Chapter 1
Dutch
When he donned his night vision device, Dutch could see his target along with two other men who looked like they were also prisoners. All were heavily guarded by a band of Somali pirates.
This was K19 Security Solution’s second extraction in the same number of weeks. The team had initially been summoned to Somalia to aid in a CIA extraction of two operatives who had been captives of a different band of pirates. Those two men—along with the majority of K19’s team—had gotten out safely and were back stateside, enjoying what was left of the Christmas holiday.
Dutch’s target, Gehring “Mantis” Cassman, hadn’t been as fortunate. On his way back to Mogadishu, he was intercepted and taken hostage by the rangy group of thugs standing guard over him now.
Unlike with the majority of their extractions, the group holding Mantis and the other two men was unorganized, financially crippled, and in seemingly poor health themselves.
That wasn’t unusual in Somalia where over one million people were displaced, half of those in Mogadishu alone. The vast majority of the small nation’s citizens relied heavily on assistance just to survive.
Given the Somali jihadist fundamentalist groups with ties to al-Qaeda frequently intercepted any aid that came into the country, financial or otherwise, thousands of people died daily.
Gangs of pirates, like the ones Dutch and his team were about to take out, routinely kidnapped whomever they could get their hands on with the hope that they’d win the “black market lottery” of a paid ransom.
Like the odds of winning an actual lottery, most of the time, those kidnapped had little or no money, or in Mantis’ case, a government that refused to negotiate with terrorists.
Dutch wasn’t here to negotiate. He was here to extract.
“In on three,” Dutch said to his teammates, Ranger and Diesel, through the mic on his headset.
“Roger that,” both CIA operatives responded.
His count commenced, and within seconds, the encampment was bombarded with a hail of bullets, as Dutch and his team systematically took out the Somalis.
Chapter 2
Mantis and Alegria
When Mantis heard the sound that made his ears prick up, he knew all hell would soon rain down on the encampment where he was being held hostage.
The nausea and debilitating headache he’d had only moments ago went away with the rush of adrenaline that flooded his body. Every nerve ending had gone on high alert as he prepared to carry out the procedures he’d been trained to do if he ever found himself in a hostage situation.
His job was to get himself and the other two captives out of the way without alerting their Somali pirate captors of the impending attack.
As with every other mission or op he’d carried out with his lifelong best friend, Thomas “Dutch” Miller, it executed flawlessly.
“Let’s go!” Dutch shouted, leading him and the other hostages out of the compound and into waiting vehicles.
Mantis climbed into one SUV with Dutch, and the other four men climbed into the second.
“I owe ya one,” Mantis said once they were a safe distance away from the compound.
Dutch laughed. “Oh, yeah? I think I owed you a couple first.”
“Let’s call it even, then. What’s the word on Striker, Tackle, and Halo?”
“Extracted.” Dutch scrubbed his face with his hand. “I’m not sure if I should tell you this.”
Mantis turned his head and looked at him. “What?”
“They were home in time for Christmas.”
Mantis nodded. That wasn’t bad news. He wondered why Dutch would think he’d take it as such.
“How are you doin’?”
Mantis rubbed the back of his neck with his hand. “I could use a hot shower, about five gallons of water, and decent food. After that—sleep.”
“Tall order, but I think we can manage most of it. Who were the other two prisoners?”
“I don’t know. They’re not American, I know that much.”
“Diesel and Ranger will take care of contacting whichever embassy they should be delivered to.”
Mantis nodded. “How far are we from Mogadishu?”
“Three hours, at least.”
“Mind if I get some rest?”
“Of course not.”
Mantis reached over the back of the seat and grabbed a blanket. He wadded it up and put it between his head and the passenger side window. As uncomfortable as he was, it was better than where he’d been sleeping the last several days.
—:—
“Anything?” Alegria asked Onyx, K19 Security Solutions’ handler for the mission to extract Mantis.
“Negative, ma’am,” he reported.
She paced the living room of the small guest house where she’d been staying since right before Christmas, and closed her eyes, wishing she and Dutch had been able to clear the air before he left. Things hadn’t been right between them since before Thanksgiving.
After a bullet hit her in the back, causing damage to her spinal cord, she’d undergone emergency surgery. When she first came to, Dutch hadn’t been the man sitting at her hospital bedside. Instead, Mantis was.
At first, Alegria thought she must be dreaming, seeing the man
who had been the love of her life for as long as she could remember there next to her. But then she’d looked across the room to see Dutch was there too. Not knowing what else to do, she’d reached out to him.
In that instant, it had become clear that Mantis had no idea she and Dutch were together.