manner of speaking. The Agency doesn't like to sign off on stuff like this. Generally, you need to set up your sales to go to two different accounts. One account belongs to the Agency and the other to you."
They stepped on to the elevator. "So it is standard operating procedure to skim?"
Jason pressed the elevator button. "In a word? Hell, yeah."
The floor of the hangar above them opened up and they found themselves at the far back of the hangar. Jason set the Mark-19 on the clean, polished floor near several, neatly stacked, black canvas bags. "Just leave those here for now."
Sarah stared at the guns and the bags of explosives and ammo. Something clicked in her head and she stopped. Dread swept over her like a cold breeze and she shivered.
Even these aren’t guarantees of Vince’s safety.
She croaked through the frog in her throat. "Jason?"
Jason turned to face her. "Yeah?"
"Are we going to be able to do this?"
He grinned and his eyes wrinkled with laughter. "Any monkey, even an Air Force cop like you, can mount an M-60 to a chopper, Sarah."
Sarah found no humor in the joke today. Her shoulders sank, and she shook her head. "That's not what I'm talking about."
The laughter left his hazel eyes. His voice dropped a little deeper like it always did when he was serious, which wasn’t very often. "I know, Sarah." He grabbed her shoulders and looked her in the eyes. "Never, ever allow room for doubt in your head, your heart, or your gut. We've got the best equipment and people in the business right here on this little sandbar. Always remember, who dares, wins. "
"Where have I heard that before?"
"Okay, so it wasn't original but it is appropriate. It's the British SAS motto and it’s every bit the truth. Have you ever heard of the SAS failing, at anything ?"
Sarah gulped back the frog in her throat. "No."
"Exactly." Jason shook her shoulders just enough to make his point but not enough to agitate her nearly healed gunshot wound. "We're the heroes, Sarah. Don't forget it. We're going to save Vince, kill the bad guys and then we'll all live happily ever after."
Sarah wanted to cry and hated herself for it. She trusted Jason and needed his reassurance now as much as she needed to breathe. "How can you be so sure?"
Jason placed his hands on either side of Sarah's head and pulled her close until their foreheads touched and their eyes were just inches apart. "Because the alternative is unacceptable and because we have this…" He wrapped an arm around Sarah’s waist and led her over to the covered helicopter and pulled the tarp away from the nose with a flourish. “Ta- da !”
"Jesus, Jason!" Sarah nearly squealed with excitement as she moved forward for a closer look. "Is that…?"
Jason walked around the helicopter, carefully removing the rest of the huge tarp. His muscled chest puffed up with pride, and his voice was clear and confident as he described what Sarah was looking at. "That's right. Sikorsky's finest. The MH-60L Direct Action Penetrator. Civilians just call it a Blackhawk helicopter but this bad boy has some special operations modifications.” He walked around the helicopter and pointed them out. “We've got Hellfire missiles with a maximum range of five miles." He patted the barrel of a Gatling gun. "We've also got two M134D Gatling guns mounted as door guns."
Sarah marveled at the fact that a civilian could acquire such a devastating piece of war machinery. "This is amazing!" She bounced up and down on her toes as a new optimism cleared the doubts from her mind for good.
Jason began spreading the huge tarp out on the floor of the hangar. "I'm glad you're impressed. You helped us get a discount on this one. The day Vince dropped you off at Victor’s place he got a hundred thousand off the selling price.”
Sarah’s eyes opened wide. “I was worth a hundred thousand?”
Jason eyed her
They stepped on to the elevator. "So it is standard operating procedure to skim?"
Jason pressed the elevator button. "In a word? Hell, yeah."
The floor of the hangar above them opened up and they found themselves at the far back of the hangar. Jason set the Mark-19 on the clean, polished floor near several, neatly stacked, black canvas bags. "Just leave those here for now."
Sarah stared at the guns and the bags of explosives and ammo. Something clicked in her head and she stopped. Dread swept over her like a cold breeze and she shivered.
Even these aren’t guarantees of Vince’s safety.
She croaked through the frog in her throat. "Jason?"
Jason turned to face her. "Yeah?"
"Are we going to be able to do this?"
He grinned and his eyes wrinkled with laughter. "Any monkey, even an Air Force cop like you, can mount an M-60 to a chopper, Sarah."
Sarah found no humor in the joke today. Her shoulders sank, and she shook her head. "That's not what I'm talking about."
The laughter left his hazel eyes. His voice dropped a little deeper like it always did when he was serious, which wasn’t very often. "I know, Sarah." He grabbed her shoulders and looked her in the eyes. "Never, ever allow room for doubt in your head, your heart, or your gut. We've got the best equipment and people in the business right here on this little sandbar. Always remember, who dares, wins. "
"Where have I heard that before?"
"Okay, so it wasn't original but it is appropriate. It's the British SAS motto and it’s every bit the truth. Have you ever heard of the SAS failing, at anything ?"
Sarah gulped back the frog in her throat. "No."
"Exactly." Jason shook her shoulders just enough to make his point but not enough to agitate her nearly healed gunshot wound. "We're the heroes, Sarah. Don't forget it. We're going to save Vince, kill the bad guys and then we'll all live happily ever after."
Sarah wanted to cry and hated herself for it. She trusted Jason and needed his reassurance now as much as she needed to breathe. "How can you be so sure?"
Jason placed his hands on either side of Sarah's head and pulled her close until their foreheads touched and their eyes were just inches apart. "Because the alternative is unacceptable and because we have this…" He wrapped an arm around Sarah’s waist and led her over to the covered helicopter and pulled the tarp away from the nose with a flourish. “Ta- da !”
"Jesus, Jason!" Sarah nearly squealed with excitement as she moved forward for a closer look. "Is that…?"
Jason walked around the helicopter, carefully removing the rest of the huge tarp. His muscled chest puffed up with pride, and his voice was clear and confident as he described what Sarah was looking at. "That's right. Sikorsky's finest. The MH-60L Direct Action Penetrator. Civilians just call it a Blackhawk helicopter but this bad boy has some special operations modifications.” He walked around the helicopter and pointed them out. “We've got Hellfire missiles with a maximum range of five miles." He patted the barrel of a Gatling gun. "We've also got two M134D Gatling guns mounted as door guns."
Sarah marveled at the fact that a civilian could acquire such a devastating piece of war machinery. "This is amazing!" She bounced up and down on her toes as a new optimism cleared the doubts from her mind for good.
Jason began spreading the huge tarp out on the floor of the hangar. "I'm glad you're impressed. You helped us get a discount on this one. The day Vince dropped you off at Victor’s place he got a hundred thousand off the selling price.”
Sarah’s eyes opened wide. “I was worth a hundred thousand?”
Jason eyed her
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