Chapter 19 – Rescue Mission

William

How could I have been so stupid! I was currently in my car on my way to SWAT HQ, but my thoughts were filled with the events that happened the day before yesterday.

I had canceled our training this morning because I knew I wouldn't be able to be alone with her. I would be lying if I said I didn't avoid her at all costs. Not that she tried to see me either. She went to her room and stayed there when I was on shift.

I realized what an absolute asshole I was, giving her mixed signals and then saying 'It was a mistake.’ Yet, as much as I wanted to make myself regret what had happened, I couldn't. Everything about that kiss was perfect. The way she fit between my arms, the softness of her skin against my fingers, and the need with which she kissed me back.

No matter how hard I tried not to, my thoughts and dreams seemed to always revolve around her during the past holidays.

This was beyond frustrating. Harmoni was beautiful, and the more I got to know her, the more I was discovering a girl that was thoughtful, caring, not to mention funny. I was seeing a side of her that I wanted to explore further but most of all that I wanted to protect.

She had finally opened up to me yesterday, and now I was avoiding her. ~Good job, man~. My inner voice voiced sarcastically.

I couldn't believe I was admitting this to myself. But I was starting to like Harmoni, and not just in a friendly way. Fuck that, I could slowly feel myself falling for her.

I had to snap out of it. I was busy. I had both jobs and a lot of responsibility. I didn't have time for a relationship. She deserved better. She deserved to be with someone her age, someone going through the same things she was, to whom she could relate better. Someone that wouldn't get her killed. I wasn't the right person for her.

~Dammit, who am I trying to convince?~ I couldn't help but think to myself.

My head was a mess. I promised myself a long time ago that I would never mix personal and professional life again. Yet here I was, struggling with this very same issue. I had experienced firsthand how dangerous and devastating a distraction like romance could be.

The hands on the wheel tightened as my thoughts drifted back to my first time in the army.

I had just been sent to my first combat region. After a few weeks of being there, I had developed a relationship with Lesly, a woman in my team. We were mostly fooling around, yet that had been enough. On a day we had a fight, we were both distracted as we moved around the city. Lesly was walking slightly in front of me, lost in thought. I could see she was upset about our fight.

One minute she was there, and the other we were collecting body parts on the floor. She had missed the mine that was planted on the floor. The explosion knocked me back and I almost lost my leg, Lesly hadn't been as lucky.

It took me a long time to forgive myself, and since then, I promised never to be distracted like that again. After that event, I focused on my work, became emotionless. It was the only way. I climbed the ladder quite fast and along the road slowly learned to allow myself to have some friends.

The image of Lesly would never leave my mind, and I wouldn't allow myself to make the same mistake. Especially not with Harmoni. I needed to figure out what I was going to do, but one thing was for sure, I couldn't have her, not as long as I worked for her father.

I parked my car and ran my hands through my hair, trying to relieve the tension that had built since that kiss.

Before going to work yesterday, I received a call signaling that we had another kidnapping and it was all hands on deck. I called James to let him know I wouldn't be there even though it was Sunday. He understood the urgency of the situation and said he would call a backup bodyguard.

We had been working almost all day and night to figure out the location of this kid. It was the same MO as the last two times. Young and wealthy, kidnapped. No ransom, no trace. The captain sent me home at some point to get some sleep and here I was now heading back to HQ.

As I entered the building, I saw SWAT getting ready to leave.

"Suit up! Mia found the location of the boy,” Cayden said when he saw me. In less than two minutes, I was ready and jumping in the back of our van. Earpiece in and gun in my hand.

The phone of the kid had come on live for a brief moment just before I had arrived, and Mia had been able to trace it back to a warehouse downtown.

“Team A, you'll head to the back door while Team B will take the front. Team C, you're our backup. We wait for my signal before we head in.” I started giving my orders as the cars slowed down. All teams could hear me through their earpiece.

We headed to our position, being as stealthy as possible. No sound could be heard. Once we were at the door, we placed a device under the door, checking for any explosives connected to the door.

“Clear,” Jo said, while I heard another clear from the team at the back door.

“3...2...1...Breach.” With that, all hell broke loose. The door was kicked in from both sides while our guns were out, ready to take on any intruders.

“Clear!”

“Clear!”

“Clear!”

I heard from different teams all around the warehouse.

“There's no one here, sergeant,” Jo said.

The entire warehouse was empty, except for one male tied up to a chair in the middle of the room with a bag around his head. Slowly approaching him, we pulled the material away from his head.

I hadn't paid much attention to the pictures of the child we were trying to rescue when it was on the screen at HQ, but looking at this kid beaten and bruised all over, I recognized him. It was the kid that had nearly assaulted Harmoni. What in the world had happened to him?

I remember Harmoni telling me he wasn't in school, but that was more than a month ago. Why did his parent only report him missing now?

“Send the medics,” I quickly ordered. The kid was barely conscious. We untied him before letting the EMT take him away to the nearest hospital. Before leaving, the paramedic mentioned that he should be fine; there weren't any deadly bruises on him. He seemed to have gone through quite a few beatings.

This wasn't normal. Why would the kidnappers leave the kid in the middle of the warehouse? Why not take him with them? If he was too much of a bother, why not kill him? These kidnappers were playing a game. They were playing with us, but we still hadn't figured out what their goal or what the end game was. What did they want? They didn't ask for money, and they didn't kill the child. They simply gave them back all bruised up.

“Good job, team!” I congratulated once we were back in the van and on our way back to HQ.

“I wonder who they are?” Mia said.

“Don't we all?” Seth answered. “It's like the weirdest kidnappers in the world. What are they trying to achieve? I'm ready to bet this kid was drugged just like the others and won't be able to tell us anything.”

I was lost in thought, thinking about how I was going to tell this to Harmoni and how I needed to clear the air between us before we lost the friendship we had built. I also thought about how I needed to brush up on kidnapping theory with her just in case. I hope I would be able to protect her and never put her in that kind of position, but I wouldn't let my pride get in the way of her safety.

“School shooting in progress, 75 Camden Street. You are the closest unit,” I heard dispatch say through the radio.

“That's a few blocks away,” Seth said.

“SWAT unit 2 responding, we are five blocks out,” Freddy answered from the driver's seat.

“Copy that, SWAT unit 5 will assist; they are ten blocks out,” the lady announced through the radio.

75 Camden Street, why was that so familiar? Harmoni! 75 Camden Street. That was Harmoni's school. I took out my phone and immediately started dialing.

Pick up... Pick up... I was sent directly to voicemail.

My stomach dropped as my entire being filled with dread. This couldn't be happening.