Chapter 43 #2
He stood up and nodded to his men. As they began unstrapping Dante, Krueger walked over to a metal case on the floor and opened it. Inside, nestled in foam, were car batteries, jumper cables, and a terrifying array of clamps and wires.
Krueger picked up a pair of cables, the metal clamps glinting in the dim light. He looked at Dante being dragged, limp and shivering, back toward the chains. "That was the soft way.” A genuine smile finally graced his lips. "Now, let's try the hard way."
He left Dante to his thoughts.
WAR ROOM
The war room glowed with dual feeds. Falcon Three-One tracking the convoy,
Bravo Team’s drone showing Krueger’s villa. Ian Chase stood at the center, the tension in the room thick enough to choke on.
“Two devices confirmed in Krueger’s control,” Martin Bailey said. “One on the convoy, one in Krueger’s villa. We time the strikes together, or we lose both. The third is moving toward an intercept at Airbase 201.”
Mike Johnson didn’t blink. “And Dante?”
No one answered for a moment.
Finally, Ian said, “Likely, he’s inside that villa.”
Mike’s jaw flexed hard.
An analyst called out, “Crescent One is three hours out. Bravo is holding the villa’s perimeter.”
Ian nodded. “We hit both targets the second they arrive.”
THE VILLA
The surge of electricity hit him like molten lead ripping through muscle, stealing breath, lighting nerve endings on fire. His body arched against the restraints, teeth bared in a silent snarl before a broken sound escaped him. His heart skipped beats. Sweat and blood streaked down his face.
Krueger crouched in front of him, eyes bright with manic pleasure. “Say her name. Go on. Let’s hear it.”
Dante forced his head up, his breaths rattling. “No.”
Krueger smiled with delight. “Then we keep going.” He nodded to the guard.
The wires hummed again, and Dante’s world went white.
OVERWATCH SCRUBLAND
Bravo lay prone along the ridge, scopes trained on the compound. Dusk threw the villa into jagged shadows. “There’re no signs of Khalil,” Sean said.
“We saw Krueger kill his men. If I were Khalil, I’d hightail it out of there,” Ford said.
“Power flicker,” Friend husked. “Twice.”
Red confirmed from the drone feed, “Electrical spike coming from the northeast room.”
Sabra’s voice was low. “They’re torturing him.”
Callow looked at Sean Paulsen, face tight. “Sean… give the word.”
Sean’s voice was ice. “Not without Crescent One. Orders stand.”
Ford’s quiet voice anchored them. “Eyes up. When the greenlight hits, we move.”
They lay in the sand, each knowing exactly what a flicker of light meant.
THE VILLA
The clamps bit into his skin. The wires hissed. The next surge lit every nerve in his body. This time, he couldn’t hold the scream.
Krueger leaned in, almost tender. “That’s it. That’s the sound of a man breaking.”
Dante gritted his teeth. “Not… yet.”
Krueger’s smile widened.
WAR ROOM
Three feeds lit up:
Shannon’s Black Hawk orbiting the convoy.
Bravo’s drone centered on the villa.
Bravo’s bomb handoff completed.
Martin’s voice cut sharply across the room. “Nuke handoff confirmed. Bravo, you have a greenlight the second Crescent One lead confirms readiness.”
Mike didn’t move his eyes from the villa. “Bring Dante home,” he said, voice like steel. “Alive.”
IN FLIGHT
The convoy slowed near an abandoned track point, engines downshifting.
Shannon’s radiation meter screamed. “Eagle Actual, convoy halting. Coordinates marked.”
“Copy. Falcon, you’ve done your part. RTB.”
Shannon circled once more, locking the mark then finally banked away as fuel dipped below safe return.
THE VILLA
The north gate exploded inward. Dust surged as Bravo stormed in behind the shockwave.
“Left clear!” Sunny Callow barked.
Razor swept the hallway.
Sean charged the stairs with Ford, Rocket and Friend, gunfire exploding around them.
Red’s voice reported the drone feed into their ears, “Second floor. Northeast room. Heat signatures. Four bodies. One slumped on the north wall.”
Hammer kicked the door. Gunfire erupted inside. Friend dragged him back.
Sean stepped through the gap, firing two clean shots. “Move! Move! Northeast corner room!”
Gunfire rattled down the corridor as Bravo moved in formation. Ford low, Hammer high, Razor, Sunny and Friend sweeping behind them. Dust choked the air, and plaster drifted from the ceiling like ash.
“Door on the left!” Red called through comms. “Heat signature positive. I believe our target is inside. Repeat. One slumped, three standing.”
Sean didn’t wait. He slammed the heel of his boot against the reinforced door. It cracked.
Ford rammed it again. On the third hit from the two men together, the steel lock broke free from its mount with a screech. The door exploded inward.
Inside, Ford spotted Dante hanging from chains on the wall, chest sluggishly rising, blood streaking down his ribs. Wires clung to his skin, his hair matted with sweat.
Krueger’s guards spun toward the breachers. Sunny fired first. Two dropped instantly.
Hammer put a round clean through the third.
“DANTE!” Ford vaulted forward.
Dante’s head jerked, trying to lift. His voice was barely a rasp. “F…Ford…”
Coach began work on the chains as Ford lifted his head. “Easy, brother. We’ve got you.” Dante didn’t respond. “Coach, hurry.”
Friend unclipped the wires from Dante’s nipples. “Fuck me, what did they do to him?” He performed a swift assessment. “His ribs are fractured. Don’t put him over a shoulder.”
Scanning the room, Sean barked, “We move as soon as he’s free. Where’s Krueger?”
In the chaos, none of them noticed the false wall panel sliding closed at the far corner of the room. Behind it, Krueger wiped blood from his split lip. He heard Bravo’s shouts. Dante’s gasped pain. The echo of a last shot. And he smiled.
“They’ll watch their friend die. One down,” he murmured. “One to go.” He slipped into the service tunnel, footsteps disappearing. Shannon would be next.
“Move!” Sean ordered. “Crescent’s hitting the south wall now. We meet at rally point Delta!”
Ford threw Dante’s arm over his shoulders; Friend took the other side. Between them, they kept him upright to keep him breathing.
Red reported the drone feed, “Multiple hostiles closing from the west. Two squads. They want him back.”
“Not happening.” Sabra chambered a fresh round.
Bravo pushed through the smoke-filled hallway, Dante supported between them.
Outside in the courtyard, Crescent One’s insertion team hit the villa wall with concussive charges. BOOM! BOOM!
The foundation shook. “Go! Go! Go!” Sean shouted.
The two teams crossed paths in the controlled battle, forming a moving shield around Dante at the center of it all. Within minutes, they reached the exfil point.
“Dustoff inbound,” Red confirmed. “Seven minutes out.”
Sean looked down at Dante. “Stay with us, brother.”
“We’re taking you home,” Ford said.
Friend managed to start an IV. “Sit him up. He can’t lift his chest wall to breathe.”
Dante blinked weakly. “Shannon…” His breathing faltered.
AIRBASE 201
Falcon Three-One touched down hard on the pad, skids kissing dirt with a short, practiced jolt. The rotors still whined as they spun down. Shannon’s shirt stuck to her back with sweat. Her hands trembled slightly on the controls—not fear, just adrenaline tapering off.
Touré removed her headset. “Hell of a day, Falcon.”
Shannon nodded, but her eyes were distant. The convoy, the radiation spikes, the unknown threats—all still buzzed under her skin.
Before she could breathe, her CO jogged across the tarmac, waving her back toward the cockpit. “Falcon Three-One!” she yelled. “Quick turnaround. We need you wheels-up ASAP.”
Shannon blinked. “What? We just landed; we’re down to fumes.”
“We will refuel. And you’re not flying alone,” she said. “Gil and I are spinning up now. This is a priority medevac. A contractor is injured, time-critical.”
“Type of injury?”
“Unknown. Status poor. Field team needs immediate lift from LZ Delta.”
Shannon exchanged a look with Touré. She felt the shift in her gut. This was exactly why she was doing this. “Falcon Three-One copies.” She climbed back in.