Chapter 24 #2
“I’m afraid we can’t help you,” Leo said, turning his back to retrieve his soap for a quick shower.
“Fine. Let it be on your conscience if more military people die because you didn’t do anything about it,” she said quietly, moving past him.
Saint stopped her. “We’re here to fix weapons. I don’t know what you expect from us,” he said, playing ignorant.
“I’ve waited for you to arrive because Colonel Rutherford said to trust you. Obviously, he was mistaken,” she said. “Move out of my way.”
Leo scratched his neck and nodded for Saint to relax.
“What else did he tell you?”
“They send the messages the day before the attacks,” she gazed heatedly at Leo. “They’re leaving in two days. Which means whoever’s passing information will do it tomorrow.”
“You gave me a folder, but it only gives us the names of the units with specific weapons. Did he have a lead or a suspicion?” Leo asked.
Sargeant Taylor’s lips pursed in a firm line, making Leo chuckle. She reminded him of his wife when Kit Kat got frustrated with him.
“Listen,” Leo said, sitting down and gesturing for her to sit on the cot across from him.
“Your boss didn’t mention anyone working with him.
In fact, he assured me he stayed mum to preserve his job.
Yet here you stand, warning me that someone is listening in on our conversation.
Then you said to expect you at midnight.
You’re four hours early, and how did you get past my men? ”
“No one pays attention to me. It’s why Colonel Rutherford gave me the job. He said they underestimated me. I loosened the wall in the back of the main room three nights ago. I slipped in while you gave orders to your men,” she admitted.
“What the—” Leo stopped, swiping his jaw. It appeared they all needed a wake-up call. If this little bit of a woman managed to enter without his team knowing, he didn’t want to think about what might’ve happened.
“Saint, call the team. Run another sweep through the place,” he ordered, feeling aggravated. “You’ll stay here with me.”
“Do we have to? No offense, but you stink like shit,” she said, honestly.
“May I remind you, I’m in my assigned bunk, and you hid under the cot,” Leo growled.
“Exactly. Most people go to the head,” she sneered. “Can we at least go to the common area?”
“Come on,” he said, holstering his gun.
The men gathered in the small, cramped area. Shadow and Taco stood shoulder to shoulder, and Knight and Saint blocked the exit. They stared at her curiously until Hollywood and Patch returned.
Leo paced the room. His jaw ticked, and his eyes shot fire as he stared down his men.
“I know we have shit going on at home. Guess what, Dorothys, we’re no longer in Kansas.
We’re in fucking Afghanistan. Get your heads out of your asses.
I will literally go to hell and drag your asses with me to watch the devastation on your wives’ faces when I tell them you died because you’re dumb asses. ”
“It’s not only their fault, sir. You didn’t notice me when you gave them orders. When you returned from getting chow, I spent a good freaking hour under your bed getting gassed while you shit your pants. It’s as much your fault as theirs.”
The men’s jaws dropped at her boldness. They peered at her sheepishly as Leo chewed them out.
“She got past all of us. What the hell else might’ve happened if we keep our heads elsewhere?” he shot back.
“Damn Little Britches, how did you do it?” Taco asked. “It’s not often someone gets past Shadow, Saint, or Leo,” he said in awe.
“Do you find this entertaining?” Leo growled.
“No, sir. I don’t. I’m thinking she can be of use to us,” Taco said respectfully. “I saw you earlier in the dining hall.”
Shadow nodded. “The men here seem on edge. They don’t like outsiders. She moved from the chow line to sitting at the table where the first asshole told us to get fucked. Then she followed us while I bought cigarettes.”
All eyes turned on the woman. Her arms crossed over her chest, and she stared at her feet.
“You obviously know why we’re here. Why all the cloak and dagger shit?” Leo asked her.
“I wanted to make sure you lived up to your reputation. Right now, I can only say you’re all a bunch of assholes. If I didn’t care what happened to the teams, I’d keep my mouth shut and finish out the next couple of months,” she said stubbornly.
“Perhaps we got off on the wrong foot,” Saint said, attempting to smooth things over. “It’s not often someone slips past us. Don’t take offense.”
“Can I count on you or what?” she said, getting irritated.
“Believe it or not, I came here to speak with Leo, not all of you. When I found Colonel Rutherford, I’m ashamed to say I took his personal phone, and I found a map in his pocket.
I believe he didn’t want anyone snooping in his barracks to find it and kept it on his person.
I did a sweep of his office and found the listening device. ”
“Where’s the map now?” Shadow asked.
She stared at Leo as if waiting for him to make up his mind.
“My men and I don’t keep secrets. We analyze information together and work together. You can tell us what you know,” Leo assured her.
“What about my safety?” she asked, licking her lips. “If anyone discovers I’m working with you, I’ll end up like the Colonel.”
“You have our assurances we’ll keep you safe. I doubt you’ll need it if your skills continue like tonight. You mentioned you have a couple of months. Will you be transferred?” Leo asked, glancing at his men.
“I’m one of twelve women here. Two work in supply requisitions.
The others work in the infirmary. I keep to myself most of the time.
The men don’t like me here. Mainly because Colonel Rutherford caught a group of them picking on me.
It won’t be much loss if someone finds me dead if you get my meaning. ”
“When will Rutherford’s replacement arrive?” Knight asked.
“He’s due in two days. It seems awfully convenient he’ll arrive in time for the next task force deployment,” she said, staring down at her feet.
“You make a good point, Sergeant. Why don’t we sit and you tell us everything you know?” Leo said, inviting her to take one of the metal chairs. She sat, peering uneasily around the room.
“General Kingston will arrive by 0600. I saw the flight schedule. The first task force leaves at 0830. It’ll go west, stop at three posts, and return.
The following day, the second task force will go east. Colonel Rutherford delayed the last two task forces.
I hacked into his computer, and he made a list of the teams with K-9’s. ”
“You know how to hack?” Patch said, surprised.
“Don’t you?” she shot back.
Leo sent an angry glance at Patch. “Stow it and let her tell us what she knows.”
“May I see the list?” Cole asked, stepping forward. “I used to work with the K-9’s. I might recognize some of the handlers.”
“I know who you are,” she turned to face Cole. “Sergeant Ford got into some heat for fraternizing with someone. Word has it, his wife left him.”
“What does it have to do with me?” he asked.
“It doesn’t take much to connect the dots. You left with one of the dogs, and a few weeks later, he got in trouble. Of course, he blamed you for setting him up.”
Cole glanced at Leo before speaking to her. “I disliked the man, but my tour finished. There’s no reason to set him up. I got what I wanted when Colonel Rutherford made some calls to allow me to take Brody home.”