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By the time the evac arrived to transport everyone off the mountain, he and Doc had stabilized all the injured. The missionaries refused to leave the country and instead accompanied the villagers to a refugee camp. But their mission had been a success. They found the missionaries and removed them from immediate danger. Roth wasn’t sure how secure the refugee camps were as the conflict in the area still raged with no sign of resolve, but he understood why the missionaries refused to leave. They didn’t feel their job was done there yet.
Memories of his father and the last words his father said to him invaded Roth, as was always the case when the thought of the job not being done yet came to him. He doubted the job would ever be done. As he boarded the C-5 for the flight home, he took one last look around the airfield. He doubted this would be his last trip to Djibouti, or the Middle East, for that matter. Strife seemed to be a constant in this part of the world, not that the drugs that plagued the streets in the U.S. were any less of a fight.
He tried to drive away the solemn mood that had settled on him away by trading banter with several of the men who sat in the sidewall seats closest to him. If conflict, crime, and corruption were constants, the comradery of the team was the other, a wonderful opposite to the stark reality of the world. These men, his brothers, inspired him to do better, to be more dedicated, and to achieve more. They added balance and provided levity to dark circumstances. And he was damned glad to be in their ranks. There was no place he’d rather be.
As he laughed, his mood lightened. He drifted off to sleep feeling at peace.
Oscar
Approximately twenty-four hours after the post-Op briefing, Roth again entered the private parking garage area where all his teammate’s cars were parked. The lot was full. This time, it was for the agency’s annual Christmas party. And all the wives, girlfriends, and children of the staff would be there. He knew that Angel had arranged for a great meal to be catered in, and many of the wives were making desserts.
He’d dropped his gifts for his Echo Team members off in the rec room where the party would take place earlier in the month, as well as something little for each of the kids of the Operators. His gifts for his mom, sister, and her boyfriend were in his car. He planned to drive to Indianapolis after the party.
At the party, Roth met the four men of Bravo Team. He introduced himself and shared a few pleasantries with them, but that was as far as it went. He was sure he’d get to know them when they’d work together. They knew everyone else and seemed to be having a good time catching up with old friends.
He knew that Michael was wondering the same thing he was. Would the fact that these four men were back from the long-term security assignment mean less of an opportunity for them to work traditional cases? Would Shepherd assign Bravo Team to the PGP Install thus rotating them off more often? He doubted it, as that was not the arrangement for Alpha and Delta Teams.
“I don’t know what the hell’s happened to everyone,” Bravo Team’s lead, Tommy Flores, said, gaining Roth’s attention. “Wives, girlfriends, kids. And Shepherd adjusting the schedule to accommodate it. Handsome, tell me it isn’t true that you’re dating a woman with three kids.”
“It’s not quite like that,” Burke said.
Jimmy Wilson laughed. “But he won’t tell us exactly what it is like.”
Bravo Team’s Elijah Robinson draped an arm over Rich Burke’s shoulder. “Son, we need to have a talk about falling for the kid, but not the mom. It happened to me, and it never ends well.”
Roth laughed with the rest of them. He wasn’t sure if that was what happened or not. Then he saw Wilson slip his phone out of his pocket and finger the screen. He assumed he was texting with someone. He wondered if Wilson had a woman too and had kept it quiet.
Roth’s phone vibrated in his pocket. He checked the screen and stepped away from the group to reply. It was from Briana. He had sent her and Cam a text earlier, wishing them a Merry Christmas and asking them how they were doing. He assumed they were in Atlanta at her place as they’d planned.
“Merry Christmas to you too,” Briana’s return text said. “We’re fine, with our mom. Do we have to account for our movements?”
Roth smiled, reading her snarky reply. He typed out a text. “No, I didn’t ask where you were, no accounting needed. Thank you for replying. I hope you have a nice holiday with your mom. I plan to stay in touch. We need to plan our camping trip.”
A few minutes later, Briana texted back. “Thanks. You too. And yes, to that camping trip. Nowhere cold though. Summer? White water rafting, hiking, and rock climbing, maybe?”
Roth smiled at her reply. This vacation had a more concrete feel to it. So, she did like the outdoor adventures. He shouldn’t be surprised. “All sounds great. Talk to you soon.”
And that was where the conversation ended. She didn’t reply. From where he stood, though, he overheard an interesting tidbit. Kaylee Sloan was pregnant and suffering horrible morning sickness. She sat with Elizabeth Williams and Angel Jackson and, yes, she looked like she was about to vomit. It hadn’t been announced by anyone, not even Sloan, so he said nothing. They had reason to keep it quiet. He knew that Kaylee had suffered a miscarriage earlier in the year.
“Do you think Shepherd will assign any of them to the PGP Project and rotate us off?” Michael asked Roth in a hushed voice when he joined him, Dahlia, BT, and Evie.
Roth’s gaze shifted back to the four men of Bravo Team. “I don’t know. Given that he hasn’t with Alpha and Delta, I find it unlikely he’ll assign Bravo.” They were the old guard; men Shepherd had worked directly with in the Sandbox. “I heard Shepherd has them assigned to be his and Diana’s personal security detail for Lambchop and Michaela’s wedding. That kind of broadcasts the pecking order, don’t you think?”
“What does John think?” Dahlia asked.
Michael snickered sarcastically. “Yeah, my brother offering up any insights is a rare occurrence. The one thing he did say is that all four members of Bravo Team pretty much told Shepherd they only have about five years left until they plan to retire, and they want to retire in one piece.”
“That’s interesting,” Roth remarked. “Sounds to me like they’ll want to play it safe. And there’s nothing safer than manning Ops or turning a screw driver doing PGP installs.”
“I, for one, don’t mind that Brody primarily works the installs,” Evie said. “I will admit that I worry when he’s working on any other case because I know they can be dangerous. But I also know those other cases come with the territory.”
As the night went on, Roth watched the four men of Bravo Team interact with everyone else. They didn’t seem chummy with Shepherd. He found that odd. After the initial arrival, they talked mostly with those who worked Ops and with Delta Team. They sat at a table with the Ops analysts and the Digital Team.
Roth sat beside Jimmy Wilson. Dinner was just wrapping up and he knew gifts would be next. He waited until he had captured Jimmy’s gaze. “I thought Bravo and Charlie worked together the most before they started the personal security gig.”
“Yeah, feels like it was a million years ago,” Wilson replied. “We haven’t stayed in touch while they’ve been working them and we’ve been doing the PGP Project. They’re good though, know their shit. At least they did. I’d still trust them.”
That wasn’t what Roth was asking. “It’ll be interesting to see what kinds of jobs Shepherd assigns them to.”
