MeteorOnAMoonlessNight: Without Wings Chapter Seven

If the beauty of the surrounding seaside matched their moods, then everything would be fine. Instead, Bella worked through her emotional distress by kicking the shit out of the heavy bag in the training room for hours on end. The fact that the room overlooked the ocean with wall-to-wall windows didn't faze her in the slightest. Unable to fix what ailed her, it was up to Edward to comfort her when she finally crashed at the end of each day.

They didn't plan to spend much time in France, but the recon meeting was scheduled for three days after they arrived. Apparently, the young boy apprehended by the military installation at Camp Marmal was an orphan of only seven years old, named Mullah. He admitted to knowing Quinn, though he called him by his undercover name, Elias. Further questioning was needed, but they’d given the boy food and a place to sleep, putting off in-depth interrogations until the Americans could join them, at least by satellite comms. Edward planned to be there to speak to the only person to have set eyes on Quinn in months. He didn't care what strings Holden had to pull or whose ass he had to kiss, it would happen one way or another.

On day three, nine of them left the villa in the same matte black three-row SUVs they’d ridden in from the airstrip. Dara stayed behind with Tito—Edward thanked God for the reprieve from that douchebag—along with Hollywood, Danny, and Paul. Dwayne, Nigel, and the rest of the Cullen clan spread out among the vehicles Stephen had procured for them.

They settled in for the hour-long ride to the air base in Ventiseri. Edward let Seamus drive him, Bella, and Jake, while Dwayne Namron drove the two men in his employ along with Emmett and Jasper. Sitting in the back holding his wife’s hand, Edward tried to close off the never-ending chatter in his brain. He wanted a blank slate when they arrived at the base, but assorted plans and ideas continued to plague him. This was not a mission where he could go in full throttle, at least not if they planned to make it out alive. It would take the cold calculation in which he specialized, luckily.

The base finally came into view, and they submitted themselves to ID checks, various scans and searches, and a metal detector once they were allowed inside. Holden’s old agency held a certain amount of clout, and the general knew they were coming, but they weren't too thrilled to offer the Americans any accommodations. The senior officials at Marmal would hold a video conference with them, and the French merely offered a large meeting room and secure communication out of courtesy.

Mostly, they had different ideas of what should happen next, and they needed to hash it out with the military representative in Kabul.

Bella had been strangely silent, and she only perked up when the video conference began. The screen was large enough to span the wall on one side of the room, and everyone had a clear view of the group of German military men.

“Just so you know,” Bella whispered in Edward’s ear. “If I don't agree with the official plan, we’re coming up with our own.”

The look he leveled her with was incredulous, but he should have known. The woman he knew and loved would never sit idly by while others decided for her, and she damn sure wouldn't allow her son to suffer from someone else’s ineptitude if she could stop it.

“It looks as though the men you seek have been in the same cell for a few months now,” the man on the screen said in a heavy German accent. “Those agents tried to ask for assistance from the Americans installed here at our base eighty-eight days ago.”

He drew a red circle on a map. It looked like a sand castle to Edward, but he knew there was something—and someone—more sinister in that place than a child’s plaything.

“What has this boy told you?” Holden asked as a man hundreds of miles away brought the child into the room.

“Two of the men—Elias and Wilhelm—he knew from the Hotel Intercontinental. He thinks they are businessmen, nothing more, since that is their cover. In exchange for money, he would tell Elias the news of the day. Anything he heard on the street as he was shining shoes, that is what he would pass along.”

“And the boy is only seven?” Bella asked. The face and size of the boy on the screen in front of them showed a different story. “He looks more like four or five.”

“Malnourishment.” Dwayne stood, studying the projection screen on the wall. “Over there, it’s common for children to be abandoned when their parents can’t afford to feed them. Or maybe his parents were killed in a skirmish, leaving him to fend for himself.”

Bella shuddered, and Edward rubbed her shoulder briskly. “How is he able to sneak in so frequently?”

Someone translated, asking Mullah questions, which he answered in a language none of the people in France spoke.

“There is a tunnel system.” The German commander pulled up an image, tracing lines on it to demonstrate. “He’s tiny, and no one pays him any mind. They don’t have cameras outside the compound.”

“Why’s that?” Jake asked.

Nigel answered, “They have bigger guns than we do.”

“So they use heavy offense as their defense?” Jasper clarified.

“Precisely.” Pointing again, the commander at Marmal showed it on the screen. “Men are stationed on the rooftop. Here.” He drew a circle. “Here.” Another circle. “And here.”

“If we can follow the path the boy takes—”

Nigel cut Bella off. “They’d see you coming a mile away.”

She frowned. “In our desert camo at night?”

“We could try it,” Stephen mused. “If we left the Humvees far enough behind the dunes.”

“We’d have to use night vision and go slow.” Nigel tapped his chin. “If they spotted the movement, they’d blow us to kingdom come.”

“Or we could get trapped in a sandstorm,” Dwayne said. “Shit like that doesn't give much notice.”

“He’s not alone,” Bella spoke softly. “There are other men in there with him. His translator, you said. Who else?”

Holden answered, “A total of eight men went into the mosque, hoping to take down Hibatullah Akhundzada, the leader of the Taliban cabal in the area.”

“And how many died in the process?” Emmett demanded. “You said Quinn saved his men. How many?”

“Five lived,” Holden replied. “Three died. There was nothing he could have done for them because they were too far away at the time they were spotted.”

“Surely they didn't go in guns blazing.” Seamus rubbed his temple. “The agency dolts might not be that smart, but Quinn is. After all, he’s a Cullen.”

Edward smiled slightly at the reference. “No, he wouldn't have done that. I taught him better, and I’m sure the agency taught him other tactics as well.”

Holden cleared his throat. “Sometimes, going in whole hog is an effective strategy—”

“You’ve got to be kidding me!” Bella shouted. “The fuck did you teach him, pray and spray?”

Leaving her chair in a flash, Bella lunged for Holden. Edward was on her heels, pulling her back before she could do him any bodily harm. “Settle down, aingeal. Let’s rescue our son before you put a bullet in James.”

“You’re of no fucking use to me or anyone else, do you understand?” she spit in Holden’s face.

“I can help you get him back, Bella.” Holden remained calm, but Edward saw the hint of fear in his eyes.

“So you say. But know this; the second I get the chance, I’m dancing on your grave.” Spinning, she stalked back to her chair and dropped into it.

Holden merely smirked. “This one isn’t fragile like a porcelain doll. She’s fragile like a bomb.”

“And that’s the way we like her,” Seamus said. “I’d rather she have my back in any fight than your sorry arse. You don't know your bollocks from your nose, and you’re dumber than anyone I know.”

“I graduated with a four-point-fuck-you, Cullen. How’s that for smart?”

“Is this considered a cat fight?” Nigel interrupted, grinning.

“Enough!” Commander Namron shouted, and the room stilled. “For fuck’s sake, be professional, Nigel. That goes for the rest of you, too.”

“May I continue?” the commander asked deadpan.

Edward made a go-ahead gesture and sat beside Bella. “You can't fly off the handle like that, aingeal. You have to remain focused until the mission is complete.”

She glared at him. “You hate him as much as I do.”

He spoke into her ear. “Doesn't mean I can take the risk of eliminating him too soon.”

Their gazes met, and Bella nodded. If the opportunity arose, they would take James Holden out of the equation.

The German commander spoke again. “There are a few American soldiers on our base who might be able to help out. I’ll check on it and get back to you, but since you said this was a rather unconventional rescue, I wouldn't count on them.”

“For now,” Dwayne said, “we have to go on the presumption that those five men aren't able to walk out unassisted.” Bella whimpered, but he ignored her to go on. “If we go under the cover of night, it’ll take the entire team. If Dara sits out, that leaves us with lucky number thirteen.”

“Five for the five men, three to watch the exterior, and five to clear the hall?” At Dwayne’s nod, Stephen wrote that down.

“It should work,” Dwayne continued. “We should practice until we pull out for Afghanistan.”

“How do you practice that, exactly?” Jake asked.

“Carefully,” was the response from Nigel.

Bella asked, “What about the boy?”

“What about him?” Holden crossed to the other side of the room, studying the video image of the young boy.

They’d already learned he would be allowed to go back to the compound at least once more because he brought vital food and water to the prisoners. “He’s kept my son and the others alive. Don't you think that counts for something?”

Snorting, Holden said to the room in general, “This is the woman you think is tough? The one whose heart bleeds for a child she’s never met?”

Standing, Edward lowered his voice. “You have grown entirely too cocky since we last interacted, young pup. Perhaps the rest of us should complete this mission without you.”

Holden opened his mouth, but Dwayne put up his hand. “That’s enough, you two. We need to get back to the villa so we can hash out the details and come up with a solid plan.”

Silently seething, Edward took Bella by the hand and marched down the hallway back to the exit. He hated James Holden and had for years. Nothing good had ever come from the man, beginning with roping Edward’s family into saving the fucking world and including convincing Quinn to leave the only home he’d known to go undercover in fucking Kabul. Hunting terrorists, of all things. And now he wanted to pretend he was their savior, when he’d created the majority of the mess to begin with.

At his side, Bella breathed harshly. Edward knew it was because she held back tears. She wouldn't want to appear weak, and all the men were directly behind them. Seamus moved ahead of them to open the rear car door for them, and Bella smiled in gratitude before climbing in. Edward slid in beside her and slammed the door.

By the time Seamus and Jake sat in the front seat, tears ran down Bella’s face.

“I’m frustrated more than anything,” she explained, accepting the napkin Jake dug out of the glove box. “I hate that man with a passion, and he mocks us all.”

“As though we aren't dealing with enough as it is,” Edward concurred. “As I said back there, whenever the opportunity arises, I’m more than happy to take him out for you.”

“Just hand me a fucking rocket launcher. I’ll aim it at his balls.” Bella chuckled darkly. “Or his bollocks, as the case may be.”

“Damn skippy,” Seamus added. “Let’s get our boy back first, though.”