The following characters belong to Janet Evanovich. Colonel Davidson is my original character. Warning: Contains Adult Themes. This chapter is intended for mature readers only!

A Walk Through Hell

Chapter 10: Rage

I freeze as I take in the destruction that was once my apartment.

I can barely see the top of Stephanie's head peering out above the stacks of moving boxes. The room looks like it's been struck by a level five tornado, leaving a path of clothes and cosmetics in its wake.

"Babe?"

She peeks out from around the boxes, wiping her brow. "How did I fit all of this stuff in my apartment? I swear it's breeding… there's more left here to unpack than when I started!" She huffs, giving the boxes an accusing glare.

I chuckle, only my Babe.

Her eyes suddenly swivel to meet mine, trying unsuccessfully to arch an eyebrow at me. "I just got the strangest call from my mother…" She hedges, watching my expression carefully.

"Oh," I reply, trying to figure out if I'm about to get lucky or cremated.

"Umm hmmm… out of the blue she calls to tell me what a wonderful daughter I am and how much she loves me. Odd… don't you think?"

"Why would that be odd?" The soldier inside of me screaming "Abort! Abort!!!"

She crosses her arms over her chest, scrutinizing me. "And apparently Joe had a visitor down at the station today…."

Shit!

The screaming continues "Mayday! Mayday! Mission has been compromised! Retreat!!!"

I remain silent, my blank face firmly set in to place.

She walks towards me slowly, stalking her prey. "And then, funny thing… while I was on the phone with my mother, Lula called. Left me a voicemail… said that 'poor Joyce' had a run in with a VERY angry Cuban man…"

I gulp, "That's unfortunate …" Fucking Burg grapevine!

She stops just inches from me, her eyes searching mine. Her hand reaches out, grabbing a fist full of my shirt and hauling me to her; her lips, brushing against mine as she speaks "Do you know where I might be able to find said knight in shining armor?"

"I might be able to arrange something." I rasp my voice barely above a growl.

She kisses me with an intensity that I have never experienced before, leaving me breathless.

She trails her kisses to my jaw, "Thank you." She whispers, her breath tickling the skin of my throat.

My mind is blank, lost in the sensations of my body. Weeks of sexual tension finally coming to a head.

She grabs my hand, tugging me towards the bedroom; turning to throw a wicked smile over her shoulder at me.

We enter the bedroom and she gives me a light shove towards the bed. I sit down on the edge and she walks towards me to stand between my legs. She grabs the hem of my shirt, slowly peeling it over my head and tossing it on to the floor. I return the gesture and am rewarded with the sight of a sheer baby blue lace bra; the pink of her nipples peeking through.

I drag my finger tips down the satiny skin of her stomach to the top of her jeans. Quickly unbuttoning them and dragging them over her hips and thighs. She braces her hands on my shoulders, stepping out of her jeans. Leaving her in only her bra and matching thong.

God she's beautiful.

Every muscle in my body is flexing in anticipation. She kneels before me, removing my boots and unbuttoning my cargos. I raise my hips for her as she slides them off of my legs, her eyes darkening as she sees the bare skin underneath.

She trails kisses up my chest and throat. I hook a finger into the band of her thong, pulling her to me and then tearing the fabric from her body. She moans, pressing her breasts into my chest. I wrap my arms around her, flicking open the latch of her bra and pulling it off of her body. She nudges me backwards, laying me flat on my back; crawling up my body to straddle my waist.

We made love slowly. Touching, tasting and worshiping every part of each other's bodies. The rise and fall of our movements mimicking the swell of the ocean tide; feeling every heart beat, every kiss, burning the memory deep into our souls.

It was the first time that I have ever made love to a woman, and it changed the course of my life irrevocably. My heart had always belonged to Stephanie Plum… and now, my body did as well.

I held her for hours while she slept, staring down at the woman in my arms; everything that I love, everything that I cherish; was curled up beside me… right where she belongs.

"Morning Rangeman," Lester said trying for nonchalance; the shit eating grin on his face spoiling his efforts.

"Santos," I reply. No way is this fucker getting any details out of me.

"You and the little lady sure called it an early evening last night… doesn't look like you got a whole lot of sleep though…" his grin widening, a mischievous twinkle in his eye.

"Death wish Santos?" Shit. It's not helping that I can't wipe the silly grin off of my face.

Lester smirks victoriously. "You're such a lucky bastard." He sighs, shaking his head longingly.

I flash him my rare two hundred watt smile. He has no idea just how lucky I was last night.

"Christ, I haven't seen you smile like that since… well… ever. It must have been un-fucking-believable! What I wouldn't give for…"

Conversation over. "Santos!" I snarl, he never did know when to quit.

"Jeez, alright! You don't need to tell me anything. The look on your face says it all anyway." He strides out of the control room, his laughter trailing behind him.

I close my eyes, pinching the bridge of my nose; trying to think of the vilest place on Earth to ship Santos to in a crate. Siberia… the Sahara Desert perhaps…

"Colonel Davidson just arrived; he is in conference room B." Tank's voice brings me out of my musings.

The Colonel and I had spoken several times since our agreement in the hospital. So far our investigation had been completely ineffective… an absolute failure. Every time we had a lead we would wind up running into another dead end. My patience was growing thin.

The Colonel had agreed to meet in person for a strategy meeting. The longer we take to uncover the trail, the longer the mole has to cover his tracks. I refuse to give up hope, but the outlook is growing bleaker by the day.

"Sir," Hal, peeks his head through the doorway to the control room. "There is a call for you on line two. He said that it's urgent."

I nod, walking across the hallway to the privacy of my office. I sit in my leather chair, reclining slightly. I'm sure it's just another government contract negotiator; fucking slave drivers.

I place the receiver to my ear, "Manoso."

"Major… this is Private Bates. I know that you asked me to stand down in my investigation… but I just uncovered a piece of information that you might find interesting."

My body tenses, please give me something legit to work with. "Continue."

"Well Sir, originally we thought that the official records to the mission were 'misplaced'. In all actuality the security clearance required to obtain the information was changed. The clearance level was adjusted from Confidential to Sensitive Compartmented Information or SCI Access. That means that only someone with the appropriate security clearance and the proper "need to know" can access those records. At this point, the file is all but inaccessible. The only person noted to have clearance is one… Davidson, Colonel Mark Davidson.

The ringing in my ears is deafening.

With every heart beat the faces of my men flash before my eyes. The lives that were lost, the lives that I failed to protect.

Thump thump… Private Leavitt

Thump thump… Corporal Sanchez

Thump thump… Sergeant Thompson

I shake my head, trying to focus; my hand squeezing the receiver so hard that the plastic splinters in half. I rip the phone off of the desk, tearing the cord out of the wall, throwing it against the door opposite of me. The phone shatters on contact, spraying the room with pieces of mangled plastic.

He's a fucking dead man.

My body is shaking with rage, tremors rolling down my spine. The anger inside of me erupting, searching for an outlet. I turn to the filling cabinet next to me, my fist crumpling the metal as I slam into it over and over again`. It's not enough; I pick it up sending it flying into the wall. Chunks of sheet rock exploding from the force. I can faintly hear sound coming from the door but I can't focus enough to determine what the noise is.

Tank comes into view, his eyes wide and alarmed. His lips are moving, but I can't hear his words. He walks towards me slowly, his hands raised showing me that he is unarmed. I can feel the panic and confusion radiating from him.

"Ranger! What the fuck man!" Tank is yelling but his voice sounds as he if is speaking from the bottom of a well. I close my eyes, focusing on my breathing, my chest heaving with the adrenaline.

All rational thought has left my mind, my primal instincts taking over. I'm going to rip his fucking heart out of his chest. I stalk out of the office towards the conference room; my hands twitching to complete the task at hand.

I feel a restraining hand on my shoulder, Tank's voice low and controlled. "Bomber's in there with him, man, you can't go in there like this, you're going to scare her."

My heart stutters in its rhythm. My Babe is in there, alone with that monster. I am sprinting towards the door before I have time to finish my thought.

I throw the door open, slamming it against the wall. Stephanie turns her startled eyes to me, "Ranger?" She asks clutching her chest.

"Stephanie, I need you to go with Tank to the seventh floor, NOW." I don't want her to see me like this.

She shakes her head in non comprehension, "What's going on here? What happened?" She follows my murderous gaze to the Colonel; his expression quickly turning from shock to understanding.

"Ranger…"

"It's okay dear," the Colonel interrupts her questioning; giving her a small sad smile.

My hands clench tightly into fists, blanching white from the effort, "Don't you fucking talk to her!" I spit through my teeth.

The Colonel stands from the chair where he is seated, offering a hand to help Stephanie up.

My control snaps. I'm across the room in a split second, yanking his head back by his hair. I smash his body into the wall, my forearm pressed firmly against his throat. "Give me one fucking reason why I shouldn't kill you right now?" I snarl into his face.

I expected to see the look of fear or anger in his eyes, but was met with the look of a desperate man; a broken man.

"I never meant for any of this to happen," he pleads, his voice breaking. "It wasn't supposed to be this way. They promised…"

"What the fuck are you talking about? Who promised?" My confusion momentarily overriding my anger.

"They promised safe quarter to our soldiers. No one was supposed to be hurt." The Colonel's face twists in agony, his body sagging into the wall.

I feel a familiar hand on my shoulder, "Come on, man, let's hear what he has to say." Tank's voice is low and beseeching.

I summon the strength to release my hold on him, taking a few steps back. I stand with my hands on my hips staring at the ground. What the fuck is going on here?

"Twenty years ago I was stationed at Camp Henry, in Daegu, South Korea," the Colonel begins, his voice distant in memory.

"I had been working for a year as a petty officer when I met a beautiful Korean woman named Soo Min. I fell in love with her the moment that I met her. We were married within six months and we were expecting our first child."

"I was relocated back to the States. We had our daughter Jae eight months later." The Colonel's voice took on a wistful air. "She was beautiful... She was my whole world."

"Soo Min and I had our problems, just like every other couple; but they grew much worse after Jae's birth. She was bitter about my job, the constant moving around… the loneliness. She couldn't grow accustomed to the cultural shock of living in the U.S. She was miserable, and she blamed me for it."

"I was deployed for a tour in the Middle East when Jae was three years old… when I came back, Soo Min had fled back to Korea, taking Jae with her." The Colonel hung his head, tears streaming down his face and falling to the floor. His voice choked with years of anguish.

"I tried for years to gain custody of my daughter, but since Korea has no laws to protect children against parental kidnapping, I had no recourse. The U.S. court system filed for Jae to be repatriated back into the States, charging Soo Min with kidnapping; but Korea does not recognize custody rulings or judgments from foreign governments. I lost her… "

He swallowed the lump in his throat before continuing, "I haven't seen my daughter in thirteen years... She turned sixteen in May."

I was stunned by his admission; my brain trying to absorb the information.

"I was contacted six months ago by a group of North Korean Combatants. They had discovered Jae's parentage by an American soldier. They demanded a trade of sorts to guarantee Jae's safety. She was held hostage, waiting for my compliance. I offered them information about the intelligence mission you were assigned to. They agreed to relocate any incriminating evidence from the compound before your arrival. They promised no hostile action towards the soldiers, safe quarter guaranteed. I thought that I could give them what they wanted and save my daughter with minimal harm to anyone else. "

"When I heard…" the Colonel's voice cracks. "When I heard that your group had been taken as P.O.W.'s, I volunteered for the recovery mission. I convinced myself that it was just some random patrol group who discovered you, but when you told me of the capture, I knew that wasn't the case. If I would have known…"

The Colonel's body is racked with sobs, his hands covering his face. I am torn between warring emotions; anger for his betrayal and sorrow for his suffering.

"I tried to cover up any trail leading to me. I knew that if I was incarcerated no one would be left to search for my daughter…"

The Colonel turns his tortured eyes to me, searching my soul. "Forgive me… please forgive me, because I will never forgive myself." He wipes the tears from his face with the sleeve of his shirt.

"Tell me Major… what would you be willing to do to save the person that you love the most in this world? What price would you being willing to pay?"

My eyes flicker to my Babe, staring at the Colonel, tears pooling in her eyes. I didn't even have to think about my answer. I already knew. There are no limits to what I would do to protect her. No cost too great.

I look at the Colonel's face, for the second time, seeing the similarities between us and praying that I am never in this man's position.

Once again the black and white world that I live in is clouded in gray; right and wrong swirling into one another. I battle within myself, trying to find the right course of action.

The question is…

What do I do now?

TBC…

TBC…

Thoughts? Please review!

****In 2008 alone, 1000 American children were abducted and taken to a foreign country by a parent. As of October 25th 2009 Korea is considering signing the Hague Abduction Convention. This will help to prevent international child abduction.