Lose Your Breath (Detectives Kane and Alton)

“Copy that.” Dave changed gears up and down, braking hard and then taking off, leaving a shower of dust and rocks behind them.

As they raced through mostly ruins, she noticed a few low-burning lights but it seemed most of the people were either hiding or in bed asleep. As they left the town behind them, Dave pulled on his night-vision goggles and killed the lights. Annie gripped the seat and side of the truck so hard her hands ached. She could hardly make out Dave’s outline in the dark, but she could see his jaw set in concentration and his eyes fixed on the road. He was fearless and they sp

ed into the black night like a rocket through space.

The bumps in the road scared the life out of her. The truck would hit a pothole and buck and slide, throwing her this way and that, but somehow, Dave kept the vehicle on the road. He said nothing, his concentration taken up with driving. Mile after mile of blackness flashed by. She could see the stars, so close she could almost touch them, but out here was barren sandy soil and nothing for miles and miles. She’d listened with interest to the conversation between Dave and a contact he called Terabyte. She understood the need for code names and from Dave’s limited side of the conversation, she gained nothing, as his replies were no more than “copy.” So after an hour’s silence, Dave’s voice surprised her.

“What did you do at the embassy?” Dave flicked her a glance.

Annie smiled at him. “If I told you, I’d have to kill you.” She watched his mouth twitch at the corners. “That’s the correct reply, isn’t it?’

“Let me rephrase that.” Dave swerved to avoid a pothole in the road. “What are you planning on doing when you return home? When all this is over, I’d like to come and visit you. If you want me to?”

Annie tried to relax her aching jaw to ease the pain. She’d been grinding her teeth the entire trip. “I’d like that. I worked at the embassy to get wider experience, but I applied for a position as a secretary to a family court magistrate in DC, and I’ll be able to start there in a month or so. His current secretary is leaving as she’s expecting a baby. She has three kids already and wants to devote more time to her family.” She sighed. “She’s a friend of the family and recommended me. I have an undergraduate degree in family law and plan to return to my studies. This position offers me that chance.” She turned to look at him. “What about you?”

“I go where they send me.” Dave shrugged. “I don’t have the option of making choices at the moment. I’m hoping in a few months maybe I’ll be offered a desk job.” He snorted. “I won’t be happy behind a desk but it beats being out here.”

“It must be lonely out there.” Annie frowned. “I do have some idea of the life of a sniper. Why did you pick that area of expertise? You must have known how dangerous it would be.”

“Someone has to do it and I’m damn good at what I do. I can’t say that I get lonely because I’m never really alone.” Dave shrugged. “There’s always someone in my ear.” He cleared his throat. “Like now.” He pressed his ear and listened for a few moments. “Copy.” He glanced at her. “Hide these.”

Fear gripped her as Dave ripped off his night-vision goggles and tossed them to her. She lifted her dress and slid them into his backpack. When he flicked on the headlights as the road ahead rounded a huge hill, she noticed the tic in the nerve in his cheek. Something was terribly wrong. “What is it?”

“There’s a patrol just up ahead. They’ll be the first line of militia guarding the border. It’s only a mile or so from here.” He pulled out his sidearm and rested it on his knee under his robe. “Have the Glock ready. I’ll say you’re in labor and they might allow us to pass. We don’t have any papers. If they order us out of the vehicle, we’ll have to fight. If we survive, the chopper is standing by just over the border and will risk an evac once we deal with the militia.”

Fingers trembling, Annie pulled the Glock from the pocket in her dress, chambered a bullet, and held it under the folds of her dress beside her on the seat. They rounded the corner. Across the road two trucks blocked the way and as they approached five men appeared in the headlights. Beside her, Dave seemed to relax, the opposite to her, and calmly pressed his earpiece concealed under his headgear.

“I see five, is that all…? Copy.” Dave turned to look at her as the car slowed. “Moaning is good, and clutching your belly. You know the deal, right?” He wet his lips. “If it all goes to hell, I’ll take them out.”

Annie gaped at him. “Five of them? Have you lost your mind?”

“Well, you can help if you like but you’ll probably get yourself killed by drawing their fire.” He slowed the truck. “Eyes down, don’t look at these guys or we’re dead for sure.”

Rigid with fear, Annie moaned and held her belly, leaning forward in the seat helped to keep her eyes covered. Beside her, Dave waved his arms and from his tone, he was ordering the men to allow them to pass. The men moved closer and peered inside. They must have been demanding papers because they raised their weapons. Dave slid from behind the wheel, arguing all the time and then one of the men walked up to the vehicle and pulled open her door. One of his hands went around her arm and another stroked her thigh. Without a second thought, Annie lifted the Glock to his face.

The sound of the weapon discharging deafened her. Rapid gunfire came from beside her and she turned as Dave shot two of the men and then ducked behind the truck. The other two men scattered, taking up positions behind their vehicles, and bullets pinged off the metal all around her. She ducked down, lying across the seats as the windshield smashed, and a bullet thudded into the seat beside her head. Keeping low, she slid out of the vehicle, stepped over the dead man, and headed back to where Dave was returning fire. Over the noise she could hear him talking and then the whoop whoop of a chopper came from above. Bright lights searched the area and the chopper’s guns fired a thousand bullets into the militia truck, but the men still returned fire.

“Run to the chopper, Annie.” Dave was beside her. “I’ll be right behind you.”

Terrified, Annie ran. The weight of the heavy bag didn’t register. Adrenalin was pumping so fast through her veins she’d turned into a superhero. Bullets zinged past her and just as Dave lifted her and threw her into the chopper, something grazed her cheek. He fell in the door and landed on top of her, pinning her to the floor. Wind buffeted around them. The sides of the chopper had no doors, just big gaping holes. The next moment Dave rolled off her and a navy Seal dragged her into a seat and strapped her in. Annie couldn’t hear a thing. The ringing in her ears and the noise of the chopper cut out everything. She stared at Dave, but he just lay on his back on the floor breathing heavily as the chopper gained height. Hands trembling, she glanced down, realizing she was still clinging to the Glock and gaped at the blood splattering her clothes. She closed her eyes, trying to block out the flashes of what had happened. It was as if her mind needed to relive each terrible moment. I killed a man.

The trip was short and they soon landed on a runway. She made out US military uniforms and started to breathe again. They’d made it to Turkey and the next stop would be home. Outside the chopper Dave pulled off his disguise, and Annie gasped in horror at his blood-soaked shirt as they ran to the open door of a massive military aircraft. Inside stood a row of large boxes covered by nets. The smell of a machinery warehouse engulfed her. The engine roared into life, vibrating through the plane. To her left, a few men in uniform sat on uncomfortable-looking seats against the wall. She mouthed to him, “Are you okay?” but he just urged her into a seat and strapped her in. As the huge door closed and the aircraft took to the sky, she turned to look at him and pointed to his chest. “You’re bleeding.”

“I’m okay. It’s a through-and-through.” After the plane evened out, he unbuckled his restraint and then hers. He offered her his hand. “I’ll need my backpack. I’ll help you out of the dress. You’re well covered and those men wouldn’t dare to look at you.” He pulled her to her feet and had the backpack removed and a blanket wrapped around her in seconds. “I’ll go grab a med kit.” He wandered off deep into the plane.

The men strapped in a few seats down started mumbling under their breath but sat eyes front when Dave returned sometime later in a clean shirt. Annie noticed he’d replaced his rank pins in his collar.

“Remove the burka. You have blood on you too. Is any of it yours?” Dave dropped another blanket to her and unclasped her harness. He hunched down beside her and narrowed his gaze. “It looks like the bullet went through me and grazed your chin.” He opened the med kit and went to work cleaning her up. “It will be fine.” He

pressed a dressing to her chin. “A doctor will check it when we land.”

Horrified, Annie gaped at the blood seeping through the shoulder of his shirt and couldn’t imagine the pain he was suffering. “What about you? You’re still bleeding.”

“I’ll be fine.” Dave frowned at her as if surprised by her concern. “One of the guys fixed me up.”

Annie sat back down and fastened the harness. As realization dawned on her, she turned to him. “You took a bullet for me and saved my life. How can I ever repay you?”

“Just doing my job.” Dave looked at her. “But I’ll take the coffee you offered to buy me, next time I’m in town.”