Page 350 of 5+Us Makes Seven

“Aw… you’re leaving me? So soon?” Her speech was so slurred and practically inaudible.

I set her down on the floor of the cave and grabbed the AK-47, pointing it toward the sunlight.

“Hold on, I’m a friend,” someone yelled behind me.

I spun around, ready to shoot, but I held off as I saw a man with his hands raised in the air.

“I’m here to help,” he said, taking a step forward.

“Watch it,” I said, raising the gun.

“Dad?” Jade said, sitting up.

“Are you okay, dear?” the man asked, walking toward her.

“I said hold it,” I shouted. “She’s been drugged. How do I know I can trust you?”

“You don’t, son, but if I were you, I would lower your weapon.”

He nodded toward the entrance of the cave. I turned and saw a half-dozen U.S. Marines with their weapons pointed at me. I lowered the assault weapon immediately.

“It’s okay,” the man said.

I turned and saw he had reached Jade.

“I’m in the CIA,” he explained to me bending to check on her. “Come and help, will you?”

“Dad?” she asked again then giggled. “Jen was right for once!”

I walked over and picked her up in my arms. Outside, a helicopter waited to take us away. As soon as we were in the air, I turned to her father.

“How did you know?” I yelled.

“I told you. I’m CIA. We know everything.”

Jade sat next to him, her head resting on his shoulder.

We were so lucky to have made it out of the obvious trap I had led us into.

Hate for myself increased as we flew over the mountains.

I didn’t care where we were headed, as long as it was outside of Afghanistan.

* * *

In a private room at the Kandahar airport, Jade slept curled up on a string of chairs as we waited for our flight back to the United States.

Harry, her father, sat next to me. I adjusted in my seat, partly because the chair was extremely uncomfortable and partly because this was the way I had met Jade’s father for the first time. And because he was in the CIA.

“You did good in the market,” he said.

“Huh?”

“We were watching, but we didn’t have time to move in before they took you. I liked the way you handled things. You could have run for it, but you stayed behind and tried to keep her safe. That’s someone I can respect and stand behind.”

“Thank you, sir. I love her.”

Both of us glanced over at her as she slept.