Chapter 4

"You must have a sixth sense or something, Section. You always seem to know when we might be shipping out."

David grinned as he looked over the listing that the logistics officer was overseeing. He joked, "Well like the boy scouts, always be prepared. Right Jeffries?"

Petty Officer Alana Jefferies smirked at David and cried, "Bull shit, Section."

"Hey, always gotta think ahead." David grinned at Jefferies as she continued looked at the specs. She was good at her job in making sure that they had their equipment together. She had a way of securing even specialized items within a timeframe that was too good to be true. "And it's not like you can't work your magic, Bazaar."

Jefferies scowled at the nickname she had been saddled with. It was only because on one deployment that she had been able to bargain for use of some equipment. It was unconventional, but they needed it. The payment wasn't overly bad, but it saddled her with a nickname that she couldn't shake. She then joked, "Well it's better than being called Aladdin or something like that."

David chuckled, "True."

Jefferies ran a few more items on her checklist. She glanced at David and asked, "So… how's the family?"

"Things are good."

Jefferies nodded and accepted that. She long suspected that there was something going on between the team leader and the intelligence operative attached to the team. It was like a known secret on the team. She didn't have a problem with it. She remembered what it was like when the commander lost his wife; it had been a low point.

When the intelligence officer codenamed Sombra came into the picture, things changed. Jefferies liked it especially after meeting her. She was impressed at the level of professionalism they exhibited. It became more of like the team's effort at protecting it. She was certain that the general was aware, but the man was like a closed book.

"Thanks."

Jefferies was pulled out of her musings and turned to see David looked at her. She frowned, uncertain at what he meant. "What?"

"I know what you and the guys have been doing." David stared pointedly at Jefferies. "Thanks."

Jefferies nodded back. Not much had to be said. "Hey, we're a team. Family even." She checked her watch, "Just ten minutes to get to briefing. And we're good here for the most part."

David looked at everything and nodded. He gave a look at Jefferies, "See ya there, Jefferies." He paused by the door and turned with a grin on his face, "Oh, and Harper might have a new one for you."

"Not a chance in hell," Jefferies replied with a grin as she propped the clipboard on her hip. She gave a gesture like a mother shooing a child out of the kitchen, making David laugh. She added, "I did get a request for an MWD and a certain dog was cleared by the general."

David mock groaned at that as he left. It had been an up in the air proposal in recent weeks. There was no doubt that MWDs were valuable assets for teams. They came in all different forms depending on the need. They were used in Afghan to detect IEDs and other related chemicals. The multiple tactics dogs were the best since they were trained to go just about anywhere and do anything.

General Hendrix was the first to suggest the dog that adopted Torres be added to the team. He was already trained and since Torres was on the team, it wouldn't be farfetched to have her train with the handlers and the dog for ops. David, doing his job offered token opposition citing the dog's retirement and that Torres was not military but a civilian.

It had also been a discussion between him and Torres when they were alone in bed or just talking after the girls went to bed. Torres didn't see a problem with it and in honesty, David didn't either. His beef was merely competition with the dog, a good natured one since they got along. From what Jefferies was saying, it looked like it was going to be official and David wasn't sure how it was going to play out with everything.

Walking down the hall, he could see his team heading in. He couldn't see Torres though and figured that she was already in there. She varied her arrival times to evade suspicion. That was fine since he did the same unless they contrived to meet and walk in and even then, they played it off as a coincidence. Heading towards the room, he paused when a hand was placed on his shoulder and reacted.

"Oye there mate," Jackson nearly shouted as he raised his hands in surrender. "Don't need another black eye. And from a friendly no less."

David chuckled, "And nothing you haven't deserved, Jacks."

"Now that really hurt, mate," Jackson countered, placing a hand over his heart as if he had been wounded. He grinned to show that he wasn't overly upset about the almost run in with David's fist. "Of course, I'm just the FNG to you buggers."

David grinned and slapped Jackson's shoulder. "More than that in most things, Jacks."

They were standing outside the room, depositing their cell phones. The room was SCIF conditions and considering the nature of their operations, it wasn't uncommon. David looked at the British operative that had become a reliable asset and friend to the team. He owed the man for saving his life. He was the one that took out the tango that would have blown his head off with the whole Menendez operation and he was the one that kept FOB Spectre from falling. That all went back to the friend and sort of boss that they had.

Jackson looked at the Yank that he had liked the moment they met. He never thought things would end up this way when he had been approached by the woman who claimed she worked for Spectre. She interviewed him along with a few others from his unit. Next thing he knew, he was reassigned to Credenhill and given a formal introduction and assigned to one of, he had no idea how many teams, that worked under SP. He made a name more from his reputation as being a devil's breath and earned his designation within SP and because of a few antics with his new team.

Now he was assigned to David's SEAL team and he was actually enjoying it. The job was the same. Certain things were different based on country of origin. What mattered is that they were fighting for the same thing; they had the same goals and that was to put the terrorists away and keep the world safe. Looking at David, he grinned, "Hey, we're all on the same team, mate. By the way, a certain friend says hello."

David watched as Jackson went into the room. He suppressed a sigh before going in. No doubt this briefing was going to be a mission with SP in charge. That meant a little more leeway in terms of what they could do but they were still under a chain of command. He had a pretty good idea that Spectre was in the house since Jackson would not have said what he did if she wasn't. It made him want to see how General Hendrix would react to the operative that was known for making grown men cry and mold them into some modicum of decency.

Making sure his phone was in the container, he entered the room to see most of the team in there. His gaze immediately went to the front where he noticed his longtime friend standing in a corner. Next to her was one of her guards, but it wasn't her usual. This guy was tall, silent, brood and gave the clear impression that if you tried to ask him a question you could fuck off. If you messed with him, he would probably kick your ass and rub your nose in it. David knew this type of guy and when they were on your side, they were the best to have. This was going to be interesting.

David didn't approach Spectre but gave a slight nod and took his seat next to Harper. Crosby and Jackson were there as well as a couple of new faces assigned to the team. All were SEALs and handpicked. He knew who had a hand in that. Well, he thought he knew. They proved their mettle on the ops they were together on.

The door opened and in walked the general followed by Torres. The clicking of nails on the floor told David that JSOC was with her. He rolled his eyes slightly when the dog crossed behind him and took a spot next to David with a low rumble in his throat. Torres took her customary seat, not batting an eye at JSOC's behavior. He didn't react either except to give the dog an ear rub. His fingers brushed hers when she did the same thing allowing a brief moment of contact before she put her hands folded on the table.

David leaned back in his seat. Normally, if there were brass around, there would be salutes all around. Even though Hendrix was a by the book commander, he was relaxed enough to allow some leeway. It was a lesson of learning to take a little and give a little on both sides. Besides they dealt in black ops. They did things that were not seen.

"Good morning everyone," General Hendrix said looking at his men. "To start things off, orders came through and we have an MWD assigned to the team which will be handled by Sombra."

There were some murmurs. Torres was popular and well-liked by the team. Even though she was a civilian, she had roughed it out with them when she deployed with them and they all knew what she did for them and for the president. She had put more than one man from them and other teams on the mat in sparring. The latest only meant that she would be going more on deployments and they liked the idea of it and having an MWD would help too.

Hendrix looked around and everyone settled down. He turned towards his guests in the corner, standing there and nodded before turning towards the team. "We've received a call from an undercover agent with actionable intel. Agent Walker." He gestured towards the corner.

David frowned and raised his brow slightly as he looked at his friend. He could tell that it was serious. She looked tired meaning that she flew all night to get there to deliver it in person rather than getting on the horn. He didn't miss the glance his friend gave towards Torres and the return nod. He didn't say anything since he long learned that with Spectre all answers will be revealed. At least the ones relevant to the mission.

"Alright," Spectre said, becoming the serious, not missing a beat at being called by her designation with the Agency. "As part of getting back on track with the riots, we have been monitoring our borders, particularly in the south. For decades the cartels of Mexico have been a serious problem, the obvious being that they have more clout than the federales.

"As of now, there are several cartels of interest, but one has been on a rise. It is an offshoot of the Michoacán family cartel run by this man."

The table lit up to reveal the image of the cartel leader. David looked at the image and then glanced at Spectre. His gut was telling him that something was coming, and he might not like it. He turned to look back and listened.

"Meet Nicolás Castellano de Huerta," Spectre continued, "Member of La Familia Michoacán. Rose up in the ranks and started his own cartel operating in Michoacán." She tapped the keyboard and other images and data appeared. "His drug dealings are like an open secret but legally there is nothing to hold him. Most of his funding is through legitimate businesses and in terms of getting local cooperation…"

"He's like a Mexican Robin Hood," Harper muttered out loud.

"Exactly," Spectre replied, not missing a beat. "Like most cartels, their contributions back to the communities make it hard to remove them. Operating in poor areas gains a lot of loyalty and a supply of foot soldiers."

"So, what are we doing?" David leaned forward and gave a pointed look.

"We've had a DEA agent undercover for two years gathering intel. At 0400 hours yesterday, we received a transmission from our agent telling us about a meeting. The meeting is between another cartel and de Huerta."

"And this is our concern, how?" Harper looked at Spectre trying to see where the point to this was.

"The cartel he is meeting with is the Menendez cartel." Spectre looked at the team surrounding the table, waiting for their reaction.

"But Menendez is dead."

David raised his brow as he thought about what he just heard. Word would have gotten out that Menendez was dead. He saw the video on social media that stated that it had been scheduled to play upon his death and called for Cordis Dei to rise up. It then occurred to him and he voiced, "The cartel is still in play."

"Yes," Spectre affirmed, "We managed to seize the business and give the impression that it is still in play. No drugs are actually being moved but the impression is there. Again, legitimate businesses." She looked at the team and continued, "With de Huerta pushing for a meeting, it is suggesting that he's going to make a power play. The La Familia cartel has been losing ground over the last few years. The other cartels are in a state of panic and are willing to go to war."

"And how will merging with the Menendez cartel involve us? The guy's dead."

Spectre looked at Harper and then the rest of the team. "Because de Huerta knows that Menendez' heir runs the show."

"And who is that?"

"Me."

"David, don't be like this."

David paced the length of the office as he tried to process his thoughts and the mission that his team would be going on. He glanced over near the door to see Torres looking at him. She was standing there with a pensive, almost sad expression and he cursed himself for acting this way.

It had been a bit of a shock to hear that Menendez left her his operations. The legitimate ones at least. The worst part was the fact that Spectre kept it from them. She knew better than anyone how Torres felt about the whole thing. Then to hear that his team was being tapped to take out de Huerta, but they were putting Torres in undercover…

"I didn't know about it until this morning," Torres said as she watched the man that she cared for and admired pace, agitated.

"Good ole Spectre. Telling you when it's convenient. For her," David snorted as he turned to look out the window.

"And you know that it's not like that," Torres countered. She took a step forward, glad that they took this out of sight of the others. "She didn't fly over here on a red eye just to make it another mission. You know what she's about."

David placed his forearm on the glass and leaned against the window, looking out. He pressed his forehead to his arm and sighed, "Trying to right the wrongs of Spectre." He straightened up and turned to look at Torres, "But it involves you, Mone."

"Not by my choice," Torres replied with a slight swallow. She didn't like it either, but she knew the stakes. "But it's there. In the end, Papa did what he thought was right and it protected me and my brothers all these years."

"It doesn't mean that you have to get involved."

"Spectre tapped me into SP. I have done undercover before." Torres paused as she took a breath. She was surprised at how forceful she sounded. She didn't want to get into a fight with him when he was only concerned about her. "It's the job. Just like it's your job to go in and do the things the rest of the world will never know about, but they are safer for it."

David sighed, placing his hands on his hips. She was right and he knew it. He still didn't understand the methods to Spectre's madness at times, but he trusted it. He just didn't like the fact that it was involving his girlfriend and on a personal level. "But this is going to that place that scares you."

Torres glanced downward. He didn't have to voice it, but she knew what he meant by that. He had been there with her the day she learned the truth and she partly used it as an excuse to hold out from getting closer. It took a sparring match to lay it all out and she said yes. Looking downward, she replied, "I know. And… I've thought about it. A lot."

David studied her as she looked up at him. He knew that if he put his foot down and went to Hendrix, the man was going to ask him why. That would open up a can of worms that everyone was in willful ignorance about and really throw things for a loop. He pressed, "And you really want to do this?"

Torres shook her head slightly, "I don't want to but…" She swallowed slightly and looked at David firmly in the eye, "It needs to be done."

"And I get that." David took a couple of steps forward. "Doesn't mean that you have to be the one to do it." He didn't want to voice getting someone else since that would send another message entirely. Yet, he was digging a hole by not saying it but leaving it implied. He added almost hastily, "And I don't mean that you're incapable. I know you are. Saved my ass."

"Then why are you against it? Aside from the fact that the operation was given to me by my godfather." Torres stared full on, trying not to blink. David had given her reasonable reasons why she shouldn't. Some centered on her and her wellbeing. She wanted to know what else.

David realized what she was getting at. It was almost like when he was working up the courage to ask her out and he had a hard time coming out and saying it. He knew he gave the sound reasons. She was after what he really was concerned about. It made him feel like a cornered animal at times since he was raised not to reveal too much on feelings. She wasn't raised the same and expected honesty, even if it was something more feminine like sharing feelings.

He also knew that if he didn't answer, she would be like a dog with a bone. Harper joked that it was like her call sign. She was a shadow and stuck to you. Knowing that, he sucked it up and took a breath before replying in a low tone, "I… am afraid, Mone."

Torres watched David's expression and her features became pensive as she stepped closer and reached out and placed her hand in the crook of his arm. Her fingers flexed slightly, but she didn't move them. She wanted to say something, but she didn't. She sensed that he had more that he wanted to say and if she said anything, it wouldn't come out.

David was hesitant to say more, but he knew he had to get it out. He glanced down at her hand as her fingertips twitched at his elbow. He covered her fingers with his own and squeezed them gently. He looked at her and repeated, "I'm afraid of losing you, Mone. You are the best thing to come into my life. I love you."

Torres looked up at David. She could see the vulnerability and worry in his eyes. Most of the time, he hid his feelings. On this job, you had to. You had to go in without letting your emotions getting the better for you. It could make an op go sideways and ways that would be totally wrong. The fact that he was allowing himself to feel and show it said a lot. She remembered the first time he said 'I love you'. She didn't expect it much like when he asked her out and they were sparring. Yet, it gave her the warm and fuzzies and she was able to admit the same.

David took a breath as he watched her. She was still squeezing his elbow in a comforting gesture. He studied her. He continued, "I know it's the job, but I just want you to know that apart from your brothers, there is someone that cares. I mean… well…" He struggled to figure out what to say and he was coming up blank.

Torres noticed and she put a hand on his mouth to stop him, "I know, David. I love you too." She gave a smile and took a breath. "David… it'll be okay. We are all trained and knowing you, you'd probably have more than one contingency to go with Spectre's idea of contingency."

David knew that there would be no way out of this. It was going down no mater what. The benefit was that she was on his team. They all trusted each other and knew the drill. He also knew that Spectre would have a few elements in place. He couldn't help but be worried since undercover held a certain amount of risk. "I know."

Torres looked up at David and took his other hand with hers. She squeezed it and intertwined her fingers with his. She chuckled slightly and at David's inquisitive look, she said, "Just thinking. What if Hendrix saw this?"

"Probably stare at us, then tell me that he would see me in his office."

"Then?"

"I'd go and get the biggest ass chewing on the planet." David looked away, trying to hide the fact that he was worried at that possibility. "Then Spectre would be forced to reassign you." He looked at her. "And then I wouldn't see you again."

Torres sobered but still managed to give a smile. "And I would find a way to see you. Including sneaking in through a window, late at night." She grinned and couldn't resist letting a giggle out. "At least you don't have a dog or over protective roommates."

David growled a little at that, "You still like reminding me about that huh?"

"Still funny."

David stared at her, trying to be stern, but couldn't. It came out as a chuckle and the tension in the room lessened. She laughed with him and it allowed him to engulf her hands in his and intertwine their fingers. He knew that he was going to have to relent. This was a mission after all. "Okay. So, I guess we better get the deets from Spectre."

"My thoughts exactly." Torres leaned forward and gave a gentle peck on his lips. She smiled as she pulled back. She squeezed his hands one last time before stepping back. She moved towards the door. She paused when she had it opened and turned towards him to add, "Look at it this way, I have the two best men on the job and one can crush a limb with his jaws."

David rolled his eyes and made a slight sound as he followed her. "Right. I know one arm he wants to crush."

"JSOC likes you."

"As a chew toy."

They looked at each other and shared a laugh. By the time they made it to where Spectre was waiting, it looked like they were just chatting about nothing. It was business as usual between them even though they both were apprehensive about the upcoming undercover and capture/kill mission. David made a mental note to speak with logistics to include a few more things if it were possible. He wasn't willing to take too many chances with the life of the woman that challenged him and encouraged him to be better, not just on the job, but as a person.

A/N: Spectre lays down the op and the undercover is Torres. Section doesn't like it over much. Stay tuned for next time on Unfailing Precision...