Page 2 of No Regrets

Lazir stood there, an evil leer on his face, stroking himself through his pants. Kelly closed her eyes and fought the rising nausea as they tied her to a chair.

“Lieutenant Kimber, are you ready to talk?”

Kelly didn’t answer. This was how every session started. She had stopped answering some time ago.

“I will take that as a no.” He moved closer, bringing down his face until it was inches from hers. She averted her eyes.

“Your country believes you are dead. They’re not even looking for you.”

Kelly refused to believe that. Even if she were dead, they would send a team to recover her body and the bodies of Bravo team. They had to come eventually, didn’t they?

“Tell me what I want to know, and I promise I will leave you alone, perhaps even let you live.” He trailed a finger down her face and her neck. He stopped before he reached her breasts. “The alternative would not be good for you.”

Kelly forced herself to stay calm, refusing to meet his gaze.

“I am a lieutenant with the US Navy. I am prepared to give my life for my country.”

Lazir straightened, a smile on his face.

“You are nothing. Your life is worth nothing. I’m not going to take your life, not yet. If you refuse to cooperate then, as an American lieutenant of the US Navy, you will pay for the crimes your country has committed, slowly and painfully.”

This time Kelly did look at him.

“Alive or dead, my country will come for me, and they will hunt you down. You will not get away with this.”

“Your country has been looking for me for three years. What makes you think they will succeed now?”

“Because good will always win over evil and they will never give up. However long it takes, they will find you and you will wish you were dead.”

Kelly waited for the blow she expected would come. Lazir didn’t like being talked back to, especially not by a woman. This time he slapped her face, snapping her head to the side. It hurt but she was becoming numb to it. What did that say about her mental state? When her brain barely registered pain being inflicted?

A soldier whispered in Lazir’s ear, and the two men abruptly left the room, saving her from anything more, for now. Returned to her cell, she settled back in the corner, hugging her knees. The pain she could bear, but the fear was so much worse. Fear swamped her mind, and at times it suffocated her. Fear of what Lazir had planned for her. It was only a matter of time before his threats of making her understand the use of women became a reality and none of her military training had prepared her for that.

LIEUTENANT COMMANDER Dexter Dawson, jumped from the helo, grateful to be back at the forward operating base. A quick shower, gather their stuff, and they would board their C130 plane back to San Diego and home. His SEAL team had been deployed six weeks ago, on what should have been a two-week mission, but new intel had put them on the tail of a wanted ISIS leader and extended their stay. It had been worth it.

The op was a success and Alpha team were ready for some well-deserved downtime. Dex smiled to himself, thinking of Kelly. Maybe she could get some leave for a few days. That sexy body would make the perfect downtime. It had been two weeks since he’d spoken to her, let alone seen her. It felt like forever but being off the grid was typical for his team and she was often on a warship or in the field herself. He sighed. There were never-ending challenges being involved with a fellow naval officer.

Dex spotted Charlie, their pilot, walking toward them.

“Hey, Charlie, you ready to take us home? It shouldn’t take more than a couple of hours to wrap things up here.”

Charlie stopped in front of the team. “The plane had an issue. It’s being fixed now. Just need to run some tests. We should be wheels up in about six hours?”

“Sounds good.” Dex went to move past him.

“Hey Dex, you spoke to your CO?”

“Not since last night. Coms were spotty. Why?”

“There’s a situation, I don’t know all the details. Call Joe, he’ll fill you in.”

“What sort of situation?”

Charlie paused and Dex waited patiently.

“Look, all I know is a team got ambushed in Daram.” Charlie held up his hands. “I gotta go and make sure the bird is ready to go. Call your CO.”

Dex didn’t stop him, his radar on full alert.

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