the one you saw?” asked Ian.

“Malaysia. We thought we’d freed the girls, turning them over to police custody. They only took them right back, and we’d exposed ourselves to Kaplan.”

“You’re all going to be alright now,” said Tailor. “They’ll take good care of you here, and your own country will come for you when it’s time.”

“Couldn’t we stay here?” asked one of the Russians.

“That’s between you, your government, and our government. I’m sure some people are going to have a lot of questions, and Russia is very different than the Russia that you left. Give it some thought, and if you decide you want to stay and can, we’ll help if we can,” said Ian. “Either way, we wish you luck.”

“Hey, thank you for coming for us. Twenty-six others died in our group. Twenty-six. You were the first sign of hope we’d seen.” Jean ground his teeth together, nodding at the men as they left.

“Now, that just pisses me off.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

They hadn’t been back on Belle Fleur property for more than three hours when word came that they needed to pack up and leave again.

“Jean? I got word from Burkhard that Kaplan is planning on moving all the girls, potentially selling them. We’ve got to move, or they may be lost to us forever,” said Major.

“Do we have all the locations?” he frowned. Just having returned from Alaska and their other locations, they were waiting to get news, and it came in the form of their resident nerd.

“I do,” said Ace. “I’m sending all the coordinates now. Nine is sending the teams and team assignments right now as well.”

They all looked down at their phones and grinned. They were getting a little help from Team Big. Ace stepped forward, reading the assignments.

“Team one, Jean, Miller, Cruz, Pork, Kegger, and Dex. Team two, Trak, Luc, Gaspar, Whiskey, Otto, and Noah. Team three, Alec, Noa, Ghost, Lucia, Clay, Rory, and Ethan. Team four, Max, Titus, Eli, Skull, Nine, and Zulu. Team Five, Ian, Gabe, Rafe, Vince, Tailor, Piper, and Mac. Team Six, Hazel, Major, Jak, Ham, Cowboy, Carter, and King.

“I’ve contacted U.S. military and cargo ships in the area, as well as Coast Guard services for each country. They’re prepared with medical personnel and an exit strategy. Get the girls out, and I promise I’ll have a list of islands narrowed down for you to hit and bring those men home.”

“Nice job, Ace,” said Nine.

He turned toward the other men, knowing that they would be prepared, but it was still his job to remind them that this was no game. It was the real world.

“Get anything you might think you’ll need. This will be a coordinated attack. We’ll connect and make sure our teams have everything they need. No one makes a move without their full team. Clear?”

“Clear,” came the echo of voices.

“Load that shit up. Miller? All the boom-boom you want. I don’t care if we have to take an extra chopper for it. Bring it all.” The other man grinned at him, grabbing an extra backpack.

“Trak, Team Big, hell, any of you. Don’t hold back. Kill every son-of-a-bitch in your path unless he’ll tell us where Kaplan is. Then kill him anyway. We’re going to send Kaplan one helluva message.”

“We wanna go, sir,” said Calvin.

Nine stared at the man, realizing they were probably close to the same age. The difference was that Calvin, Damon, and Vic didn’t have the advantage of the pond and all the magic of Belle Fleur.

“Calvin, you can help us by staying here and manning comms with Ace, Code, and the others. We need to know you’re safe. You’re still not one hundred percent, and I wouldn’t be a good leader if I allowed you out there like you are now.”

Calvin stared at him for a moment, then at his friends. He nodded, extending his hand.

“I wish I woulda had the privilege of serving with you. You’re a fine man.”

“I’m looking at three of the finest I’ve ever known,” said Nine. “We’re doing this for all of you, April, and the men still alive.”

“Come home, and we’ll have a beer,” said Damon.

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