Page 75 of Call Sign: King
He already knew there was a more than good chance she’d be taking that flight back to the States without him. He’d do all he could to be there with her, but Ryder was at peace with the knowledge that he’d trade his life for hers if that was what it came down to.
“I just got an update from Hammer.” It was Steel reporting in for one of his teammates. “He’s been piloting the long-range drones over Purgatory. He just confirmed no one has left the property in the last twelve hours.”
“Good,” Ryder acknowledged. While he knew their plan would be easier if Vlad left Barvikha, he also knew that would only drag out the showdown that would have to happen for Khloe to ever be safe again. The only way this truly ended was with Vlad in a body bag — for certain this time.
Before he could say more, Torch joined them, dressed in identical fatigues and Kevlar that the Volkov Bratva soldiers wore.
“What the hell are you doing?” Ryder asked, confused with Torch’s change of clothes.
“You know damn well I’m going in there with you.”
“The hell you are. I told you assholes, I’m going in there alone. It’s me he wants.”
“And if you were offering yourself up as a sacrificial lamb, I wouldn’t argue, but I have a play in this,” Torch defended.
Ryder was touched at his old friend’s loyalty — as dangerous as it may be — but he couldn’t let it stand. “I can’t ask you to do this. It’s probably a suicide mission.” Ryder said out loud what everyone was already thinking.
“Bullshit. You’re coming out of there with your Queen. And I agree the others shouldn’t go. They don’t speak Russian and won’t be able to keep tabs on what’s happening like I can.”
“He could recognize you,” Ryder argued, still uncomfortable asking Torch to walk into the shit show he knew he was walking into himself.
“He was already dead by the time I spent most of my time working in Moscow. Trust me. Just like you know this is the right play for you and Khloe, I feel the same about going with you.”
The fucking lump was back in Ryder’s throat. He’d asked all of the men and women working for him at BSO to put themselves in danger in the past. Hell, that was just part of their job. But today was different and they all knew it. Today was personal and Ryder was pushing forward with his high-risk plan knowing he would probably not make it out alive. He was a peace with those risks if it meant freeing Khloe so she could go back to living her life in safety, but Torch going in with him was over and above the call of duty.
Unable to speak, Ryder instead just nodded, accepting Torch’s help, grateful he’d have another ally going into Purgatory with him.
Clearing his throat, he waited until he had everyone’s attention before making what felt like the last pep talk a general would make to his troops before going into the climactic final battle of a long-fought war.
“I want to thank all of you for being here. I know this is your job, and how fortunate I am to have you working with me every day, but we all know today’s mission is not business as usual. Not for me… and not for BSO. I’m prepared for whatever happens to me, but I have one final favor to ask of each of you. I can’t leave until I get your promise that if I fail today — if Vlad wins this skirmish of our war — I need to know you will not stop until you get Khloe free and home safely.”
It was Doc who spoke in the hushed silence of Ryder’s impassioned speech. “You and Khloe will both be coming back here. We will all be flying home together.”
Ryder appreciated her positivity, but it didn’t help. “That may be… and I hope you’re right… but that doesn’t change the fact that I need your promises. I can’t go in there until I know you’ll all pick up where I leave off if I don’t make it out. The mission we are about to execute is our surgical approach to solving this problem, but if it fails, I need to know that you’re all going to move on to the scorched earth plan to get Khloe out of that fucking place as soon as possible.”
Ice, the team leader who’d shown the most resistance to Ryder’s rather insane plan, spoke for the rest of the team. “We will not rest until Khloe is back home safely. You have our promise.”
“Don’t worry, I’m ready for operation scorched earth if it comes to that.” Axel’s voice came through the speakers of the communication link they’d setup to the Texas Ranch. Even thousands of miles away, his friend had been on the job every minute since Khloe’d been taken.
Before Ryder could answer, Axel expounded. “Santa Clause and I have a squad of unmarked fighter jets on standby that we can sortie from Germany. We can wipe all three Volkov compounds off the map if we need to.”
“Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that,” Ryder said, appreciating the level of effort, nonetheless.
“There’s an SUV coming!” Magic, one of Ice’s team shouted from near the door to the hangar where he’d been stationed on watch.
Planning and preparation time was over. It was go time.
Like the trained soldiers they were, both Ice and Torch’s teams took up defensive positions, ready to shoot the first bogie that threatened their location. Ryder walked through their raised sea of rifles, out into the bright summer sunlight to stand in front of the SUV now parked a few feet away from the hangar door.
Alexi got out of the backseat first, wisely raising his hands to show he was unarmed. A few seconds later, the two armed guards in the front seats got out.
Ryder recognized both men. He’d spent more than a few hours shooting the shit with them over the years and wasn’t surprised they’d ended up loyal to Alexi.
The men all stood silently, sizing each other up until the driver called across the distance separating them. “You come to try to win back some of the money you lost to me in poker?”
Ryder painted a fake smile on his face. He knew damn well the man was a killer — he’d witnessed the fact many times. Still, as long as he kept his gun pointed away from Ryder and his men, he would play nice.
“Don’t you wish. I bet you were able to buy yourself a new piece of shit car with the money you saved after I left town. I’m at least a hundred grand up on you over the years,” Ryder teased back, knowing he wasn’t exaggerating. “I know why Alexi is here,” Ryder said nodding in the direction of the two guards. “But I need to know why you two came with him.”
