"Damn Bookworm you're indestructible, but I don't think I can imagine you in a tutu" Sonny said with a chuckle breaking the ice
"Don't have to because I never wore one, now Metal in a tutu is another thing all together" Jess said shooting Metal a look of revenge
"Oh really" Jason asked looking at the EOD before looking back at his Alpha counterpart, the look on his face told him it actually happened
"Now Jess come on" Metal said
"Ah you told her secrets, she has every right to tell yours" Ray said cutting him of
"Besides we're family right" Derek the Alpha 2IC interjected
"And family shouldn't keep secrets" Brock added
"Especially something of that magnitude" Clay finished
"How much alcohol was involved" Eric asked curiously
"None" Jess said with a huge smile
"Can't even plead the intoxication defence, please tell me you have this on video" Trent teased
"Yep, got Lindell dressed up as Betty Grabel as well" Jess said remembering the night
"Yeah we'll have a copy of that one to, anyone else we know, I'm guessing this was a NATO thing" Jason said to her
"Yeah, just a little variety show that we would have every 4 months or so, you spent any time at all with NATO then you would have done one" Jess said, she had performed in 4 herself
"Who's grabbing the popcorn" Brock asked, that was the code for lets make a night of it
"My place after we finish" Jess said looking at the group
"Chinese, Bookworm what's that place you can get that stuff from you can eat" Sonny asked her, a night time event meant getting takeout, and there was a short list of restaurants that Jess had been given the okay to order from by her dietitian as they would customise her meal so not to cause her any stomach problems. Trent had emailed Doctor Masterson before they had left Denpasar to explain what had happened, Jess's dietitian had put together a list of places for her covering both eat in and take out for the team as soon as they had touched back down
"The Bamboo Door" Jess said
"I'll pick it up" Brock said
"Take it this isn't just a Bravo get together" Derek asked
"The more the merrier" Jess said, a relaxing night eating takeout with her brothers felt very appealing suddenly, she knew that obviously they would be drinking as well, but hey it was her house and she wouldn't feel judged for not drinking, and the takeout meant she was still able to feel like part of the team and not just have to sit there and watch the others. Her brain suddenly had to flip the switch on what her plans were for the evening as the briefing got set to begin
"Well as we all know Denpasar was a success and its led us to the next level up the chain in our hunt for Al-Tabari, as Jess predicted, he assassinated Safiullah Shahid upon receiving the tip that he was going to turn against him, and we managed to apprehend not only Safiullah's assassin, but also his entire security team, what Bravo isn't currently aware of is that we have also apprehended another 8 of his security teams" Lisa said beginning the briefing
"So to provide a basic tally, in a period of 8 days he's learned that we now know his name and what he's done, we've removed his mole so he no longer has access to our information, he's had word get out that one of his associates was going to turn on him and had to have him taken out and we've rolled up 9 of his security teams" Jess said giving the rest of her brothers a more basic run-down of what had happened in such a short period of time
"So I'm presuming we've spooked him" Eric asked realising the full extent
"Yes, we've detected a large amount of chatter coming from his company that we're currently trying to sort through, Jess and Clay, they want the pair of you to handle the translations, just because we've tracked 1 mole doesn't mean that he may not have others, so we are still keeping this on a need to know until we can get the rest of this command sorted, between you you have a very good knowledge of the foreign languages" Lisa said, Jess mayhave ruffled her feathers a bit but Lisa realised that Jess was more than happy to take the step back and let her handle things now, and Jess was someone that she could turn to if she needed help with something, wanted a back story, different perspective. Jess was more happy in the field on an assault then running the whole show
"Identify the languages first, if its something neither of you can handle then we'll pass it on to someone who knows the language. Until then our job is to sit and wait, we'll continue to roll up his security teams and track any person's of interest we come across. Now I am well aware that Bravo want the chance to nail this guy when we apprehend him" Lindell said providing the guidelines of what he expected to happen next
"Damn right we do" Jason said agreeing with the unit commander
"And you'll get that chance, but you need to be patient, we've got him under 24/7 surveillance and he can't take a dump without us knowing, but we want a clear picture of what's happening, make sure we get as much information as possible before we role him up, the take down will be handled by both Bravo and Alpha and we'll want a full proof plan ready as soon as we get the okay to go and get him" Lindell said, he knew Bravo and Alpha would rather go in and get the bloke now but he needed them to wait
"So just to clarify it will be a case of you say we can go, and we'll turn around and say exactly how we're going to do it and jump on the C130" Ray asked
"That's correct, you lot are going to see this through from start to finish, as soon as we verify the intell you will get it to use and coordinate your plan, until that time however both teams are of rotation until we can get the all clear" Lindell said, downtime was not a easy concept for the teams to deal with, but like any children, if they knew that they would get a big reward at the end of it, they would wait
"Yes sir" the teams said in unison
Work had finished for the day and as they had planned both Bravo and Alpha had gathered at Jess's place for tea and to see the videos, Bravo had been there plenty of times but apart from Metal, Alpha hadn't seen the joint before, and they were not left disappointed. 3 story and absolute beach front, huge undercover entertaining area with full light and heating, one new addition that Bravo hadn't yet seen was the new play equipment that had been set up in the undercover area, no guesses on who that was for, combined with the pool as well he could see Meelah and RJ having a great time playing there with Zalie, even if it was pouring with rain they'd still be warm and dry and he knew Jess would happily set up some extra beds for them to crash on so both he and Naima could stay and talk, and not have to worry about getting the kids home to bed. After giving Alpha the grand tour they had retreated inside to eat and watch the movies on Jess's big cinema screen in her lounge room
"Why Metal, is that blush we're seeing on your cheeks" Clay asked once the song had started
"Trust you to notice the make-up Blondie" Metal said throwing a pillow in his direction
"Wonder if those fishnets were bulletproof" Trent asked
"Man, I feel like a woman" Sonny started singing to Metal copying the Shania Twain song that he was dancing to
"Okay yeah laugh it up, just make sure I don't mention the idea to Lindell about us doing one with DEVGRU, whole point was unit bonding" Metal asked trying to draw some of the attention away from the movie
"Unit bonding hey" Eric asked curiously wondering if it could be used in a way to pull them in line
"Blackburn, forget it" Jason said
"You'd have to participate yourself sir, this was one thing in which rank does not entitle you to certain privileges" Jess added filling in the rest of the details of what was involved
"Hubba hubba hubba I do believe that is our fearless leader, and he's all pretty in pink" Ray said noticing that Lindell was now on the screen
"And all topped of with heels and a blonde wig" Brock added
"Okay that is definitely going to make the rounds with DEVGRU" Derek said with a laugh
"Excuse me" Jess said as her phone started ringing and she got up and walked away to another room to answer it
"What else have we got" Jason asked after the video had finished and there was no sign of Jess to put something else on
"Oohh Italy" Brock said noticing the file
"You know I checked out this place online, considered to be one of the most beautiful places in the world, George Clooney had a villa in the area" Clay said
"The Cloonstar himself, this I gotta see, ooh hello gorgeous" Sonny said as the video came up of Jess's chevvy
"Sonny's in love" Trent teased him
"Can't say I blame him, its a 57, every teenage boys dream car back then, wonder who's it is" Eric asked
"Its mine" Jess said from behind them obviously having walked back into the room without having them notice
"Pardon" Metal asked looking shocked, this was not a secret he had known about
"It's my car, Nonno helped me restore it, he has a fair sized collection of classics" Jess said sitting back down in her spot on the couch
"Please Bookworm, can we go" Sonny asked
"Everything okay" Ray asked noticing a look on Jess's face, it wasn't a operator look, it was a concerned parent look
"Zalie's sick that's all, got herself worked up and Luca's at sea, so Laura let her call me" Jess said trying to brush it of
"Anything serious" Trent asked, if it affected Jess like it did it would likely affect the whole team
"Her asthma, she gets it really bad, Doctors have admitted her to the hospital in Sydney, they were finished packing up and had gone to my parents as they have already sold the house" Jess said filling in the details. Ray now realised the whole point of keeping the undercover area as warm and sheltered as possible. So Zalie could have a space to play safely and still get fresh air with friends
"You wanna fly out" Eric asked looking at her, they were on stand down anyway and Jess could manage working on the translations of base
"Torn between it sir" Jess said indicating that she was uncertain of what to do, this was her first time in this position and Zalie had asked her to come personally, yes Jess's parents were there along with Luca's sister, but she still had asked for her to come. Jess had been a little worried that this time apart would have resulted in Zalie and her not being as close with their relationship and she wouldn't see her as a mother figure, but that was obviously not the case
"We'll head, let us know how she goes Jess and thanks for the hospitality" Metal said sensing that this was a Bravo job
"Will do and you're welcome" Jess said standing up and hugging each of the boys before they left