“Tanner?” I want to make sure he’s making the right call.
“I copy. Cole. Take a look.”
The Fox pulls to a dead stop, and Cole raises one of the turret openings. AJ passes him a pair of night-vision binoculars.
“No movement. No vehicles. All’s quiet for now.”
“Dougie. Keep her to the northern border. Let’s see if we can hunker down without waking the neighbours. A night patrol is out of place and will cause questions. We want to be able to slip in and out without anyone knowing,” Tanner orders.
We move through to the target location, and Dougie pulls us to another stop.
“The safe house is down this street, set back between two taller buildings," Tanner confirms. “AJ, Cole.”
They both move and exit the Fox. It gives me a moment to picture them moving silently to assess the building before giving the all-clear.
“Are they coming back?” Ivy asks.
“Yes. When it’s safe.”
“That feels like a relative term at the moment.”
“You’re the one making meetings without backup with a potential terrorist.” Does she not understand the situation she’s in?
“I didn’t have the time to put my normal safeguards in place.”
“Copy that. All clear. Blake, you know the drill. Dougie-”
“Watch their six. Roger, Sarge.”
“Stick to me like glue, Ivy. Don’t get any ideas.”
Thankfully, she nods.
Grabbing my bag to strap it to me, I double-check my weapon and open the back hatch of the Fox to survey the area. All clear, as I take in the lay of the land. Tanner and Dougie flank the vehicle as I help Ivy down. “Okay? Keep your eyes open and keep your hand in contact with me at all times. I need to know you’re there, so I don’t worry where you are.”
“Got it.”
Tanner takes up the lead, heading right towards the entrance to the street. Ivy stays tucked to my side with her hand on my back, as I keep my eyes on the swivel, and we all move together towards the location.
There’s an eerie stillness to the village, and it doesn’t bring back good memories. From what I can see, it’s only made up of a handful of streets and a few dozen houses, but they’re built on top of each other, creating a maze-like corridor that’s hard to defend.
From our position on the corner with another house, we can see AJ’s waiting at the door to the safe house. He signals for us to move forward. Tanner leads, and I feel Dougie signal by tapping my shoulder. My feet push forward, but the second that we round the corner and are open in the street, a string of gunfire sounds, ricocheting and sending dust flying up from our feet and around us.
“Back, cover…” Tanner shouts, as we retreat behind the corner of the building while the shots continue to rain down. A few steadily timed single shots ring out before a break in the noise. Tanner clutches his shoulder and leans back against the wall.
“Sarge?” Dougie asks, moving me out the way.
“It’s nothing. A graze. We need to get back to the Fox. AJ and Cole will be picked off if they run for it.
“Will the Fox manoeuvre through these narrow streets?” I ask, looking at the width of space Dougie has to play with.
“Maybe. But it can certainly get closer. We’ll need to lay down cover fire for them,” Dougie says.
“Dougie, bring her up. Ivy, go with him. It’s safest in the Fox.”
She looks to me for a second, as if checking that I agree with Tanner. As much as I’d like to keep her next to me, it’s the right play. She’s a civilian and a target, and I need to make sure she’s safe.
“Move. Stick to Dougie and do exactly what he says.” She looks a bit spaced out again, as if this is all getting too much for her. I keep my eyes focused on hers, hopefully giving her some surety. “Ivy, focus. Eyes on mine.” She blinks and stares at me. “You’re gonna be good. It’s all fine.I’ll be right here when you come back for us.”
