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Fleur let out a strangled laugh, slash sob. “No, none of those things.”
“Then you’ve done everything you could do. Don’t be stupid by trying to be a superhero. You’ll end up getting yourself killed, and whoever you take with you could die, too.”
Fleur rolled her eyes. “Thanks.” Shelly was the second person to call her stupid today. Well, sort of …
Shelly looked at her. “If I were to do what you’re thinking of doing, what would you tell me?”
Fleur stared at her friend. “Not to do it. ButI’vebeen trained in anti-trafficking.”
“AndI’vebeen trained to care for people, so by your rationale, I should be the perfect person to take them through the tunnels, right?”
Fleur blinked and then shook her head. “Why are you fighting me with logic? It sucks when I can’t fight back.”
Shelly put her arm around Fleur’s waist. “That’s me, the logical bitch. Now, take me to the nice American men so I can thank them and let them know the clinic is there for them if they ever need us.”
They walked for a few steps before Fleur mentioned, “Oh, I think they have some supplies for you, too.”
“What?” Shelly jumped ahead of her and stopped her from walking. “Why didn’t you say so sooner?”
Fleur held her hands up to shoulder level helplessly. “Oh, I don’t know, maybe you were scolding me for being stupid and making me realize I may be an idiot. Thanks for that, by the way.”
“Not a problem. Anytime, and I mean that. Now, get the lead out. I want to see what they brought.” She grabbed Fleur’s hand and pulled her forward at a jog.
“You’re insane,” Fleur said as they trotted down the path.
“Certifiably. Just like you. What other type of person leaves the cushion of their middle-class lives and travels halfway around the world to try to make a difference?” Shelly laughed and jumped over a rope that anchored one of the shelters to the ground. “Come on, Fleur, hurry up!”
Fleur jogged a bit faster to catch up with Shelly. The doctor’s joy matched hers when she learned about the fuel and supplies. She couldn’t blame her, now, could she? And she needed to apologize to Ronan. She’d stepped in it big time with him, and she needed to own up to that—time to eat some crow.
CHAPTER 5
“Well, damn, Skipper, she turned out to be a bit of a bitch, didn’t she?” Stryker asked as Ronan approached the group.
He’d muted his comms before putting the woman in her place then turned them back on as he walked toward his men. He glanced at the group and shut down the idea that Fleur was a bitch. “She’s working in a war zone without having a declared conflict. Her questions weren’t bitchy.”
“Yeah, but she needs to know we’ve all lost someone,” Jug said as he picked up his now empty fuel cans. “Nobody in this business is untouched by what’s happening.”
“She knows now,” Wraith said.
Ronan glanced at his second in command andnodded. “She does. Let’s get back and get the food and medical supplies unlocked and unpacked.”
“For the number of people in this camp, they’ve done a good job keeping up the sanitation,” Wolf said as they moved through the path back toward their camp.
“Skipper, the two vehicles are in Aleppo. It looks like a warehouse area. I’m losing the satellite soon,” Dude said through the comms.
“Copy. Why are you still working?” Ronan didn’t want his man to burn out.
“Meh, Tink had a date. I told her to have fun and that I’d pull a double. She doesn’t get out much.”
“What?” Jug said. “Wait, you checked this guy out, right?”
Dude snorted. “Damn straight. Tink is my little sister, if not by blood, by computer code. The guy works for Guardian, and believe me, I checked him out. He seems like a good guy.”
Ronan chuckled. Dude was their primary operator, but Tink covered his off-duty time. She had the voice of a Smurf and a heart of gold. Everyone on the team was protective of Tink even though they’d never met her. “Get some rest. I’ll send out a tone if we need you.”
“Thanks, Skipper.” Dude yawned. “I’ve got thetone set to break glass on this end. If you need me, I’ll be here.”
Once they’d reached the camp and unlocked the trailer, the team started to pull out the medical supplies, and soon after, Fleur and another woman jogged into camp. Fleur stopped at the edge of their area, but the other woman ran straight to him before looking at the crates they were unloading. “Please tell me you brought these for me?” she asked, looking from him to the others.