"I feel the pressure is building in me
My stomachs sick, its getting harder to breathe
I hear the screaming, I feel the disease
There's blood in the air, and there is death on the breeze" Comanche by In this moment.

"You need to chill out mate." Lee spoke but Gunnar didn't hear him. He was too busy staring daggers at Zane. The other man was hunched over a table talking with Barney and Alex. Rocco had been sent to scout out the place they were meeting their contact tomorrow. Zane seemed to feel that was the safest place for the man at the moment. Barney and Lee had calmed down after hearing Alex's toned down version of the story but Gunnar was still seething. It didn't help that at that moment Zane was standing rather close to Alex. Lee shook his head, his friend really needed to learn to put personal feelings aside when it came to a job. Then he joined the group at the table and spread a map on it. The map was a detailed picture of the complex there were "visiting" the next day.

Gunnar clenched his fist tightly when he saw Alex turn to Zane and give him a sly smile. Zane laughed at something she had said. The rest of the team however seemed unfazed by the twosomes interactions. Gunnar knew it was just playful banter but it still irked him. Gunnar knew the man Zane really was. He wasn't the charming rogue with perfect manners he seemed. He was really a psychopath with a narcissistic personality. In truth Gunnar was sure the man had Narcissistic personality disorder. He was smart though and knew how to hide it. Even Gunnar at one point had trusted him and he had paid dearly for it. Zane felt like he deserved the best of everything and was better than everyone. In his mind he was incapable of making mistakes it was always someone else's fault.

Alex hadn't spoken to Gunnar in over an hour and she had no plans on changing that anytime soon. The sun was setting now and Rocco had returned but had been banished by Zane to the farthest corner of the room. That's where he stayed even as the rest of the group ate their dinner and went over plans for the next day. Every few minutes Alex would catch Gunnar looking at her and she gave him her best fuck you look. In fact Gunnar was pretty sure she had been practicing it while locked in the bathroom. Every time she sent it his way he felt cold chills. He wasn't sure he had ever seen her this mad.

"So what is a beautiful woman such as yourself doing in this line of work?" Gunnar heard Zane ask Alex. He scoffed and looked up anticipating a freak out. Zane was about to learn how easy it was to anger her. The one time Gunnar had made the mistake of asking a question similar to that she nearly bit his head off.

Surprising everyone Alex replied by laughing. " Really that's your line? Well if you must know this is the only place I feel at home. I'm good at this kind of work and it lets me travel. How many people can say the same?"

Gunnar's jaw dropped even Caesar was looking at her like she had grown a second head. What happened to the rambling diatribe about gender equality and society being stuck in the middle ages. She didn't even accuse him of insulting her intelligence or skill. What the fuck was going on here? Why was she being so nice to this man? It had taken Gunnar weeks to get her act that easy going around him. Had hell frozen over or did she actually believe this nice guy act Zane was putting on. Gunnar grabbed barney and pulled him outside not caring what the others thought.

"Look I know you all think I'm overreacting but I'm telling you that cant trust him."

Barney rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Do you think I cant see that Gunnar?"

Gunnar stayed silent with his arms crossed over his chest.

"Look I have known you for long enough now that I trust your judgment. If I didn't I wouldn't have let you back on the team. That being said I can see something isn't right with those two even without you saying a word." Barney finished.

"But Alex-" Gunnar started and was cut off

"Gunnar I need you to stop worrying about what Alex is doing and get your head in the game. She is a big girl and believe it or not she can take care of herself." Before Gunnar could argue Barney changed the subject.

"I want us to sleep in shifts tonight. One person awake at all times." Then he returned to the room leaving Gunnar by himself in the hallway.

An hour later the group was ready to turn in for the night and Gunnar insisted on taking first watch. He pulled a chair up against the wall at the foot of Alex's bed. He caught Rocco's gaze and gave him a look that seemed to say I dare you.

Alex sighed when she realized Gunnar wasn't going anywhere. She hadn't talked to him directly since that afternoon and she was still aggravated with him. She couldn't believe he had acted like that. She was certainly capable of defending herself and he knew it. He acted more like some jealous teenager than a guardian. Then he had the nerve to treat her like some delicate flower that couldn't be left alone. Never in her life had she met anyone who could infuriate her so much while at the same time endear her to them. Which is exactly what he did. Even though his actions pissed her off they told her he did care for her. There were times when he came off as incapable of real emotion well other than anger of course. He was very good at expressing that one when necessary, this afternoon was proof of that. Maybe she was more angry with herself for letting herself understand his point of view even a little. He acted like a complete psycho and yet she felt herself falling further for him. Which was insane and just showed how broken she herself was, hence the anger. She even felt bad for flirting with Zane which she had done specifically to piss Gunnar off. She had known he was watching and took advantage of Zane's interest to get back at him. Alex wasn't stupid Zane was obviously full of himself and she didn't entirely trust him. Even with this realization she doubted to could put aside her pride long enough to apologize to and then thank Gunnar for trying to help even if he did make it worse.

Alex had slept fitfully that night. Nightmares still plagued her. She had woken up numerous times the night before and each time after she had fallen back asleep the dream came back. When barney had woken her up that morning she had been dreaming of floating down a river of blood. As she looked at herself in the mirror she couldn't help but notice she was starting to develop dark circles under her eyes.

"Come on Alex hurry up I gotta piss!" Caesar yelled as he pounded on the door.

She sighed and threw her stuff back into her bag then unlocked the door to the bathroom and shuffled out allowing Caesar entrance. She glanced at Gunnar quickly and noticed he seemed much calmer today. She wasn't sure if it meant anything though. You know the old saying still waters run deep, well Gunnar was the poster child for that saying.

"Is this your first warlord?" Zane asked as he approached her by the jeep.

"I'm sorry what? Alex said confused by the question.

"Is this the first job you've worked where you had to take out a warlord?"

"Oh um yeah I suppose." She said uncomfortably.

Zane laughed. "I've killed so many I've lost count. They are like roaches popping up all over the country, they all think they are the top of the food chain. Its not until someone like us shows up that they find out how wrong they are."

Alex looked at him strangely she had felt something wasn't right with him but this was the first time it was so obvious. Zane seemed to realize he dropped the gentleman façade to much and instantly changed the subject to his hometown an how much he missed it.

Alex felt a tug on the back of her shirt. She turned to see a little boy no more than seven or eight. He was dressed in rags and didn't have any shoes on his feet. He didn't say anything just looked up at her with his big brown eyes a plea written on his face. He held out his hands and Alex's heart went out to him.

"This town is full of little beggars like em." Zane interrupted.

Alex cast a scornful look in his direction and pulled a few bill out of her pocket to give the small child. She also handed him some food from her pack a few granola bars and some beef jerky. She wished she had more cash to give him but she knew it was probably for the best it would more than likely be stolen by an older child. The boy flashed her a small smile then disappeared down an alley way.

Alex turned he attention back towards Zane. "He was just a kid."

"I know but you should try to toughen up some. The guy we are after recruits young boys just like him. He brainwashes them to his cause and gives them guns. For all you know that was one of his spies." Then he gave her a look that clearly said he thought her naïve and jumped in the jeep. Rocco followed suit as he was never far behind his partner and they rode off.

Gunnar gave her a start when he spoke from behind her. "I'm sorry. I just wanted you to know that."

"Huh?" Alex said caught of guard by his abrupt apology.

"For yesterday, I shouldn't have acted the way I did. I wont apologize for stepping in that's just who I am but I will admit I handled the situation badly and I'm sorry for that."

Alex stared at him wide eyed. Had hell frozen over? Were pigs flying? Something was definitely going on because Gunnar Jensen had just apologized to someone.

"I appreciate that Gunnar. For what its worth I'm sorry too I also overreacted. I know you were just trying to help."

"Alright boys and girl lets load up." Barney shouted cutting their conversation short.

They were splitting into groups of three. Zane and Rocco made one group. Barney, Lee and Alex made another and Gunnar, Caesar, Road and Yang were the third. The first groups job was simply to wait at a safe distance until the path was clear for them to search the compound for the weapons. The Second was to get to a good vantage point where the entire compound was in sight. There Alex would set up camp on high ground of some kind with her rifle. Said rifle had a thermal imaging scope and she would be using it to help the guys navigate through the compound. It wasn't dark yet but the great thing about her new scope was that it could be used at anytime of the day. Regular night vision scopes weren't always reliable because they could only be used in certain conditions. Her scope detected heat energy instead of light and body heat will always stand out against cooler objects. Meaning no one could hide from her as long they were outside of the buildings. The third group was basically infantry their job was to get inside and kill as many of the bad guys as possible it was also the most dangerous job.

The group piled into the jeep which wasn't easy Yang was practically sitting on the edge of the damn thing and Alex was squished between Barney and Lee up front. They rode in relative silence with Caesar cracking the occasional joke trying to lighten the mood. When they got to the drop off point where the second group would head out on foot Alex locked eyes with Gunnar. She could finally admit she was scared for him. It wasn't an easy thing to come to terms with either. Some part of her recognized the disregard he had for his own life and how he sought out danger more so than the others anyway. She was afraid the fortune teller had foreseen his death and that was the loss she spoke of. As she stepped out of the jeep her hand brushed his lightly.

"Can you hand me my bag?" She asked softly not wanting to draw attention to them. He nodded them handed it over. She tossed bag on the ground and began to assemble the rifle as quickly as possible. Gunnar jumped out of the back and crouched down next to her not saying a word. Alex looked over her shoulder to see if anyone was watching. They weren't Barney and Lee were gong over the plan one last time with the other three.

She turned back and after assembling her gun stood it up to look at it. Without taking her eyes of the gun she spoke.

"You're going to be careful right?" She didn't look at him because she was afraid her emotions were written all over her face.

"What?" Gunnar asked perplexed.

"I mean you're not going to run in there all gung ho and get shot are you?"

Gunnar smiled then stood up taking her hand and pulling her up with him.

"Listen doll I don't plan on dying today. Besides I got an angel looking over my shoulder ready to shoot anyone who gets too close." He said then smirked and playfully tapped his fist against her chin.

Alex laughed at the idea of her being an angel in anyone's eyes and slapped his shoulder. A second later Gunnar leaned down and lightly kissed her on the lips causing her heart to skip a beat. She stood there stunned as he climbed into the passenger seat without a word. When she came back to her senses she turned to the others to see if anyone had caught the kiss. Thankfully the only ones facing them were Lee and Yang and neither seemed to be paying attention. She sighed relieved not wanting to have to explain anything at the moment. Unfortunately both men had seen their interaction and both had entirely different reactions to it. Alex threw her gun over her shoulder and walked over to Lee and Barney. They had moved away from the vehicle signaling they were getting ready to leave. Alex gave one last look towards the jeep as it disappeared into a cloud of dust.

They were in the northwest part on Somalia near the Karkaar mountain range and the terrain was challenging to say the least. It was rocky and there the ground was covered with shrubs and small trees. None of which offered much cover there were basically crouched down for half the trip. Alex was glad she had decided to wear her hunter green tank and khakis today maybe it would help her blend in some. She wasn't sure whose idea it had been to go in broad daylight but she had a few words for them. The sun should be setting by the time they would be leaving if everything went as planned but that didn't help them now. She grunted as a barbed shrub snagged her shirt and cut her slightly.

"There." Barney said in a low tone.

She looked and saw they were approaching the compound it was surrounded by a ten foot fence with barbed wire. Fortunately it only had one watchtower to the south. She looked around there location and saw a spot nearby on a ridge that should provide her with enough cover to keep her hidden as long as she didn't move to much. She signaled to the others she was breaking off and they nodded letting her know they understood. Once up there she carefully crawled over to the edge and set up her rifle so she could look through the scope. She surveyed the complex carefully. There was one main building and a hangar that she hoped didn't have a plane or any other means of quick escape and a few small buildings scattered around. She could see Barney and Lee slowly approaching the north side of the fence. She watched as they cut and pulled away a section of the fence before squeezing through. They left no trace of their entrance. She looked ahead of them and spotted four armed men about to walk up on them. She spoke a quick warning into her headset. They expertly eliminated the threat without alerting others to their presence. Once she was sure they were ok for the time being she zoomed out to find the other group. Alex's jaw dropped when she saw them or at least two of them. While she did remember it being said they would go in the front she didn't expect what she was now seeing. Gunnar and Caesar were in the jeep and it was barreling towards the front gate at full speed. Gunnar was standing up firing a grenade launcher at the watchtower. Alex watched in shock as the tower fell over crushing one of the smaller buildings in the process. Meanwhile Caesar was leaning around the edge of the vehicle and firing his Gatling gun at the guards near the gatehouse. Just before they crashed through the gate Gunnar had the sense to duck down into the relative safety of the jeep. What the hell had she just watched? She saw them take out man after man and began to feel slightly less nervous. Finally she zoomed back out and searched for Yang and Toll Road. She found them not far from where Barney and Lee where. From what she heard through her earpiece they were meeting up then going to clear the smaller buildings one by one before

heading for the main building. Gunnar and Caesar were to serve as a sort of distraction. For the most part Alex just watched every now and then she gave a heads up to someone or took out a guy when necessary. After about twenty minutes the guys had regrouped and where heading into the main building. Alex waited finger on the trigger the anticipation killing her. She could hear gunfire and a lot of yelling in her ear but it was so loud she couldn't tell what was being said. Things eventually quieted down and Alex relaxed some. Out of the corner of her eye she caught movement she turned the scope that direction and saw a truck pulling out of the hangar.

"Hey guys there is a truck leaving the hangar…ok scratch that two trucks." She said.

She heard Lee on the other end. "What do you wanna bet they are carrying our weapons?"

"Do you think you can slow them down kid?" Barney asked.

"I can try." She responded.

She took aim at the right front tire of the first truck and fired a couple shots then shot out the back right. The truck was pretty large though and had double tires in the back. She couldn't stop it completely but at least she could slow it down.

The front truck stopped and a man jumped out of the passenger side to see what had happened. Alex did a double take when she realized it was Zane. She watched in shock as the second truck came to a stop behind him and let out a few men. All of them militia ones that they were supposed to be killing she would bet anything the warlord they were after was one of them. Shit that fucker was against them from the beginning. She knew he couldn't be trusted completely but she never expected this. He was working with the others the entire time. Which meant this was probably a set up.

"Guys! Hey guys!" She almost yelled. When she didn't get a instant reply she panicked an jumped up running down the hill.

She went in the back way through the fence the same as Barney and Lee had. As she rounded a corner she drew her pistol. Before she knew it a giant fist came flying at her face knocking her back a few feet.

"I knew you were bound to cause us trouble." Rocco sneered at her. "Boss doesn't want you dead though."

Alex spit blood at his feet. "What can I say trouble is my middle name." They circled each other for a few moments before Alex threw a punch that connected with his nose causing blood to spurt everywhere.

"Fucking whore!" He yelled in response. Then he lunged at her catching her off guard he grabbed her around the neck and slammed her into the side of the building. She clawed at his face trying to get him to let go when all else failed she kneed him in the groin. Instead of letting go his grip tightened though the only way she could tell it affected him at all was his face turning a bright red. Through gritted teeth he said to her. "Bitch, I'm going to enjoy killing you." Then he pulled out a knife and ran it down her cheek leaving a thin line of blood.

"Rocco! What did I tell you!" She heard Zane's voice say from somewhere nearby. She couldn't see him though her vision had gone blurry from lack of oxygen.

"But the bitch broke my nose!" Rocco screamed back his voice sounding guttural and animalistic.

"I'm sure you deserved it now bring her to the truck." Zane said calmly.

Rocco turned his gaze back to her and what she saw sent fear into her very bones. In a last ditch effort to get him to let go she clawed at his face again. He let out a roar and slammed her head against the wall. The last thing she saw his face before her world went black and her body slumped to the ground.