Page 5 of No Regrets

“I like the sound of that.”

Dex was such a big part of her life. Why had she’d been so afraid to tell him just how much he meant to her? She loved him so damn much. Their families had lived on the same street since before they were born. They grew up together. As teenagers, he’d looked out for her, even vetted her dates. They were brother and sister practically, and they loved each other like family. Six years ago, after some time apart focusing on their careers, they had no longer seen each other in a brother-and-sisterly way.

“Any idea when you’re getting back?”

“Maybe a week or two. But I’m going to be offline for a while, so don’t worry.”

“I always worry, but I’m used to it.”

She did worry, but she also knew Dex was good at what he did. He was a SEAL team leader, an officer, and he loved what he did. It was one of the many things she admired about him.

“What about you? Will you be on land when I get back?”

“I hope so. I have a briefing shortly, but I don’t think the ops been greenlit yet.”

“Maybe we’ll get lucky, and both be home for a few days.”

They might live on the same street, but with training, missions, and deployments, seldom were they there at the same time. Six years of dating. Was it really even dating? It was difficult to date when you were being sent to different countries, often for weeks on end. They made the best of their time together. Sometimes it was only a few hours. Occasionally it was a week. Like Cuba. She smiled.

“Dex, I’m getting called to the briefing. I gotta go. Be safe, OK?”

“Always, babe. And you stay out of trouble. Can't wait to see you.”

Those were the last words they had said to each other. No “I love you.”

They had never said as much. She wanted to. Despite how strong she thought their friendship was, she was worried he didn’t want more than what they had. A fantastic friendship and great sex. They had never spoken about settling down or even living together. Now it seemed ridiculous. Both had put their careers before everything. That was OK at first, but hell, they were in their thirties now. Not kids, not anymore. Now, it might be too late to tell him exactly how she felt about him.

Kelly opened her eyes at the sound of the door being opened. A Reborn soldier walked in, dumped a piece of bread on the floor and then left. She grabbed the bread hungrily, tearing off small pieces and taking the time to chew each slowly, savoring it. It tasted disgusting, but it was fuel and her body needed it. If there was even a remote chance Dex, the Navy, or any team would come for her, she had to try and stay strong. Stay alive. Perhaps then she would get her chance to tell Dex just how much she loved him.

DEX PACED THE BRIEFING room. He was calm under pressure, he had to be. A big part of being team leader was staying in control when things turned to shit. This was definitely a turned to shit situation. Bravo team were dead. He had yet to really process that. His mind focused on finding Kelly. She was alive, she had to be. A life without her in it was not something he wanted to think about.

Alpha team sat around the briefing table; laptops open. For the past hour they’d been pulling on contacts, connections, and intel, trying to piece together exactly what happened and where Kelly might be.

“Holy shit. Guys, you need to see this.” John “Mackie” Mackenzie, the youngest member of the team and the tech wizard, got everyone’s attention.

“What is it?” Dex stopped behind him.

“Hang on, I’ll put it on the big screen. This was posted to a jihad website yesterday, looks like it was intercepted and got taken down before it got any further.”

The screen filled with Reyes Lazir gloating about how they had taken down American Navy SEALs. How Americans would continue to pay for their sins against their country and their faith in Allah. The team watched in silence as the recording showed Bravo entering the building, and then the explosion ripping through it in seconds. The video cut to Reborn soldiers dragging the bodies of their brothers from a truck one by one and mutilating them before setting them alight.

“Jesus Christ. Filming it and using it as a propaganda video. That's some sadistic shit.” Ryan’s disgust was not lost on anyone.

“Only six bodies though,” Tyler, the team’s medic, said. “Suggests Kelly could still be alive.”

“She is alive, I know it. A western woman, especially an officer, is too much of a prize. Men like Lazir think women have no value. It will disgust him that she is military. He’ll want to make an example out of her. When the bastard decides to kill her, he will film that too. Probably live.” Dex stood at the head of the table. “This is taking way too long. Where are we at? Steve?”

It was getting harder to stay calm. He needed to be in Daram. He needed to rescue Kelly. Goddammit, he needed to fix this!

“I spoke with one of the survivors, Petty Officer Daniel McCormick. We should have a copy of the intel package Bravo received shortly,” Steve, explosives expert, replied.

“Donnie? ISR?”

“We should have some eyes in the sky soon. It’s taking a little longer as I’m trying to stay off everyone’s radar. But the satellite link should be live soon.” Donnie, team sniper, answered.

“Yeah, Joe won’t be pleased if he gets wind of what we’re doing.” Ryan glanced at Dex. “I’ve reached out to some old friends on the ground in Daram. We spent enough time there over the past decade. Figured some would be willing to help. No one has seen Lazir in years, but Khalini has been terrorizing the villages, recruiting any shooting-age men.”

“Building a bigger army. Khalini is doing all the work while Lazir has been laying low. That video is the first sighting of Lazir in three years. Broadcasting what he did like that, he’s taunting us. He’s evaded capture for three years and thinks he’s untouchable. Kelly has to be with him.” Dex snapped.

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