Realizations (closed)

[AmberLSweet]

The helicopter landed with a hard 'thud' and before she knew it, Jennifer was thrown out.

She was sure she looked as graceful as a newborn calf being born as she hit the ground...only because her hands were cuffed behind her and the black bag tied over her head, she couldn't see a thing.

Everything that had happened so far had been caught her off guard. Usually, she was on top of it all..but they came fast and hard. Less than 24 hours ago, she had been sleeping peacefully in her bed... probably not that peacefully since since she had been wearing her husband's tshirt--something she did often when her husband was gone out of town.

He was out of town quite often because he was a salesman for some big company that bought and sold buildings all over the world.

Jennifer herself was only a local officer with her town's small police force. She had risen high in ranks in almost no time and was rumored to be the next captain when her current captain retired next month.

Before she could think of anything else, someone grabbed her by the arm and yanked her up, dragging her somewhere. She had no idea what the hell was going and she was certain they had the wrong person...

Their accents were thick and Russian, but she didn't understand what they were saying.

Suddenly, someone grabbed her by her waist and easily lifted her over their shoulder. She struggled but just as she did, they placed a taser against her leg and said something in Russian. Of course she didn't understand what he said but she understood the taser...it was what they used earlier to subdue her in her bedroom in her own home. With that, she stopped and could tell they were going down some steps...a ladder perhaps? They took her hands and uncuffed them but raised them about her head and re-cuffed her to something metal. Her hood was then yanked off and she had to look away immediately because there were two bright spotlights shining right on her... in an emply pool! She could barely make out that a few men with guns standing around the outside and then she heard the rush of water turned on...

A man knelt before her and caressed her face, "Don't worry. As long as your husband does what we want, you'll live to see tomorrow. If not, well, you'll die in less than 12 hours.... that's how long it will take for this pool to fill and that's how long your husband has to do something for us."

"What?!" Jennifer shook her head, "What are you talking about?!"

They didn't answer her. Instead, some just laughed and watched. Oh God, they were going to watch her die...She didn't struggle at the cuffs because they were already digging into her skin. Instead, she wondered what they were talking about...what were they wanting her husband to do?!

 

[BeachBum25]

Michael landed in Kiev, Ukraine in a very good mood. The deal he was going to close today involved a large building that once played an important role in Soviet rule of the region. The Ukraine government was offloading it to part themselves from connections to the former Soviet regime. The building had not been occupied and was being sold as it stood, including all of the contents.

As he headed into the terminal, Michael took out his phone to call his wife. It was a ritual they had. He was always to call her when he landed somewhere, no matter the time of day or night. He dialed her cell phone, and was surprised when she did not answer. It was the middle of the night back home. Well, maybe she was sound asleep and did not hear it ringing. He left Jennifer a message that he had arrived, and headed for the limo that was taking him to the meeting.

Michael was doing well in this business. It was something he lucked into after leaving the military. A connection he had made during his time in Special Forces had told him about a guy he knew that used old contacts around the world to get into real estate investing and sales. All Michael had to do was close the deals he was set up with. Michael was a natural at it.

The ride to the office for the closing was uneventful. He had never been in Kiev before, so, he looked around and took it all in. As they pulled up in front of the building, Michael's phone rang. He assumed it was his wife, but looked and saw a number he did not recognize. "Hello" He sat quietly as he listened. "I don't know who you are, but if she is harmed in anyway there isn't a place safe enough for you on this earth."

 

[AmberLSweet]

The leader looked at Jennifer and laughed as he held the phone to his ear, “Check your email and do not try to stall, or else it’ll be your fault your wife will be dead.”

Jennifer kept her expression neutral as she watched the man end the phone call. By now, the water had started to soak and pool around her butt. It was cold and she had a feeling it was going to get colder in a few hours. Mentally, she tried to figure out where they could be… hell, she wasn’t sure. They had drugged her when they broke in and grabbed her.

“What do you want?” She asked, keeping her voice steady but she was sure she failed. She needed to get them to talk, not that it would do her much good right now. “What is it you want my husband to do?”

Jennifer didn’t know much about Michael’s time in the military, only that he served and she never pushed him to tell her about it...she figured he would tell her more about when the time was right…

Of course, Jennifer had just finish serving her four years before she was forced to retired due to an injury. It was OK though, without that time, she and Michael would have never met. Everyone had said they were doomed from the start but after two years of marriage, she knew they were going to make it.

“All he has to do is break my brother out of prison. No big deal.” That was all he said but Jennifer had a feeling it was more than that.

“And then you’ll let us go?”

That question was met by a laugh from not only the leader but the rest of the group that watched…

 

[BeachBum25]

He knew that dealing with this type of person did not result in the release of hostages. He knew that he had to delay. Michael needed to get time on his side. He was halfway around the world from where his wife was and saving his wife would require an incredible effort.

Checking his email, Michael discovered what was expected of him. This was not an easy task. He decided he was going to need help. While he rode back to the airport he made several phone calls. Recruiting former teammates was not hard once he told them who they were going to be involved with.

Once he was airborne and heading back to the States, Michael began coordinating the efforts of his recruits. This was not going to be an inexpensive mission, but money was no object. Several of the recruits were going to organize a prison breakout that would ultimately involve the execution of the person they broke out. Michael would coordinate the rescue operation, which might prove to be a challenge since he had no idea where Jennifer was being held.

 

[AmberLSweet]

Six hours in and Jennifer fought to stay awake. The water wasn't ice cold but it was cold none the less. In the time that had passed, she had to stand when the water got higher, reaching her waist. There was only one man standing guard at the edge of the pool. He seemed to be sleeping so he wasn't paying attention.

From her rusty Russian, she felt confident enough that she was somewhere near London. Damnit, if there was only someway to get a message to Michael. What was he doing? Could he do what they wanted? A shiver ran through her body from the coldness of the water. She was sure hypothermia would be setting in soon... maybe it already had...

No matter how much she tried to get the cuffs off, it wasn't going to happen. Being a cop, she knew how to jimmy them off but the thing was, these weren't ordinary cuffs used by the police force, these were military grade ones. She felt so weak just standing here, not being able to do anything.

She closed her eyes and tried to get her mind off what was going on. Not because it was a nightmare but because she needed to get her mind off the coldness running through her. This was a hell of a way to die. She always thought that she'd somehow end up being killed in the line of duty...but this? This was like something out of the movies...

 

[BeachBum25]

Michael was not happy with the intel he was getting as he flew back to the states. Better yet, he was not happy with the lack of intel he was getting. He was paying these people a lot of money, and they were not producing.

He gave the order to go ahead with the prison break. The person the broke out, however, was to be held in very uncomfortable conditions where he was constantly reminded that Michael was unhappy and that if anything happened to Jennifer, his death would be slow and excruciatingly painful.

Somewhere over the north Atlantic, information was relayed to Michael that the call that had come into his phone from Jennifer's captors, although being from an untraceable number, had originated somewhere in Western Europe. Michael had the pilot turn around and head toward England. He would wait there for further information.

 

[AmberLSweet]

She was sure another hour or so had passed and the water continued to rise… Jennifer wasn’t sure but she had this deep feeling that this was going to be her last day on this earth…

No! No, no, no… this was not going to end the way they thought. Michael would come for her…right?

There was only one guard up at the edge of the pool and he had his back to her. Good. Keep it that way. The rush of the water pretty much drowned out the sound of what she was currently doing and that was squeezing her hands out of the cuffs. The wetness of the water helped with that and with muffling her cries, which she tried to muffle against her arm as she pulled at the cuffs. Sure, there was some blood… OK, there was a lot of blood but she was almost free…

With one painful pull, she was finally free… but her wrist was gushing blood… There was no time to worry about that right now. She looked up to see the guard hadn’t budged. Good.

She made her cold limbs climb the ladder she was cuffed to, it was slow and painful but at the same time, quiet. She still had one hand cuffed and so she made her way quietly to the man and wrapped the chain of the cuff around his neck and grabbed the other side with her hand and pulled… pulled hard as the guy tried to reach back to her and grab at her..but it was no use, he was fading and she hung on with all her might…. Until finally, he wasn’t moving anymore.

She killed him. But she couldn’t focus on that right now. Instead, she searched the man and found his phone. Quickly as she could, she dialed Michael’s number, all the while ignoring the pain.

He answered and Jennifer called out, “Michae—” but that was as far as she got when the phone was snatched from her hand and she saw the butt of a gun and a flash of pain meet the back of her head….

 

[BeachBum25]

The brief phone call was all Michael needed. The technology he had available to him was able to pinpoint where the call came from. He told the pilot that they needed to get on the ground quickly. Then, he made a couple of calls to gain assets in London. He had made a lot of money, and he would spend it all to get her back..... and to punish those who had taken her.

Michael's next call was to the men who had conducted the prison break. He told them he wanted to speak directly to the person they broke out. "Every bit of pain that my wife feels will be brought upon you one hundred fold. If she dies, it will take those men weeks to kill you. You will beg them to end it, but they won't. By the time you die, you will be thankful for the end." Then he hung up the phone.

When the plane landed, he was met by a group of mercenaries and jumped into an SUV. He received details on the location from which the call had originated. "Get me there. I want to be there before they have a chance to move her. If she is still there, there is a large bonus for all of you."

 

[AmberLSweet]

OK, so having grown up with a bunch of brothers and used to their rough housing was paying off for Jennifer. When the butt of the gun hit her head, she should have blacked out but instead, pretended to fall to her knees before kicking back and getting the one who hit her by kicking him in the groin...to which he fell to his knees immediately.

As she was about to deliver another kick, someone grabbed her and hoisted her up to her feet and the other guy was immediately dealt with as she saw his companions shoot him in the head after yelling at him for hurting her.

"You made a grave mistake..now you and your husband will both pay!" He said to her, before yanking her toward the outside of the building...

 

[BeachBum25]

Once he was inside the vehicle, Michael began to pull on body armor. He was not one to lead from behind, and, when it came to rescuing his wife, he certainly wasn't going to be in the rear. He was going to be the first one through the door when it came time to save Jennifer.

As the rode in the SUVs, Michael asked about recon. He was informed that there were several operatives in place at the location where the brief phone call had originated. They could hear voices and they also heard a bit of a struggle.

"They do not go in unless they think Jennifer is in danger. They also better not let anyone leave that location... and I mean anyone. If anybody leaves there will be hell to pay for all of them."

 

[AmberLSweet]

Jennifer did all she could to prevent them from taking her elsewhere... she fought hard until someone decided to put a gun to her head and that made her quit--for now.

In her mind, she had to believe that her husband was able to pinpoint her location, even in the short amount of time she had him on the line.. One of the men was on a cellphone and she could only assume he was calling in for someone to get them out of here via chopper... it was the only assumption she had seeing as how there were near a helicopter pad.

 

[BeachBum25]

The call came in that the operatives saw people moving out of the building and toward a helicopter pad. Michael had them confirm that Jennifer was with them. They confirmed the sighting of Jennifer and that she appeared to be okay.

"Do not let a helicopter land. That mode of escape must be cut off." He hung up the phone and said to the driver. "Pick it the fuck up. Get me there fast." He checked his weapon. People were going to die, and Jennifer was going home.. no matter what he had to do to make sure it happened.

As they pulled up, he could hear a helicopter approaching. He said to those in the SUV caravan, "The helicopter does not land, and my wife does not leave here with anyone but me. Is that clear?"

 

[AmberLSweet]

She heard the sound of a helicopter approaching and she wondered where they were going to go to next.

Everyone was watching as the helicopter started to land but then before it got within a 100 feet of the LZ, something hit it on the side... an rpg hit the side of the chopper, knocking it to the side and it had no choice but to veer to the left and away from the LZ.

Jennifer was yanked back toward inside where her hands were cuffed behind her to keep her in check. The men were shouting but luckily no shots were fired anywhere. At least not yet. Again, they dragged Jennifer to the opposite side of the building..another escape route and all she could do was go with them because there was no telling what would happen if she fought back now...they were in a desperate situation, that was for sure.

 

[BeachBum25]

"Good job," Michael said into his com as the chopper was blasted with the RPG. As he moved closer, he saw the group of people move back into the building. He got a glimpse of Jennifer as they disappeared into the building.

"Nobody leaves that building. Make sure every side of the building is adequately covered. I am going to make entry where they went inside. I will clear the building." He moved to the door and chose three men to go with him; leaving the others to help secure the exterior.

Michael led the entry team inside. Slowly they moved in a very deliberate clearing method. He listened for sounds of the captors and his wife. Fortunately, they were not very professional, and, in addition, they were starting to panic now that their method of escape had been eliminated.

They moved slowly in the direction of the voices. When he had visual contact, Michael started to devise a plan to extract Jennifer without her being harmed any more than she already had been.

 

[AmberLSweet]

Usually when one began to panic and realize they had nothing to lose is the time that made them the most dangerous. And right now, Jennifer wasn't taking any chances. She did as they said and didn't fight back anymore. Deep down she knew help was on the way all she had to was go along with them and--

Shots were fired and people around her started going down and that's when the man holding her yanked her in front of her, using her body to shield his! She knew he could understand her and that's when she tried to talk to him...talk him into just giving up.

But it was no use when he dragged her with him toward another door and down some stairs. They didn't get far because there were some men waiting for them at the bottom of the stairs so the man started to back up and lead her back upstairs, but again, they were blocked by other men.

They were trapped.

In the midst of the chaos, she saw her husband and that brought a rush of relief to her...

 

[BeachBum25]

Michael waited at the top of the steps. As they started back up toward him, he took aim at the man holding Jennifer. The laser scope focused right between the man's eyes. He was taller than she was and unable to shield him from Michael. Michael had directed each of the other operatives to focus on the other captives. "If I fire, you fire."

He paused as the man stopped on the steps. "If it is your desire to get out of here alive, the woman walks away right now. If I feel that you are hesitating or that you are trying to delay her release, you will die right where you are standing."

"By delaying, I mean that if I start counting, you will never hear me say three." Michael saw the man's grip loosen on Jennifer. "Walk to me baby. Don't stop. Don't look back. Just come to me." Once she was next to him, Michael planted a bullet in the man's brain, which resulted in all of his accomplices being dropped where they stood.

He grabbed Jennifer and held her as one of the men uncuffed her. He took her to the SUV, and once inside, he made a call. "Execute him... NOW." Michael heard the shot, and then hung up the phone. Then he pulled Jennifer close to him.

 

[AmberLSweet]

Jennifer focused solely on her husband as she moved to him and didn't pay attention to those that have arrived with Michael... slowly she made her way up the steps taking each one carefully and headed toward Michael... As much as she wanted to throw her arms around him she knew she couldn't only because of the cuffs

Everything else was a blur as she felt someone unlock the cuffs and she immediately buried her face in Michael's neck as he wrapped his arms around her and let her out to an SUV.

Once in the car Jennifer didn't let go of Michael as much as she just wanted to pass out from exhaustion she held on... It seemed like forever but soon they were safe and Michael scooped her up once the SUV stopped and they had arrived at a safe house.

"I'm sorry.. " was all she could say to him. Even though she knew it wasn't her fault she still felt responsible

 

[BeachBum25]

Michael carried Jennifer into the safe house and laid her on the sofa. He sat next to her and stroked her hair. "Close your eyes baby. You need to relax. You need to get some sleep. Put this nightmare behind you. I am going to be here when you wake up."

When she fell asleep, Michael made arrangements to leave London the next day and to go to a location in the Caribbean for a little R & R, and for Jennifer to recover from her ordeal. When she woke up, he held her and told her they were going on a vacation.

 

[AmberLSweet]

"Vacation?" she asked groggily as she sat up slowly, trying to ignore her headache. "What about work? What about --?"

"You know what, no, I dont want to worry about work," she leaned against him and just closed her eyes, "I just want to be with you... Don't leave me Michael... "

 

[BeachBum25]

"There is nothing to worry about. Work will be there when we return. I am not leaving you. We will be together the whole time, and we will have a wonderful time. We are leaving in the morning and we will be back home in a month or two, or... whenever we decide to go back."

The next morning they boarded the G6 for the flight to the Caribbean. The pilot filed his flight plan for Aruba. Once airborne, I tell him that there is a change of plans and that we are going to land in Puerto Rico.

I tell you that our ultimate destination is a resort on a private island that is all ours for as long as we want it, courtesy of a "friend" that I did a deal for and made him boat loads of money. "We will have a wonderful time baby."

 

[AmberLSweet]

"I know, as long as I'm with you, we'll have a wonderful time." with that, Jennifer slept some more and by the time she woke and they landed, she was feeling a lot better. She shook off the pity party she was giving herself and decided Michael was right, this was all behind them and it was time to just relax and enjoy each other.

She had inquired about clothes but when they got the place, she found an entire wardrobe in their bedroom waiting for her.

In no time, she showered and changed into a bikini top and a long sarong tied around her waist.

 

[BeachBum25]

While you sleep on the plane, I make a couple of phone calls. While we are heading away for a vacation, I close a couple of deals that will help to pay for all of the money spent on Jennifer's rescue, and add to our bank account as well.

Once we are in our suite, I shower and change while Jennifer is showering in the master bathroom. I put on a pair of shorts and grab a bottle of wine and sit out on the balcony waiting for Jennifer. When she walks out, I simply stare at Jennifer. "Baby, you look amazing as ever."

 

[AmberLSweet]

Jennifer took the glass of wine offered to her by her husband. As she sat down next to him and sipped on it, she looked out at their view of the beach. It really was beautiful and she couldn't help but be in awe of it all. She had spent a little too much time with work rather than taking the suggested time off Michael had offered her.

No, after all that had happened, she needed to relax for once.

The wine relaxed her and she looked over at Michael, telling him, "I love you."

 

[BeachBum25]

Michael stared at Jennifer as she looked out at the ocean from the balcony. She was so beautiful. He was happy to have her back. He had to make sure that never happened again.

"I love you too baby." He smiled at her as they drank their wine and relaxed. It had been way too long since they had just enjoyed each other's company. They were both always on the go and it was great that they were able to sit and just be.... together.

 

[AmberLSweet]

After dinner that night, Jennifer sat on Michael's lap as soft music played in the background. Even thought they could have gone out to have dinner, she had preferred to stay in...for now.

The wine had done it's job and relaxed them both. It remained quiet until Jennifer softly spoke, "Who were those men, Michael? What had happened and why did they come after us?"

She wanted to hear the truth and she knew Michael was aware of it. Besides, the sooner they got to talking about this, the sooner they could enjoy each other's company a little more.