Page 2 of Bewitched

Blake took the tablet back and studied the two women’s faces. Frisco was right. They were beautiful young women who had no business in the hands of terrorists. It was his opinion that people shouldn’t come to this part of the world unless they were trained and armed. But like most of his opinions, he kept them to himself.

***

Blake and his fire team checked their kits inside a hangar on the base and kept eyes on anyone entering the area. The last thing they needed was to get shot before they got started.

Checking his tablet, Blake saw the confirmation for their extraction. A Blackhawk was due in eight hours on the mountain that sat next to Aysra village, which should give them plenty of time.

They had about an hour’s drive to Sakib, and that would put them in the area right around seven. The tac plan gave them an hour for recon, another hour to get the women out, and an extra three in case they wanted to catch any sights on the way up the mountain. Piece of cake.

Will, Frisco, and Bryce stood at the gun table, checking their firearms and keeping things loose. A lot of insults were being thrown back and forth, which told Blake that the men were all in the right frame of mind. He’d been on hundreds of missions over the years with Frisco and Will, and they operated as one. The new kid, Bryce, was showing a lot of promise and was the perfect fourth man for their op today. Blake had always believed that missions were like parties. You needed the right mix for them to work.

A black unmarked SUV stood ready, and Blake decided to look at the engine before they left. He had no reason to believe anyone would sabotage them, but being the paranoid SOB that he was, a check seemed like a smart choice.

Giving it a thorough once-over, he satisfied himself that the vehicle would make the short trip along the highway. By SEAL standards, this was as easy as an op got. They never drove to their infil point. A midnight HALO jump from thirty thousand feet in the air was their usual commute. Today was civilized, and Blake hoped it was a sign of how easy the extraction would be. Terrorists and American women were not a good combination, and shit tended to get nasty fast the longer the two were in each other’s company.

Blake motioned to Will that they were ready to pack the vehicle. The three men loaded their gear and then checked their coms. Once satisfied they were operational, Blake looked at the men and nodded. “Let’s make this clean and fast.”

Frisco got in the driver’s seat, and the rest of the men piled in. “Rock and roll,” he said as he started the engine. “Let’s see if we can make it off the base without incident. Look alert.”

The team kept their hands on the weapons in their laps and saluted the guards as they drove through the gates. “So far, so good,” Will said from the back. “A good omen.”

“Better be,” Blake replied. “No reason to believe otherwise.”

***

An hour and a half later, they drove slowly along a dirt road that ran parallel to the mountain where the abandoned castle sat. The valley was lush with trees and farms. If you didn’t know any better, you might think you were in California. The rolling landscape wasn’t that much different than the central California coast.

Sakib hadn’t had a recent history of violence in any of the three villages that made up the area, so Blake figured the group from Daraa was a one-off or…a sign of things to come.

Frisco drove off the road into a grove of trees and parked their vehicle behind an outcropping of large boulders. Everyone piled out, quietly loaded their gear, and put on their helmets, which were equipped with night-vision goggles.

“Ten minutes and I’ll tell you what’s going on over at the castle,” Bryce said as he set his drone up. “I’ll survey the exterior and then see what’s happening inside.”

“Roger that,” Blake responded. He checked his tablet and read the latest update. No further demands had been made, so their time frame would remain. HQ had requested a second visual confirmation that the women were alive and hadn’t received anything yet. Cursing silently, he shook his head. Not what he wanted to hear.

“Five heat signatures inside the building. No guards on the exterior and one car parked a click away from the structure,” Bryce reported. “Looks like a couple of dogs are roaming around, probably strays.”

“Good work,” Blake said. “Ready, men? Let’s take a little hike and see what we’re dealing with.”

“Affirmative,” the three men responded quietly.

Bryce landed his drone a half mile away from where they were headed and slipped his monitor in his vest. “Locked and loaded,” he said.

“Feet ready, heart steady, eyes open,” Blake said as the team began their trek across the valley. Will took point, Frisco followed with Bryce, and Blake took up the rear.

The four men moved silently through the brush toward their destination, and as they moved along the terrain, Paige’s face filled Blake’s mind. Something about her had struck a chord in him, and he had no idea why. Probably would never find out, either. This was a standard snatch and grab, not a social gathering. It wasn’t like they were going to get to know one another.

Looking up into the clear night sky, he hoped like hell the women were still alive. The heat signatures were a good sign, but until they were inside, they wouldn’t know for sure. As far as he was concerned, it couldn’t happen fast enough.

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