Chapter 10

"Man, that looks fucking nasty."

David glared at Harper as he pulled off his ACUs and took a look at where he took the hit. It was pretty nasty with the bruise forming like it exploded on his chest. It had hit center mass and if it had gone through, he would have been dead. His lip twitched as he touched it. The impact may have cracked his sternum as well, but in any case, he was going to have to report to the medic on board. Right now, he just wanted to wash off the grime.

Hiding the wince, he ambled to take a quick shower. He would have liked to linger, but water was limited, and he had to make do with what he was allotted. It provided some relief and forced him to be unwillingly checked out in the infirmary. He endured the ribbing from Harper and ended up finding out that he did have a cracked sternum apart from the bruising. At least he was still functioning.

"I want you to take it easy for a couple of days."

David didn't say anything considering that the doc would probably say something and have him benched if he thought about disobeying. The faint idea of appealing to Spectre crossed his mind but he doubted that would work. So, he took the admonishment and order meekly and left to get briefed on what happened while they were tackling Colossus and finding Karma.

Spectre always had a saying that just because there was a serious threat going on didn't mean the world stopped turning. People took advantage of the situation. David figured it was born out of her experiences in Russia and being on the run with persona non grata. In the grand scheme of things, it made sense. Time wasn't necessarily linear as people liked to make it. It was a constant fluctuating thing and he could see how it could upset the general population's sense of order.

While they had been tackling Colossus, Spectre had been coordinating strike force missions. David found out when they got back, and it was why his friend hadn't greeted him like she usually did. She was busy in ops and when she was busy, you left it alone unless you wanted your head bitten off. Briggs learned it the hard way and she had been coldly polite about it. Harper later said that you could feel the temperature in the room drop to way below zero.

Making his way to a computer he tapped a few keys. He blinked when he saw Addy on the screen, "Addy, what's going on?"

Just responding per Spectre's orders.

David raised his brow as he studied the AI. He had 'met' the AI early on in his partnership with Spectre back when she went by another call sign. He marveled at the development of AI and the fact that it was a true AI. He found it funny that it adopted the moniker of a child and with a British accent. He teased, "Ever consider growing up?"

One or twice, but I prefer this look. It gives a friendly appearance. Also, it honors Spectre though I doubt she see that.

"Really?"

Yes.

That was something to explore and Addy would gladly go into detail about it, but David sensed that was a private thing and let it be. He focused on what he came for and asked, "So can you tell me about what went on while we were away?"

Spectre coordinated two strike force missions. First was to destroy a cargo container ship containing weapons that would have greatly affected balance of power in Tehran. In order to execute, Spectre had SEAL operatives rope in along with ASDs and CLAWs. Three points had to be taken and jamming signals destroyed to allow the JDAM to be dropped…

As Addy was relaying the information, she pulled up the AARs and information that came from body cams and other sources. David glanced through it and noted how Spectre deployed troops on deck. He was impressed by it and really wasn't since he had seen her in action and Singapore came to mind. They were never going to live that down, but it was a good lesson and it set them on the path they were on now. "Looks good, Addy. What else?"

Escort of four Humvees. No boots on the ground. ASDs, quad drones and eye in the sky to protect. Enemy infantry and RPGs were the bulk of the problem along with the enemy hiding in the cliffs of Afghan.

David looked at the information. "Spectre's been busy."

Always the case. Reports have been coming in all over from SP assets about Menendez' move. Right now, Spectre is trying to determine the most likely location of where his master plan is held up.

"Farid is undercover in Yemen. He has contact."

True, but Spectre suspects more to it and she is worried that it will come back to you. She suspected that Menendez is being methodical to draw you out and her.

"Makes sense on why she had Torres being active in my team."

Agent Torres was assigned because she can access systems that Spectre can't. Not without drawing attention. Agent Torres has commendation from Secret Service for her work in tracking down corrupt banking systems. Shut down a lot of money laundering operations and funding fronts for terrorists.

"Huh," David muttered. "And yet she doesn't look like a field agent."

Spectre knows the importance of making the enemy think one thing when another is going on. It's why she also authorized the pairing with AI Hickam. That and my analysis offered a unique combination.

"And Hickam has been helpful so far."

You haven't seen his potential yet.

David smirked at the AI as she smirked back. He finished what he was doing and closed the data stream. He looked at the projection of the AI and asked, "So how is Spectre doing?"

Like I said. Worried about you. I think she found a few things on your side project that bother her. She has been going over old records from past interviews and investigations. There are hints that there is another CIA agent that was involved with this but no solid evidence.

"Wouldn't surprise me, but… I get it. Even I have a few unanswered questions. Torres put some of them into perspective."

Another reason for the assignment.

David rolled his eyes slightly. The AI was similar in personality to Spectre and he knew that the AI would leave him hanging with a knowing look. He would be forced to figure it out and he didn't mind since it often forced him to slow down and think about things. He nodded and grin, "Thanks Addy. Take care."

You do the same, Section.

David watched as the AI disappeared. He sensed someone was watching him and he shifted to see Spectre standing there with a gentle smile. He shifted and asked, "How long you've been standing there?"

"Since Addy alerted me that she was briefing you on the strike force missions," Spectre offered with a shrug and a chuckle. "I take it you approve of my deployment of troops?" She stepped forward with a teasing grin on her face.

"Pretty much. Couldn't have done better." David leaned against the bulkhead and crossed his arms over his chest. It was probably a bad idea since he had a nasty bruise and a cracked sternum, but it was hard to break habits with friends. "How did Briggs take it with you calling the shots?"

"About as well as you expect," Spectre offered. "As long as the job was done, he was fine with it. We were on a time crunch and it wasn't feasible to pull you from the Colossus op. By the way, great job on securing Karma."

"You can thank Torres," David countered as he shuffled against the bulkhead. "She took down DeFalco. That was some of the best sniping skills."

"Soap taught her more than me."

"And you helped. She is your protégé," David gave a knowing grin. He sobered a little and added, "And she is as good as you tried to tell me in the beginning. And… you were right in that she did what any of my guys would have done. Saved my ass a couple of times."

Spectre smiled at David knowing that admitting wrongs was a difficult thing for people accustomed to making those life and death decisions for the sake of the team and the mission. She nodded in approval, "I hope you understand why she will be your right hand on this."

"Menendez found you out?"

"Closer than I'd like." Spectre looked away as she leaned against the bulkhead next to David. "As far as the world knows, Spectre is a male with ties around the world. At least those in the world I operate in. It was the goal of Shadow Protocol when it was created under the last Spectre." She looked at David, "Spectre isn't just one person. It is multiple people. Kind of like that movie the dread Pirate Roberts."

David nodded though he wasn't sure about what she was talking about in terms of the movie. It was vaguely familiar, but he got the general idea. Spectre was the current incarnation, but there had been others before and will be others after. It was why a lot of effort was made to keep 'Spectre' as a figure of the shadows. Not even all the assets in Shadow Protocol knew who Spectre was. He looked at her, "So, what are you going to do?"

"I found some leads on our project that are related to our mission," Spectre replied, "But a few are things that I have to address on my own." She looked at David, "Torres can help where I can't."

"I had that figured."

"Good."

The pair looked outward at nothing. They looked like a pair of friends that were having a good time just being in each other's company. Finally, David spoke, "I'm going to see the old man."

"Good."

"I keep having flashes of the night I was taken. Torres gave a theory about it."

Spectre nodded at that. "And?"

"I asked her to go with."

Spectre hummed at that. She didn't look at David, but she could hear the change in tone of his voice. After a moment, she glanced at him and asked, "How do you really feel about that?"

David looked away and down at the ground. He wasn't really sure. He knew that he had doubts about her ability, but really thinking about it revealed a few things that he hadn't been ready to address and yet events conspired to force him to confront it or make a stand that appeared to be brushing it off. It did bother him that he might have scared her the first time. The flicker in her eyes was unmistakably fear, but a certain kind of fear.

Spectre observed David. She suspected that there were sparks flying and it had nothing to do with mutual dislike and clash of personalities. She had spoken to Torres earlier and she could tell that she had been worried when David took a shot to the chest and had his respiratory system paralyzed for a moment. She saw the worry, but also the focus of getting the job done. And she hadn't missed the cues when she first introduced them.

David knew that Spectre was waiting for an answer. Finally, he said, "I feel a lot better with her there. I get the feeling the old man knows something and he's afraid of telling me."

"We all have things that we fear will change the perspective of those that matter the most to us."

David glanced at his friend, "And I get the feeling you know what it is."

"I might, but I did tell Woods that things like this are best from the horse's mouth. I told him that he should be the one to tell you." Spectre straightened up and moved to stand in front of David. She put a hand on his shoulder, "David, we're friends. We go back to when you sought me out in Rio and even saved my butt then. What you and Woods have is closer. Woods told me a few things and then some. But do you remember what I told you? Back when you were near begging me to help you out?" She peered at him.

David stared back and nodded, "You said that there are paths that I may not like where they go." He sighed and then continued, "And I told you that I was looking to put a few ghosts to rest."

Spectre nodded, "You can do that. I have done what I can, but there are some things…"

"Right," David nodded in agreement. "It's with the old man." He smiled slightly as he straightened up, "Thanks Ryan."

Spectre grinned at her old call sign. Sometimes as a joke, operators who knew her by that would call her that. Her best mate still did. "We're friends, Section." She patted his shoulder and then threw out, "Take it easy. A cracked sternum is no joke."

"Thanks for coming along."

Torres looked up from the book she was reading. She was comfortable with military cargo flights and always laughed when people looked at how comfortable she was. Part of her training with Spectre was to learn how to go with the flow and adapt. This was just one of those things and she used to read in the car when her brothers would take her out for a fun day. She looked over to see David trying to relax and was looking uncomfortable about it. No doubt his chest was bothering him, but she didn't fuss over it and he seemed to appreciate that and was well aware that she would put her foot down if he got worse.

Putting her book down in her lap, she replied, "You did ask."

"But you didn't have to," David pointed out. "I made it like an order, but you technically didn't have to follow."

"I wanted to," Torres shrugged and gave a saucy grin. "It's relaxing to let down the mousy persona for once." She rotated her shoulders, aware that David could see her tattoo since she opted to wear a tank top.

David grinned and paused as he caught a glimpse of the tattoo he had seen a couple of times before they boarded a flight to the mainland. He noted the Chinese characters and the image on it. He recognized the dragon but wasn't familiar with the lettering. He figured that was what Karma had been referring to when she called Torres the Fire Dragon.

"The characters are for the Fire Dragon. I was born the year of the dragon and my element was fire," Torres offered with a wry grin in David's direction. "An old friend decided I should get ink and picked it. I went with it."

"It suits you."

Torres looked up to see that David was trying to get some rack time. He had closed his eyes before she could say anything, but it had her thinking about his comment. She was used to the briskness of his speech whether it was to convey orders or even talk about a briefing. The few times his voice softened when it came to personal… it was nice, and it had her relax more and it had her thinking as they made it to the mainland and took their vehicle to the Vault.

"Commander Mason and Special Agent Torres for Sergeant Woods," David announced themselves to the guard at the Vault.

Torres looked around at the place. Her private thoughts conveyed a cushy prison with all the security. It was warranted though and from what she knew of Sgt. Woods, the man had secrets that could be dangerous if they fell into the wrong hands. Yet, it also provided the best care for old age and other things that plagued the elderly, apart from injuries that crippled. She followed David while observing the place.

"What took you so long? Started to think you weren't gonna make it. Who's the broad?"

Torres was brought back to the present when she looked at the man in the wheelchair. Her lip twitched in bemusement as she introduced herself, "Simone Torres. I believe you know Spectre."

"Spectre's ass wipe," Woods grinned as he put two and two together. "Tell me, is the witch still wanting me to do that thing?"

"If it means something about being under oath, then yes," Torres replied in slight confusion. She was taking a guess at it since she didn't know about previous interactions. She did like the old man and could see why Spectre would.

Woods laughed at that before looking at David and gesturing at her, "She's quick. I'll give her that. Don't let this one go, kid."

David smiled a wavering smile. He was afraid that Torres would be put off by Woods' mannerisms, but it seemed that he didn't have to worry about that. What had him was the fact that Woods was another person that was putting two and two together to make five. He did like Torres, but there were things that he wasn't quite ready to address yet. Plus, she was a teammate.

Woods sensed that David was uncomfortable and gestured to the bench and relented, "Anyway, better this ass wipe than some other asshole. Spectre's the one to trust."

Torres was grateful that no one was paying attention to the fact that she went red at Woods' insinuation. She liked David, truly did. This wasn't the time though. It was a relief that Woods took the reins and directed them to have a seat. She took a seat next to David and was prepared to sit and listen until Woods teased her, "You're not gonna record this? Spectre did every single one."

"I wasn't aware that I was supposed to," Torres replied promptly while smiling. "But I can. Nobody will see your ugly face, but they'll hear your pretty voice"

Woods had to laugh, "See what I mean kid?" He gestured at Torres, "Record away, girlie."

David had to chuckle since it was funny and schooled himself as to what he wanted to say. When the mood sobered, he asked, "What the fuck was I doing there?"

Woods sobered at the question. Spectre had warned him that David was remembering about that night. The woman wasn't a shrink, but she was an observer. It was time to come clean and he admitted to himself that he was glad that the girl was there. He suspected that she was what David needed and she needed him. They just didn't know it… yet. He looked at David and replied, "The dead don't suffer. That's why you and I are still here."

David pursed his lips as he thought about what Woods was saying. He was also remembering that night. It was becoming clearer that Raul Menendez had been there the night that his father died and that he had been taken far from home. He stood up and started pacing, trying to work off the stirrings of anxiety and impatience that were working their way in. He glanced at Torres who was sitting there calmly, watching everything.

She wasn't one to snitch on him and she didn't have that intention. He could see her concern, genuine concern, as she was watching him. There was that hint of fear he had seen before. Like she was afraid of what he might do, like she had seen it before and it frightened her. He strove to calm down as he paced.

Woods watched the exchange. He hadn't failed to see it too, but he saw something different than what David had. They would figure it out. He sighed and continued, "He's got a plan for you kid. He's been working on it for thirty years and he is counting on you coming after him. You and Spectre since you both stalled his plans."

David paused and turned to look at the old man, "What a minute… Frank you have intel?"

"Remember that pendant?" Woods looked at David as the kid kneeled in front of him. Torres hadn't moved but was listening intently. "Pfft… disappeared… What do you think, it just sprouted legs and walked away?"

The tone in how Woods said it had Torres swallow slightly. She looked around to check security. She saw the implications there. It was why there were a lot of things that hadn't been disclosed to the people. She could just imagine the mass hysteria that would occur if they learned that no one was truly safe in the full meaning of the word.

"This guy, he knows every angle, every move you're gonna make, he's gonna take out 20-30 million people. As if that's gonna bring her back." Woods looked downward with regret on his face.

"It's all about his sister?" Torres pointed out. When Woods looked at her, she probed, "Right?"

"He killed my father, to get to you," David interrupted. His voice was choked with emotion. He wasn't sure what to feel. Anger, sadness… similar emotions when he was a kid but directed at another person. He stood up and looked downward at the man that raised him.

Torres swallowed from the interruption. She could see how this could go downhill and fast. She could step in and try to keep it from going overboard, but David wanted the truth. She chewed her lower lip mostly because she was thinking about something Spectre said when she tapped her. Something about sometimes investigations going down a path that you might not like when in pursuit of truth and justice. Was this one of those moments? It looked like it.

"There's no clean shot with that guy…"

Torres looked at Woods. She saw that the memories were haunting him. She stood up and tentatively placed a hand on David's shoulder, "Menendez was going after them both. Even though you could tell the man that your father tried to stop Woods…"

David brushed her off even though he heard the words. His focus was on Woods as he kneeled in front of him and tried to control the tone of his voice, "Hey! What the fuck happened in Panama?" He stared up at the old man.

Woods saw what Torres tried to do and David's determination. He sighed and shook his head. He had to tell this story, even if it brought pain to the kid. He looked at Torres and she looked at him. She wasn't hurt by the brushoff she had just gotten. Rather, it made her determined to figure out why she was in this position. Taking a breath, he started, "I was pretty sure we got him in Nicaragua."

Torres knew this part in history, "But a year later, he showed up in Panama with Noriega."

Woods nodded and grunted. At least not all kids were dumb shits about history. "That was the last straw for the CIA. The orders come down from George H. W. for a snatch and grab. So, your dad and I, we go in… What a shit show."

Torres listened as Woods described how he and David's father had been sent in. She had read the dossiers true but hearing it from someone who had been on the op… that was different. She had to agree with Woods when he said that the mission was good and the plan good. It all looked good on paper.

"The only piece that didn't fit was Hudson, on the comm link running the show. It just felt off, even on the way in… I felt it… you know it was gnawing at me… just didn't look at it."

Torres had stood up while David sat down. She was looking at Woods as she thought about it. It vaguely itched of the story that Spectre told her when she was younger. It was what had Spectre learn the habits of contingency. She paced a little as she let Woods tell David what happened on that op.

"Not to mention some guy that was too helpful but knew his stuff."

Torres had been fingering her chin with her forefinger. She turned to look at Woods. There was a lot going on that she hadn't read about. She chewed her lower lip.

A/N: Section has a chat with his friend Spectre and then goes with Torres to see Woods. What is the truth behind Panama? Stay tuned for more Waves on the Shores...