The Hunted Chapter 35 Snippet

Lieutenant Melvin Wilkerson hated the rain. There was nothing more miserable, he mused, then to have to stand guard during a storm. However, when the alert came down from HQ, the option to stay in the command tent was taken away from him. Now he had to endure the weather with the rest of his troops and it was making his mood fouler then the stormy night.

Why the hell were they on alert in the first place? Thames, as usual, hadn’t given any details when he gave the orders. ‘Be on the lookout for a woman’ weren’t very specific directions and it did nothing but make Wilkerson angrier.

How come when the brass makes up their mind of something, he fumed, they decide to make us the last ones to know about it? Just who in the hell is this ‘woman’ they were on alert about?

There was only one way to find out, he realized, and that was to ask HQ point blank. If the woman was just an escaped security officer, his men could handle her easily. However, if she was something else, like a Special Ops Agent, then they were in deep trouble-and he wanted to know what the real deal was.

With a sigh, he reached onto his belt and removed the com unit attached to it. One way or the other, they truth would come out! If they were going to be the ones who had to clean up the mess, then Thames needed to tell them the truth!

Besides, Wilkerson thought, when we agreed to this plan, military formality went out the damned window!

While he was working with the com unit, Corporal Denise Matthews walked up. A lithesome blonde, she was the one who enforced the discipline in the squad. However, that wasn’t the biggest reason Wilkerson kept her around. For the past two years they had been sharing each others bed and the Lieutenant had refused to allow her to be transferred from under his command.

“HQ,” The tech sure sounds stressed, Wilkerson thought. What the hell is going on over there?

“This is Foxtrot-one,” The code name sucked but you have to use what they give you. “Requesting further information about the alert.”

“Foxtrot-one,” Thames voice came across the com unit. “You have the information you need.”

“Sir,” The colonel wasn’t going to back me down now, Wilkerson thought. “I need to know who this ‘woman’ is we’re to be alerted to.”

A long sigh was Thames answer, which told the lieutenant that he had won the fight. Hell, he reflected, it was just basic courtesy! If someone was supposed to be stopping a particular person, didn’t they deserve to know all they could?

“The woman in question,” Thames said. “Is an Intelligence Agent a…”

“…Special Ops Agent,” Wilkerson finished, his blood running cold. How in the hell could Intelligence have pierced their security and secrecy?

“Yes,”

“Don’t worry, sir,” Wilkerson lied. “We’ll take care of her.”

The lieutenant killed the connection and spat in disgust. When he looked up, Matthews was watching him intently. A similar expression was on her face, and he couldn’t blame the woman for feeling the same way. How the hell were they supposed to stop someone who was better trained then he was?

They weren’t, he told himself, but we have to try anyway.

“Ever felt like you drew the short straw?” he muttered.

“Yeah,” Matthews snorted. “Now.”