A Taste of Liberty: Task Force 125 Book 2
Read A Taste of Liberty: Task Force 125 Book 2 Online
Authors: Lisa Pietsch,Kendra Egert
Copyright © 201
2
Lisa Pietsch
http://LisaPietsch.com
Cover Art by Kendra
Egert
http://creationsbykendra.com/
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This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are a product of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to a person or persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is purely coincidental.
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Lisa Pietsch
on the World Wide Web at
http://LisaPietsch.com
Visit Lisa
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Task Force 125:
The Path to Freedom
A Taste of Liberty
Freedom’s Promise
Stealing Liberties
A Taste of Liberty
By Lisa Pietsch
Dedication:
To my sisters who encouraged me to write this series – Tracey, Dan
yelle
, Mel
anie
, Teresa, Jennifer, Sue, Lesa, Heather, Jody, Buffy, Kellyann, Debra,
Shirin
, Tina, Sandra and so many others. I love you
all
!
To the men and women of the U.S. Armed Forces, Department of Homeland Security, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Central Intelligence Agency and other intelligence agencies.
To my brothers and sisters who dance on the thin blue line every day.
Acknowledgements:
America chooses to be oblivious to the roles that women play in modern warfare. Whether they serve in uniform or not, we should always remember that they have served on the front lines and continue to do so.
Chapter One
Sarah blinked back the sweat that rolled from her forehead and into her eyes. Her hair fell from her ponytail in long locks sticky with perspiration and clung to her cheeks. Her breath was hard and fast as she dodged hits and blocked kicks just to keep up with the man she was fighting.
My God! He’s a machine.
He had about thirty pounds on her but he was wiry and fast. He was throwing everything he had into the mix. He started with
Muay
Thai boxing, but, when he did a
Capoeira
flip and spun his body in mid air from a standing position, a chill raced up her spine. She'd never seen anyone as fast as this guy. She threw punches at his face, shoulders and stomach and never made contact. He’d dodge, twist, spin and jump just barely avoiding her hits and kicks. His years of training and experience in hand-to-hand combat were obvious.
Focus, Sarah. Focus.
The midday sun in the Nevada desert beat down with a steady blast of 102 degrees. Each breath was like taking a drag off a bonfire. The heat, dehydration and near exhaustion wore her down, and Sarah slid into a reactive, defensive mode where her movements were automatic. She knew she couldn't win this way but the bright sun lulled her into not caring.
Her opponent flashed a wicked smile. His eyes sparkled like the trillions of grains of sand glinting around them. The relentless sun and heat slowed her down and he made the most of it. "Come on,
sugarlips
. Is that all you got?" He spun to his left.
The pain of a powerful blow to her right shoulder woke her from her daze, and her adrenaline surged.
Son of a bitch!
His teeth glistened as he grinned. "Papa's gonna take you to school."
Her jaw tensed. “Not today, Papa.” Sarah saw her opening for a kick and took it. She put all of her weight behind a roundhouse kick aimed for his
neck and a clothesline takedown but the soft sand beneath her feet shifted and she slipped, kicking him in the head instead.
They both fell.
Sarah scrambled to stand quickly. As she did, she turned to see the man still lying on the ground, unconscious. She dropped to her knees beside him. A chill raced up her spine despite the heat. "Jason? Jason!" She placed two fingers on his neck.
Good heartbeat. Damn. I'm gonna need some help with this sandbag.
This wasn’t the first time one of them had been knocked out when they were sparring. It was becoming all too common as Sarah’s fighting skills advanced. She walked over to her Jeep and pulled her phone out of the door pocket. She pressed the number
One
and then the
Send
button.
I hope he answers.
Vince poured himself a cup of coffee from the room service cart. The suite at the Hotel Timothy in
Transnistria
was passable, but the coffee was just plain great.
Will looked out the window as he lit a cigar. "Man, this country has a smell all its own."
Vince sat on the small sofa. "Yeah, it stinks of evil. It's the only place in the world where you can buy anything, from AK-47s to Zambian children. I just want to get this deal set up and get home."
Will looked up from the empty street market carts below and squinted at Vince through the cigar smoke. "In the years we've been doing this, I've never heard you call Las Vegas home before."
"I guess it never really felt like home before."
Vince's phone rang. He picked it up off the nightstand and smiled as he noticed the caller ID.
"Hey, you."
Sarah's voice came in clear despite the continents between them. "Hi!
You in town?"
I wish.
"Nah.
East of the Volga."
"Too bad."
The left side of Vince's mouth curled into a half smile. "Why?
Whatcha
got in mind?"
There are a few things I’d love to do with you right now.
"Well, I got a little trouble here."
Vince sat upright and his mind switched from horn dog to military mode. "What is it? Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. It's Jason. He's unconscious."
Vince sighed, relieved that Sarah wasn't in trouble. Jason was always unconscious for one reason or another.
Booze,
bar fights…he lived hard. He could take care of himself. "Not surprising for a Saturday but a little early, isn't it?"
"No, we weren't drinking. We were sparring about a mile southeast of the gypsum mill. I slipped in the middle of a roundhouse kick. I think I hit him in the temple.”
Vince didn't like the idea of one of his men unconscious out in the middle of the Nevada desert. "Jesus, Sarah! Why don't you guys use the ring at the Camp?"
"Well, hell, Vince. We've been working out in the ring all week. Besides, the shit doesn't go down in a ring. We needed some elements of reality."
"Yeah, yeah.
I know, but they have a medic there. I can't have you two beating the shit out of each other out in the middle of nowhere."
"It’s not like we weren’t prepared. I’ve got him in the shade and a bottle of water standing by. I’m watching him now.”
“If he doesn’t come to in a couple minutes, call Brian.”
Sarah chuckled. “Oh! There he is. Sleeping Beauty awakes."
"You're a lucky girl. Now go get the medic to check him out."
"Will do, boss.” Her voice softened, betraying the personal feelings she always tried to keep at a professional distance. “Come back soon."
Vince's face softened.
"Bye, babe."
Vince sat back and took a long breath. He loved hearing her voice.
Will interrupted his thoughts when he spoke. "Vince, this is just between you and me, man. It doesn't go any further. What are you gonna do about Sarah?"
"Nah, she's alright. She and Jason were sparring, and she knocked him out for a minute. Shit happens when you train hard. You know that."
Will shook his head. "That's not what I mean, man."
"What are you talking about then?"
Will took a thoughtful draw on his cigar. "We're never gonna find another agent like her. She's got the whole package
-
looks, brains and pretty frigging handy with a knife. You know, after our last mission, when the Navy found Hassan's body, his chest was cut wide open. She didn't mess around. She cut straight through the bone and sliced his heart in two. Anybody else would have just got the hell off that boat and let the bomb do the rest, but she took the kill and then dragged you off the boat with her.”
Vince remembered coming to, Sarah holding his head above water as debris from the decimated yacht fell all around them.
I still don’t know how she managed to throw me off the boat in time.