The Mission

Chapter 3

The breeze and mist of the Red Sea felt wonderful on your hot warm skin. The man steering the boat killed the engine and everyone turned to look at you and you gave them a small smile. Glancing at Ari, he was grinning at you before he finally decided to speak.

"Guys, this is Y/N. She came highly recommended from Ethan. Y/N, this is Rachel, Jake, Max and Sammy, my crew. Everyone has a little bit of a different background as to how they all fit into this. Sammy is a field doctor, Jake is a diving instructor, Max is a sniper and Rachel is," he paused, lowering his head and chuckling. "Well Rachel, what is it exactly that you do?"

Rachel playfully punched Ari in the shoulder before turning to face you. "Currently I'm a flight attendant, but I'm a communications transmitter and I'll be communicating between the refugee trucks and the rescue boats."

You nodded, impressed with the crew Ari had put together. Looking back on land, you took in the resort once again. From this angle, out at sea, the resort itself looked beautiful, but deserted. There were many small white buildings lined up and down the beach.

"So what about you? What's your story?" someone asked. Turning around, you noticed it was Sammy who asked you the question.

"Well, my parents are Jewish American and moved to Jerusalem to work for the American Embassy. I was born and raised there my whole life and when I turned 18, I joined the Peace Corps, much to the dismay of Ethan as he wanted me to work for him and the Mossad. After a few years in the Peace Corps, I took a break and did eventually work with Ethan. And then after another few years I went back to the Peace Corps and got out of that about a year ago."

"And what specialties do you have that will help us here?" this time it was Max who spoke up. His eyes were narrowed and he had a hard gaze on you, but you could tell deep down, he wasn't anyone to be intimidated by. In fact, you had a feeling he was a major softie.

"I'm multilingual," you answered easily. There were nods of heads from everyone in the boat, except from Ari. No, Ari had yet another large grin on his face.

"What languages do you speak?" Ari asked.

You snorted, shaking your head. "You name it and I most likely know it. I've been told I have a rather unique memory. I graduated school when I was 14 and finished college by the time I was 18. I read something once, and for some reason, I have it memorized for life. I learned about this gift when I was young and over the years, I taught myself as many languages as I could. I didn't really have too many friends when I was younger, so it was easy for me to just sit and read books all day long."

Glancing at Ari, he seemed a bit saddened at your last sentence, his face dropping. "Can you speak the languages from around here?" Ari asked again, although his face seemed saddened, you could tell his interest was in doubt piqued.

You nodded, lying against the back of the boat and letting your hand trail in the warm water. "I can speak, read and write both Arabic and Amharic."

"Damn, that's really going to help out, especially with the Mukhabarat if they come snooping around here. But don't let them know you can speak Arabic. If they try speaking to one another in Arabic, we can use Y/N to translate what they are saying and it could end up saving our asses," Ari said with determination, a grateful nod in your direction making your heart flutter. You had no idea where these lustful feelings were coming from all of a sudden, but at the moment, you didn't care. Who knows how long you would be working here for? And it didn't hurt that Ari was absolutely gorgeous to look at for your time here.

"Yeah, that helps out a lot actually. None of us fully speak or can read the language. We just know basic words and you can definitely help out in speaking with the staff too," Rachel said.

"Do you have any questions Y/N?" Ari asked, looking at you with a smirk.

"Umm, yeah I actually have just one for the moment. Why are we out here talking? Is the resort bugged or something?"

All five of them let out hearty laughs; Ari shaking his head. "No! No of course not. When we got here, we had no idea there was Sudanese staff that lived and worked here. It wasn't something we were prepared for, so now we need to be extra careful so they don't get any ideas of what is really going on here."

"Makes sense," you replied, feeling your face blush under the intense gaze of Ari.

"Alright, let's get back to shore and find you a room!"

Making your way back to land, you took in the beautiful surroundings of where you would be living for the next foreseeable future. Sure, you were in the desert, but the sand was warm beneath your toes, the landscape was astonishing and the sea; the sea was something you had never seen before. It was so clear and you only hoped that at one point that you could actually go diving.

Ari gave you a quick tour of the resort before stopping in the doorway to one of the rooms. "Hmmm," he said, carding his fingers through his trimmed beard.

"What is it?" you asked with mild concern.

"Umm, well it seems the only room available is in my building. All the other buildings and rooms haven't been put together yet, and the ones that are, are taken by the others. My little hut has two bedrooms in it. But if you would feel more comfortable, we could ask Rachel if she would be willing to share her room...."

You placed your hand up, silencing him as you smiled gracefully. "It's fine Ari. If you don't mind me in the room next to you, I have no problems with it."

His arm came up and pulled you into his side. "Alright then roomie. I'll leave you to get settled and I'll meet you back in the dining room with the others for dinner."

"Thanks Ari, for everything."

"Hey, I should be the one thank you. With your vast knowledge of languages, especially Arabic, I should be the one thanking you for coming here especially after you shot me down without even knowing what the mission entailed."

You chuckled, moving your gaze to the ground as your feet shuffled. "I'm sorry about that," you whispered softly.

"Hey," he spoke, but you wouldn't meet his gaze. He placed a finger under your chin, gently lifting your head so he could look you in the eyes. "Ethan never told me any details of what you endured in the Peace Corps. But I'm here if you need someone to talk to ok?"

Your vision grew blurry as you willed away your tears. Ari tucked a piece of your hair behind your ear and you shivered at his touch; your body instantly craving more.

His soft eyes gazed from your eyes to your lips, making your heart skip a beat. With a soft smile, he walked out the door and left you to unpack your suitcase, and left you utterly breathless.

Taking a seat on the bed, you bounced up and down and realized that the mattress itself wasn't that bad; you've definitely slept on worse. Opening the few drawers of your dresser, you quickly unpacked your belongings and went back to lay on the bed.

With your arms underneath your head, you stared up at the ceiling, hoping that everything would work out well with the mission. Your mind danced with ideas and input, but you found it increasingly difficult to pay attention to your thoughts when all you could picture was Ari. You didn't know why, but there was something about him that you felt pulled to; drawn to. Not only was handsome in every way possible, he had a good heart and wanted to do what was best. You were always attracted to those who served to help those in need, and Ari was just that person.

With a sigh, you sat up and decided to get ready for dinner. Now that you were in the safety of the resort, you pulled your long sleeved, loose see through shirt off; having a rusty orange tank top on underneath. It was warmer than you were used to, but you knew when night came, with the windows open, the breeze of the sea would cool off your body.

Slipping into your sandals, you made your way to the dining room and were greeted by Ari, Max, Jake, Sammy and Rachel.

Ari, using his foot, pushed a chair out from across from him for you to sit in. With a smile, you sat down at the table, joining in on the 'conversation' of how to start getting the resort ready for guests as the Sudanese staff started placing delicious food around the table.