Captured 3 by Lorhainne Eckhart Read Free Book Online Page B

hold herself together, and Eric went over to her, pulled her into his arms, and hugged her. “I promise you I’ll find him,” he said.
    She was gripping his shirt, and then she was crying, her hands pressed to her face as she choked back a sob. She pulled away, forcing a pathetic smile to her face, and patted his chest, then his arm. She looked down as if she was embarrassed for falling apart, and she licked her lips and cleared her throat but didn’t say anything. He could hear Abby in the bedroom, her voice light. He was so proud of her, of how she was trying to keep everyone distracted.
    “Abby, I’m leaving,” he called. “Come out here and give me a kiss.”
    Rachel came racing from the bedroom first. “Daddy, Daddy, don’t go!” she cried, leaping into his arms. He tossed her a bit, and she giggled as he kissed and hugged her.
    “I won’t be gone long. You listen to your mommy and be a good girl.” He put her down just as Charlie wrapped his arms around his leg, Abby coming down the hall right behind him. Eric lifted Charlie, kissed him, and then set him down and pulled Abby into his arms. He held her against him and breathed in the fruity scent of her hair. He loved the smell of her shampoo—everything about her. “You take care,” he said. He held her for what felt like an eternity, but letting her go still came too soon.
    She slid her hands up his chest and rose up to kiss him, just keeping him there for a few seconds. “I love you,” she said. “Stay safe. Come home to me.”
    Maybe it was the way she watched him, with a depth of strength and humility he’d never seen before, that allowed him to turn and walk out the door.
     

Chapter 9
    Sand, grit, hot air, and stench. Eric didn’t want to get too comfortable, knowing what filled the air as he rode in the Humvee from the airfield to the compound where Joe had been stationed. The moment he’d stepped onto the military plane, all throughout the rough, uncomfortable flight, and then as he stepped off into the waiting Humvee, he had instantly been back on watch. He wasn’t sure how it would feel to be over here, back in action. The fact was that he’d spent most of his military career at sea. The anticipation of a fight, the adrenaline of leaving home, had him instantly watching every move and aware of his surroundings. It was an animal instinct, one he took for granted when he was home.
    It was business as usual when he pulled into the military compound. He stepped out and followed the corpsman to the command post, where he ducked under the flap and recognized DeLaurie, who was surrounded by a dozen or so military, some at computers, some standing over a table, everyone performing some task that kept this military camp running.
    “Commander DeLaurie, I’m Captain Hamilton,” he began.
    The commander extended his hand and shook Eric’s. “Yes, good trip, Captain?”
    “As comfortable as could be, considering the circumstances. Listen, what news do you have on the whereabouts of Lieutenant Commander Reed?”
    The commander started over to a large square table where a map was laid out. Personnel stood around it, discussing something. “Master Chief Cassidy, this is Captain Hamilton,” DeLaurie said. “He’s here about Lieutenant Commander Reed, who was captured with Tucker, your man.”
    The way the master chief took him in, saying nothing for the longest time, made Eric wonder if the man was about to tell him to piss off. Then the master chief seemed to run his tongue over his teeth and shake his head as if someone had distracted him. He went back to the map, jabbing his finger at a spot. “They were taken here,” he said. “The lieutenant commander followed Tucker, and they got pinned down. We followed the insurgents up here.” He circled the spot on the map. “This group, JILA, has been going through the mountain camps, murdering and displacing these villagers. They’ve been beheading, burying alive, torturing, and stealing the