Holding Savannah: Delta Force Guardians

By Jennifer Becker

Bennett "Viper" Webb and his team are tasked with ending a growing militia threatening the Congo. What Bennett and his team had not expected was to come across a vehicle being ambushed in the jungle. There he meets Savannah-a beautiful nurse. She's brave and selfless, wanting to aid all she comes across.

Savannah Black and her party are attacked in the jungle on the way to visiting her father. Bennett and his team offer her safe passage to her father and promises to end the growing militia problem. Passion burns brightly as the militia grows stronger and an epidemic sweep across the country. For Bennett, keeping Savannah safe becomes a personal mission. And he’ll do whatever he must to keep her safe and claim her as his.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Publishdrive
• Release date: Jan 15, 2019

Book preview

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Chapter 1

Bennett Viper Webb sat lazily in the conference room with his teammates, awaiting the arrival of Commander Santos for their orders. He received a call less than an hour ago that he needed to get to the office and brief for an upcoming mission. The guys around him were taking bets on where they’d go. No one ever really cared where it was, it was just for fun to pass the time until the Commander arrived and told them where they were going. With it being in the middle of the night it wouldn’t be anywhere fun. Being a Delta Force operative, they were always sent on highly classified and dangerous assignments. Sometimes they observed and others they took out targets. Today? Who knew. It could be a bit of both.

Bennett wouldn’t know which until his commander got there. Anticipation ran high in the room as bets were made. Bennett didn’t participate. He wasn’t a betting man. He just went where his Commander told him. Bennett saved his energy for his enemies. He was patience and calm. It was how he earned his nickname. Waiting for the right moment to strike.

Bennett had served with his team for the past six years. They were a close group. Bennett would kill or die for any man in this room as they would do the same for him. Not only did they serve together but they were all best friends.

They had all supported Charlie when he met his girlfriend, Catherine and pushed him when he was letting his scars hold him back. Tony was the newest to the group to find love. His old high school sweetheart, Alexia.

Tony had taken some time off when PTSD was getting the better of him, and he was a risk to the team. No one ever questioned if he would come back. They knew it was only a matter of time. Tony was a brother forever. Tony had been back for a few months now and was already engaged.

Bennett looked around the room wondering who would be next to find someone. It couldn’t be Ortiz. While he may love women, he didn’t do relationships. Ortiz was the king of one-night stands. He had almost taken Tony’s girlfriend home one night, but Tony interceded. That could have ended badly for the man and their friendship.

A hush fell over the room he didn’t notice at first until everyone stood at attention as a new comer came into the room. Commander Santos.

Bennett hopped to his feet and stood at attention as the commander breezed into the room with a manila folder.

At ease, gentleman, Commander Santos said as he walked to the front of the room. His aid ran around him and turned on the projector screen of an aerial shot of a jungle. This is an aerial view of the forest outside of Mbe, a small village in the Congo a few hours away from Kinshasa. We have received reports of a war group forming there and has already attacked a few of the villages around it. They’ve stolen men, women, food and any weapons they can find. The ambassador has asked for our help. Your job, gentleman, is to stop that group from growing any larger and take it out. Any questions?

Sir. Ortiz raised his hand. What’s the likelihood of them reaching Kinshasa? It was an innocent question, but Bennett heard a tightness in Ortiz’s voice. One he’d never heard before during a meeting. What was Ortiz’s interest in the Kinshasa? It was a town hours away where all the action was.

If you do your job, none. Why?

My sister is volunteering at a hospital in Kinshasa.

Well shit. This mission just got a little more interesting.

Good for her. Do your job right, and she has nothing to worry about, Commander Santos said uninterested.

It wasn’t that the Commander didn’t care about Ortiz’s sister, he didn’t, but he had more things to worry about than one person. If they took out this new group, they could be saving hundreds of lives.

The Congo hadn’t always had an easy life. War and poverty have devastated it. War movies and media still cast it in a bad light. The Congo was actually quite beautiful, or that’s at least what it looked like flying over it a time or two.

Wheels up in twenty. Commander Santos left the room without a backward glance.

Bennett glanced over to Tony. Before he’d joined their team, he’d been assigned to another Delta Force group that had all perished in the Congo several years back. Tony looked calm as Commander Santos’s aid handed out their orders and fled. If Bennett didn’t know Tony as well as he did, he’d miss the tension in Tony’s shoulders and the slight tremor in his hands. Tony was nervous about going back to the Congo. He couldn’t blame him. Most of their missions were in the desert. Not a great risk of bringing on flashbacks. Going back to the source would test Tony. The team would keep an eye on him. No questions. Bennett refused to lose a teammate. They were all pains in his ass but they were his brothers. Ortiz, on the other hand, was making a lot of noise about it.

We have to get this shit right. My baby sister, Fiona is there working at the hospital. No way am I letting any of these fucks near her, he shouted.

Oreo, calm down, man. Have a cookie. We got this. She’s hours away from where the attacks are. Kinshasa is one of the safest cities for her to be. She’s a smart girl and knows to avoid danger. She’ll be fine, Vincent Romeo assured him.

You don’t understand, Ortiz growled, looking like a caged tiger.

This would not help the team. They all needed to be focused on the mission. Not family. Not old teammates. Just the here and now.

Oreo, Bennett stated approaching him. If you want to keep your sister safe you need to remain calm and get your shit together. We leave in fifteen minutes. We have a long flight to figure out a plan. Before we can do that though everyone has to have their head in the game. He looked at Ortiz but was addressing the team.

Charlie was their leader, but he was a man of few words. He didn’t care if the guys bickered as long as they got the mission completed. Bennett was the peacekeeper. Only stepping in when needed.

He was needed now. Ortiz was worried about his sister, compromising the mission. While the Congo was relatively peaceful, it wasn’t without its dangers. One wrong move could see a teammate, if not the team, dead.

Ortiz took deep breathes and nodded. You’re right. As long as Fiona stays in the city, she’ll be fine. She’s a smart girl. She’d been living there for the past few months. She’ll know not to go into the villages.

Bennett clasped him on the shoulder, smiling encouragingly. Then let’s go. As the team headed out, Bennett stopped Tony. You good? Bennett didn’t want to be a mother hen, but he wanted to make sure Tony was okay to go. One weak link in their chain and it could get them all killed.

Since he came back, Tony seemed like his old self. But he was going to a place that changed his life. It wouldn’t be easy for him.

I’m good, Tony gave him a smile that didn’t reach his eyes.

Don’t bullshit me, man. Now isn’t the time. Bennett didn’t want to hear the macho I’m good answer if he wasn’t. Tony hadn’t had any flashbacks or nightmares in a long time, he wanted to keep it that way. The last thing they needed was for Tony to relapse out in the field.

I’m good, Tony said with more conviction. I’m not going to risk anyone. I’ve come to peace with that part of my life.

Bennett eyes him skeptically. It wasn’t that he didn’t believe him. Bennett witnessed a new sense of peace in his friend since Alexia came into the picture. Even more so when Tony visited his old team lead. He just didn’t trust that Tony could shut off those emotions as if they’d never happened. Bennett had a feeling the Congo was going to test them, as a team and individuals. He wouldn’t call it a premonition, but he would say it was a gut feeling. And he wasn’t one to dismiss those.

Bennett nodded but didn’t say anything. He’d keep an eye on Ortiz and Tony. That’s what friends and teammates did for each other.

That’s all I need to hear, Bennett said simply before heading off for the locker room to get his gear. Time was ticking.

Chapter 2

Savannah swiped the sweat off her brow as she assisted the doctor sewing up a wound a villager sustained from a skirmish. The villager claimed an animal kicked him, but Savannah has seen enough wounds like this to know it had come from a weapon. A human weapon, not hooves. She’d heard rumors a militia was growing in the forest several hours away. She heard about villages being burned to the ground and villagers stolen or slaughtered. It was terrible. She didn’t think it had come so close to Kinshasa. Then again, they were the only hospital for miles.

If that wasn’t bad enough, an Ebola outbreak was spreading through the country. Her hospital had treated over twenty cases in the past few weeks. Several were already dead and many more dying. Who knew how many were out in the villages left untreated.

The staff was scarce and supplies always low, but she loved it here. Her parents moved out here when she was still a child. Wanting to help the people. Her mother was an ambassador until the embassy was attacked and her mother was killed. Her father fled to the states with Savannah to keep her safe. Once she was old enough, Savannah went to nursing school and applied for a job to come back and aid the hospital. She knew it was what her mother would have wanted her to do. She loved this country and its people.

She wanted to honor her memory and save the people she sacrificed her life for. Her father knew he couldn’t keep her away so he moved back with her leading a military group in Ngabe, only a few hours from her.

The recent attacks made her question that bravado and her father’s safety. The militia was growing stronger. Bolder. How long before they came after Kinshasa? It was a peaceful, vibrant city. She would hate for this growing war to come near it. Or even her father who was living not far from where the group had been spotted. She prayed for his safety every day and hoped the fighting would stop soon.

Savannah, go home. I can finish here, the doctor ordered as he finished the suture.

I’m fine, she said before yawning.

Yes, I can see, the doctor chuckled, glancing at her over the rim of his glasses. You work so hard, for one so young.

Dr. Jabari, I work no harder than anyone else. Savannah was tired. She’d been at the hospital since late yesterday afternoon. She had already worked her twelve-hour shift but hadn’t left when a truckload of injured farmers came in. She didn’t have anything to do besides be at the hospital. She loved it here. She loved the people she worked with and helping others. So many people needed their help but couldn’t get it because of distance, or they didn’t have enough medicine.

Savannah had known Dr. Jabari since she was a child. She’d met him when her mother had become ill, and he treated her. He’d been there to comfort her when he pronounced her mother dead. When Savannah had applied for the nurses’ position here, she’d been elated to learn Dr. Jabari was still there. He’d become a friend and a mentor. At times like this a father. Scolding her for working too much. What other choice did she have? They didn’t have enough staff to aid everyone.

Dr. Jabari shook his head at her clucking his tongue. He left the room with Savannah on his heels. I’ve known you, almost all your life, Savannah. I’ve helped you through good times and bad. Your mother would be proud of the woman you’ve become. The accomplishments you have achieved.

Thank you, she said bashfully. I just feel I can do more. My mother was always out and about talking to the people. I want to go to the villages and help them. Like my father does. Her father was a colonel in the army, patrolling the river.

Dr. Jabari cupped her shoulder and gazed at her lovingly. You have a good heart, but you cannot go into the villages. It is not safe.

Savannah wanted to growl in frustration. She was so tired of people telling her what to do and always be safe. She hated hiding in the city while the people were being hurt. It wasn’t fair.

I know you want to help, Dr. Jabari continued. And you are. More than you know.

Yes, the people of Kinshasa. But what about those that are too far from aid? She didn’t want to seem unkind, but there were more than just the people of Kinshasa to worry about. The militia in the forest was growing stronger. Freely attacking villages that had scarce food and water. They were peaceful people. Who knew who could be attacked next. Most of the villages didn’t have phones or radios to contact for help. They were on their own. So many people who needed help from the militia but would never get it. It broke her heart.

Or they could be ravaged by disease. So many things tearing the country apart. She hated feeling her hands were tied and couldn’t help. The government couldn’t give them a bigger army or more medicine to combat Ebola. What were they going to do? The death toll kept rising, and more cases were being brought in. If it wasn’t one thing destroying her beloved country it was another. That was the way of things here, but they didn’t have to be.

You remind me of your mother. She was always worried about everyone. Savannah looked up at him with tears in her eyes. Talking about her mother always did. She missed her so much. It’s why she had moved back here. To feel closer to her. Her mother had told her once that this was where she’d been happiest in her life. To watch the people prosper and live in harmony. But Savannah, Dr. Jabari scolded. You can’t save them all. It is a hard fact to face for any person. You can only do what you can.

She knew he was right. She just felt she could do more.

Thank you, doctor.

Go home. You need rest. Tomorrow, you leave to visit your father. He smiled warmly tapping her cheek before leaving.

Knowing he was right, at least about sleep, Savannah collected her things and left for her apartment. She was excited to see her father. It had been several months. She just didn’t want to leave when the people of Kinshasa needed her. A break would be nice though. Away from the fighting and the blood.

You win, Dr. Jabari. I’ll see you when I get back. She kissed him on the cheek and headed home.

She shared her apartment with Fiona, a woman who was also a nurse and volunteering her time. Fiona had moved here a few months ago when she said she was tired of her harping mother and overbearing sisters always telling her what to do. Savannah had seen a photo of them once. Thirteen girls and a tall, imposing man. Savannah couldn’t imagine what life must have been like growing up for Fiona as the baby. As an only child, all she had was her absent parents but a strict governess. That was bad enough.

Lost in thought, Savannah almost ran into someone who blocked her path. She stopped startled then smiled when she saw who it was. Jonathan, she cried throwing her arms around her friend. She met Jonathan at the hospital one night when he brought in a fellow soldier. He worked in security protecting the city. He had moved from London around the same time as she moved back, and they’d become fast friends.

Savannah, he hugged her close.

She smelled his familiar scent of coconut and breathed deeply. I’ve been so worried about you.

I’m perfectly safe. I just got back and wanted to see you first thing.

Savannah stepped out of his arms and looked up at his light skin and blue eyes. His blonde hair was so dirty it was almost brown. He appeared older than his twenty-seven years. He looked a sight. Even his uniform was covered in dirt. And was that blood? Are you injured?

Jonathan looked down at the large blood stain on his uniform. No, it’s not mine.

Savannah wanted to question him further but knew there were things he couldn’t tell her and things she didn’t want to know. She knew all too well the ramifications of war. She’d been sewing them up and burying them as they’d come in. But to see a dear friend so close to it hit home for her.

Savannah are you well? he asked her concerned when she turned pale.

Yes, thank you. I think it’s just all this heat getting to me. I need to go home and rest, she said as she headed for home again. Her apartment was only a few blocks away.

Allow me to escort you. He held out an elbow for her.

Oh, there’s no need, she protested though it was a wasted effort. Jonathan was always a gentleman.

I insist. There is something I wanted to talk to you about, he said taking her hand and placing it in the crook of his elbow. It wasn’t the first time he’d done it, so she didn’t think much of it.

Oh. Her eyes brows shot up in shock. Was he being reassigned? A promotion. Do tell.

Yes, well, he stuttered as his hands shook. She’d never seen Jonathan so nervous before.

Savannah stopped and faced him. Jonathan, you know you can tell me anything, she encouraged him. Whatever he had to say couldn’t be all that bad.

I know. He squeezed her hand over his elbow. You’re my dearest friend. I hate to think what my life would have been like stationed here without having met you.

I shudder to think, she teased which made Jonathan chuckle as she had hoped.

Jonathan looked down at their hands before gazing back at her eyes. She didn’t know why but she didn’t trust that look. He was nervous to say something to her, but she couldn’t figure out what. It couldn’t be about his work because he would have told her already.