Black Ops Brotherhood: Tightrope Part 30

"Nothing's going on-"

"Bulls.h.i.+t! Stop this! I can't help you if you don't tell me what's going on. I know this cartel and what it's capable of. Did it ever occur to you that maybe I can help you? Trust me. Gavin does. Why can't you? What's going on? I want the truth this time."

Walking away, he looked down at the streets of Old Bisbee. The lights that bathed the old city were breathtaking from this view. The pink glow of the granite and the deep blue of the pools that dotted the town below gave the city a romantic view. The mood of this location at night made it the perfect get-lucky spot. He turned and looked at Rio. There would be nothing romantic about this conversation. They were talking about changing the world. If they were successful no one would ever know how close the world had come to disaster, but if they failed, millions of lives could be affected in a very bad way. The weight of what he did for a living suddenly felt very heavy and overwhelming. Failure wasn't an option. He exhaled and looked back at the old city.

"I don't think Montenegro wants to use the tunnels for smuggling. When you busted Bakri in New York, did he have a case of devices?"

"No, we found out they were still in Sonora. So?"

"Think about that a second. Why are they still in Sonora, and why are these guys not clearing the tunnel if their business is smuggling drugs and people? I think Montenegro is trying to recreate those things, and because he doesn't want anyone to know, what better place to do it than underground in an abandoned mine. I read something about how EMPs were first developed in an underground facility to minimize damage if they went off. I think that's why he wanted the ranch. Those tunnels won't ever be used, and he'll have an underground facility to do whatever the h.e.l.l he wants, and no one will know."

"Wait a minute. You think he wants to make more of those things?"

"Yeah, but I'm not sure why other than to sell them or something. I don't know, maybe he and Bakri are going into business together. I know it sounds crazy," Dan said. Rio sucked in a breath and lifted her hands to her mouth. "What? Rio, what is it?"

"No, I think he plans on using the tunnels eventually. Those tunnels go on for miles, and there are extensions off of the main line to the east and west. The CBP knows Mexico is full of mining engineers that the cartel uses all the time for tunneling. If he sets those things off underground, all of the sensors that we have along the border will be knocked out. There's no way we can stop the traffic; we don't have enough people. If he made a deal with Bakri to get a bunch of terrorists over, it would be a walk in the park. Or if he gets close to the checkpoints with those things, he'll knock out all of our equipment, and we won't be able to communicate with each other."

Words escaped him as he tried to wrap his mind around what she just said. This was much worse than he'd envisioned. Who knew what other terrorist b.a.s.t.a.r.ds Montenegro had made a deal with? Forget the drugs. What about Fort Huachuca? What if those f.u.c.kers got close to the base with one of those devices? The base served as an electronic proving ground. Software testing for electronic warfare systems went on there. Or worse, someone could be pulling invisible strings through Bakri and Montenegro to pull off an invasion of the United States from Mexico. He rushed toward Rio, grabbed her hand, and pulled her toward his vehicle.

"We have to get back to the hunting shack."

"Screw the hunting shack!" she said, jerking free. "They can't help us! We need to get a hold of Gavin and Captain O'Malley. Danny, that son-of-a-b.i.t.c.h has a private special ops team, and he's declaring war on the United States." Rio had just voiced his worst-case scenario. "If you're right, we need to level that place to make sure Montenegro is put down and only Captain O'Malley can make that happen." He stopped and looked at her.

"Yes, I mean put down...with extreme prejudice."

Chapter 24.

Fort Huachuca, AZ Military Intelligence Detachment November 1, 2010/1537 Zulu All of their work and carefully laid plans were about to coalesce in a few days. Dan and Shaq had come up with a creative way to have several SEALs, Marines, and law enforcement personnel gather in one place without suspicion. They'd decided to raise money for a veterans' memorial in Old Bisbee. Within the next few days, there would be a huge half marathon for the charity. A unit of Special Warfare Group 5 as well as a Marine Recon unit at Fort Sam would be making the trip to partic.i.p.ate. Of course, while they were in Bisbee, they'd converge on the Jensen ranch as well as Fort Huachuca to put in place and support the operation that would happen a few days after the race. With all of the hype about the marathon, no one would think twice about all the strangers in town.

Registration would take place at the Bisbee Grand Hotel in the heart of Old Bisbee. Through people Dan and Rio knew, and with the help of the veterans' groups in and around Bisbee, they managed to get the city council behind the effort, and it had come together perfectly. Their surveillance on the cartel's activities hadn't borne much fruit, so the decision had been made to make the final push to open the tunnel fully as a means of escape for an overland op that would destroy the buildings and anything at the tunnel's entrance. They'd worked with the scientists at Los Alamos in order to get an idea of how to neutralize any weapons that had been created and had the potential to emit an EM pulse that would harm their efforts as well as the efforts of the CBP along the border.

The biggest setback had been the release of Minister Bakri. Gavin had been beside himself with rage. Somehow Bakri's lawyers-provided by Montenegro-managed to find an error in the paperwork for the handling of evidence. Upon his release, the Iranian government had offered him asylum, which he quickly accepted. Gavin swore up and down that the paperwork had been solid, and someone had intentionally messed it up to let Bakri go. Rio and Dan went over the paperwork and found that the chain of evidence had been mishandled by the CBP. Rio had quietly started her own investigation and felt she could be close to proving that Gavin was right; there was someone in CBP who was dirty.

For the last month, the entire team had been dedicated to the operation that would take place in a few days. They'd be doing a joint-force operation that heavily involved DEA, ATF, and CBP in the United States. Marine Recon and the SEALs would conduct a covert operation in Mexico to destroy the facility. Intel inside the Montenegro compound had proven Dan and Rio right; they were attempting to manufacture more of the devices, but it had taken time to prove it to SOCOM. The admiral recognized that the cartel had to be stopped but demanded they have an infallible plan. Dan was the officer in charge of this operation, and at times, his obligations were overwhelming. He had a lot of responsibility, almost as much as he had while standing up Camp ECHO. Thankfully, he had Bada.s.s coming back and forth on a frequent basis. But for the most part, Captain O'Malley had given him and Shaq this op to plan, manage, and execute.

Rio was his escape from the load he had to bear. She relieved him of so much responsibility when he walked through the door at the end of the day.

As he walked up to the door that led into the house, his mind was a million miles away. Dan thought about all the things he had to do over the next ten days. While he looked at his to-do list, Schotzie jumped on him as he walked in the door. Her unexpected excitement almost knocked him over.

"Babe?" he called out as he entered the kitchen.

"In here. I'm getting dressed."

"Dressed? Are we going somewhere?" he asked as he laid his backpack on the table.

When he walked into their bedroom, he stopped in his tracks. It had been the first time since her high school graduation that he'd seen her in a dress and heels. This time she was no awkward teenager. Before him stood a confident woman who took his breath away. The red c.o.c.ktail dress wrapped around her body and accentuated her curves. She'd put up her hair, and the minimal jewelry she wore made her s.h.i.+ne. Her makeup was simple, and her black strappy heels made him want to kneel in front of her and wors.h.i.+p her feet.

"d.a.m.n! What's going on?"

"Are you kidding? Did you forget?"

Seeing her in that red dress made him hatch other plans for the night. Dan searched his memory and couldn't think of a d.a.m.n thing he had to do at that moment.

"Uh... Oh, s.h.i.+t! What time are we supposed to be there?" he asked, rus.h.i.+ng for his section of the closet. They'd gone out over the weekend and bought him a suit for tonight.

"You still have a little time. I was about to call to find out where you were," she said as she applied some lipstick.

Tonight some of the leaders.h.i.+p that had already arrived for the op would be a.s.sisting in the unveiling the model of the veterans' monument at the annual Bisbee Chamber of Commerce banquet and awards ceremony. Rio would be receiving an award in her own right for all of her work with the Humane Society. A collection of the leading citizens of Bisbee and veterans' organizations would unveil a model of the monument that would go in Veterans' Park.

Within fifteen minutes, he was dressed and ready to go. As they walked to the door, she paused and took a deep breath. He sensed her nervous tension. He took her hands.

"You'll do just fine, babe," he rea.s.sured her. She nodded as he leaned forward and kissed her. "I'm so proud of you."

Cupping his face she smiled back.

"You don't know how much that means to me."

When Rio entered the Bisbee Grand Hotel ballroom she realized how out of place she was with the people in this room. Danny squeezed her hand. "Babe, relax. You belong here."

"I hate things like this."

"You'd better get used to them. You'll be doing this a lot once I get back to my duty station."

The thought terrified her. It was easier to handle Mexican drug lords, during the dead of night in the Arizona desert, with all sorts of poisonous creatures surrounding her, than it was to face the traumatic drama of prom night over and over again. Tucking her arm into his, they walked toward the table that had been reserved for him and his committee where Captain O'Malley, Shaq, Davey, and Steve already stood. The Humane Society had the table next to them, and she was glad to see the director as well as most of the staff from the shelter. These were people she could relate to and understand. Some of the others that she knew filtered in, easing her into a conversation, and she soon felt comfortable because she was in familiar territory again.

"Babe, come with me. There's some people I want you to meet." Danny took her hand and guided her to a small gathering of people. Rio took tentative steps. The group reminded her of the "cool kids club" back in high school. Danny always seemed to fit right into that kind of group, but she had always remained on the fringes, looking in. On top of that, socially interacting with strangers and acting like she was one of them wasn't one of her stronger traits. "Irene, Anna, this is my fiancee, Rio Jensen. Oh, and this is Amy, Gavin's wife."

"Rio? What a beautiful name," one of the women said, taking her hand. "We've been dying to meet you since we heard about Dan's engagement. James, come here."

"I'm Anna O'Malley, Rio. It's nice to finally meet you. Jack talks about you a lot."

"Does he?" Rio asked nervously.

"Not as much as Gavin does. I'm so glad I finally got to meet you," another woman said. "I'm Amy, Gavin's wife."

Finding herself surrounded by three very powerful women, Rio didn't know what to say. She shook hands with Amy, who was positively drop dead gorgeous.

"James, this is Dan's fiancee. Rio, this is my husband, James," Irene said.

"Darlin', it's nice to see my tadpole finally got something right," the man said.

"Master Chief, stay away from my girl. She doesn't need you telling her any stories," Danny said, putting his arm around her protectively.

"Watch him, Rio. He's no good," Captain O'Malley said, handing his wife a gla.s.s of wine.

"So are you having a wedding?" Amy asked.

"Yes, we're planning something small for the end of December. I haven't been able to do much yet," Rio said, glancing at Danny.

"We'll be glad to help!" Anna said.

"Of course," Amy said.

"Wait-" Captain O'Malley started to say.

"Stay out of this, Rock. This is one battle you won't win," Irene's husband said.

"Oh no," Danny said, pulling her away.

"Rio, what can we help you with?" Irene asked, pulling her back toward Anna as she got between her and Dan.

"Uh, well. I really haven't had a chance to do much," Rio admitted. "I've been busy with work," she said, looking at Danny and Gavin who both looked away, a clear signal she'd be on her own with these ladies.

"Don't worry about it. We'll have it figured out before we leave," Anna said, glancing at her husband who scowled at her. "If you want our help, that is."

"I think a Christmas wedding would be wonderful," Amy suggested.

Rio looked around at the hopeful faces that surrounded her and said, "Uh...thanks?"

Throughout the evening, Rio found herself being cared for like a little sister by three grown sisters who had it together. She found herself laughing hysterically at some of JJ's commentary on the evening's events. The SEALs, her brother's Marine buddies, and her fellow CBP agents made a huge deal when she went up to accept her award. Before she'd left the house, she never imagined she would enjoy the evening as much as she had being surrounded by Danny and their friends. Nothing could sour her mood, until Sylvia dropped by the table to give her congratulations and say h.e.l.lo-to Danny.

Rio let out a sigh and looked away when Sylvia planted herself between them as she snaked her arms around him.

"Congratulations, Danny. What you did was so generous."

Danny untangled himself and stood up. "Well, it wasn't me."

"Who's this, Dan? Introduce us," Irene said.

"Yes, do tell. Is she an old friend?" Anna asked. Ice dropped from her words as she got up and stood behind Rio.

"I was Danny's high school sweetie. And you are?" she asked Anna.

"I'm a friend from San Antonio. Dan and I worked together at the base. Anna O'Malley."

"So you're an ex-girlfriend of Dan's? Do you know his fiancee?" Amy asked, putting her arm in Rio's.

"Yes, Rio and I went to school together, too. I believe she was a year behind us, right Danny?"

"Well, that was nice of you to come by and say h.e.l.lo and congratulations. We were right in the middle of talking about their wedding plans. Would you like to join the discussion or maybe even help? I'm sure being from around here, you'd know exactly where to go and who to talk to. Right, Danny?" Irene asked innocently.

"Yes, ma'am," Danny said.

"Um... I don't think I could be much help," Sylvia said.

"Then you'll excuse us. The people who are planning this are a little short on time," Anna said dismissively.

"Well, congratulations again. Rio," Sylvia said, nodding to her.

Danny chuckled as Sylvia walked away and looked at each one of the ladies who had surrounded Rio. "You ladies are e-v-i-l."

"No, darling. That's a man-eater, and she's got no business around you," Anna said.

Irene growled, "I so disliked little bullies like her when I taught."

"Are you okay?" Amy asked Rio gently.

"I'm fine," Rio replied, touched by Amy's concern.

"Well, that woman needs to become part of your past and die quietly," Anna said, putting her hands on Rio's shoulders. "You've got your own posse now, girlfriend."

"I...uh..." Rio struggled with her words.

"Don't worry, sweetie, we know what we're doing," Irene declared with a wink. "Now, let's get back to some of those plans."

When they had to leave at the end of the evening, she found it hard to say good-bye to her new friends. She could've stayed up all night talking and laughing with them. She consoled herself with the fact they'd be here for at least the next few days, and they promised they'd spend time with her planning the wedding.

As she and Danny curled up in bed, she snuggled into his chest. Wrapping her arms around him, she squeezed him affectionately.

"Did you have a good time after all?" he asked, stroking her back.

"I had a great time. I love Anna, Irene, and Amy. I really like JJ, too," she said and giggled when Danny groaned. "They all seem so perfect together, like they were made for one another."

"They've been through a lot together, babe. Rock watched Anna almost die. Amy watched Gavin get shot and nearly die. Irene saw JJ get tortured. It wasn't smooth sailing for any of them."

s.h.i.+vering, she couldn't imagine watching Danny go through any of what he'd just described, then recalled how he'd rescued her from that awful attic. His wandering hand grabbed her a.s.s and squeezed, making her giggle.

"I love you, babe. I was so proud of you when you were up there getting that award."

"I love you, too," she said, kissing him.

Pus.h.i.+ng her onto her back, he settled himself on top of her and cupped her face. He stared at her, and she watched him transform into her possessive tiger.

"No rules, no orders, just me and you," he murmured as he rubbed his nose against hers.

She understood his meaning perfectly. He wanted to be a man intimate with his woman. The romance of complete surrender to her man and him making love to her overwhelmed her. There was no way she could say no.

"You know what to do," she whispered as she yielded to him.