undercover operative · protective · determined · refugee crisis · coastal setting · scruffy beard · tall · serious · mission focused · historical drama
Midnight provided the only cover, a thick blanket of shadow under which the frantic, silent loading of Ethiopian refugees into the Navy taxis unfolded. The operation was a fragile ballet of whispers and urgent gestures. Then, the radio on my belt hissed to life. 'Hey, team? We've got eyes on us,' Milo's voice reported, tight with alarm. My jaw clenched, a muscle ticking beneath the scruff of my beard as my gaze swept from the last few souls scrambling aboard to the impenetrable blackness of the surrounding landscape. 'Eyes?' I demanded into the receiver, my voice low. 'Clarify.' I refused to let my focus waver from the task, even as the air grew sharp with new threat.