are only after one thing!” He was serious as he spoke.
They swapped keys, and Ted left her in her new room. Lynda got ready for bed. She showered and lay down and immediately went to sleep. She was sleeping in the bed furthest from the door; she had her thirty eight pistol under her pillow.
She woke up to a noise in the room. Someone was in it. She could hear them breathing. She pulled her gun out from under the pillow.
Then the person snorted and rolled over in the other bed. It was One-Shot. He was sleeping in the same room with her. Lynda laughed softly to herself and put her gun back under the pillow.
The next morning when she woke up, he was gone. She mumbled, “Like a thief in the night!”
She was dressing, nearly ready, when there was a knock at the door. She looked through the peephole and could see Ted standing out in the hall. She jerked the door open quickly and stuck her gun in his face. He backed up. “Why didn’t you just use your key?” she snarled.
One-Shot smiled at her. “You were asleep. How did you know?” he asked.
“You snore.” Lynda smiled back and pointed the gun at the floor.
She backed up and let him into her room. She put her pants on and buttoned her shirt over the vest. Ted pretended to not look.
“One-Shot,” she said, “I caught you peeking. Stop it.”
Ted smiled, looked directly at the floor, and said, “Lynda, you are so much better-looking in person. The camera does not do you justice. I will mind my manners.”
There was another knock at the door. Ted said, “That is our team. They are ready for us.”
Lynda marched in front of Ted out the door and into the hallway. They went down the hall and took the elevator to the first floor. The armored car was waiting on them. They drove down back streets and made it back to the center without incident. Ted held Lynda down by the leg while the four men got out and took up positions around the door of the car and the building. Lynda felt very important as Ted escorted her into the building.
She went directly into her office and placed a call to Tom. She got Tom’s secretary, and remembered the first day that she had met the woman; it was when she applied for the job, less than six months ago. His secretary said he would be right back.
Tom answered, “Hello, Blonde Bomber. I hear you have been pissing off the locals.”
“What did I do?” Lynda asked with alarm.
“That is the very question that we have all been asking. What did you do?”
“I haven’t done anything but show my chest to the world!” Lynda replied.
“Yeah,” Tom said, “we were all impressed ... with your courage.” He laughed softly.
“Damn,” Lynda said, “you are just like Ted.”
Tom got serious. “Whatever you have been doing, keep it up; it’s working! How is security? I can send you some more.”
Lynda said, “It wasn’t Ted’s fault. I called him off and went walking by myself. He did nothing wrong. It was all my fault.”
“I know. I have talked to Ted several times. I am not holding him responsible,” Tom said.
“So, you have no advice for me?” Lynda asked.
“You are doing fine, just try and keep your clothes on!” And Tom hung up before she could counter his remark.
Lynda opened the office door and yelled, “One-Shot!”
Ted hurried into the room. “Yes?”
“Why didn’t you tell me that you had been talking to the boss?” she asked
“Well, Blonde Bomber,” and he hesitated, “I called him when you were abducted. The two other times he called me.”
Lynda was angry. “You have talked to the boss three times and you didn’t think to tell me about it?”
One-Shot replied, “Yes, ma’am!” He sounded like a little boy who had just gotten into trouble.
Lynda felt sorry for him, “Next time, tell me!”
He weakly smiled back. “Yes, ma’am.”
She stood up. So did Ted. She said, “Sit down, One-Shot!” He sat back down
She walked over behind him, like she was thinking. She watched him squirm. She leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. “You are so cute when you do the ‘little boy’ thingy.” Ted blushed. “You can stand up now!”
Ted stood up. Looked at the closed door, and held out his hand. She took it. He pulled her close to him, and kissed her on the mouth. Both took deep breaths.
Lynda started to tell him to wipe the lipstick off, but realized that she wasn’t wearing any. In fact, she did not have any make-up on at all.
Lynda went out into the center and looked around. Someone in here was working on something that was making the locals nervous. What could it be? She called each one of the operatives into her office, and had them brief her on what they were working on. She took lots of notes. She had trouble with the Arabic names. She wanted to give them all nicknames. She had Ted sit in on the interviews.
After she had talked with all twelve of them, she knew very little more than before she started the reviews. She had lots of notes but none of it made any sense. She asked Ted what he thought!
Ted said, “There are three things going on around here. Drugs, sex or young girls being traded, and weapons. I think it has to be one of those three.”
Lynda thought about each one very carefully. So which one was it? She said, “You know, I have a history of finding young girls. Maybe I am scaring that group?”
“Works for me,” Ted said. “Drugs and guns don’t seem to be an issue that we would deal with.”
She went back over her notes. Only one person had reported on the young girl trade. Lynda called “Adziva” back into her office. She asked the woman to go back over that case file. There was very little new information that Adziva had. Lynda told her to put all her efforts on that one case and plan to brief Lynda every day.
The next morning, Adziva was waiting on Lynda when she walked in the door. Adziva said, “There is a story out that a truckload of girls is being brought in to a local village. They are supposedly looking for husbands. I suspect that they are being brought in as prostitutes. That is not such a big deal around here.”
Lynda said, “Thanks, Adziva. Find out as much as you can; find out the truck’s route, when it will arrive and where, and so on.”
Adziva looked like a fire had been lit under her. Ted said, “Blonde Bomber, I think you are onto something.”
Lynda said, “Stop calling me that!”
“How about I just call you BB?” he asked.
She said, “I can live with that, One-Shot.”
Ted went out and bought them both sandwiches from a local vendor. They ate in Lynda’s office. He was about halfway through the sandwich, when he said, “Thank you!”
Lynda was startled. “For what?”
One-Shot said, “For letting me kiss you yesterday. It was my pleasure, I liked it!”
Lynda grinned at him. “One-Shot, just because you have seen me naked doesn’t mean that you can have your way with me. Stay out of my room at night. In fact, give me your extra key.”
Ted pulled the key out of his pocket, and dangled it in front of her. He said, “Lynda, you need to trust me, I would rather keep it, so that I can keep tabs on you. It is my job, again. You really need to trust me!”
She thought for a moment, then she said, “Okay, I will trust you, don’t let me down! You know, I carry a gun too.”
Adziva knocked on her door. Lynda motioned for Adziva to come in. Adziva walked in, and said, “I have the truck’s route and where it is going.”
“Great.” And they went over the route.
Lynda said, “Ted, go contact Army command and tell them that we need some troops to stop a truck and retake some civilians from the bad guys.”
Ted was up and left the office. Lynda said, “Adziva, this is great work. We will do our best to free those girls.” Adziva smiled back at Lynda.
The same Major th
at had rescued Lynda walked into her office. Lynda shut the door and asked him to sit down. He kept his eyes on the table. She knew that he had seen the video. She showed him the truck’s route and where it was going, and they picked a spot to intercept it. The major sat back in the chair and took a deep breath. He said, “Ma’am, are you sure you know what you are doing. Those girls will be about twelve years old. Their own fathers have sold them into this life to save the rest of their families. We have tried to stop this before, but it never works. No one wants the girls. They are lost souls.”
Lynda was stunned. “Are you suggesting that we just turn a blind eye to this?”
“No, ma’am,” he said, “I am just telling you how things work over here.”
Lynda was firm. “Let me be clear about this, Major. We are stopping that truck with or without your help, and we are saving those girls.”
The Major stood up. “Ma’am, we are at your service. Just tell us when and where.” He made constant eye contact.
“I need your men first thing tomorrow morning. We are not sure when the truck will arrive. But we have a source of information, who will give us as much advance warning as possible.”
“Yes, ma’am. We will be here tomorrow at sun-up.” He was a little testy.
Lynda said, “Major, around nine o’clock will be fine.” She maintained eye contact with the officer.
The Major left and Ted came in. Ted said, “He seems to have a burr under his saddle. I wonder why?”
Lynda said, “I suspect that they have an agreement with the locals to look the other way. We are about to burst their bubble. We need to keep our security at a high level.”
That night she was sitting up in bed, when there was a knock on her door. She yelled, “Come on in, Ted.” Nothing happened. She jumped up and ran and looked out the peephole. It was the Major. She jerked the door open.
She said, “Yes?”
The Major said, “May I call you Lynda?”
She smiled and said, “Sure. Come in. You will have to sit on the bed though.” She shut the door behind him.
He said, “Lynda, we got off to a bad start today. I wanted to explain something.”
Lynda said, “Okay, go ahead.”
He stood up. He was uncomfortable. “Lynda, you are messing with a tradition around here. We all look the other way. The fathers would not take their daughters back if you took them back to them. They are already soiled. No one wants them; we would have to take them back to America in order to give them a decent life. Even the UN ignores them!”
“Major, does your boss know that you are here?” Lynda asked.
He turned from her. “He sent me, Lynda.”
“He sent you? Why?” She could not believe what she was hearing.
“I am supposed to talk you out of this,” he said softly.
“What if this were your daughter or a friend’s daughter?” Lynda asked.
“I would kill someone, but her own father will not take her back now. There is no way to stop it. It is ingrained in the people here.” He was trying hard not to tear up.
Lynda took the Major’s hand. She smiled at the man and said, “Well, this truckload is not going through. I will use whatever resources I have to stop it.”
“I will help you, Lynda, but don’t expect anyone to jump on the bandwagon with you,” he said.
There was a knock on the door. Lynda went to the door. It was Ted. She opened the door slightly. Ted held up both hands. “Are you all right?” he asked.
“Yes. The Major and I are having a little discussion. Come back in thirty minutes,” she said.
Ted left. Lynda softly closed the door. “Major, this isn’t right. I have a desire to let the American people know what is going on.”
The Major turned toward her. He stated, “That would be suicide for you, the locals would kill you, and there would be nothing that the entire US Army could do about it.”
“Could do, or would do, Major?” she exclaimed.
“Lynda, I didn’t start this, and there is nothing that I can do to stop it. Neither can you!” he stated.
Lynda smiled through gritted teeth. “Major, have your men at the center at nine o’clock.”
“Yes, ma’am,” he said, “you can count on us!” Lynda wasn’t so sure.
The Major left and Ted was waiting outside the door.
He came in the room. “What was that all about?”
She said, “I am not sure. He said his boss sent him to talk me out of it; he said that I might be committing suicide.”
Ted lay down on the first bed, put his hands behind his head, crossed his feet and said, “Maybe I should stick closer to you?”
Lynda watched him stretch out. “I am glad someone wants to be on my side.” Then she added, “I think I am safe in here. I am going to take a shower. Be gone when I get out!” She smiled at One-Shot.
She grabbed her gown and went in the bathroom, and shut the door. She didn’t lock it on purpose; she was not sure why.
When her shower was over, she peeked out the door. The room was empty. She laughed to herself.
She heard the phone on her nightstand ring. She hurriedly put her gown on and ran and picked up the phone. It was Tom. Right off the bat he said, “This is an unsecured line. Hello, Lynda. Whatever you’re doing seems to be working. I have received a complaint against you. Some General wants you removed at once.”
Lynda said, “I will call you from the center tomorrow and tell you why!”
Tom said, “Lynda, be careful. Don’t get out of Ted’s sight; it is his job to protect you. Let him do it.” Tom hung up.
There was a light knock on the door. Lynda looked through the peephole. It was One-Shot. She opened the door and he just walked back into the room. He had a bag with him and two sidearms.
He said, “I just got a call from Tom. He said not to let you out of my sight, so here I am. Sorry.”
Lynda said, “I already got the bed by the window. And you had your boots on the other bed. So, you get that one.” She had her hands folded under her breasts, not realizing that it made her gown ride up.
Ted looked at her legs and said, “Put your arms down; you are exciting me; that’s not fair.”
Lynda dropped her arms. She was flustered. Ted went into the bathroom. She got in bed. She was determined to be asleep when he got out.
When he got out, Lynda was still awake. She opened one eye and looked at him. He saw her look. He walked over to her. Bent over and kissed her on the cheek. He said, “Don’t worry, BB, everything will be all right.”
Then he hopped into his bed and turned out the light.
She lay there in the darkness realizing that a man was in the bed next to her. She realized that it was their jobs, but she didn’t like it. She said, “Hey, One-Shot?”
He answered, “What?”
“How did the Major know that I was in this room?” she asked.
Ted said, “He stopped by the other room. I gave him your room number, which is why I came by to check on you.”
“Oh!” was all that she could think of to say.
He asked, “BB?”
She answered, “Yes?”
He went on, “When we get home, I would like to take you out on an official date!”
“What do you mean ‘official’?” she asked
“You know, a real date, just a boy and a girl having fun, no pressure,” he said.
“Okay, I will look forward to it.” Lynda smiled to herself.
The rest of the night was quiet. The next morning they left early to go to the center. They went down different back streets. When they arrived at the center, there were two humvees full of troops waiting on them. The Major was in the lead one. When the car pulled up, all the troops got out and stood in the street.
Ted and his men escorted Lynda into the building. Adziva was waiting on them. The truck was on its way. They only had to find it.
/> With the car following the two humvees, they set out on the road into town. They stopped every big truck that they met. The fifth one failed to stop. The soldiers shot out two tires and the truck stopped. The driver jumped out and ran. Two soldiers chased him, but finally had to shoot him in the leg to stop him.
The remaining soldiers surrounded the truck and the back door was opened. Nothing or no one came out. The soldiers looked inside. There was a big cage in it. Ten very young girls were locked in it. A bolt cutter was brought up and the lock was cut off. Lynda was amazed. The little girls looked ten years old. “How could their fathers have sold them into basically slavery?”
The little girls could not speak English and were very afraid of everyone. They did not want to come out of the cage. The soldiers pulled out candy bars and they had made friends. They coaxed the little girls out into the sunlight, and split them up. Some went in the humvees and the rest went in the armored car. They drove back to the center. The little girls were taken into the center, where they were all fed and given something to drink.
Lynda asked the Major, “Do you still feel the same way that you did yesterday?’
The Major and his men were all smiles. He said, “Ma’am, nothing has changed. You may have bit off more than you can chew, though.”
The little girls were just jabbering to the women who worked in the center. Occasionally one would look at Lynda. She thought the Major was right; she had bitten off more than she could chew. What were they going to do with all these little girls?
The Major came back up. He nodded and said, “Lynda, there is an orphanage just outside of town. They might take the girls!” He gave her directions how to get to it.
Lynda took him by the shoulders and kissed him on the cheek. She saw One-Shot watching her closely. She said, “Thank you, Major. You and your men are free to go. Thank you, and all your men too.” They left, taking the driver of the truck with them. She wondered what would happen to the truck.
She called Tom on their secure phone. She told him about all the little girls and her dilemma.
Tom said, “Try the orphanage first. If that does not work out, send them to the US on a company plane.” They would have to include a couple of translators.
Lynda called One-Shot into her office. She closed the door and kissed him on cheek. She said, “Don’t be jealous now.”
He looked back at her and said, “I just don’t want you to get any ideas with the Major; he is not right for you!”
She exclaimed, “Oh, is that right, and how do you know that? I think the Major is kinda cute!” She knew that she had got One-Shot’s goat. So she eased off him. “Ted, we work together, and I have to work with the Major. It is only a job. Don’t read anything else into it.” She was trying to caution Ted not to get too involved with her. She did not want him getting too serious.
They packed the car full of little girls, and Ted took them to the orphanage. Two translators went with him. The little girls seemed happy to be there. They seemed to think they might get to go back home. They did not realize that they had no home to go back to.
The orphanage took them once Ted greased the head man’s pocket.
That afternoon everyone celebrated the victory. At least they thought it was. That night, One-Shot took BB to the officers’ club at the