Chapter 8

Bail out! Bail out!

Nicolette blinked as she tried to clear the cobwebs from her head. She shifted to see bullets strafing the vehicle that hit them. It was a fucking ambush. She groaned as she shifted to see her route of exit. Their vehicle had landed on its roof, and she could make out the others trying to right themselves and get out with Hassan. She looked and saw that her exit lay in the back door. She reached over and tried the handle, but it didn't budge.

Shadow-1 check fire! Check fire!

Nicolette heard the strafing bullets hit the ground close by. She wanted to curse Graves, but she had to get out since more cartel would be coming. She growled and moved and began kicking at the door. "Come on," she grunted.

Ryan, get the fuck out!

"Trying as fast as I can," she replied as she kicked it hard. She heard the creak. One more kick had the door open. She turned to crawl out, grabbing the ammo packs, in particular the grenades for the launcher on Soap's gun.

Enemy fire popped and ricocheted as she crawled out. She grumbled as she pulled herself out and scrambled to take cover. She took a breath and called, "0-7, I'm out."

We're on the move, Ryan.

All stations, we're engaging danger close. Give me a sitrep when able.

Nicolette shielded her eyes and looked for her team. She saw them on the move. Taking a breath, she got to her feet and pushed forward to link up while covering their asses. She made sure that the ammo bags were secure on her person and was ready to run.

Shadow-1, we're up. No casualties. Hassan is secure.

0-7, copy that. Colonel Vargas, what's the word?

Shadow-1, we'll hardpoint in the building behind us over.

Nicolette looked up. She was still behind but moving. She didn't like that she was that far behind. It made easy pickings for the cartel. At least she knew where she needed to go and made to head in that direction. She battened down her fear since Ghost was not even close by to reassure her and kept moving. She could make out civilians leaving the restaurant as the others were heading in. Stray gunfire forced her to take cover behind a vehicle.

Ryan, where are you?

"I'm just outside the restaurant. Not my fault you decided I needed to hoof it by myself," she replied to Ghost, making light of the fact that they were in a precarious situation.

Get your arse in here ASAP.

"Copy, that," she replied as she checked her surroundings.

Graves and the Shadows managed to clear the way within a couple of minutes for her to run into the building. She knew that they had taken position on the roof and made her way up. She shouted to let them know, "Friendly, coming up."

Soap was there to give her a hand up. "Perfect timing, lass."

"You know I like to make an entrance," Nicolette replied as she took up position.

It wasn't looking good since it seemed that the cartel had taken positions just about all sides of their position. Some were toting RPGs, and some had mortar fire. She switched to her sniper rifle and positioned herself to help take out the ones that would be a problem. Rodolfo had called for the helicopters to extract by air and that was going to take some time.

Shadow-1, we're taking RPG fire from the east. Roping now.

Copy. Engaging.

All stations, extract birds are inbound. Five minutes!

The fight continued until Ghost shouted that the enemy had infiltrated the building. It was ballsy, but they needed to clear it fast. Nicolette pulled two grenades from her pouch and threw them down the access hatch and closed the door. The muffled boom could be felt through the roof. Nicolette then opened the hatch and pointed her rifle down. She fired a couple of shots at the ones that had survived the explosion. "Building clear," she called.

"Good shot, mate," Ghost said, appreciating the assist.

The rest outside were taken out by Graves. The shots came danger close since there were still a few cartel trying to make their way to the target building. Nicolette took the opportunity to check perimeter.

Bravo 0-7, Shadow-1, all visible threats are down.

Ghost checked and confirmed. "Be advised. Resupplies are low. Conserve your ammo. Sergeant, sitrep?"

Soap checked on their prisoner, "Hassan is secure. He's still a prick."

Nicolette rolled her eyes as she moved to where she had stashed her policed ammo bags from the exfil vehicle and dragged them out of the line of fire. She opened them and pulled out the mags and lined them up to count what they had. She was impressed at Rodolfo's planning and commented, "You know how to stock a pantry, Rudy."

"I had a bossy hermana teach me," Rodolfo responded.

Ghost turned and saw Nicolette taking inventory. "Ryan, ammo?"

Nicolette finished and started distributing. "Three, four mags each. Plenty of grenades," she replied. She handed a set to him, "Grabbed them from the back. They'll buy us a little more time, but the next wave will be a lot more intense."

"From experience?"

Nicolette looked at him and asked, "What do you think?"

Ghost nodded in understanding and watched her give mags to Alejandro, Rodolfo, and Soap. He checked his weapon after making sure she was set and ready. He knew something was up when she heard something over the comms and gestured. He turned and saw it. "Incoming!"

The next volley of fire was on. This time they brought anti-air fire to the scene and were taking shots at Shadow company. Nicolette switched to her sniper to try and thin them out. She listened to the positions called out and shifted accordingly. The first one she found was by the school building. She blinked when she saw multiples in her scope. She took aim and fired.

The influx of cartel forced her to shift back to her other rifle. She moved to support and took aim. "Shadow-1, we've got multiple hostiles here. Where are you?"

Got you covered, S64.

The resulting strafing run from the 25mm certainly covered them and reduced the numbers. It allowed the team to take out the stragglers. Her clip emptied and she put in another clip. She shouted, "Alejandro, where's the extraction? We're burning through rounds, here!"

"One minute out!"

"Ghost, I'm getting overrun!"

Nicolette chewed her lip as she kept her position. She knew Ghost would give Soap support. She noticed a group massing at the school. She pulled a grenade and lobbied it out, "Grenade out!"

"Bien," Alejandro commented.

Nicolette nodded and left him a couple of grenades to check on the situation. Soap was down to three mags and Rodolfo was down to two. They really were burning through rounds and Graves reported that more military vehicles were inbound. This was one of the times that she wished she had Addy available, not that she knew how the AI would help in this situation.

With the others running low, Nicolette saved a mag for herself and gave out what was left of her reserves just as Ghost said to get their knives ready. She couldn't help but tell the man, "You really don't want to see my carving technique."

"Be ready for it, Ryan. We may need it," Ghost replied as he accepted the mags she handed him.

She only had pistol mags left now. There were also the grenades for Soap's launcher which she handed to him saying, "Make 'em count."

She walked by Hassan who said to her, "You will pay with your lives."

Nicolette looked at him and kicked him in the gut and told him to shut up. She went to the north side of the building and surveyed the situation. She heard Soap curse that he was out and tossed her last mag at him. "Here. Make it count!"

It put her at risk for being out of ammo, but it would be dire if it got to the point where they were fighting with knives and a lone pistol. She did have some rounds left for the sniper rifle, so she was really low on ammo. She pointed at Rodolfo, "One shot, one kill. Recuerda, hermano!"

"Graves, our exit's blocked by enemy armor. Requesting immediate air support," Ghost shouted and signaled Soap to mark the targets.

TV, engage those enemy armor.

Shadow maneuvered to take out enemy armor just as exfil called to state they were on station. Nicolette spotted them and signaled to Ghost and Alejandro.

Bravo 0-7, extract is on station Exit west of the building, they are standing by.

"Shadow-1, solid copy. We're moving now!"

Nicolette grabbed Hassan since she was the one low on ammo. She rolled her eyes at the complaints from Hassan until they were almost to the chopper. She had enough and said to him in Farsi, "If you don't shut up, I am going to take my knife and cut off your balls and stuff them in your mouth and say you did it yourself."

It had Hassan look at her in disgust and shock. Nicolette didn't care. She was tired as she climbed into the chopper. She didn't even pay attention to Soap asking if it will send a message to the cartel. Of course, it would send a message and more than likely piss the cartel off.

"Everything good, Addy?" Nicolette paced in the CRC of Alejandro's base.

All systems operational. I am still processing the data. The additional power provided by Mexican Special Forces is helping.

When they returned to base, Alejandro gave Nicolette permission to let Addy into the system on his base. She had explained to him that she needed additional processing power for the coding she was working on in relation to their HVI. He was agreeable to it despite her explanations and assurances. She was touched by the level of trust he had with her.

Getting Addy situated prevented her from going with the others to take Hassan out to the middle of the desert to be interrogated. She did take Hassan's phone and plugged it into her tablet. She had a feeling Hassan wasn't going to talk and she was well aware that they really had no reason to hold the bastard. They couldn't kill him because it would start a war and one that would be ill timed. So, she would look for something using her best talent.

Also, she didn't want to go. It wasn't that she wasn't capable. She was just disconcerted by the day's events and the fact that she gave a threat she had given before, but in Spanish. And it was one she had carried out. She knew she had slipped back into the ways she adopted when she visited Alejandro and Los Vaqueros and, for the first time, felt a bit ashamed that it was a part of her. She knew the reasons why and she knew that she still had a lot of questions to answer.

If you want to work on Hassan's phone, I have things covered, S64.

Nicolette looked up and asked with a slight frown, "Are you sure?"

I can run in the background, so it doesn't interfere with MSF operations. With the added processing power, I should be able to find the history of the missile fairly soon.

Nicolette thought about it for a moment and studied her tablet. She had connected to Hassan's phone and was going through everything. It was the more immediate issue. She nodded, "Alright. Keep me posted and I'm going to initiate our contingency protocol."

Are you sure?

"Positive."

Copy that. I will alert you when the coding is ready for your purview.

Nicolette gave a slight smile and waited until she was certain Addy had relegated herself to the background before leaving. She wandered through the base and occasionally touched a wall as she remembered when she first set foot on the base and her subsequent visits. It felt like coming home and every time Alejandro welcomed her like she was his sister. It made her feel better as she started working on Hassan's phone.

It was late at night, and she was just finishing sending what she pulled to Laswell. She also felt a little sneaky and hacked into the feed to view the interrogation. It was one of her "don't ask" things. She knew it was not ethical to the point of illegal with some of her methods, but she did it because she couldn't see any other recourse. This time, she felt justified.

She got in through Laswell's connection since she was certain that if she tried with Shepherd's he'd shut her down, and not immediately. She was wary of the general. Something was off about him the moment they met. She wasn't a shrink, but her instincts warned her, and she went along with everyone else, but selected whom she shared her intel with. Besides, if Laswell detected her, she wouldn't pull the plug.

She sat in bed in the room Alejandro gave her when they first worked together and studied the interrogation while she was finishing a transaction. It was a side gig and how she made her money. She sold her services as a hacker to test secured programs. She also wrote programs for clients. This time she was sending in code that had a flaw to the company that paid her. She packaged it and sent it back with the recommended corrections.

She had just finished when she heard a knock on the door. She recognized it and called out, "Come."

The door opened followed by, "You're not a soldier and yet it feels like I'm entering the captain's office."

Nicolette chuckled as she answered the instachat from her client. "Well, you know me. Direct approach works best sometimes." She looked up and looked at Soap. "Unless I feel the need to play with you." She gave a sweet smile that held her taunting nature.

Soap chuckled as he made sure her door was shut. He was dressed ready for sleep, something they all needed after today's events. "Since when are you not playing with me, love?"

"In a fight, never," she replied as she responded to her incoming message. She looked back at him, "When alone with you… depends."

"Which is why I roll low and slow," he joked as he moved closer. He noticed what she was working on. He asked, "Intel from the missile?"

"No. Just sending a finished product to a client." Nicolette finished and signed off. She looked at Soap. "Where do you think I make my money? I just help companies improve security and custom build security software on the side."

Soap climbed in and sat on the bed next to her. "Well, always knew you were scary smart. I'm guessing that's how you help your friends?"

"That and I build contingency." Nicolette shrugged her shoulders.

Soap made a sound and looked at her computer. He saw the recording of the interrogation. He gestured at the screen, "You recorded this?"

"Yes. And I peeked in."

"Why? You could have come along." Soap studied her, curious as to her reasons.

Nicolette took a breath, and it came out as a tired sigh. Her forefinger gently tapped a key as she searched for the words she wanted to say. Finally, she said, "I needed to get Addy back. I really didn't like not having her available and… I went down memory lane. Of things that… I'm not proud of." She looked at him feeling a bit like she was waiting for punishment.

Soap studied the screen and then looked at her. "You're talking about when you first met Alejandro, aren't ya?"

"Yes."

Soap looked downward and thought about what to do. He could feel the tension in her body. It bothered him that she still had issues that things she knew and did would make people not like her. He didn't blame her especially after what happened between her and Ghost, and he knew that the team liked her. His company excluded. He glanced at her, "Wanna talk about it?"

Nicolette thought about it and nodded, "I want to. Just… nervous about… your thoughts."

"Still thinking us is a recipe for disaster?"

"You're a soldier. I'm a spy and a fucking hacker that could probably find out every little detail about you." Nicolette looked at him. "That alone makes most people back off."

"Then I must be stupid. I'm still here."

"You're not stupid. Foolish maybe, but not stupid." She looked at her laptop. She stared at the frozen video. "I do wonder why you want to be with someone with emotional issues like mine."

"Never entered the picture really," Soap replied honestly. He reached up and undid her hair clip that held her auburn locks in the bun she wore. He watched her locks cascade down like a waterfall. "I wanted to be with you because of what I've seen you do. You're funny, smart, not afraid to stand up for yourself, and I know Ghost likes that about you. You also care about people. The things that you've done to help people… You do it for them and you never cross that line you set." He hooked his finger under her chin and made it so she was looking at him. "Because you feel bad means that you are good. The day you stop is when I would worry."

Nicolette studied his expression. He was being honest, and it relieved the thoughts that had been on her mind. She gave a slight smile and nodded, not able to find the words to say. She felt his thumb caress her chin and she sighed in content. Finally, she said, "Talk with me?"

Soap chuckled and allowed himself to be manipulated so he was on his stomach, shirt off and his head resting on her knee. He felt her hands start stroking his hair and sometimes a hand would stroke his bare shoulder. It was soothing and sometimes sensitive when she felt the need to trace an old scar she found. He used one of his hands to stroke and gently massage her calf. "Why do you feel like petting me like a dog?"

"It's soothing and you know you like it," Nicolette replied as she stroked his head. She gently tweaked his ear to make a point. "Now I know there is a question you have been dying to ask me all day."

"Mmm… just more on how you know Alejandro. I know there is more to it," he replied as he stroked her leg tucked under his head. "I'm not jealous, love."

Nicolette chuckled at that. "Now I know you felt it a little since I practically leapt into his arms," she teased. She chuckled when she heard him moan. "Alright. You were right that it's not like you and me. Alejandro is very much my brother. Not blood related, but he looked after me. Still does."

"How did ya meet?"

Nicolette stroked his head again and ran her fingers down his bare back. She gently kneaded his shoulders before speaking, "I was in Las Almas for a job. Russia and Middle East is my staging area, but… you know I'm a polyglot and my Spanish was better suited for what was needed."

"Hearing you today. I don't have trouble believing that."

"Anyway," Nicolette smiled as she leaned forward and kissed his head gently. "I had met my contact. They had left and I was preparing for exfil when a raid happened."

"You were caught in the middle?"

"Not exactly. Call me a nosy parker," Nicolette explained. "I went to investigate and saw Los Vaqueros raiding a known cartel house. It was supposed to be standard, but someone informed, and the Vaqueros were outnumbered. Alejandro is good and managed to order a retreat. He was caught and almost died that day."

"You saved him," Soap stated and turned his head to look at her.

Nicolette gave a slight nod and shrug, "Something like that. He was alone and they would have killed him. I just happened to take a few shots and…" She sighed and added, "I brought a knife to a gunfight, and I won. I dragged Alejandro out since he had been beaten down. Took him to a safehouse I had set up when I arrived and gave him a look over."

Soap hummed at that, "Medic even then."

"Had to know if I ended up with some bumps and scrapes," she replied with a shrug. "I was supposed to leave, but… I stayed and offered to help Alejandro out. Since then… he's looked out for me."

Soap knew there was a lot more to her story, but it was clear. It was another thing he liked about her. She connected with people despite her attempts to hold them at arm's length. The 141 connected with her even when she wanted to walk away, and she couldn't stay away. He shifted on the bed to look at her. He saw her fingering the wrap bracelet that she wore all the time no matter what unless she had to go undercover and couldn't wear it. He gestured at it, "He gave that to you, didn't he?"

Nicolette looked at her bracelet. She fingered the large tiger eye stone and flipped it over to show the medical alert on the other side. She smiled, "He had it made because my original medical bracelet gave us away on ops. Sun glint. He also wanted me to have a reminder of Las Almas when I eventually left."

"And Ghost and I almost killed you because of it." Soap made a face.

On an op, Nicolette had become ill with pneumonia. They didn't know she was deathly allergic to penicillin and its derivatives. It scared both Soap and Ghost when they realized how close they came to killing her. Nicolette knew that was on his mind and stroked Soap's shoulder, "I ended up telling you. In my own way. Besides, you both got us out. You know and the team knows."

Soap hummed at that. He looked at her as she smiled at him. "You never hold a grudge for long, do ya?"

"If it was a misunderstanding, no. It's why Ghost and I get along now. By the way, did he get checked out?"

Soap laughed at her question, "He did. He said because he didn't want to have a bloody hurricane knock him over and shove his ass in." He ghosted his fingers over her knee. "It'll be okay, Nico. We'll figure this out."

Nicolette smiled at him. She leaned forward to kiss him. "Stay with me."