War of Hearts

Chapter Twelve - Shadow

As Hex and Ghost continued their training, Los Vaqueros and Shadow Company were gearing up to move out. Graves made a deal with Valeria: The missile locations and Hassan in exchange for her freedom and their forces leaving Las Almas. Graves was going with his PMC's to lead them as they moved the missiles, but they were equipped to handle this themselves. The rest of team one would be on standby in the area for evac or backup.

The base was swarming with activity into the evening. Troops began rolling out in waves at sundown, which Ghost took as their sign to be done for the day. He excused himself, encouraging Hex to get some rest, but caught something flash across her face just as she quickly hid it away. He studied her face and wondered what it might have been. Should he ask? Would she even tell him if he did? He tried to examine her and could sense something was off, though he couldn't get a read on what. He considered pushing her, but the thought of her rejecting him and shutting him out stirred a feeling of unfamiliar anxiety, so he turned to walk away.

Hex waited until he disappeared from view, then shuddered, relieved he didn't press the issue. She didn't want to lie to him, but she was already putting him at risk telling him about Shepherd, and hated herself for it. She wouldn't allow the risks she was facing to put him in danger too. She let out a sad sigh, secretly wishing she had told him what she was about to do, wishing she had said goodbye. Then, in a flash, she moved.

In a remote corner of the base, she had secured a package from a friend with a jump drive, transmitter, and a Shadow Company uniform. It was an all-black suit with padding for body armor, a hood, and a mask. She waited for a quiet moment to don the getup and snuck into one of the planes as it departed for the missiles. There was an abandoned oil rig off the coast that the cartel was using to store them. Graves was booming orders throughout their transport: they would split into three groups to divide and conquer, authorized to eliminate all targets who may be lingering there. When he was done, Hex could hear him speaking to Shepherd quietly over his phone. She couldn't make out all of it but could hear that they would be overriding the launch sequence to fire the missiles and detonate them immediately. Hex's window to gather any intel on the missiles was extremely tight. She was only going to have one chance to get what she needed to her contact outside.

They dropped down from their planes to boats and moved on the rig. There were a surprising number of enemies there; cartel and corrupted army soldiers were swarming the place. It provided the perfect cover for Hex to make her way to the missiles without alerting Graves. The shadows were firing on anything that moved, so she clung to the dark and advanced to the bridge undetected. She had eyes on the missile and was closing the gap. She only needed a few seconds alone with the controls, she just had to survive. Cold wind and rain were sweeping the rig, the entire structure rattling from the waves the storm picked up. The surroundings and odds were grim, but she would not allow herself to be afraid, and continued to charge ahead. She was nearly there, but danger was close all around. The cartel was to the front, shadows behind, and she was right in the middle of the crossfire. Enemy soldiers became denser as she got closer to the missile, forcing her to engage and lose her stealth. "Fuck" she spat under her breath. She was so close, but her window was closing. Maybe Ghost was right. The horrible voice in her mind began taunting her, 'you're an idiot for thinking you could do this. You'll never be good enough. It's only dumb luck that you've survived until now...' She slammed it out. Maybe it was true, but she didn't care. She didn't have to live, she just had to live long enough.

She ducked behind a large shipping container near the edge of the rig and took cover. There was a narrow walkway that was now all that stood between her and the truth. The entire structure was grated metal with water rising up and down through it. She calculated and pulled two carabiners and a rope out of her gear. She hurled herself over the edge of the railing and clipped herself in to begin climbing upside down underneath the rig towards the missile.