Page 5 of A Touch of Frost
“Dead or alive.”
“Right.” I agreed. “There’s always that possibility. You know that.”
“This fucking sucks.” Jesse grunted.
I couldn’t have agreed with him more.
“Why leave him?” Jesse asked. “I thought SEALs weren’t supposed to leave anyone behind?”
“Ideally, that’s how it’s supposed to work.” I exhaled as I turned my eyes out the window. “I have no idea how this mission went to the dark place it did. It was a simple enough job from where I’m sitting. And even if things went wrong, your brother should have been back on American soil or flown to the nearest American embassy.”
“So, there are in fact rules in place for situations like this?”
I nodded.
The vastness of the ocean never ceased to amaze me. Perhaps that was why people thought there was no way the oceans could be disappearing due to climate change. I sighed and dragged my hands against my thighs, listening to the chopper hum around me.
“You two weren’t dating—were you?” Jesse’s voice cut through the worries in my mind.
I frowned. “We wanted to. But we both knew it would never work.”
“Why wouldn’t it? I mean, how did you both know what the future held?”
“We both had some things in our lives that wouldn’t allow us being together.” I explained. It was the first time I’d said that out loud and it made me sound like such an asshole. “Our demons were different, but they were there.”
I glanced out the side and this time, the aircraft carrier looked like something out of the movies. “It just didn’t work and we’re both better for it.”
“Really?” Jesse scoffed. “Both?”
“What are you trying to say, Jesse?”
“I think its funny how you can say it worked out better for both of you.” He told me. “Think about it. She’s a ghost and you’re with someone who makes you happy. I think you got the better end of this deal.”
I made no reply for the pilot’s voice came through the headpiece.
“Mozart, when we land, we’ll have to make it quick.” He explained. “This is kind of an unscheduled drop and they have crafts coming in hot. We’ll come get you tomorrow.”
“Roger that.” I replied. “Listen Jesse, when we land, we need to clear the chopper fast. Grab all your things now.”
He nodded.
I hopped down from the chopper even before it touched down. Bracing myself against the air, I turned, grabbed Jesse’s hand and helped him off. After I closed the door, I banged both my fist into the side twice then yanked Jesse after me to clear the platform.
A couple of guys hurried out to escort us into a protective area.
“You must be Mozart,” the officer said. “I’m Commander Lopez. Captain Sinclair is waiting for you, sir.”
I nodded and was led through really tight spaces to the Captain’s office. Once we were introduced, the commander escorting us left and closed the door behind us.
“Please, have a seat,” Captain Sinclair seemed pretty young except for the swirls of grey around his ears. “Tex didn’t tell me much. He asked me if you could speak with our spider.”
“Yes. She may know the whereabouts of a friend of mine.” I replied. “Is Black Widow here?”
“She’s in the air right now.” He told us. “She’s due in any moment. If we hurry, we could watch her come in.”
“Yes, please.” I answered, excitement building inside.
We hurried through the underbelly of the ship and entered a space that faced the runway.
