49. Chapter 48
Chapter 48
AJ
S econds ticked by at a snail’s pace as Meg and I waited for Jack and the others. As soon as Jack parked and got out of his car, Meg ran to him. He met her halfway and fell to his knees, burying his face in her belly as he hugged her.
My fear-fueled impatience paused as I watched Meg reassure Jack that she was okay. He stood as Jamie parked.
“Sierra Four to Sierra Six. Where is she?”
During the ride, Meg filled me in on the situation at the farmhouse they’d held her in. She didn’t know where it was because they’d blindfolded her, but she told me what she could about the interior and the number of people.
We’d be busting in on a heavily armed group of twenty or more people.
And Steven Davenport. A man who was about to have a very bad day. If Jack didn’t kill him for endangering Meg, I would for everything he’d done to Blake.
“Heading northeast, her signal is strong. Sending details now,” Maxwell answered.
“We need to get moving,” I called to the team.
Jack looked from me to Meg, indecision written all over his face. He needed to protect Meg, but he wanted to help save Blake.
“If you need to stay behind…” I needed him, but I couldn’t blame him. If the roles were reversed, I didn’t think I could leave Blake.
“No, we’re helping,” Meg answered.
“Meg.” Jack begged. It’d kill him for her to be near the danger.
“You need to help AJ save Blake.” She forced him to look at her. “They don’t care about me anymore.”
“It’s too dangerous,” he argued.
“You two get going. You’ll need the extra time to set up your nests,” John said to Jamie and Jay.
“Yes, sir,” they answered as they got back in their trucks.
At least our snipers will be in place .
“How you holding up?” John asked, squeezing my shoulder, the same way he’d done with his sons whenever they needed his support. The act untangled a knot deep inside. I might not be blood, but he was offering me the same fatherly support.
“Impatiently.” I said before admitting, “It’s killing me, not knowing what they’re doing to her.”
“They won’t hurt her,” Meg said.
I prayed she was right.
“Meg’s coming with us,” Jack said through gritted teeth. He looked at her. “And she’ll stay in the car.”
“I promise.” She put her hand on her belly, already displaying protective mama-bear instincts.
“Let’s go get your girl,” Jack said.
“This is Sierra One. We’re rolling out. Keep the updates coming,” John said. He turned to me. “Grab your gear; you’re riding with us.”
I nodded before jogging to the sedan and grabbing my bag from the trunk. I locked the car before slipping my battle belt on and tossing my rifle in John’s trunk.
“Let’s go.”
We received regular updates from Maxwell for the next ten minutes, providing us with the van’s coordinates. I typed them into the GPS as John drove.
Jack sketched as Meg re-iterated what she’d told me about the layout of the house, at least the first floor, and the number of people inside.
It wasn’t a blueprint, but it was better than going in blind. The biggest thing working in our favor was the acres of abandoned cornfields that would provide cover as we approached.
“Sierra Six for the team, Aurora is stationary. Sending coordinates.”
“Copy that. Received,” I answered.
I punched in the coordinates as soon as they came through.
“Coordinates received,” Jamie and Jay answered immediately afterwards.
“Send ETA ASAP.”
“Copy that.” I checked the GPS. “ETA fifteen minutes,” I replied.
“Sierra Two and Seven on site in ten,” Jamie answered.
I turned in my seat and showed Meg the terrain view on the map. “This it?”
She nodded. “The kitchen’s in the back. I could see guys walking around with rifles from the windows.”
“Thank you.”
Doug sent coordinates for our command center. Jamie and Jay would meet them there and determine the best place to nest. Luckily, they didn’t need to wait for us to get into position. This would be the first time we'd have two snipers.
Thank God, because we’ll need them both.
The rest of the drive took forever as we started making plans. Jamie and Jay would take out as many of the guys outside the building as possible while the rest of us approached in two teams. John and Doug on one team, Jack, Maxwell, and me on the other.
Meg would hide in the back seat of the bulletproof sedan, out of sight.
I prayed more for Blake’s safety in those few minutes than I’d ever prayed for anything else in my entire adult life.