Free Holding Their Own XI: Hearts and Minds by Joe Nobody Page B

We’re covering less than five miles a day, but it seems like 50 on my knees and back. We could sure use some aircraft to help narrow down the search.”
    Bishop scanned the cliffs surrounding them, something tickling his mind. A large hawk was soaring above them, the Texan jealous of the bird’s effortless hunting technique. It reminded him of something….
    “I’ve got it! That guy in New Mexico… the toymaker dude. We need some of his drones.”
    Grim liked the idea. “Think they might loan us a couple of those flying observation posts? They sure gave us hell, and that U.S. Special Forces Team didn’t fare so well either.”
    Bishop’s mind returned to the current mission. Their lack of success didn’t sit well, the Texan finding it difficult to accept failure. Yet, they were out of food, low on morale, and completely lacking confidence. Watts would be disappointed, no doubt about it.
    Sometimes you get the bear, sometimes the bear gets you , Bishop thought.
    “Let’s get out of here. If I never see a red rock again in my life, that’ll be fine with me. I’ll ask Terri to contact our new friends in the Land of Enchantment and see if they can loan us one of those drones,” Bishop announced.
    It was still early, and the team could make good speed over the ground they’d already cleared. Two hours later, a sole SUV rolled down the rim road, a sheriff’s emblem on the door.
    The deputy spied the orange cross and reached for the radio as Watts had ordered. Before he could push the mic’s button, three dirty, exhausted-looking men appeared beside the lane. “Don’t bother,” Bishop shouted. “We don’t need the cavalry; we just need a ride out of this shithole.”  

    Terri was glad she’d decided to stay in Alpha. Nick was being uncooperative, wanting desperately to be back at work… or out of bed… or to fix his own grub. In a way, she’d didn’t blame the big guy. He wasn’t the sort to quietly suffer weeks in the hospital and the restricted movements that accompanied recuperation. Diana needed all the help she could get.
    Then there was Bishop out gallivanting around some remote canyon up in the panhandle. No one knew for sure when his team would be returning. Nick thought it would be any day now. While the recovery and associated law and order made her feel safer at the ranch, it still wasn’t the place for a lone mother and small child. She missed home, but could wait a few more days until her husband returned.
    Finally, there was the new ambassador from Washington. Diana had asked Terri to attend the emissary’s welcoming reception, a casual affair to be held at the courthouse.
    Diana had been upfront with her best friend, “I want your opinion on this guy. You read people better than anyone else I know.”
    The Alliance’s leader had also dropped numerous hints that she would like for Terri to be the diplomat’s liaison.  “I need someone like you who can keep him out of our hair and cool his jets if a problem does come up. Besides, it will give us a chance to work together again.”
    To be honest, the job didn’t sound all that intriguing. Hunter was going to be walking any time now, her son crawling like a little beach crab and constantly getting into anything he could reach. He was also talking up a storm when it suited a need.
    Hunter needed his mother and father, and Terri knew that Bishop’s return to government service was going to result in travel and danger. He might be away for days, even weeks at a time.
    The thought of having to spend her time with some stuffy, old blowhard wasn’t very appealing.
    Terri buttoned a conservative, dark blue skirt that broadcasted, “No nonsense, professional woman,” checked her hair, and then strapped Hunter into a borrowed stroller. The kid looked good in his best outfit.
    It was only a few blocks to the courthouse, mother and son enjoying the cool breeze that signaled that autumn might finally break what had been a punishing blister