Page 51 of Stand Fast

She couldn’t bear it.

“FAST Bravo’s en route back to base. They’re still close enough to get in there and help,” Taggart said from behind her.

The colonel hesitated for only a split second before waving him forward to set it in motion. Jaliya backed out of his way, cringing inside, alternating between shock and wanting to throw up.

Taggart’s voice registered above the pop of gunfire as the SF team battled to reach the wounded and get behind cover. The minutes ticked by in a surreal haze while she stood there frozen at the back of the room, unable to move, unable to do anything to fix this horrible situation.

After an agonizing wait, a gunship arrived on station and opened fire on the enemy position. Jaliya felt nothing but numbness as the thermal images on screen fell like leaves in a windstorm.

Then SA Hamilton’s familiar voice came over the radio, breaking her out of her trance. “FAST Bravo in position. Moving in now to assist.”

She bit down on the inside of her cheek as the screen split into two feeds, the second showing FAST Bravo moving from a Blackhawk toward the pinned-down SF team. Without knowing who was who, she watched the men who raced for the wounded, knowing one of them was Zaid.

Three Bravo members each stopped next to a wounded man while the rest of their teammates and the gunship kept firing at the scattering enemy. Finally, the medevacs arrived. In the ensuing confusion Jaliya lost track of which unit was which.

But the damage had already been done.

“This is SA Khan.”

Her head snapped toward the radio at the sound of Zaid’s voice.

“All three criticals are onboard the medevacs and en route back to base. Crews have alerted the surgical team to be ready to receive them as soon as they land at Bagram.”

Hearing his voice speak those terrible words made the backs of her eyes burn.

Oh God, I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry.

Futile, useless words. Weak words that had no place here. Sorry wouldn’t fix anything. Sorry wouldn’t make this okay or absolve her of the guilt slowly crushing her.

She bit down harder on the inside of her cheek and blinked fast, determined not to let a single tear fall. This was on her and she would stand here and watch what she’d caused, listen to each horrible update until every last man had been safely evacuated from the battlefield.

On screen, FAST Bravo and the tattered remnants of the SF team continued to engage what was left of the enemy as the Spectre gunship made another pass overhead and fired at one of the trucks that was attempting to flee.

A bright flash lit up the feed as the vehicle exploded. Two men jumped out of it, both on fire, and flailed for a few moments before dropping to the ground.

Jaliya watched it all, unable to feel even a little triumph. She just hoped one of them was The Jackal.

Silence enveloped the room for a few moments, before SA Hamilton spoke again. “Be advised, we’re moving in to secure target.”

Another wave of fear hit her as the men emerged from behind cover and started toward what was left of the convoy. FAST Bravo moved in with the remaining SF soldiers, checking the trucks before entering the tiny village.

David glanced back at her and she yanked her hand away from her mouth, straightening her spine. Whatever happened to her after this, she would take it without flinching.

“All remaining trucks are filled with ammo. We’ve got eight prisoners, five of them with non-life threatening injuries,” Hamilton reported. “Khan’s questioning them now.”

A few minutes later, she got the answer they’d all been waiting for.

“Our HVT’s not here,” Hamilton said. “They’re saying one of the KIAs from the destroyed truck was one of his lieutenants.”

“Copy that,” Taggart told him, his voice filled with frustration. “Sweep the village and report back with an update.” He straightened and moved back from the desk, allowing the others to take over again. When he turned his head to look at her, Jaliya swore she saw condemnation in those turquoise eyes.

She jerked her gaze away and focused on the feed in front of her, feeling small and helpless. It seemed to take forever for the men to sweep the village and take samples of the drugs they found before destroying them and the weapons. This time at least, there were a lot of both.

Except the Jackal hadn’t been there. Even though he’d been directly involved with the shipment.

Jaliya squeezed her eyes shut for a moment.Damn. So close. But the price paid in American blood to find out he wasn’t there would never justify the cost of the op.

People began leaving the room, brushing past her without a word, and she was too afraid to look them in the face. She stayed where she was until every last man on the battlefield was aboard the helicopters and on their way back to base.

---