Running Fire. Lindsay McKenna

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СКАЧАТЬ “Very close. They’re about two caves down from us. Maybe one tenth of a mile as the crow flies.” He saw her eyes go wide with fear.

      “It’s close enough. There’s a group of about two hundred Taliban, all on horseback, taking up that group of caves,” he explained.

      “Then let me help you,” she said, her voice becoming firm. “I want to leave with you tomorrow and do something to support your efforts.”

      Kell heard the sincerity in her voice. “It’s mountain-goat work,” he explained.

      “I’m in very good shape.”

      He had to agree, but for different reasons. “You can stay here and rest. Just because you’re not dizzy today doesn’t mean you’re completely recovered, Leah. Head trauma takes time to clear.”

      “You’re used to having a spotter. Right?” Leah didn’t want to spend one more day in this cave if she could help it. She’d go crazy with nothing to do.

      “SEALs sometimes work without them, but I do work with a spotter when I can,” he agreed. Kell searched her face. Her chin was stubborn for a reason.

      A part of him felt uneasy about leaving her alone and unprotected with the Taliban so close. He knew Leah was trained and could shoot, but with so many enemies gathering a short distance away, he weighed the options.

      There was a side to him that was damned protective of women and children in general. Yes, Leah was military, and she sure as hell could kick ass when it came to flying. But on the ground? Ballard wasn’t so sure about leaving her alone, open to possible attack. She’d be outgunned.

      “Okay,” he said, “I’ll let you go with me. We’ll be getting up before dawn, though. I have to find a hide on a ridge that looks down on those caves. I have to get a count of men, weapons, and try to look for their leader, Khogani. A lot of what snipers do is recon and that’s what we’ll be doing. I’m not about to shoot and give away our position. Are you up for that?”

      “Anything is better than staying here alone,” Leah said, relieved. “I’m a fast learner, Kell. If you tell me to do something, I will.”

      He rubbed his palms slowly up and down his thighs, thinking about her flight suit. “We’re going to have to fix you up a set of my cammies to wear.”

      Leah got up. “Okay,” she said, “give me those scissors. I’ll alter the pant-leg length. If you can get me a cammie blouse, I’ll do the same for the arm length.”

      He liked her attitude. The Shadow pilot was emerging, in charge, confident and assertive. He liked it a whole hell of a lot. “I have a second ruck in the other cave. While you’re cutting a pair of my trouser legs off, I’ll get it, stock it and bring the shirt back with me.”

      Her spirits rose as she sat down and began to cut the thick fabric, making the trouser length shorter for her legs. Kell’s T-shirt was huge on her, but she wasn’t going to cut it.

      Kell came back about ten minutes later. In one hand, he had a ruck just like the one he wore. In the other, his blouse. He handed it to her.

      “Put it on and I’ll shorten the sleeves for you with the scissors,” he told her.

      Getting up, Leah saw the trousers length was fine. She’d taken dark green nylon rope this morning and fashioned a makeshift belt out of it, the trousers staying around her waist instead of sliding down to her hips. She shrugged into his blouse. It was huge on her, his shoulders were so broad.

      Kell grinned, taking the sleeve that hung below her long, beautiful fingers. “You’re a little thing, aren’t you?” he murmured, quickly cutting away the extra fabric. She turned, holding out the other sleeve.

      “Little but mighty,” Leah said, smiling up at him. If Kell was upset with her going along, he didn’t show it.

      “That you are,” he agreed gruffly, the cuff material falling away.

      “This is fine,” Leah said, her hands visible now. She turned and looked at the ruck. “What’s in it?”

      Kell put the scissors away and walked over to the ruck, opening it up. Kneeling down, he said, “It’s an identical copy to the one I wear. SEALs believe one is bad and two is good. Your ruck is going to weigh around fifty pounds. I’ll transfer most of the mags out of it and into mine. I don’t want you humping sixty or seventy pounds. It will really throw you off your stride and quickly tire you out.” His eyes narrowed. “And you need to remind yourself that you’re not fully recovered yet, Leah. We don’t need to go far tomorrow, which is good, but the heat out there is a killer, too.”

      “As long as I have water and a hat, I’ll be fine.”

      “Ever done any covert intelligence work?”

      “No.”

      Kell double-checked the ruck, took out a boonie hat and then closed it up. “You’re going to have to stay close to me, Leah. There’s a lot to stalking and you’re going to have to learn it on the fly.”

      “I’ll learn, Kell. And I won’t be a pain in the ass.”

      Shaking his head, his lips curved. “You would never be that to me, Leah. Come on, let’s get all your gear ready now before we bed down for the night. Tomorrow, when we get up, we’re going roll fairly quickly, then eat a protein bar once we get set up for the recon.”

      For the next half hour, Leah felt as if she contributed. Used to working as a team, pilot and copilot, she felt excited about being Kell’s partner. An ignorant one, for sure, but she promised herself she’d catch on fast so she wouldn’t be a distraction.

      Finally, she sat down on her bag after everything she needed was nearby. Surprised, Kell came over and knelt down beside her, his face unreadable

      Resting his hands on his thighs, he frowned. “I’m worried because you’ve had a nightmare every night you’ve been here.”

      Leah nodded, feeling guilty. “And that’s not good,” she agreed, apologetic. Voices carried. And in a cave system like this, Leah realized she could possibly alert the enemy to their whereabouts. “What can I do? I know I’m a liability.” Feeling bad, there was no way she wanted to put them at risk. Maybe stuff a sock in her mouth? She cast around for solutions and found none. “Maybe I could go sleep in the other cave?”

      He shook his head. “No. If you screamed like you did last night, Leah, we’ll be in trouble no matter where you’re sleeping.”

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