Seven Days to Forever (24 page)

Abbie followed Flynn across the floor until they could hear the major’s words.

“Yes, sir,” he said. “We are working on contingency plans in any case.”

Who was he talking to? Had the latest demand from the LLA already come in? Abbie wondered, peeling off her wet jacket. Someone would have called them, wouldn’t they? She glanced at Flynn, but she could tell nothing from his expression. He was back in his soldier mode.

Well, what had she expected? These people were his family, the army was the only real home he’d ever known. He’d carved a life for himself with them. She was the outsider here.

“I understand, Mr. President. Thank you for your confidence. Please be assured we will do our best.”

Abbie’s hands tightened on her jacket. Water squeezed between her fingers to drip on the floor. She jerked her gaze back to the major.
Mr. President?

Redinger caught sight of Flynn and Abbie as he ended the call. He motioned to Sarah to accompany him and walked over to intercept them. “I have just learned that King Kristof wishes to postpone the signing of the pact between Ladavia and the United States until his niece’s son is found.” His gaze moved to Abbie. “The stakes are going up. I hope we can still count on your cooperation, Miss Locke.”

She brushed her wet hair from her face. “Of course.”

“You were gone a considerable amount of time. Did you have any problems reassuring your family about your continued absence?”

“No.”

“Good. The next twenty-four hours will be crucial. We can’t afford any leaks.” He turned to Flynn. “You’re relieved of your current duty, Sergeant. Captain Fox will see to Miss Locke’s welfare from this point onward. Get yourself cleaned up and report to Chief Warrant Officer Esposito. He’ll be leading the raid on the base.”

“Sir?”

Redinger’s gaze firmed to steel. “Dismissed.”

Flynn hesitated. He looked at Abbie.

“You were warned once, O’Toole,” the major said.

He saluted stiffly and moved off.

Abbie watched him go. He hadn’t looked surprised by the major’s orders. Had he expected this? She wanted to call him back. It was happening too fast.

But this wasn’t about her or about him. It was about a terrorist kidnapping that was escalating into an international crisis. While she had been outside in the rain kissing Flynn, the major had been talking to the
president.
What were one woman’s feelings compared to that? The last lingering traces of warmth from her night with Flynn dissolved. She shivered.

Sarah took Abbie’s arm and steered her toward the cubicle they shared. “You need to warm up and change into something dry. You’re dripping all over the floor.”

“No, I’m fine,” she said, watching Flynn over her shoulder.

“Let him go, Abbie. I thought you were smarter than that.”

She looked at Sarah. “I don’t know what you mean.”

Sarah ducked through the canvas flap to their cubicle. She returned with a towel and Abbie’s peach-colored jogging suit, then led her to the warehouse shower room and rapped on the door. When there was no reply, she flipped the sign on the doorknob and ushered Abbie inside. As soon as the door closed behind them, she turned to face her. “You slept with him, didn’t you?”

There was no point pretending innocence. As Flynn had said, everyone knew why they were so late. He’d been concerned that the men might say something. Instead it was the team’s lone woman. Abbie hung her wet jacket from a hook on the wall and met Sarah’s gaze. “Yes, I did.”

“Well, at least you held out longer than most. You can take credit for that much.” She handed Abbie the towel and placed her clothes on the bench beside the wall. “You’re not his usual type, you know.”

“I’m aware of that.”

“And it doesn’t bother you?”

“No. I think Flynn has done exactly what I’ve been doing.”

“And what’s that?”

“We both tried to stick to the type of people who had no chance of reaching our hearts.”

Sarah sighed. “Flynn isn’t interested in your heart, Abbie. I can understand how he’d wear you down, though. As far as eye candy goes, he’s in a class by himself, but—”

“Is that all you think he is? Eye candy?” Abbie yanked off her wet sweater, draped it over the bench and used the towel to dry her hair. “That’s not how I see him. He uses his looks as a shield. He doesn’t want anyone to get close to him.”

“Not to hear him tell it. He’s not exactly a monk.”

Abbie pulled off her pants, shook the water from them and draped them over the bench with her sweater. “I’m not talking about sex.” She sat down to dry her legs. “I’m talking about real closeness.”

“And why would he be afraid of that?”

Abbie finished wiping the moisture from her skin and pulled on her jogging suit. “We all have our own reasons. Considering his childhood, Flynn’s are more valid than most.”

Sarah sat on the other end of the bench. “He told you his reasons?”

At the note of disbelief in Sarah’s voice, Abbie looked up. “Yes.”

“I can’t believe it. Flynn’s a clam when it comes to talking about himself. What did he tell you?”

“Why are you asking me all these questions?”

“I’m an intelligence officer. That’s what I do.”

“No offense, Sarah, but I don’t think this is any of your business.”

“No offense taken, Abbie, but I have to disagree. The men of Eagle Squadron are my business. They’re my brothers. I look out for every one of them.”

Abbie could understand that Sarah’s inquisitiveness stemmed from concern not idle curiosity, but she wasn’t going to discuss the confidences Flynn had shared. “He considers all of you his family.”

“We are.”

“And do you think that’s enough?”

“What do you mean?”

“You’re all so good at keeping your objectivity and maintaining your distance while you’re on a mission, don’t you worry that you won’t know how to stop?”

“Don’t misinterpret our objectivity, Abbie. We need our distance to survive.”

I need my freedom, Abbie. It’s how I survive.
That’s what Flynn had told her. It kept coming back to that. She was going in circles. Frustrated, she returned the towel to her hair and rubbed more briskly than she needed to. “Maybe I’m just not grasping this. You’re human. We all want the same things. Is there something about being a commando that rules out normal relationships?”

“Our profession makes a steady relationship challenging,” Sarah said slowly. “But yes, I think most of us do want the same things. We’re as human as anyone else.”

“Then why are so few of you married?”

“I can’t speak for everyone. In my case, my fiancé died five weeks before our wedding.”

Abbie lowered the towel and looked at Sarah. Too late she remembered that Flynn had mentioned Sarah was still mourning her fiancé. “I’m sorry. That was insensitive of me.”

“No, it’s okay. I’ve been butting into your love life, it’s only fair if you know about mine. Captain Kyle Jackson was the best. I’ll never find a man like him again.”

“You must have loved him deeply,” Abbie said.

“Yes, I did.” A glimmer of sadness softened her green gaze. “Love is precious. When it happens, you have to cherish every minute you get.”

Abbie thought about something else Flynn had said. “All we can be sure of is the moment.”

Sarah nodded and regarded her carefully. “I might have come down too hard on you, Abbie. It’s because I care about Flynn. He’s a fine soldier, and I don’t want to see him neglect his duty because of you. Major Redinger doesn’t often give second chances.”

“Flynn never forgot his duty. We kept his phone within reach all night, even when we, uh, used the shower.”

Sarah’s lips twitched. “Although I’m an intelligence officer, Abbie, that might have been more information than I really needed to know.”

* * *

“The Washington Monument at midnight?” Jack shook his head as he poked through the equipment that was arrayed on the table. “It’s as if the LLA are choosing their ransom drops from a tour book.”

“It doesn’t make sense,” Rafe muttered. He picked up his radio headset and adjusted the angle of the microphone. “After the way the other two drops went wrong, you’d think the LLA would change their pattern. Sure, there will be fewer bystanders around at night, but it’s still a high-profile location. It’s as if the LLA
want
to have this go public.”

“Maybe they do,” Jack said. “They wouldn’t have expected Vilyas to contact us. They might have been counting on the story getting out to the media. Using our national monuments as their backdrop is their way of thumbing their noses at the diplomats.”

Esposito rotated the parabolic microphone on the table in front of him. “You might be right. Terrorism only works if it’s given a platform. Without publicity, terrorists are nothing but common criminals. I always thought the money wasn’t the only thing the LLA were after. O’Toole, do you have the 2mm Allen key?”

Flynn searched through the tray at his elbow and selected the tool the chief had requested. They had spent the afternoon checking and rechecking every piece of hardware. It was tedious work, but it was vital. When they moved in tonight, they couldn’t afford any mistakes. Too much was at stake.

Including Abbie’s life.

His hand shook as he passed the tiny Allen key to Esposito. He had to focus. But ever since the details of the third ransom drop had come through at noon, his mind had been seething with worry over Abbie.

There was no point trying to talk her out of it. She was as adamant as ever that she’d play her role. In his head he knew they could protect her—the operation would take place in friendly territory, and police and military backup was only minutes away if it was needed. Whether the choice of location made sense or not, the fact that it was so exposed was in their favor. They could form an airtight perimeter around Abbie. They would be able to see the LLA coming half a mile away.

In the dark? In the rain? Abbie would be up against a group of fanatics who cared nothing for their own lives. His head might accept it, but his heart couldn’t.

Damn. This was why it was safer on the outside looking in. He didn’t want to be testing microphones and transmitters while the team finalized their plans for tonight’s assault. He wanted to scoop Abbie into his arms and take her as far away from this place as he could run. He wanted to hold her and keep her safe until this was over….

And then what?

It kept coming back to that question. He had no answer.

People left. One way or another. Having tasted Abbie’s love was going to make it harder, but he knew better than to wish for more, didn’t he? He picked up the transmitter he’d just finished checking and got to his feet.

Esposito didn’t look up. “Where are you going, O’Toole?”

“I’m taking Abbie her electronics.”

“Give them to Captain Fox.”

Flynn was losing count of the number of orders he wanted to disobey. He gathered the rest of the equipment Abbie would carry and left before he would need to lie.

He found Sarah and Abbie in the warehouse, sitting in the back of the van Sarah would be using when she took Abbie to the drop. They wouldn’t need to use public transit to mask her arrival this time—the darkness would be sufficient. Like Esposito, Sarah appeared to be checking out her surveillance equipment. Through the open rear doors, Flynn could see lights glowing green on the console that was fitted beneath the van’s tinted side windows.

Sarah looked up as Flynn approached. “How are the preparations going, Sergeant?” she asked.

“No problem, ma’am.” He paused at the open rear door and looked at Abbie.

She was sitting on the bench seat in front of the radio, her knees pulled to her chest, her arms wrapped around her legs. The new larger backpack they’d needed to use in order to fit the money in was on the seat beside her. The bullet-proof vest she would be wearing lay on the floor.

The men of Eagle Squadron were the best there were, Flynn reminded himself. They would protect Abbie with their lives. He had to trust them. He gave Sarah the electronics for Abbie, then clasped his hands behind his back so that neither woman could see how his hands shook. “How are you doing, Abbie?”

Abbie looked at Flynn and knew she couldn’t tell the truth. She was a mess. She was terrified. This was the last chance. In a matter of hours everything would be over. Everything. The kidnapping, the mission. Her time with Flynn. “I’m fine,” she said.

“You can still back out,” he said. “No one would blame you.”

Sarah swiveled away from the console. “I already offered to take her place. With the rain and the darkness, the LLA might not be able to tell there was a substitution.”

“And I already refused,” Abbie said, keeping her gaze on Flynn. “I’m going to see this through to the end.”

“You know how I feel about that,” Flynn said.

“Yes, but I won’t be the only one at risk here. You and everyone on the team are going to be in more danger than I am. Not to mention Matteo.”

“It’s not your fight. This is our job.”

She tightened her arms over her legs, hoping he couldn’t see her shiver. “This is my choice to make, no one else’s. I won’t have any regrets.”

He continued to study her, his expression stark. “Be careful, okay, Abbie?”

She wanted to scream at him to be careful, too, but she was unsure she could trust her voice. Like the rest of the men who would be assaulting the LLA base, Flynn was dressed in a black jumpsuit and rubber-soled boots. The black balaclava that lay in folds around his neck would be pulled up to conceal his face when he went into action. There was no longer any need for the team to disguise themselves as civilians—when they moved on the LLA this time, they wanted the terrorists to know whom they were dealing with.

The uniforms made everything too real, like the submachine guns, the pistols and the magazines of ammunition the men had been gathering. There were other things, too. Sarah had explained them to her. Concussion grenades, rappelling ropes, grappling hooks, gas canisters. All the tools of a lethal trade. Abbie couldn’t hide the shiver that shook her this time.

Flynn muttered an oath and grabbed the van door. “Captain, would you mind if I had a few moments alone with Miss Locke before you move out?”