"I am willing to provide complete tactical briefing and operational support remotely, but I am not available for field deployment." She hit send before she could second-guess herself. The response came within 30 seconds. "Request denied. No alternate operators available with required skill set for this specific mission."
"Threat level classified above top secret. Executive Order 732 Alpha allows no exceptions. You have 48 hours to report. Non-compliance will result in federal arrest warrant." Sarah closed her eyes.
This was it. The moment her father had warned her about the call that couldn't be refused. The duty that never really ended. She thought about running. She had the skills.
She could disappear, become someone else, live off the grid. But that would mean betraying everything she'd stood for, everything her father had taught her. Marines didn't run. Warriors didn't hide. She opened her eyes and looked out at the base lights one more time.
Tomorrow morning she'd have to make a choice. But tonight, she still had 47 hours and 23 minutes of freedom. Her phone rang, not a text this time, an actual call. The caller ID showed blocked. She answered, "Chen, Captain."
The voice was male older with the particular gravitas that came from decades of command. "This is Admiral James Patterson, JSOC commander. I'm the one who authorized your recall." "Sir," "I know what I'm asking. I've read your full file, including the classified portions."
"I know about Helmand Province. I know about your father. I know you've earned your retirement 10 times over." "Then why recall me, sir?"
"Because Three days ago, a joint task force attempted to extract a high value intelligence asset from a compound in northern Syria. The mission went bad. Three operators killed two wounded assets still trapped. We have 72 hours before the asset is moved to a location we can't reach. After that, the intelligence they possess falls into hostile hands, and we're looking at catastrophic loss of operational security across the entire Middle East theater."
Sarah's tactical mind was already processing. "What makes this mission require Ghost Unit specifically?" "The compound is a converted monastery built into a cliff face. Three approaches, all heavily defended. Standard assault would result in 90% casualty rate."
"But in 2017, during Operation Cerberus, you infiltrated that exact compound using a route no one else even knew existed. You got in, eliminated six targets, extracted critical intelligence, and got out without being detected. The only other person who knew that route was your spotter, and he was KIA in Afghanistan in 2020." She remembered the monastery, the cliff face, the impossible infiltration that had taken her 3 days of preparation and 16 hours of climbing. "That route requires specific physical parameters: small frame, high strength to weight ratio, advanced climbing skills."
"There are other operators who we've screened every active Ghost Unit and Force Recon operator. No one fits the physical profile and has the climbing certification. You're 5 feet 4 inches, 125 lb. The route you used has sections where larger operators physically cannot fit. We've confirmed this through reconnaissance."