Bound by Blood, Forged in Fire

Hard Press

"How'd he get past security?" asked Jace, the more he knew the more questions he had. "None of our searches turned up anything."

"We had the local police augment security when you deployed," said the older Gibbs. "He must've slipped inside during the switch."

"His former allegiances are in Mexico and he's only been out of the country once," said Ziva, sensing something off. "What's he doing in Columbia?"

"I think I may have something," said McGee. "For the past year, he's been traveling all-round South America around the same time as four other drug traffickers with ties to Columbia."

"That enforces our theory that exiled cartel members are banding together to form their group," said Marrows.

"I need something to hit and I can't use him."

Julian left, making his way to the barracks, he needed to blow off steam. The room was empty, he picked up a pair of gloves and made his way to a punching bag, and started beating it. With every blow, his mind went back to the loss of Ballard, to Swarek & Niels' betrayal of the Trident, and the loss of his friends. He needed a sense of control, to maintain his environment and everything was falling apart. The deeper he got into his head the harder he punched the bag. The sailor sensed a presence behind him, he stopped and turned around.

"Dad,"

The older man took a seat on the bench, beckoning his son to take a seat as well.

"It's not easy, being in charge," said Jethro

"I'm supposed to maintain order," said Julian, sitting down. "Feels like I've failed."

"Can't control everything, believe me, I tried."

The two just sat there, they didn't have to go into detail or have heavy conversations. The part of their relationship that they depended on most was their mutual empathy, they understood each other often.

. . .

The platoon was practicing a live-fire drill, the Team 3 SEALs were due to be sent back to Coronado. Their command was worried about the operators' headspace, and what was going on with them internally. Jace was speaking with Special Warfare Operator First Class Wesley Bennet, the westerner's de facto team leader.

"I don't like the idea of leaving before the job's done, Chief," said the SEAL. "But I can't deny that the team needs time to deal."

"I get it, don't worry about the mission," said Jace. "Between us and NCIS, the hunt won't end anytime soon."

With that, the operators went back to their respective teams. Jace was sparring with Brookes when McGee came up to him.

"Jace, we managed to get something off of the intruder's phone," said the Junior Field Agent. "We managed to track where it's been in the past week, it showed a small fortified compound in the Caquetá jungle area."

"That's FARC territory," said Brookes. "I thought these guys were made up of cartel rejects."

"There's evidence showing that Valdez has been in contact with active cartel members too."

"Sounds like they're arming up," said Jace. "Or at least making deals with former colleagues."

"Valdez's phone shows that he's scheduled to meet a couple of them in the compound in four days."

"We greenlit to go?" asked Jace.

McGee nodded; the two sailors left to debrief the team.

. . .

Three days later

Team 4 and Team 3 platoons reached the compound on foot under the cover of darkness. Their intelligence suggested that their targets were holed up in the compound for the night; they used an AeroVironment RQ-11 Raven UAV to scan over the area. The  RQ-11 Raven showed that there were at least 20 men on patrol, the Team 4 SEALS were going to be the main assault force while the Team 3 platoon would man the UAV, set up marksmen, and support gunner overwatch. The assault force made their way to the compound, the snipers cleared the way. The assaulters split into squads, clearing their way to the center of the compound where their objectives were.

Julian, Reese, Wesson, and a fourth SEAL breached the entrance, clearing the room. They engaged two hostiles and made their way through the hallway to the main lounge, where the HVTs were staying. On Jace's mark, they breached Wesson and the fourth SEAL took out two guards while Jace and Reese subdued two of the HVTs. A third tried to scramble for a weapon but Reese clipped him in the shoulder. The three targets were alive, Julian treated the wounded one while the rest zip-cuffed the others.

"Alpha-Two to Alpha-One Tangos secured," Julian barked into his radio. "Waiting on PID, over."

At the TOC the agents watched the operation take place through the monitors. The operators recorded it all as it took place through their body cameras. McGee and Marrows worked on facial recognition, all three targets were confirmed to be high-ranking cartel members and organized criminals. They gave the SEALs the go and watched them make for the exfil.

Once the assaulters were clear the Team 3 platoon made their way to the exfil point. Once there they waited for the helicopter.