Page 13 of Over the Edge

Apparently, he’d told the others about his plan last night, for the conversation swirling around her was all about rescuing Kenny. The tenor of the chatter was mostly about how they wanted in on Trevor’s mission. And how they were pissed they didn’t get to go with him.

She was just pissed off. A little at him, but mainly at herself for being so stupid. It was a kiss. One stupid kiss. The earth had not actually moved beneath her feet, and the world had not actually tilted on its axis. She’d violently overreacted to a simple tactic by Trevor to get his keys back.

But deep, deep in her heart, she was hurt that he’d walked away from kissing her after he’d done it like he couldn’t live without her.

Cal entered, and everyone fell silent, swiveling their chairs to face the map. He said, “Okay, people. Thought exercise. How would you get to this spot, here—” he poked at the green dot, “—undetected?”

“Undetected by the Pakistani army, or by the Taliban?” Jojo asked.

“Undetected by everyone,” Cal answered.

“Rough infil,” Axe commented.

“Impossible infiltration,” Lily retorted.

Silence fell around the table.

Cal injected into the quiet, “I wouldn’t try to cross anywhere along the Pakistan-Afghanistan frontier. The U.S. has smart surveillance all over that border, and the odds of slipping through are very low. So, let’s rule out that entire direction of ingress.”

Trevor commented, “I was thinking of flying directly into Pakistan as a tourist. Maybe into Karachi. Jinnah is the country’s largest airport and will have the most international traffic.”

Anna frowned. “The only unsecured border in that whole region is the Zagistan-Pakistan border. Why not fly into Karaken? It’s the capital of Zagistan and close to the Swat region. Because it’s the seat of government, a few international travelers actually move through there.”

Trevor directed his response at Cal, ignoring her. “Either way, I would fly in legally and then make my way to the Swat Valley.”

C’mon. I’m right here. And you all but gave me a tonsillectomy with your tongue last night. Don’t be a jerk and pretend I don’t exist.

Cal commented, “What about gear? You won’t be able to fly with weapons in your bags.”

Jojo leaned forward. “In my last job, I worked with some intel guys in Zagistan. It has its fair share of arms dealers. As long as Trev has plenty of cash, he should be able to buy anything he needs.”

Leo commented, “You won’t be allowed to stroll into the tribal regions near Swat as a tourist, that’s for damned sure. To get there last winter, we rode in a ridiculously armed convoy to within about three miles and then humped in on foot under cover of darkness. It’s rough terrain. Steep, loose rocks, squat for cover. You want to get incompletelyunseen? You’re gonna be crawling under a gillie net for a good chunk of your approach to the valley.”

Silence fell again as they considered alternate ways for him to sneak into the mountainous and violent borderlands where Kenny disappeared.

“Too bad he doesn’t know anybody over there,” Anna eventually commented. “A family reunion, or maybe a wedding or funeral, would be a decent excuse for a civilian to go into that region. At a minimum, it would get him a visa that would allow him to fly over there.”

Somebody say something. Somebody say something, she silently begged her comrades. She didn’t want to have to speak up again. Please, somebody have another way of getting him into position.

Nada. Crickets chirped around the table.

Reluctantly, Anna leaned forward and said in disgust, “Fine. If I can make an international phone call, I might be able to find a family gathering of some kind and wrangle an invitation for him into Zagistan.”

“How?” Cal and Trevor demanded simultaneously.

“You all know my father’s family is Zagistani. I’ll call them.”

“Can you speak any Zagari?” Trevor blurted.

Well, whaddiya know. He’d finally acknowledged her existence.

“I speak it well enough.”

Cal commented, “Too bad you’re not going with him. That would come in handy.”

“Why not send me along?” she asked reasonably.

Out of the corner of her eye, she caught Trevor’s lurch as he threw himself backward in his chair. Really? He couldn’t even stand the idea of working with her anymore? After they’d spent the whole past year as swim buddies? One kiss and all that trust and friendship was just…gone?

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