“Hello Sergeant,” Tisha said as she walked out of the gym, “think you can keep up?”

“I’ll do my best.  I should have brought my wife over… she’s a WAY better long-distance runner than me.  How far are we going?” he replied. 

“We’ll go easy on you.  Five miles.”

“So, you only plan on running thirty minutes or so?”  Gunny said with a grin. 

“Very funny, Big Guy,” the girl said as she stretched.  Over the next few minutes, the rest of the students joined them outside the gym, ready for their run.  “Sergeant Grafton here thinks he might be faster than us,” Tisha informed the group.  She was giving him a little good-natured ribbing.  “How old are you, like forty-five?”

“Fifty-seven, actually.  And I didn’t say I would be faster… I just thought you guys would knock out five miles in thirty or thirty-five minutes,” Gunny told the kids. 

“Then let’s get started old man,” Jaden said as he turned to start running. 

Aside from Tisha, the teenagers all took off, leaving Gunny in their dust.  Gunny slung on the pack that had been at his feet, and quickly caught Tisha and followed the rest of the runners off school grounds, and into the neighborhood. 

After about twenty minutes of running, they were more than halfway through the route.  He and Tisha had caught all the kids except Jaden, who was still a hundred yards ahead.  They rounded the corner of a block, bringing him back into view.  Gunny watched as someone stepped in front of the youngster and barred his path, grabbing at him.  He picked up his pace and caught up with the youth a moment later. 

“Do we have a problem, here?” Gunny asked the man as he grabbed his hand. 

“I don’t have a problem, Bitch, but you will if you don’t move along,” he replied. 

“You really need to watch your language, as well as take your hand off this young man, or we will have a problem,” the large, former Marine said.

The man reached for his pocket with his loose hand, Gunny still holding a grip on the wrist of the hand he’d grabbed Jaden with.  Gunny looked down and saw him pulling a gun from his pocket.  As he squeezed the man’s left wrist, hard, he reached for his right hand… the one going for the gun.  Before the gun was completely free of the pocket, Gunny had twisted the man’s hand backward and thumbed the safety back on.  The sound of his wrist breaking was clearly heard by all the students. 

“You REALLY shouldn’t play with guns if you aren’t going to learn how to use them,” Gunny said as he twisted the gun from the man’s hand… he was no longer able to keep grip with his broken wrist.  He let go of Jaden with the other hand and started crying out in pain. 

Without letting go of the man’s left hand, he smashed his elbow into his face, breaking his nose, which everyone also all heard. 

“You are a dead motherfucker…” he said before Gunny cut him off.

“I thought I told you to watch your language, you little punk.  And this was your only warning.  Next time I have a problem with you, I won’t be gentle.  And you better get your nose and your wrist looked at…”  Then he reached around into his pocket and pulled out the man’s driver’s license.  He noted the name and address from it and handed it back to him.  “I know who you are, Darnell Williams, and where you live.  You don’t want me to have to visit you.  Understand?”

The students were all shocked by the actions of their substitute teacher.  In class, despite his size and menacing appearance, he had been all smiles and patience.  At six and a half feet tall, he towered over all but the tallest students, and with his broad shoulders and thick arms, he made even them look small in comparison.  While his emotions often hid behind his bushy, rust-colored beard… with a few streaks of gray… today they were plain to see.  Gunny was angry and they could see the flash in his eyes and his shaved head turning red, like a cartoon character. 

Then he leaned in close and quietly said into his ear, “I know that you’re really just a chickenshit bully.  If you weren’t, you’d be doing something real with your life.  And you mess with ANY of these kids and I’ll find you.”  Then he pushed the punk away.  “Let’s finish the run,” he said to the teens. 

Ten minutes later they trotted up to the gym door they have left forty minutes earlier.  Gunny slung off his pack and grabbed a bottle of water.  “Tell you what, that was a nice run,” he said.  “Maybe next time we won’t be interrupted.”

“Mr. Grafton,” Jaden said quietly, even though the other students could all hear him, “That guy is one of the biggest dealers in the hood.  He isn’t gonna let that dis’ slide, Sir.  You need to watch your back.”

“Thank you, Jaden.  I will watch my back.  I’m honestly more concerned with you guys, though.  Go hit the showers and meet me up in the classroom in fifteen,” he said as he turned and headed to the Coach’s Shower. 

***

Enrique was the first through the door, with Patrick only a foot behind.  They both moved to the right as soon as they entered, while Gino, followed by Bobby, moved to the left.  Ric was closest to the bed, so he approached and clamped a hand down on Aziz’s mouth to keep him from screaming. 

He didn’t see that Aziz had a pistol under the covers and put it right up to Ric’s chest before pulling the trigger. 

The report was loud in the room, and Ric moved back with the impact of the bullet.  As he bumped into Patrick, Gino dived toward Aziz and slammed his fist into the side of his head.  Aziz was unconscious almost immediately. 

“What’s going on over there?  I heard a shot,” Gunny said into his radio.

Ric was taping their captive’s hands behind his back and wrapping tape around his face to cover his mouth.  “He must have been awake.  He had a gun under the covers and shot me in the chest.  It hit a plate, no damage,” Ric Espinoza replied calmly. 

“It woke up the compound,” Gunny said, letting them know there were guards on the move. 

Gino and Bobby peered into the hall to make sure it was clear before stepping out and looking for a stairway down to the next level.  Ric and Patrick were right behind, each team of two taking one side of the hallway.  When they came to a doorway, Ric and Patrick flashed past, while stealing a look inside to see what it was… the stairway. 

Patrick took the lead with Ric behind as they made their way down the stairs.  Bobby and Gino took the other side of the staircase.  Below, they could hear doors opening and people running into the house.  Ric watched as Gino kept his rifle pointed down the stairwell. 

They emerged onto the second floor and turned to the north.  Bobby listened at the door on the left side… the northwest corner of the house.  He heard crying, but no other sounds.  He knew that the only way for him to go through that door was violently.  He would kick it down and roll through, followed by Gino.  He also knew that the girl would be terrified, especially after the ordeal she’d been through, but there was no other way. 

Ric watched him slam into the top part of the door, splintering it with his momentum.  He continued his motion, into the room above waist height, rolling as he hit the floor, looking back to his left as Gino stormed through the remnants of the door and checked the other corner.  He heard the girl scream in terror as she saw the large soldier, dressed in all black and swinging a gun around the room. 

“Clear,” Bobby said into his radio before turning toward the girl.  She was cowering on the bed, trying to scurry further from the two men in her room. 

“Exfil.  They are coming in like pissed off fire ants,” Gunny said from his overwatch position. 

Duke dropped the altitude of the helicopter in order to retrieve the team and the girl from the roof they’d landed on only two minutes before.  There wasn’t enough room to land… but he could hover just off the edge while the team loaded up.  There was no stealth anymore. 

“Muna,” Bobby said as gently as he could to the ten-year-old, “we’re friends of your mom and we’re here to take you home to her, ok?”  Tears ran down her cheeks and he could see the shock and fear in her eyes.  “My name is Bobby and I’m not going to hurt you,” he continued as he reached out for the girl. 

“Tell her ‘Woobie is waiting’,” Melody said from home, using the name of her favorite stuffed animal.  Muna’s mother had told her that it might help. 

“Woobie is waiting,” Bobby said softly. 

The girl looked at him for a moment, he could see that she was trying to judge whether to believe him.  After a flash, she leapt into his arms so he could carry her out.  Bobby dropped the rifle and let it hang on its sling, while he wrapped a Kevlar blanket around her to help keep her safe while they made their way back to the roof. 

“Do you know Woobie?” Muna said softly into his ear as he carried her up the stairs.

“Not yet, but I hope you can introduce me, ok?” he replied. 

Below them, Ric and Patrick were staving off the guards in the stairwell, keeping it clear for Bobby and Muna.  Above him, Gino was making sure the path was clear to the balcony and the roof.  As he moved through the bedroom, Gino grabbed Aziz and propped him up at the end of the bed.  He thought either he would get shot or he would instruct his men not to shoot the chopper to keep from hurting the girl.  Then he ran out onto the patio and made sure it was clear.

As Muna Peck fought for her life, her best friend was frozen in terror.  Julia dropped her books and screamed at the top of her lungs.  More than anything, she wanted to run, but she felt rooted to the spot… whether it was fear or because she didn’t want to abandon her friend, she didn’t know… but she couldn’t run and just kept screaming until she started getting dizzy. 

Another man jumped from the van and plunged a needle into Muna’s neck.  She tried to keep struggling but could feel her limbs becoming leaden and a moment later her eyes closed, her world went black.  Quickly, she was snatched the rest of the way into the van.  The door slammed and the green van took off down the road.

The girls had been on the way back to Muna’s house after school.

***

Desiree Peck looked at the clock again… Muna and Julia should have been home thirty minutes ago.  She’d called the school and they hadn’t held either of them after for anything.  In the pit of her stomach she knew something was wrong.  She called her next-door neighbor and asked her to keep an eye on the house, then snatched her purse off the counter and ran out the front door. 

Backtracking Muna’s steps from school would be the fastest way to find her, she thought.  It was only a ten-minute walk for a fifth grader, and probably half that for a panicked mother.  As soon as she cleared her front door, she started frantically calling her daughter’s name. 

Just as she came around out of the woods behind her house… woods her daughter walked through both on the way to school and the way home each day, she saw the police cars.  In this quiet neighborhood, it was almost rare to even notice one patrolling, much less see several parked next to the sidewalk, and a small crowd gathered around. 

Desiree began running and calling out her daughter’s name… screaming it with more fear in her voice.  Was her daughter hurt… lying on the ground just out of sight?  Or could she be…

As she approached the police officers, she saw Julia sitting on the ground, tears dripping off her nose as she choked on her tears.  She was talking with a female police officer.

“Ma’am, please step back,” the first officer said to her, barring her way toward her daughter’s friend.

“But I know her… where is my daughter?  Where is Muna?” she said, panic welling up in her voice. 

The officer, seeing that she might be connected, tried to calm her down so that he could get more information.  He nodded to one of the other officers and put his arm around the panicked woman.  He led her toward the girl sitting on the curb. 

When Julia saw her friend’s mom, she jumped up and ran to her.  She jumped into her arms and started crying in earnest.  The female police officer stood and moved behind the girl. 

“Are you her mother?” the female officer asked.

“No, she’s my daughter’s best friend.  I watch her after school until her parents get home,” she said to the officer, then leaned back so Julia could see her, “Julia, where’s Muna?”

“They took her.  The van.  A man… she fought.  It took off,” the girl managed to get out in gasps before burying her head in Desiree’s shoulder and crying again.

“Ma’am, can you help me get a description?  And is there anyone that would want to take your daughter?”

Desiree tried to talk with Julia to get a description.  She thought she knew who was behind taking her daughter, but she knew she didn’t have any proof. 

“Can you call her parents?” Desiree asked the police officer.

She gave them the number for Julia’s mother, and it was radioed to someone at the station to give her a call.  Meanwhile, Desiree tried to get a description of the men that took her little girl. 

***

She sat in her living room with the detective.  He had just finished talking with Julia, trying to get better descriptions from the young girl about the captors, but they weren’t matching up with Desiree’s ex-husband.  Both men that were involved in the kidnapping were average height, average to heavy in weight.  Both were clean shaven.  Aziz Abbas, the girl’s father and Desiree’s ex-husband, was tall, slim and wore a beard… at least he wore a beard the last time she’d seen him… Family Court, when she had been awarded sole custody of their daughter. 

“Ma’am, it doesn’t sound like it was your husband.  The men that Julia saw don’t look at all like your him.”

“He could have hired someone.  I’m sure he is behind this.  You have to find him, or he’ll take her out of the country.”

“We’ll have a flag placed on him… he won’t be able to fly out, Ma’am,” the detective ensured her.  “All of the airports will be on the lookout for him and your daughter.”

“He isn’t going to fly out on a commercial flight,” she said. 

“Right now, I think it is more likely that she has been taken for a ransom.  You said that your husband was quite wealthy?”

“Yea… wealthy enough to smuggle her out of the country on a private flight,” she said, not feeling that her warning was getting through. 

“Be that as it may, Miss Peck, please give me a call when you get the ransom call.”

She took the detective’s card.  Inside she was seething with anger.  She knew that her daughter might only have hours before being taken out of the country, maybe even less.  At that point it would be almost impossible to get her back.  If the girl got all the way to his family in Afghanistan, with the turmoil in that country and his family connections, she might never see Muna again. 

She went to her phone and called someone in the FBI that had contacted her when she was still married to Aziz.  It was a long shot, but maybe the FBI would listen to her.  But that contact was almost a dead end as well.  He said he knew someone, but he didn’t think he could get in touch with them until the morning.