Not Gonna Die // Mitch Rapp

08

The three sat at a table and Heidi was looking at Mitch, soaking him in as much as she could. When she was taken, she didn't think she'd see him again. But fate had been kind to the couple and she didn't want to be separated from him for an extended time again.

Annika smiled at the couple. "He thinks you two are married."

"Well, we nearly are," Heidi reasoned.

Mitch stared at the building in front of them, taking Heidi's hand as she said, "Careful not to think too much. You'll lose your nerve."

"No, I don't think so," Mitch replied.

"It's going to be your first time."

He met her eyes. "Yeah, not in my mind."

"What did you go through?" she asked softly.

"Too much." He saw a black car pull up and said into the mic, "Lead, your friend's arriving now."

"Copy," Victor answered.

More cars pulled up. "And he brought a shitload of military protection."

Mitch heard Stan say, "Lead, you're a go. Survey 2, get in place."

Heidi and Mitch stood, leaving Annika alone. "Be careful in there."

Mitch glanced to Heidi who nodded. "We got it. Pardon."

The two of them walked towards a big building with windows everywhere. They sat and watched as Victor walked in. He was stabbed and his gun was taken from him.

The man who had taken the gun began shooting and managed to escape.

Heidi motioned Mitch to check over to Victor and he knelt down and felt for a pulse to find none. "Target's gone. Target's gone."

"Lead?" Stan called.

"Dead," Heidi answered in a defeated tone.

"Mission terminated. Exfil to secure location. Confirm." Mitch watched as the target was standing near a car, clearly planning to go in. "Survey 2, you better let me hear you fucking confirm." Mitch ran after the target, ignoring Heidi's calls.

He found a guy and pointed his gun at him. "Drive! Drive! Follow your boss!"

"Please, I'm just the assistant! Don't hurt me! Drive! Drive!"

Heidi grabbed my gun and when they reached the building, she said, "Thank you." She turned to Mitch and whispered, "What the fuck, Mitch?!"

The assistant began begging. "He's right there on the fifth floor. Please. I don't approve of what the Sharif does. Don't kill me."

Heidi crossed her arms as Mitch said, "Don't worry, we're not going to hurt you. We're gonna hurt your boss." He put a cloth in the assistant's mouth.

The two of them climbed inside the compound and dogs began barking. They ran along cars as the dogs chased them and Mitch crushed glass and climbed into a car, pulling Heidi in behind him.

Mitch managed to get the dogs stuck in the car and snuck in through the window, followed by Heidi, just as a woman passed. When she saw them, she screamed. Gunfire broke out, and the woman was killed.

Mitch quickly pulled Heidi behind a counter before attacking the shooter. After he put up a fight, he broke the shooter's neck and entered the room.

The man stared at Mitch and he saw the terrorist who had taken Heidi. "No, please. Please, don't. Don't. No." Without hesitation, Mitch shot at him and killed him before grabbing the laptop.

Heidi frowned and asked, "What happened to you, Mitch?"

Mitch met her eyes. "Revenge. I thought I lost you forever Heidz."

"But you didn't. This reckless behavior is going to bite you if you're not careful. I can't lose you."

Mitch cupped her face. "You're not gonna lose me, baby."

---

At a safe house in Romania, Stan began berating Mitch. "You disobeyed a direct order. And you dragged your partner into this."

"No, I made a decision to pursue the target, and I completed the mission," Mitch corrected. "And sir, isn't that what I'm supposed to do? Isn't that my job?"

"Your fucking job is to do what I fucking tell you to do!"

"What, you prefer I leave him alive, then let him go? That piece of shit?"

"Stan?" Irene called. "Good. You're here. I wanna show you something."

Mitch rolled his eyes and walked back to Heidi before asking, "How did you escape your captors?"

Heidi shrugged. "I honestly couldn't tell you. All I knew is that I had to get out of there. A little longer and I might've left in a body bag."

"God, what did they do to you?"

Heidi shook her head slowly as she began tearing up. "Mitch, I-I was so scared! Each day was worse than before." She lowered her head, almost in shame. "I wished myself dead to escape the hell I was enduring and-" She cut herself off with a light gasp and wrung her hands together in a self-soothing gesture.

Mitch instantly pulled her into his arms, holding her as close as he could. "I'm here, Heidi. You're safe now."

She buried her head in his chest, biting her lip from letting out a sob. She didn't want to cry. She wouldn't.

Mitch glanced down at his fiancée, wishing he could take away the memories of the hell she'd endured.

"It should've been me," Mitch said.

Heidi slowly looked up. "What?"

"All you went through. I should've gone through it instead."

"Mitch, no. What they did... God; it was awful."

He wasn't sure what to say, so he simply held her. He never wanted to let her go. And judging from her contented sigh, she felt the same.