“We need a drone in the area anyway to get a fresh look at the target area before we go,” I tell him.
“I’m on it, Boss,” he tells me.
Turning away from the table to let the men do their jobs, I try to think if there is anything else we might have overlooked. This is always the trouble when a mission is planned for ‘off the hip’; important aspects get overlooked and information that is vital gets missed completely and then the mission invariably can go South very quickly.
My mind is too flustered and cluttered to think properly, and I need to concentrate, I need to play the mission through in my mind.
“I’ll be back in five minutes,” I tell Dan, turning back to him.
“Okay, Boss, going anywhere nice?” he asks.
“I’m afraid not, mate, just want to think the mission through, see if I can think of anything else we have missed, I’ll be outside.”
“Okay, no worries, I’ll be here, Boss.”
Walking off, I head straight to the sunshine, outside, to leave the bustle of the preparations behind, for a short time. The men take no notice of me as I go, they are busy either testing their equipment or getting the equipment that is ready to go onto the helicopters.
I catch a glimpse of Alice with Flight Lieutenant Alders out by his Lynx and Josh is with Buck. Josh is seated behind the rotary barrel of that Lynx’s minigun, Buck pointing as he takes Josh through how to operate it. Josh looks like he is eager to let it rip. I hope it doesn’t come to that.
Going right out of the hangar, I carry on walking and look for a quiet spot that will give me some peace and quiet to think, if that is even possible at this busy airport.
Not far past the hangar, the building comes to an end and before the next one starts, there is a small alcove which is out of sight of the hangar but still close enough that if anyone shouts for me, I will still hear them. Beggars can’t be choosers so this spot will have to do, and I go just around the corner and sit down on the tarmac. My back leans against the whitewashed wall and my knees bend up for my arms to rest on, then finally, I put my head back against the wall, the sun feeling good on my face as I let out a sigh.
My thoughts are not immediately centred on the mission, as my mind wanders to Emily, where she is now and what she is doing, hoping she is still okay. Then, I allow myself to think of Catherine for a moment; I am taken back to yesterday when she met us out of the lift at the Orion building. I can’t help but think of how gorgeous and vibrant she looked in the red dress she had on, how it clung to her body as she walked in front of me and the long black zip that went all the way down the back. Will I ever be lucky enough to find out what that long zip was hiding? God, I hope so.
Forcing my mind back to reality, I have to leave those fleeting thoughts behind and get my head back in the game. I clear my mind and start to play out the mission in my head. I try to visualise the whole mission from when we take off to when we land back at Heathrow. Every part is thought out, and I try to envisage each step that has to be taken to carry out the mission, much like a sprinter does just before the starting gun is fired. There is so much more to visualise for this than a sprinter must for their ten-second sprint.
I open my eyes after several minutes and look down, staring at the tarmac, feeling as though I have accomplished nothing. There are just too many variables to consider and too many things I can imagine going wrong; there are threats at every stage of this mission. I knew before that it was going to take a large slice of luck to accomplish this mission, and this process has brought that home to a sharp point and made me feel more dejected about it.
My phone buzzes in my pocket, so I lean to one side to enable me to pull it out of the tight space. There is a message from Catherine; did her subconscious tell her I was thinking about her or is it pure coincidence?
‘Hi Andy, I just wanted to let you know that Emily and Stacey are fine, we are still stuck in the same room and it is pretty boring, to be honest. Suppose it could be worse. Good luck with the mission, I’m thinking of you, how much longer until you go? Luv C.’
Perhaps it wasn’t a coincidence, perhaps it was the Universe pulling us together. Whatever it is, it is great timing, because Catherine’s message has picked me up out of the doldrums somewhat.
I click reply. ‘Hey, how did you know I was just thinking about you? Thanks for letting me know about the girls, and I can’t wait to see you all again. We go in about half an hour, so this will probably be the last message for a while. Try not to worry too much, love Andy.’
After I click send, I get up from my stoop, slip my phone back in my pocket and stride back towards the hangar, my son and my team. We have one option and that is to succeed, there is no way I am not going to see those three girls again, no matter the odds!
On the way back, Josh sees me approaching and comes running over.
“You okay, Dad?”
“Yes, Champ,” I tell him and give him a confident smile. “Just needed a bit of time to go over the
