Special Forces: Operation Alpha: No Protection (Kindle Worlds Novella) by Gennita Low Read Free Book Online Page A

him.
    “You there?”
    “Yeah, signal is getting weaker,” Liam said.
    “I’m going to repeat it verbatim. Mad Dog says to tell you, ‘We’ll take care of the convoy and we’ll be there to help out this time. There will be no betrayals because I’m going to personally oversee this task. Tell him this is for the fallen team.’ That’s it. Liam, Mad Dog is getting his hands dirty for you and Wolf’s men. Do you copy?”
    Liam swallowed hard. “Yeah, I understand. I won’t let the past cloud my focus.”
    “Signal’s very weak. Tell Fitz, Sean got her instructions. Player, keep safe. Over.”
    “Will do. Over.”
    The others looked at him expectantly as he put away the satellite phone.
    “What’s new?” Wolf asked.
    “Convoy heading to the check point,” Liam replied, and gave them the details.
    Mozart whistled. “Mad Dog in it? Whoa.”
    “Is that good or bad?” Ella asked.
    “That isn’t it,” Liam said, and explained further. “Admiral Madison is a legend among SEALs because of his past. With his presence, we usually expect black op forces like DEVGRU troops and the Air Force’s 24 th Special Tactics Squadron.”
    Ella raised her brows at him. “Is that good or bad?” she asked again and made a gesture. “Come on. I’m new with military chitchat. One day, I’ll talk like you boys, I promise.”
    He felt a reluctant tug of his lips. “DEVGRU has spec ops teams such as DELTA force. Perhaps you’ve heard of them?” She nodded. “And there are other special SEAL cells too. They all specialized in counter-terrorist and hostage retrieval operations. The 24 th STS works with these teams because of their air power capabilities.”
    “Okay, now I know that’s good,” Ella said. She squeezed Zainab’s shoulder. “SEALs and DELTA operatives and Peshmerga freedom fighters. We can’t lose.”
    Zainab returned a slight smile. “They are—what you say before at camp? They are slaughtered meat.”
    “No, dead. They’re dead meat,” Ella corrected.
    The other men chuckled.
    “Close enough,” Abe said.
    The others joined in with a few choice phrases of their own. Through the ride, the conversation lulled and someone would have a question and then, silence again. Liam stared at the passing scenery. The desert was beautiful and horrible at the same time, depending on his mood, but the monotony of nothing but sand and shadows was a good way to settle his thoughts. Everyone was in prep mode, thinking ahead. As a SEAL, he’d mentally prepared by thinking through the plan, his mind going through the steps and doing his job. He even had a few monologues from Shakespeare’s war plays that he would recite to stir his emotions or his teammates’, if they needed a talk-to.
    Admiral Madison at the helm. No betrayals this time, he’d said in his message through Hawk. It held a personal promise Liam appreciated.
    The admiral had a way to steady people with words and action. He’d remembered the man who had left the teams and had somehow known Liam needed those words. It was a promise he needed to hear. Today, the general was telling him, no one would sell his team out, like it’d happened to his old one. Today, he and the others wouldn’t be walking into a trap where no one came out alive.
    Not like the last time, when no one came out of that hell hole. No one except him, that was.
    * * *
    T he hike was intense. There was electricity in the air as they quietly made their way in the evening light. Only Cookie, the injured SEAL, stayed in the M-ATV, waiting for the signal to charge through the entrance. Ella could tell from the man’s expression he wasn’t happy about it, but he followed the direct order with just a few protests.
    Liam touched her arm lightly. “Okay?” He asked, his voice low against her ear.
    She nodded. “Yes.” The weapons she was carrying were getting heavy but they didn’t have that much farther to go.
    She was learning how important timing was in a special operation,