The desert air was stale and dry and felt like it hadn't moved in years. The air alone could bake you, but combined with the sun... It had to be 120 degrees out here and it was only mid morning.
Face half sighed, half growled as he did a visual sweep of the area. He grumbled as the sun blinded him and the sand remained unchanging. Taking a sip of water from his canteen, he stepped away from the relative shade of the doorway to begin his patrol. Almost instantly, he felt the oppressive heat of the sun as it pressed down on him. The material of his shirt and the gobs of sunscreen he caked on himself seemed to be doing little to prevent his skin from burning; they certainly didn't help with the heat.
Not for the first time, he cursed Hannibal and his rotten luck at getting this particular punishment. It was a shit assignment, babysitting a high level informant and his family until the CIA could move him. They were keeping him hidden well into the middle-of-no-where. The small abandoned trading post had no electricity, no plumbing, and absolutely nothing comfortable about it. It made it the perfect way, at least in the Colonel's mind, to teach Face a lesson about sticking to the plan.
This was a constant struggle between the CO and his XO. Hannibal, for all his crazy schemes, had a desire for structure and order. In his world, you always followed the plan. Even if the plan fell apart, there would always be a back up. Face, on the other hand, was the master of free form and improve. A plan was a good outline, set up a nice road map for the goal, but it was always subject to change. It had to be, because in his world you needed to be able to adapt to survive. If the two of them were being honest with each other, at least as far as the planning went, then they would realize that they were both very much different sides of the same coin. They each needed the other one to make every crazy and half cocked plan work like magic, but the two sucked at communicating.
And that was why Face was at some desolate trading post in the middle of an Iraqi desert babysitting while the others went to meet with the CIA contact. Face had improvised on the last mission and, even though it had made things turn out better in the long run, it had screwed some things up along the way. If he had explained to Hannibal what he was doing before he did it, then things might have gone a little smoother. As it was, Hannibal had been pissed, there was a lot of yelling and a lecture, and then Face had been given the A-team version of Latrine duty.
He had been here in this miserable place for three days with two other soldiers, neither of whom were B.A. Or Murdock. The two soldiers were Corporals Roy Royals, who they called Roy-Roy, and Mark Harrison, who they called Harry, and if he had to be stuck with just anybody he was glade it was them. He was the ranking officer, though, and so everything would fall back on him, meaning no screw-ups. It had been made very clear that any deviations from the plan would result in more serious consequences by both Hannibal and Morrison, a fact that pissed him off to no end. But, at least the family he was protecting was worth it.
Nadeem al-Salman, his wife Reema, and their daughter Iffat were, in Face's book, heroes. Nadeem was the publisher of a prominent newspaper in the country and responsible for perpetuating the regime's rhetoric. He was so trusted that he even was privy to state secrets. Little did the state know that Nadeem was helping to orchestrate rebellion by passing along coded messages in his paper and giving the state secrets to the U.S.
"I am not betraying my country. I am trying to save her," he had told Face one night, while watching the sunset. "I want my daughter to live in a land free of fear where she knows she can achieve whatever she works for. I want her to be proud of me. I want my wife to be proud of me. I want my country to be whole."
Equally as determined and impressive was his wife. Reema was a strong woman, full of intelligence and passion, but she was not forceful. She spoke with conviction and confidence but never raised her voice and always tried to understand other's ideas. She was equally responsible for helping to pass along the messages in the paper, and even helped to create the code. Both of these people were risking everything to help the people of their country, and Face could completely understand that. Not to mention he adored Iffat, or Iffy as she liked to be called.
Iffy was a small seven year old with a cheeky smile and inquisitive eyes. She had a bubbly laugh and an intelligent way of speaking. She loved to listen to the soldiers' stories and would often follow them around begging to help. She had taken a special liking to Face almost instantly and he often spent the evening talking with her.
In all honesty, keeping this family alive and unharmed was an honor. He would willingly lay down his life to keep them safe. He just wished he didn't have to do it in this f-ing place.
Grumbling out a tired sigh, Face approached Corporal Harris and whistled out a small tone to alert his fellow ranger. The Kid glanced over his shoulder and gave his LT a tired but grateful smile.
"Does this mean I get ta go to bed el-tee?" He asked as Face came to stand next to him.
"After you drink your weight in water and eat something," Face ordered with a smirk.
"I can do that. Hell, I'd love ta do that. It's been all still out here this morning. Nothing but sand," Harrison said.
"Not even the farmers from before?" Face asked, feeling the first stirrings of the Jazz start in his body.
"No sir. Nothing but sand," the younger man repeated.
Face nodded, eyes scanning the horizon. "Thanks Harry, go on inside. When Roy-Roy gets up tell him he switches out with me in five, but I want someone to walk the tunnel first."
"Yes sir," the corporal said before turning and walking back the way Face had come.
Face listened to his steps retreating for a long moment, eyes still staring off into the horizon. For three days everything had been still in their small little hidey-hole. No threats, nothing unusual, and nothing that screamed danger, yet Face still felt twitchy. He could still feel the hum of electric like energy that only came with the Jazz. Sometimes it was a good thing, that hum, it meant you had an idea or were coming up with a plan. But in times like this, when you were watching and waiting, it was almost ominous.
Face was hoping it was just the heat.
-line-
"Sorry sir, the el-tee is out on patrol. Harrison just got back in. He won't be available for another three hours," Corporal Roy Royals said, much to Hannibal's annoyance.
"Fine. We'll check back in at 1800. See if the Lieutenant can be available then," Hannibal said, with a great measure of restraint. For the past three days, whenever he had called in for an update or check in Face had been 'unavailable' to speak with him, an occurrence that was beginning to grate on the Colonel's nerves. But, however annoyed he was with his XO, he was going to try damn hard not to take it out on the two corporals who were under his command.
"Yes sir," Royals said and then was gone.
Hannibal switched off the satellite phone and chewed on his cigar, a glare to his expression that didn't go unnoticed by the two men walking into the hut.
Murdock and B.A. shared a look as they set down their gear. Both of them were well aware that Hannibal and Face had been...bickering... lately. Face had been acting very much like a pouting child for a while now, picking fights, escalating arguments, and just over all being a sullen shit head. Hannibal had been playing the part of the fed up parent, almost always rising to the bait. He and Face had been having yelling match after yelling match with the latest one ending with the conman's latest assignment.
Since then, the two hadn't spoken unless it was absolutely necessary and even then it was short, sweet, and to the point with no personality at all from Face. The youngest member had in fact been sounding unnervingly robotic whenever he spoke to the others. For some reason, it seemed like he was angry but nobody really knew why. Well, almost nobody...
B.A. looked over at Murdock, Face's best friend. By the way that Murdock was defending the conman, the quietness in his voice when he would simply say, "we're just not seeing the whole picture," when someone would complain.... The big guy had a notion that the crazy man knew exactly what was going on but he didn't have permission to speak about it and he didn't think things were so bad that he could break that bond with Face. So, in the mean time, everybody else was just gonna have to wonder at what the hell was going on with their youngest. Swallowing a tired sigh, B.A. looked back over at the Colonel who was still glaring at the phone in his hand.
"Talk ta Face, Hannibal?" B.A. bravely ventured and revived a snort in reply. The big man gave his counterpart a sideways look, silently asking for help.
"How's Faceman doing Boss?" Murdock asked, not quite sure if it was the right question to ask... especially when the Colonel took a bite out of his cigar and spit it on the ground. "Well... hopefully better than your cigar...."
"I wouldn't know. I only spoke to Corporal Royals," Hannibal replied; voice tight, "again. Perhaps next time you can call him Captain. Maybe even set up a coffee date to catch up, since you're so concerned about what he's up to."
Murdock cleared his throat, trying to get his foot out of his mouth while B.A. chuckled.
"Something funny, Sergeant?" Hannibal growled instantly silence the younger man.
"Uh...Uh... no sir," he stammered, standing at attention.
"What the big mudsucker is trying to say, is that he is now the one choking on his own foot," Murdock said then quickly pressed on before either man could glare at him. "What did good old Roy-Roy report, Colonel?"
"Nothing to report. So far, so good," Hannibal sighed, allowing some of his aggression to bleed away. He leaned forward, resting his arms on the table.
It had been an intense few days, even without Face's current tantrum. Being responsible for protecting another person's life was enough responsibility to drive a man insane, and Hannibal was responsible for three. It wasn't helping that the CIA agents were late and wouldn't give the Colonel an explanation.
"According to our contact, the relocation team should be on the ground in three hours. We're meeting them in Heet in five hours," Hannibal briefed his men.
"That's gonna be six hours away from Face, even if we take a chopper -" Murdock thought upload.
"I ain't gettin on no chopper. Especially with you, fool," B.A. Interrupted.
"No, B.A., no one's flying. A chopper would attract too much attention. We're taking three humvees, hoping that it'll look like troop movement and nothing else. Not my plan, the CIA's. Not sure I like it," Hannibal sighed. He was going to need a week's sleep after this mission.
"Does Facey know?" Murdock asked.
"No. I haven't been giving them updates. I'm trying not to give the family false hope. Face won't know we're coming until the last minute, with any luck."
"Well, at least it'll be a happy surprise. I just hope he doesn't shoot us if we forget to call..." Murdock joked. He only earned a glare from Hannibal and a "Shut up fool," from B.A.
-line-
"Hey el-tee, my turn to bake now," Roy-Roy called as he walked over to Face.
Face had heard his approach almost the moment he stepped out into the sand, all that fine-tuned sniper training. He didn't move from his perch on the northern fence though, eyes still scanning the horizon. "Have we swept the tunnel yet?"
"Harry just came up top from a walk, and I did one like you ordered. All was clear. Colonel checked in. Still no word on when they're coming. Not sure what the delay is, he wants to speak with you next check in."
Face scuffed and finally looked over to his second. "I'm sure he does."
"You ain't going to speak with him, are you el-tee?"
Face shrugged and then flashed a smile. "Not my fault I'm so damn busy out here in the fucking middle of fucking nowhere."
Roy-Roy shook his head with a crooked smile, "you're gonna get yourself in trouble."
"Probably," Face said with a smile before growing serious. "Keep your eyes open. Something's off."
"You on the Jazz, el-tee? Just like the Colonel?" Roy-Roy asked.
"Yeah, something like that. What time did he say he'd call?"
"1800. You actually going to talk with him?" Roy-Roy asked, sounding surprised.
"I'll think about it. Eyes sharp Roy-Roy and stick close to home."
"Yes Sir."
Face nodded and then made his way inside the main building. As soon as he stepped through the door, he was greeted by a very excited little girl calling out eagerly to him. "L-T! Is it story time?" Iffy called in heavily accented English from where she sat at a small table with her mother, appearing to be studying.
A genuine smile softened the tired man's face and he shook his head. "Looks like it's school time, Iffy. When your mother says you're finished with your lesson, then it's story time."
Reema gave him a grateful look and tapped the paper in front of her before speaking in Arabic. Face watched for a moment with a wistful smile before turning his attention back to the room. Harry wasn't there, but the passageway to the escape tunnel was uncovered so it wasn't hard to figure out what he was doing. Nadeem sat on a cot, well hidden from the windows and door. He watched his wife and daughter with a sad look that pulled on Face's heartstrings.
The ranger grabbed a water bottle and walked over to the man, sitting down on the floor. He handed the water to Nadeem with a half smile and said softly, "how you doing?"
Nadeem took the bottle absentmindedly, but didn't drink from it. His eyes were still trained on his family. "She wants to play outside and it's getting harder to tell her no. We've been here so long..." he said softly, before sighing and dropping his face to his hands.
Face nodded, "I know things have been delayed. We're just making sure everything is in place. You're all safe here. It'll be over soon."
"I know. I'm grateful, please understand that. I'm just..." Nadeem shook his head, unable to complete his thought.
"A father? A husband? A man worried about the family he adores? A man trying to do what's right?" Face offered, a tired smile on his face.
Nadeem chuckled softly and shook his head. "You American's call this a peep talk?"
It was Face's turn to chuckle as he stood up and patted Nadeem's shoulder. "Something like that. Look, maybe when it get's dark we can let you all stretch your legs for a few minutes. Or, maybe Iffy can run around the tunnel. We'll figure something out. Okay?"
Nadeem nodded, "Thank you."
It was a few hours later that had Face being shook awake. The young man startled out of his sleep to come face to face with Harry. "Sorry el-tee," the corporal apologized, "Colonel's insisting to speak with you."
Face swallowed back a groan as he glanced at his watch, 1803. He sighed and rolled off the cot, looking around. He noticed the family was missing. "Where are they?"
"The tunnels," Harry said, "Iffy needed to run. Nadeem said you were okay with it, I was down with them but then the Colonel called."
Face nodded. "I got the Colonel. Go ahead back down."
Harry nodded and then headed back down to the tunnels while Face picked up the Satellite phone. "Colonel," he mumbled, making sure his voice sounded tired and strained. He wanted to convince Hannibal that he was exhausted, and honestly it wasn't too far a stretch. It was just the best way to avoid a lecture.
"Lieutenant," came the strained voice of Hannibal in reply, "Good to finally speak to you. I'd hate to think you were avoiding me."
'Or maybe not', Face sighed, "no sir. Just the way rotations fell."
"I'm sure that's all it was. What's your report," Hannibal ordered.
"Family's getting anxious. We have a seven year old who really wants to go out and play. We've been here a long time..." Face paused here, knowing that what he was going to say next was most likely going to piss Hannibal off. Too bad he just couldn't shake the Jazz. "Sir, I think we need to go to the secondary location."
There was a long pause and Face braced himself for what was going to happen next.
"Has something happened that would make this necessary?" Hannibal all but growled.
Face took a deep breath and forced his voice to stay neutral, "not yet, sir."
"Are you currently facing a dire threat or has someone come upon the safe house?"
"We've been here three days, Colonel. Somebody's gonna notice something soon. There are farms in the area and -" Face started, his voice tight. The composure from earlier was starting to leave him.
"Have you been comprised?" The Colonel barked, cutting him off.
"Not yet," Face repeated his earlier statement.
"Then until there is a reason to move, you will stay put Lieutenant. Stick to the plan, that is an order," The Colonel snapped.
Face sighed/growled out his frustration and all but hissed his next question, "How much longer is yourplan going to take?"
There was another pause, and Face knew he had crossed the line but he was so damn frustrated. "We will meet you at the safe house tomorrow. And when this is over Lieutenant we will have a discussion about your attitude."
The call was disconnected with a slam on both ends. Face was almost shaking with rage. He had to lean heavily on the small table and take deep breathes to keep from smashing things.
"Bad news el-tee?" Roy-Roy asked from the doorway.
"Just pig headed Colonels. What's up, Corporal?" Face asked, forcing himself to calm down.
"All's good. Just need some water. What's wrong el-tee?" The nineteen year old asked as he grabbed a bottle of water.
"I don't know and it may be nothing," Face said.
"Is it that jazz shit you and the others get off on?" He prodded, taking a long drink.
Face smiled, he liked Roy-Roy. The kid was smart and a quick learner. He had a good future in the Rangers, same with Harry. They were both good soldiers, and Face felt like he had to look after them as well as the family. That's why he wasn't willing to listen to Hannibal, not when his instincts told him to run.
"Yeah, it's something like that... I want you and Harry to move into the tunnel and stay there with the family. Take them half way through, but don't worry them. The Colonel's going to be here some time tomorrow, so just tell them we're preparing to move. I'm going to patrol." Face ordered.
"That sounds a little close to disobeying an order, el-tee," Roy-Roy said.
"It's a compromise. We're not leaving but they'll be slightly more protected. The Colonel's not here, he doesn't get it," Face said.
Roy-Roy shrugged. "Not sure if I do either, but I trust you el-tee so no questions here."
Face nodded and then sighed. It was going to be a long night.