Quaranteam - AU Ch. 11

Evie shuddered and Addie found herself glancing over to where Ty and a younger redheaded man, Rayne, she surmised, were having a quiet conversation. As Addie had said, he was definitely fit, and ridiculously tall. She could see the younger man's brows crease as Ty said something, and his expression went angry as the big soldier shook his head. Rayne, to his credit, took a deep breath and contained himself before nodding at Tiberius, his mouth set in a line of disapproval. In response, Ty just looked apologetic, but patted the younger man on the shoulder before he turned towards them and nodded.

"Well, whatever they were talking about didn't go over too well, it seems."

Evie looked thoughtful. "It probably had to do with the attacks on Rayne and Marshall. I think we're planning an action but I don't know when or even if it's happening. Doubt the Americans will just sit back since one of theirs was killed and another badly hurt. Rayne and two of his family got off pretty lightly, but as you probably heard, Marshall was the worst off of our people." She grinned and raised her voice enough for Ty to hear. "And I won the bet among the female soldiers of our division. Marshall clearly has the hardest head of all the men on base. And that's a feat, considering we're using an admin base."

Even from where she was, Addie could see Ty roll his eyes and laugh. "Counting beans requires a lot of brains, Evelyn. There is no room for rocks with all that brain matter, whereas I can afford to keep all the rocks I need up there, since tactics and strategy are engraved on my bones. See? It's an efficient use of space."

Evie just laughed as she and Addie walked towards the two men. "Idiot. That's why I get along more with Rayne than I ever did with you. You think with your little head."

Ty gave the two women watching him his best roguish grin. "Ah, but that's how I do my best thinking!"

Rayne snorted and couldn't stop himself. "Uh-huh. That's how Mallory happened."

Ty winced. "How do you know about her? That was in high school."

He just smiled wryly. "How do you think? From what I heard; you went after her because she was the hottest girl in school."

"She was, excluding your sisters, who were totally off-limits at the time."

"Please. She came on the scene after the 'brothers dim' so they were far from off-limits by then. You were just a coward. And besides, those sisters of mine told you not to go after her."

Ty was immediately on the defensive. "No, Ray, they were still off-limits, no matter what you might believe. Our relationship back then was extremely delicate and I wasn't about to upset it. And to be fair, that was the only time I ever disregarded your sisters' advice."

Rayne's tone was like that of an exasperated teacher. "So, what did you learn from that event?"

Ty didn't miss a beat, replying with absolute seriousness. "Don't disregard your sisters' advice."

--

Marshall Household, Melbourne Southeastern Suburbs, Victoria, Australia - November 4, 2020 - 6:40 PM AEDT

--

Ty, Lettie and Addie had spent several hours with Rayne and his family, helping them unpack and settle into the new place. Given how many hands there were, it hadn't been hard work, and Addie had gotten a good deal of time to get to know the members of her sister's new family. They seemed nice enough, but her opinion mattered far less than Evie's in this case, so Addie just hoped it would be a good environment for her.

Now they had come to what would become her new home, Addie turned her introspection in on herself, hoping a crude sailor would mesh with these others. When she met Elizabeth and Zoe, she understood why Tiberius had no issues with the age gap. Both young women were gorgeous, even if Zoe was still looking quite emaciated. She had been appalled when she heard what the 19-year-old had endured, but respected her determination, if not her bullheadedness. Then there were the children. Addie hadn't known what to expect there, but whatever it was, it wasn't those two little darlings. Even though their environment had changed so much, they were open and greeted her enthusiastically. Children were so adaptable. Addie simply fell in love with them, and that only made her more certain that she wanted a child or even children of her own.

"You look positively smitten, Captain." The voice belonged to Talia, who had come up alongside Addison at some point in the last few minutes and had been just watching the interaction.

"That would be because I am. They're adorable...uh...I'm sorry, I don't know your name."

Talia smiled. "Pardon my rudeness. I am Talia. Talia Becker. Formerly a Major of Israel's armed forces, though I have now resigned from that position given my distance from home and am now just a member of the Marshall Household. It is lovely to meet you."

"Likewise. I'm Captain Addison Taylor, Royal Australian Navy. Not sure I'll be resigning just yet, but I understand your reasoning."

The two women chatted for a while, joined by several other members of the house in what rapidly became an animated discussion. Addie found herself liking every one of the women, feeling a moment of epiphany as she realised that these were the sort of women that were going to become her family. The thought made her happier than she would have believed.

She and Evelyn had been raised by a single father after their mother had run off with her drug addict boyfriend and left them to their own devices. She'd been 14, her sister barely having turned nine, and their world had come crashing down around their ears. Or at least, it would have if their father, Andrew, hadn't stepped up and proven himself an exceptional man. He had sacrificed his career and ambitions to ensure that his two daughters were properly cared for. Addie had hesitated when the topic of their families had come up, but her pride in her dad had won out. He was her hero, and she was proud of that fact.

--

With the entire household now exceeding a dozen, it was impossible for everyone to sit down to eat at once, so they split into two groups. The earlier group was composed of the younger members of House Marshall, but Ty had taken to sitting down and helping the kids with dinner before spending some time with them afterwards. He had been very proud to learn that Juno had instilled a love of reading in the twins, and that both of them absolutely loved sci-fi and fantasy books and devoured whatever they could get. He had pulled a huge number of books from storage at the news and was now halfway through reading a series with them. The kids were absolutely ecstatic, laughing as their father did the sound effects and strange voices, mimicking him and playing along. Bella and Mars were purely happy that he was there spending time with them. Juno had actually worried that he was working them up too much and that they wouldn't be able to go to sleep, but they seemed to be burning through their energy like nothing else, and were soon starting to droop, much to her surprise.

The evening had been cathartic and Ty hadn't realised how much he needed the interactions with the kids. Every moment he spent with them reinforced just how much their existence meant to him; impressing upon him just how devastated he would be if something happened to them. It was a pointed reminder of what he was working so hard to protect. Not just for himself, but for every Australian.

And now, with the raid on the Sheikh's palace looming, hell, possibly even in progress as he thought, he was anxious to know that the...monster seemed too impotent a word for a creature like him...that the abomination would get his due. That he would never be able to kidnap a child and hurt them again. He knew that the operators involved in the raid were under orders to seek out and eliminate any and all hostile forces with extreme prejudice. In different times, that order would have been frowned upon as overkill, but under the circumstances nobody wanted to take any chances until they cut off the head of this snake and ground its body into the dirt.

His train of thought was broken as both Bella and Mars clambered into his lap, their earlier enthusiasm replaced with drooping eyelids and big yawns.

"Alright, you two. I reckon it's about time we get you ready for bed."

The pair protested weakly, but Ty just scooped them up and stood, unable to contain the smile as they just curled up against him, clearly too tired to actually put up a fight.

"No arguments, let's get ready and your mum and I will tuck you in. You've had your fun and tomorrow's another day."

--

Marshall Household, Melbourne Southeastern Suburbs, Victoria, Australia - November 4, 2020 - 9:20 PM AEDT

--

Ty heard the huffing well before she walked into the room and rolled his eyes.

"Forget it." Tiberius didn't even bother turning to face the intruder as he stepped out of the shower. It was going to be a long night, and he wanted to at least leave home feeling fresh.

"Ty! It's not safe!" Lettie had been trying to dissuade him from going to the base alone, but current base restrictions would only allow certain individuals access, and Ty wasn't about to leave one or more of the ladies in the car for who only knew how long.

He ran a hand through his hair, obviously getting frustrated. "You're damned right it's not. The streets may be mostly empty, but that just makes it easier for anyone that is targeting us to strike if you're just sitting in a fucking car waiting for me."

Lettie scoffed. "We'll be safe on base."

"The base is on lockdown, damn it. You won't be allowed onsite unless your name is on a list, and believe me, my love, it's a short fucking list."

"Then at least let us drop you off. It'd make us feel better knowing you're not getting blown up where we can't see you." She was pleading now, and it was leaving a foul taste in his mouth.

His building frustration finally bubbled over into exasperation. "And make you and whoever else gets it into their head to come drive the gauntlet, what, four times? Fuck. That. You know full well that I've been dragging myself through battlefields littered with mines and IEDs and all manner of other death traps for fucking years, Lettie. Hell, you and Lottie were right beside me for most of that. So, this will not be the place that ends me, I can fucking assure you of that."

"How can you be so sure?"

He rounded on her and pulled her close, feeling her rest her forehead against his chest. "Because I have way too much to come home for to let that happen, so just come off it, love. It won't work, and I don't want this to become a thing. Besides, the others aren't complaining."

"Only because I'd lay odds that Talia is waiting in the driver's seat of my Range Rover and Grace is probably riding shotgun. You're not escaping without at least one of us."

Ty just gave her a sceptical look but said nothing. It was probably a good idea not to mention that he wasn't going to be using the Range Rover to begin with. It was probably an even better idea to not remind them of his motorbike sitting in the shed just behind the house. Ty clamped down on his expression as a number of emotions overtook him. His mother had always hated that he rode, terrified that he'd suffer a terrible injury while riding. It was an incongruous worry considering she rarely complained about the fact that he was a soldier and often in more danger than he would ever face from riding a motorcycle. She'd more than once told him the same thing everyone else had; to get off his ass and get together with one or both twins. Ty had actually fallen out of his chair when she'd said 'both', but she'd just rolled her eyes at him and launched into a tirade about wasting time and wanting to become a grandmother while she could still chase the babies around, and while one would be just fine, two would double her opportunities.

God, I miss her. You were right, as always, but I got there in the end, mum.

--

It had taken a lot of work to finagle his way into the shed without any of the ladies figuring out what he was up to. But he had, and now Ty was carefully wheeling his beloved motorbike down the path along the side of the house, taking care not to make any noise and give himself away. He even thought he was going to get away with it, until he came across Zoe and Liz sitting on the front porch, clearly waiting for him.

Zoe gave him a look that clearly conveyed her disapproval. "Lottie was right, Liz. Lettie and the others are going to be pissed."

Liz watched him as he continued pushing his bike down the drive, her face expressionless, but her eyes matching Zoe's disapproval. "I don't think what you're doing is wise either, Tiberius."

Ty gave up on his stealth approach and just straddled the bike, turning to face the young women before he spoke. "As much as I understand how important it is that I stay safe, I don't think any one of you appreciates what it would do to me if any of you got injured, or worse, killed. We have a net set up here. It's not perfect, because nothing ever is. But it's far better than anything we have elsewhere or could set up on the fly to protect someone not on base. I'm not risking it. I'm not risking you. Besides, I'm the evasion specialist. Remind the other ladies of that for me."

Liz sighed. "They're likely to follow you, you know."

"I'll be very disappointed if they make such a foolish choice."

Zoe leaned over the railing, bringing herself nose-to-nose with Ty. "Like you're making?"

Ty snorted. "Better one fool than a house fool."

"Idiot." He spotted the fleeting smile play across Zoe's lips at the pun and gave her a quick peck before turning away to put his helmet on.

"I'll be home late. Tell everyone not to wait up."

--

Victoria Barracks, Melbourne CBD, Victoria, Australia - November 4, 2020 - 10:55 PM AEDT

--

"You're going to end up paying dearly for that stunt, boy." Jon Hoffmann chuckled as Ty related his escape from the house.

Ty just sighed, knowing it was the truth. "Yeah. Well, can't be helped now. Maybe if you hadn't put the whole damned base on lockdown, I'd have been able to avoid it?"

Clicking his tongue, the old General just shrugged. "Op-sec. I'm sure you understand."

"Sure. Doesn't mean I have to like it." The younger man just slumped in his seat, trying not to feel defeated. The girls had given him an earful by phone after he'd ridden off, and he'd just sat there and took it. Hanging up wasn't an option.

"Think of it like this. You were eventually going to fight with one of them about something or other. At least now that first fight is out of the way."

"Jesus wept, Uncle, you usually only fight with one partner at a time. I'm going to go home and be at odds with all of them."

Laughing, Jon just gestured at Ty. "Get on your knees and beg for forgiveness. You know when to give ground. Happy wife, happy life and all that. Foundation of strong relationships and whatnot."

"Ah yeah? How would you have handled this?"

"Avoid the situation entirely." There wasn't even a hint of shame in his expression and Ty rolled his eyes.

"Fuck off. How's it going with Narmada?"

Jon's expression soured. "You've given Eloise a new best friend and a staunch ally against me for all things domestic. In the bedroom, on the other hand..."

Ty nearly gagged. "Fucking stop. I don't want to hear about any bedroom exploits from your wrinkled ass. I'd never sleep again."

Jon's laughter rang out in the conference room as Bill and Baz opened the door and stepped in, along with another woman that Ty hadn't seen in quite some time. He stood immediately and saluted.

"Lieutenant General Pendleton. It's good to see you again, ma'am."

The older woman smiled and saluted back. "Relax, Tiberius. I'm not here to worry about formalities. Not around you buggers. Not tonight, anyway." She paused, making eye contact with each person in the room. "This is not going to be a pleasant night, so buckle up, gentlemen. I got some of the reports during the action, but they were few and far between. And what I did hear was not nice. Sit. We'll begin as soon as the connection is established."

Genevieve Pendleton was a wiry woman, with her once-brown hair now gone to grey. Tiberius had only really encountered her a few times at formal occasions, but he knew her by reputation. At the present time, she, along with Jonathan Hoffmann was one of two officers left at the pinnacle of the ADF's command structure. And for her to be here at this time meant that at least one of the operators on the strike force would be her granddaughter, Marion.

"Since you're here, I take it they sent Mary's unit in, ma'am?"

"They did. It was probably for the best, though I think all of them are going to need some time off after this."

The monitors in the room came to life as Pendleton pushed a button, and a haggard looking Marion appeared alongside a man in US Navy fatigues. Ty immediately took him for a SEAL. Behind them both, a spattering of men and women were sprawled out in what appeared to be a barracks building, all clearly spent. The surroundings screamed 'ship', so Ty assumed that they had been extracted to a US Navy vessel somewhere off the coast. Both Marion and this Navy Commander looked positively exhausted, still drenched in dirt and sweat, but it was the horror in their eyes that really caught Ty's attention. On another of the monitors, a second American officer appeared; an Admiral, if Ty's memory served. His crisp, seemingly annoyed appearance contrasted wildly with that of the two operatives, and it was almost comical to see the resentment on the two soldiers' faces as they took that fact in.

Pendleton didn't waste any time. "Admiral Rouchester, thank you for joining us." The Admiral nodded as he took a sip of his coffee but didn't speak. He definitely looked as though he didn't care to be a part of the meeting and didn't even attempt to greet anyone from the Aussie camp. Turning to the screen with her granddaughter, she continued. "Major Pendleton, Commander LeBlanc, thank you for your hard work. I'd like to give you and your people time to rest, but we need a report."

Both operators nodded, trading a glance before the Commander nodded to Marion to begin.

"At approximately 11:45 PM local time, we approached the palace of Sheikh Al Mansouri under cover of stealth and commenced our operation. Commander LeBlanc's SEAL team and my unit approached from opposing vectors and were met with only nominal resistance. Either he had no idea his identity was exposed, or there was something more at play. I can't speculate further on that front, but I digress. Upon gaining entry to the palace, our teams converged on the Sheikh's personal chambers, eliminating all resistance, as per our orders. We discovered his room empty, but an open section of what would otherwise be a bare wall told us there was more to the place. That...and the screaming. That led us down below ground to..." She paused, taking a deep breath, but Commander LeBlanc spoke in her place. His smooth Orleans drawl wavering as the words crossed his lips.

"The screaming led to what I can only call a dungeon. The real barbaric kind. Torture implements. Cells. Cages. Bodies. The reek of death. Ma'am, what we saw down there...that man was a fiend in human skin. There's no other word for it."

Ty felt his blood run cold. If Al Mansouri had managed to capture any of his family...he looked across to Pendleton, whose expression was pained, but she gestured for them to continue. "The immediate threat was neutralised, the guards being too distracted with their own depravity to be paying any attention to us. After that...we had to call in backup. There was no way we were going to get that many people out of there under their own power."