Breaking Ties by Elle James

Chapter 6

“I’m hitting the sack,”Rucker said. “I suggest you all find a place to sleep and get some rest. The team we’re replacing has been working this area hard. They haven’t had much time to sit back and relax.”

“Wasn’t very friendly the last time we came to this country,” Bull commented.

“I’m sure we didn’t make any friends by taking out the Boko Haram leader.”

“Too bad we didn’t get them all,” Blade said. “I hear the one they have now is even worse than Kalani.”

“Great. Gives us something to shoot at,” Tank dropped his go-bag outside one of the designated tents. “I call this one.”

Dawg ducked into another of the unoccupied tents, dropped his bag and dug out a pair of shorts and his running shoes. He was changed in less than a minute, strapped on his shoulder holster, tucked his nine-millimeter pistol into the holster and was back outside into the early morning light before the others could choose their tents and get settled in.

“I need to burn off some energy,” Dawg said. “I’m going for a run.”

“Stay close to camp,” Rucker advised. “We haven’t gotten the local briefing yet. We don’t know who’s friend and who’s foe until then.”

Dawg nodded. “I won’t go far. And I’ve got my weapon.”

“Want me to go with you?” Mac asked.

“No. I need the quiet,” Dawg was tired, but he wanted to think about Beth and the night they’d spent together before she’d left. Hell, he’d done nothing but think about her since he’d left her at her apartment.

“I’d prefer you took a buddy,” Rucker said.

“I won’t go far,” Dawg said. “Just around the encampment. Within shouting distance.”

“Okay then, go,” Rucker waved a hand. “I’m too tired to argue. Don’t get yourself killed. I don’t want to do the paperwork.”

Dawg grinned and set off jogging. He made four passes around the camp before he struck out along a road leading away from the camp.

Moving helped his body get over being crammed in the back of a C-130 Hercules, hanging from the web seats the entire trip from Texas to Rota, Spain. Afterward, they’d flown from Rota across the continent to Nigeria. He was tired and aching from the rides. Running helped to loosen stiff muscles and clear his head.

Ahead, he noticed a man running. He wasn’t wearing a uniform, and he was as dark as night. When the man dodged around a big pothole in the dirt road, Dawg noticed another figure ahead of him running, and it appeared to be a female who was looking over her shoulder. Was she running away from the man behind her?

Dawg picked up speed, slowly catching up to the man in front of him, which wasn’t easy. The guy had speed going for him. The woman in front of him was slowing. She couldn’t stay ahead of him.

But she sure as hell was trying.

Adrenaline spiked and fueled Dawg’s steps.

By the time the man was within five feet of the woman, Dawg caught him and raced past him.

He caught up with the woman, grabbed her arm, spun her around and turned at the same time to face her pursuer.

When he did, the man skidded to a halt, switched directions and darted into the underbrush alongside the road.

Dawg held his gun in his hand and faced the direction the man had disappeared.

Out of the corner of his eye, he watched the woman he’d stopped, as she bent over, dragging deep gulps of breath into her lungs. “Hey, are you okay?”

When her breathing slowed enough, she straightened, nodding. “Thanks,” she said and turned to face him.

Dawg swore. “Beth?”

“Dawg?” Beth laughed. “What are you doing here?”

He chuckled. “I was going to ask you the same thing.”

She pulled the ponytail out of her hair and shook it loose. “What were the odds that we’d deploy to the exact same place?”

Dawg pulled her into his arms. “Well, I for one am glad to see you.”

She hugged him back, her breathing still labored but more in control. “Not as glad as I am to see you.” Beth leaned back and frowned toward the brush. “I didn’t know how I was going to get back to camp with that guy chasing after me.”

Dawg dropped his arms from around her and took one of her hands, still holding his gun in the other. “Let’s get you back before he decides to bring some of his friends back with him.”

“I was stupid to go out on my own,” she admitted. “I have to remember I’m not back in Texas, and some of these people would just as soon slit your throat as anything.” Beth sighed. “I need sleep.”

“Slit your throat or worse,” Dawg’s brow furrowed. “He could’ve sold you into the sex trade. It’s big business in this country.”

“Yeah, well I won’t go out on my own again. That was a bit terrifying.” She squeezed his hand. “Thank you again. You saved my life.”

“Which makes me responsible for you now.” He shook his head. “That will be a challenge when I’m out fighting bad guys, and you’re back here.”

“I promise to stay closer to camp from now on,” she said. “And you don’t have to be responsible for me.”

“It’s an old Chinese proverb. You can’t change tradition.” As they neared the camp, he let go of her hand. “I can start by not getting you in trouble for fraternizing while in theater.” He winked. “I’ll have to wait to kiss you again until we get back to the States. You promised me a date.”

She smiled. “I did. Or did you promise me a date?”

“I think it was mutual. And the sooner we tie up this mission, the better.”

They ducked beneath the camouflage netting.

“Where are you headed now?”

“The mess area for some yummy MREs?” she said. “Care to join me?”

“I could use some hardening of the arteries.”

At that moment, they passed the hospital tent.

A man emerged from the tent and frowned, his gaze going from Dawg to Beth. “Beth? Are you okay?”

Beth’s face turned pink. “I’m fine.”

Again, the man’s gaze went from Beth to Dawg and back to Beth. “Do you two know each other?”

“Yes,” Dawg said.

“No,” Beth said at the same time. “I mean, we know each other, but we don’t know each other.”

The man’s brow wrinkled.

Beth laughed, the sound strained. “He’s from Fort Hood. We’ve run into each other before.” She turned to Dawg. “Sergeant Doug Masters, this is Doctor...er…Colonel Jonathan Parker, the camp surgeon.” She smiled brightly. “There. Now, you two know each other.”

What was wrong with Beth? Her mouth was tight and she wrung her hands more than once while standing there. And it had something to do with the doctor. If Dawg wasn’t mistaken, she wasn’t happy about the two men meeting. Dawg grinned. “We were just about to get something for breakfast. Would you care to join us?”

Colonel Parker’s brow wrinkled for a moment.

Beth chewed on her bottom lip; something Dawg had noticed she did when she was nervous.

“Sure,” Colonel Parker said. “I could do with a bite to eat, and I wouldn’t mind the company.”

Out of the corner of his eye, Dawg saw Beth roll her eyes.

Who was this man, other than the camp surgeon? And why was she so tense about them meeting? Was she afraid he’d suspect that they were fraternizing? The man was obviously her superior officer. But their relationship appeared to be more than that.

All the more reason to have breakfast with the man and find out what had Beth tied in a knot.

They didn’t have far to go to arrive at tables that had been set up for the dining area. They selected packets of MREs and chose seats.

Beth sat beside Colonel Parker. Dawg sat across from the two, studying their faces as he tore open the packet of Spaghetti with Beef and Sauce. He could almost pretend it was the Chicken Parmesan he’d made for his date with the nurse sitting across the table from him.

“You’re not with the medical or supply staff, are you?” Colonel Parker asked.

“No, sir,” Dawg replied. “We came in early this morning as replacements for the Delta Force Team who’ve been here for the past six months.”

The other man nodded. “I see. When will the current team ship out?”

“I’m not sure,” Dawg said. “Probably soon. What about you? How long have you been here, sir?”

“A little over six months.”

Dawg cocked an eyebrow. “Will they be sending a replacement for you soon?”

“I assume so,” he said.

“You don’t sound like you’re ready to go,” Dawg said

“I feel like I have more to do here.” Colonel Parker glanced toward Beth.

Something clicked in Dawg. “Did you volunteer for this mission, or were you voluntold to come?”

Beside the doctor Beth stiffened and her eyes narrowed, drilling into Dawg.

“They needed a flight surgeon.” Colonel Parker shrugged. “I volunteered.”

Dawg grinned. Now, it all made sense. “Didn’t your family have heartburn with your decision?”

“I don’t have any family,” Dr Parker struggled to open one of the food packets within the big packet.

Beth’s mouth firmed into a thin line.

The doctor shot a glance toward her. “I mean, I had a fiancée, but she wasn’t very happy about me going.”

“Had a fiancée?” Dawg raised both eyebrows. “What happened?”

Colonel Parker shot another glance toward Beth. “I guess I didn’t fight hard enough. I lost her.”

“That’s too bad,” Dawg murmured while Beth glared at him. “How could a woman call off an engagement to a man like you? That doesn’t give men like me any hope at all.”

“You’re gone a lot, too,” the doctor noted. “How does your family handle it?”

“I don’t have a family, but someday I hope to.” Dawg caught Beth’s stare and gave her a wink while Colonel Parker was looking down at his meal packets.

The color in her cheeks darkened.

“Beth, aren’t you going to eat?” the doctor asked her.

“I’m too tired,” she said. “I think I’ll leave you two to this fascinating conversation and grab me some shuteye before I fall on my face.”

When she stood, Dawg stood.

Colonel Parker frowned and slowly rose to his feet. “I’ll see you this afternoon as I do my rounds and village sick call…?”

She nodded. “I’ll be there. I just need a good six hours sleep before then.” She smiled at Colonel Parker. “And congratulations on delivering that breech baby. You were amazing.”

The doctor’s frown deepened. “I did what any doctor would have done.”

“And in the process, you saved two lives.” Beth touched his shoulder. “You did good, sir.”

He nodded. “Thank you.”

Beth left the two men facing off across the table from each other and walked away.

Dawg’s gaze shifted to Beth as she walked away. He noticed Colonel Parker’s gaze also following the pretty nurse.

“She’s good at what she does,” the doctor said. “We’re lucky to have her here.”

“I take it you two have worked together before,” Dawg stated.

Colonel Parker nodded. “We worked at the hospital on Fort Hood. That’s where we met two years ago. She’s an excellent surgical nurse, always anticipating the surgeon’s needs before he asks.”

“Good skills to have when the doctor needs to focus his attention on saving lives,” Dawg said.

“That’s right,” Parker said. “That’s why I requested her for this mission.”

“You requested her specifically?” Dawg’s attention was caught. “And she came running because of her experience working with you?”

Colonel Parker shook his head. “Not exactly. We had a falling out awhile back. I told her commander not to tell her who requested her. I didn’t think she’d come.”

Already knowing what the fallout was, Dawg asked anyway to get Parker’s take on what had occurred. “What happened between the two of you that would make her say no to joining you on a mission?”

Colonel Parker stared off into the distance. “I’m not exactly sure. One minute we were fine. The next she cut me off completely. I was hoping that having her out here would not only help the mission succeed, but also give me time to figure out what I did that made her mad, so I can fix it.” He turned his gaze to Dawg. “What about you? Do you have a wife and kids back home?”

“No. But I met a woman I think is pretty amazing.”

“That’s great. Is it serious?” Colonel Parker met Dawg’s gaze.

“I don’t know yet. She was pretty hurt in a past relationship. I don’t know if she’s over the other guy. I think if he’s the right guy for her, she needs to give him a second chance. But if he’s not, I hope she’ll give me a chance.”

Parker’s lips quirked upward. “She must be special for you to want her to be happy either way she goes.”

“She is,” Dawg said.

“That’s how I feel about Beth. She’s special. I didn’t know how special until she wasn’t there anymore.” He turned his head away again and stared out at the landscape visible beneath the edge of the camouflage canopy. “She’s the best nurse.”

“Is that all she is to you, a good nurse?”

Colonel Parker turned to face him. “For this mission, we can’t be anything more than that. I’m her commander.” He collected his empty packets and the ones he hadn’t opened. A trash can stood at the end of the outdoor dining area. Beside it was a box. “Please let your teammates know that we donate the unused, unopened MRE packets to the refugee camp. They might be the only meal they get today.”

After the doctor left the dining area, Dawg sat for a few minutes longer, staring out at the landscape, trying to see what Parker had seen. The man was empathetic to the plights of others. If he was a competent doctor, he had a lot more to offer Beth than an enlisted Delta.

Dawg gathered his trash and tossed it into the garbage container. The rest of his meal ended up in the donation box to go to the refugee camp. The medical staff was doing the right things to help the locals in exchange for a place to base their operations. Free healthcare, food and the protection of Delta Force.

From the briefings they’d receive in route, the Boko Haram leader Dawg and his team had disposed of had been replaced by his second in command, the man who’d escaped in the SUV that night. Rucker had sworn when he’d heard that bit of intelligence. “We should’ve taken him out that night.”

Dawg had reminded Rucker that if it hadn’t been the second in command, it would’ve been someone else. Unless they wiped out all of the members of Boko Haram, the group would remain a problem.

Rucker knew that. The entire team knew it. Cutting off the head of the snake only slowed them down. They were back to the same terrorist activities as before, burning down villages, kidnapping school kids and aid workers and holding them hostage for hefty ransoms.

Thus, the return of the Deltas to take Dawg’s team’s place when they’d left after killing Kalani.

They were in one of the most dangerous areas of Africa, where Boko Haram had pretty much taken over. The Nigerian government had given up on the northeast corner of the country.

Dawg strode through camp and found the tent he would share with Blade, Tank and Dash. The three men had gone right to sleep, knowing they might be called to fight at any moment. A Delta had to know how to work the mission, but he also had to know when to sleep and recharge his internal batteries.

Dawg pulled off his uniform jacket and stretched out on the only empty cot left. He laced his hands behind his head and closed his eyes to the midday light making its way beneath the rolled up flaps of the tent. If not for the camouflage netting above the tents, the heat of the day would’ve baked the roof of the tent, and the Deltas beneath it. As it was, the heat was oppressive, even in the shade cast by the netting.

Dawg forced his mind to shut down. He needed to conserve energy and recharge his body after the long flight from the States to Rota, Spain, and then to Nigeria. The Delta team they were to replace hadn’t been there to welcome them. They were out on maneuvers, looking for the Boko Haram compound that moved often enough, even the satellites had a hard time finding them.

Despite the sweat dripping off his forehead, he drifted into a troubled sleep, where terrorists burned the village around Dawg, Beth and her ex-fiancé. Dawg yelled at the doctor to get Beth out of the fire, but the doctor was too busy trying to save a dying local to worry about his nurse.

Dawg dove through the fire, swept Beth up in his arms and walked back through the flames. Neither he nor Beth caught fire, but their skin was hot and their passion hotter.

When he woke, the sun was already on its way down to the western horizon, the shadows lengthening.

Blade was pulling on his uniform jacket. Tank had left the tent, and Dash was just rolling out of his cot.

“I could stand some coffee and some chow,” Dash said with a yawn. “I’m groggy as hell after that nap.”

“Coffee first,” Blade agreed. “You’d think Tank would’ve at least come back and told us where we could find sustenance.”

“I can show you to the dining area and the box of MREs you’ll be interested in,” Dawg said with a sarcastic tilt to his lips.

“Oh, good. MREs. My favorite.” Blade snorted. “If I ever go to work for Hank Patterson and the Brotherhood Protectors, it’ll be on the condition that I never have to eat another packet of Meals Ready to Eat.”

“Amen,” Dash yawned. “Until we leave this side of Hell, I take it that’s all we have available?” His gaze found Dawg.

Dawg nodded. “There’s no mess hall, and I doubt we want to eat local cuisine or drink the water. They do have cases of water near the outdoor dining area. You’ll want to fill your canteens with that, versus the well water here.”

“On it,” Blade said. “Point me in the right direction.” He stepped out of the tent.

“Take a right and keep walking.” Dawg said. “You can’t miss the tables they set up and the crate of MREs waiting for your enjoyment.”

Blade left the tent. Dash pulled on his uniform shirt and headed out. He paused just outside the tent and looked back. “You coming?”

“I’ll catch up in a minute. I want to find the latrine.”

Dash nodded and left Dawg to his own devices.

Dawg did want to locate the latrine but, more importantly, he wanted to find Beth.

Grabbing his toiletry kit, he made his way to what appeared to be the shower facility, outside which was a lister bag filled with water, a clean bowl and a mirror. He took a few minutes to brush his teeth, comb his hair and use the latrine. When he was done, he returned his toiletry kit to his quarters and made his way to the hospital tent.

A medic sat at a desk just inside the tent flap. “May I help you, sir?”

“I was looking for Lieutenant Drennan.”

The medic shook his head. “The nurse went with the doctor to the village hospital to make their rounds. They should be back shortly. Are you feeling sick? Or do you have an injury that needs to be tended?” His hands hovered over a laptop, waiting for Dawg’s response.

“Neither. I just had a question for her.” Dawg dipped his head. “Thanks.” He left the hospital tent and walked down to the dining area where he found his team gathered around the table. “About time you showed up,” Rucker said.

“Have you heard anything from the other Delta team?” Dawg asked.

Rucker frowned. “Not yet. They’ve been out a long time.”

Just then, the thumping sound of rotor blades filled the sky as a Black Hawk helicopter swooped in and slowly descended for a landing in the clearing nearby.

Rucker stood, gathered his food packets and dumped the empties in the garbage, the full in the donation box. He wiped his hands together, his gaze on the helicopter as the wheels touched the ground. “I’ll go find out what’s going on.”

Dawg stepped up beside the team leader. “We’re coming with you.”

Mac, Blade, Tank, Bull, Dash and Lance scrambled to clear their trash and hurried to catch up.

As soon as the craft settled, a soldier leaped to the ground and ran toward the camp. He skidded to a stop in front of Rucker. “Are you the new Delta replacements?”

Rucker nodded.

“Get your weapons and load up on ammo,” the man said. “Team Charlie could use some help.”