Even Vampires Get the Blues: A Deadly Angels Book by Sandra Hill Read Free Book Online

meeting to order. “We are here today to discuss a new mission. Deadly Wind.”
    Everyone sat up straighter, interested.
    MacLean paused for dramatic emphasis, then explained, “The Islamic extremists in Nigeria are spreading, like an ill wind, to use a poor cliché, and it will be our job to not only rescue the victims already in their captivity, but to destroy the tangos, once and for all.”
    Applause greeted his words, and a communal shout of “Hoo-yah!” That was SEAL talk for “Hell, yeah!” or some such thing.
    “You’re probably wondering, why now? Everyone expected SEALs to come to the rescue, guns blazing . . . as if that’s ever the case, or hardly ever.”
    Laughter greeted those words. Everyone in the world had heard about that incident in Mosul last year.
    “But thus far our government’s stance has been to provide only technical assistance. In other words, consultants,” MacLean continued, that last word said with a sneer. “Now, they want our help, especially because of the international outcry at the BK group’s atrocities. Many Muslim sects practice Sharia law, but BK carries it to an extreme not seen, at least in the public eye, for centuries.”
    Sharia was an ultraconservative interpretation of Islamic law that included, among other things, honor stonings of women for adultery, and harsh punishments of even small children. One little boy accused of stealing bread had to have his hand crushed by holding it under the wheel of a moving dump truck. Mostly, Sharia was anti-women to an extent that females were considered nothing more than possessions. No wonder they could justify kidnapping schoolgirls!
    “This will be a joint JSOC effort of SEALs, Rangers, Delta Force, AFSOP, and Wings International Security, a private security firm we’ve worked with in the past,” MacLean said. “Wings has crucial and credible intel on BK’s current location and plans.” He nodded toward Harek at that last remark. “We will be boots on the ground in Africa in two weeks. In the meantime, you operatives will be working your butts off in preparation. If you’re in this room now, you are Chosen.” The commander grinned.
    To their credit, not one of the three dozen or so SEALs or WEALS appeared reluctant at being called to duty. In fact, they were excited, if the expressions on their faces were any indication, including Miss Dumaine, who smiled widely, exposing rows of even white teeth, a sharp contrast against her lightly tanned skin.
    (Harek had been yearning for even teeth for many years, by the by. Fangs got in the way, even when retracted, for lots of things, like eating corn on the cob, sipping through a straw, blowing up a balloon, going down on . . . Never mind. Even kissing, an activity sorely lacking in his life for a looong time.)
    Harek noted that Camille wasn’t so plain when she smiled. Not that it mattered. Just . . . interesting.
    The commander called Lieutenant Luke “Slick” Avenil up to the dais and deferred to him as leader of this mission. Avenil, whose dark hair was sprinkled with strands of silver on the sides, was older than most of the SEALs, at close to forty. Aside from being a highly decorated military man, Avenil was street-smart from a young age. A good man to have at your back. As Harek recalled from talks with Trond, Avenil was a long-divorced man whose ex-wife’s sole goal in life seemed to be taking him back to court for more and more alimony.
    Once the commander left the stage, Avenil introduced about a dozen of the non-SEAL folks in the room. Two CIA agents, a Department of Defense deputy secretary of something or other, reps of Army and Air Force special forces, a member of the ruling council of Nigeria, and then Harek, who would be the liaison with Wings, which already had “boots on the ground” in Nigeria, meaning Cnut, although his name wasn’t mentioned specifically. Avenil also introduced Lieutenant Darryl Good, and motioned for both Harek and Darryl to