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“Literally,” Nick said.

“Literally,” Sean said with a sigh.

“Oh, God. That’s one unlucky bastard,” Aidan said, shaking his head.

Sean didn’t say anything, still smarting over the terrible intel. If the situation had gone any other way, the outcome could have been entirely different. The only reason no trigger had been pulled was that Clint had taken one look at the place from a distance and voiced an uneasy feeling. After that, Sean ordered Team Maelstrom to keep their fingers off the trigger unless absolutely necessary. And thank God he had too, he didn’t want to think what might have happened if they hadn’t been so cautious.

“The guy alright?” Aidan asked, glancing at Sean.

“Other than needing new underwear, yeah,” Sean said.

Nick snorted. “I’ve never seen Sean yell at a whole tent full of people before. We got back, and he didn’t even bother removing his gear. Just marched into the command tent and let them have it.”

Aidan laughed, a cloud of mist gusting out through his mouth cover. “It’s nice to see I’m not the only one he’s willing to give hell.”

“Oh shit, you should have heard him. Sounded like it went on forever. I was sure he was going to get his ass thrown in a hole for a few days afterward. But I guess they decided to let it go,” Nick said.

“What the hell were they going to do? Lock me up because there was bad intel they gave and even worse orders?” Sean asked with a snort.

“Wouldn’t be the first time,” Aidan said.

“Why do I get the feeling you’ve had your ass thrown in a hole because of your mouth?” Sean asked.

Aidan chuckled. “You’d be right.”

“I’m not going to pretend to be surprised.”

“Kinda worked like you guys. They were damn sure they knew where there was a buried cache of weapons and explosives. Like, the Intel guys from their little command center were absolutely sure, totally. Willing to go to bat over it.”

“But you weren’t so sure.”

Aidan shook his head. “No, sir, it didn’t make sense. It was nowhere near the normal routes, not even close to one of the lesser-used ones. There was nothing around to use as a marker, and anyone trying to dig something up out there would have been spotted miles off.”

“What the hell were they working off then?” Sean asked.

“I guess they’d seen some people making camp out that way before and had it in their heads that they were about to find themselves a good supply of weapons to yank out from under the enemy.”

Sean could understand the appeal. There were plenty of times when they or someone else was ordered out without warning to retrieve a discovered cache of weapons. Though theinsurgents would always have their suppliers, they didn’t have the ability to transport supplies quickly. Taking out a hidden store or two meant less capability in a fight somewhere down the road or at least a delay before the next battle.

“They threw me and a few boys out into the desert and told us to find it and dig it up. I told them it was a waste of time. A few people having a camp didn’t mean a thing, but they were eager to prove they were out there for a reason.”

“What’d you find instead?” Ricardo asked from behind them.

Aidan let out another laugh. “Turns out I was partially wrong too. It was a pretty commonly used place, but not for insurgents. People who traveled the area used the spot, preferring the open area because it felt safer. Something was under the ground there, and we found it alright.”

Sean frowned, what could have possibly...and then the idea stuttered, and a new one formed in his mind, ripping a laugh from him. “Oh shit.”

“Oh, shit is right. It turns out the intel boy’s ‘treasure’ was pounds and pounds of good old-fashioned human shit. No weapon’s cache, just the spot where the people camping there shit into a hole, burying it after they went. I guess most of them unthinkingly used the same spot, and it was this huge, solid mass.”

“That’s fucking gross, man,” Matt complained with a laugh.

“Yeah, me and the rest of the guys sent out there to dig it up thought so too. The intel guys werepissed,and they weren’t any happier when I wouldn’t stop laughing during the report.”

Sean eyed him. “And I’m sure you were oh so tactful in your version of events.”

“Told them they were shitty at their job,” Aidan said, and though Sean couldn’t see it, he could picture the wicked grin that was probably on display under the man’s cowl.

“And how long did they put up with it?” Sean asked wryly.