SEAL Team Six Hunt the Scorpion(51)
It’s exactly what Crocker wanted to hear. Gazing down at the coat of arms in the rug, he said, “I appreciate that, sir.”
“What good are we, if we can’t look after our own?”
“I agree, sir.”
“Try and get some sleep. You must be exhausted.”
True, he hadn’t slept. But it seemed like a ridiculous idea. Crocker muttered, “I’ll try, sir,” and rose to his feet. His head hung like a huge weight on his shoulders. He wanted to do something to help recover his wife but didn’t know what.
The ambassador said, “I have one request before you leave.”
“What’s that, sir?”
“Under no circumstances are you to talk to the press.”
The press. The press? Why would I talk to the press? He didn’t trust what they reported and did everything he could to avoid them. Besides, the presence of SEAL Team Six operators in Libya was supposed to be top secret.
Doesn’t Saltzman know that?
Someone drove him to the guesthouse in a black sedan. An Amy Winehouse song was playing on the stereo. He opened his eyes as the tire wheels crunched on the gravel drive. Birds were singing. Two green parrots with red beaks chased each other past the windshield and into a nearby tree.
He thought he might be dreaming, but then saw the grim, determined faces of Ritchie, Mancini, Akil, and Davis emerging from the house to greet him. They’d heard the news and crowded around him, expressing their sympathy.
Akil: “We’ll get her back.”
Mancini: “Holly’s a tough lady. She’ll be fine.”
Davis: “Just tell us what to do, boss. I’m in.”
Akil: “We all are.”
Ritchie: “Whatever it takes.”
He knew that if he could count on anyone at a time like this, it was his men. “Thanks, guys. Where’s Cal?”
“He went home. Remember?”
Feeling a hundred years old, he sat at the kitchen table and drank a cup of bitter coffee. Mancini stood before him with his hand over the receiver of a satellite phone. “It’s the CO. You want to talk to him?”
“Who?”
“Our CO back at headquarters in Virginia. I’ll tell him you’ll call back.”
“No.”
“You sure?”
“Yeah. Hand me the phone.”
He recognized Alan Sutter’s smooth voice, the distinctive Kentucky accent. Remembered that he had bought land in his native state and planned to retire there and raise horses. Racehorses.
Their CO was saying all the right things—about loyalty, sticking together, praying for Holly, doing anything that could possibly be done.
“Thank you, sir. I appreciate that.”
“We’re family, Crocker. Holly’s one of us.”
“I know.” Emotion built in his chest.
His CO paused. He was a no-nonsense guy. Sentimentality didn’t figure into his decisions.
He said, “Crocker, this is a difficult situation for all of us. I pray that the whole thing’s a misunderstanding and Holly shows up untouched.”
“Me, too, sir.”
“But here’s the hard reality. No point pussyfooting around.”
He sensed what was coming and steeled himself.
“You and your men are there to complete an important mission.”
“Understood, sir.”
“Mancini told me that you’re under way but still have a few more sites to inspect.”
“One or two more, sir. That’s correct.”
“Under the circumstances, I should recall you, relieve you of your duties there.”
“Sir—”
His CO raised his voice. “Let me finish!”
“Sorry, sir.”
“But I can’t.”
“Can’t what, sir?”
“Order you back. I know you want to be there close to your wife. I would, too. So I leave that decision up to you.”
Crocker started to get choked up. “Thank you, sir. That means a lot to me.”
Sutter said, “Here’s the situation. I want you to turn over the inspections to Warrant Officer Mancini. I know that you also lost Calvin, so I’m sending two other men.”
“Sir, that won’t be necessary.”
“I think it is.”
“I disagree, sir.”
“Why?”
“First, I have sufficient men with me to complete the inspections. Secondly, I’m perfectly capable of continuing to lead them myself.”
The CO paused, then said, “That doesn’t sound realistic.”
“Trust me, it is, sir.”
“Seriously, Crocker. You mean to tell me you think you can ignore the situation with your wife and continue?”
“A mission is a mission, sir.”
“Dammit, Crocker. Don’t do anything stupid. Don’t get in the way.”