Nick reported over the secure radio. “Mother copies. Break, break . . . all players check in,” said Drake, transmitting from the cockpit of the stealth bomber. “Talon’s up.” “Hazard’s up,” said Danny, seated at the monitoring station behind Drake. “Lighthouse is up.” Colonel Walker finished the check-in from the ground station. “Make me proud, gentlemen.” Nick had settled into a chase position just behind the B-2. He didn’t want to move too far away from it; even with night-vision goggles, the black jet was difficult to see. “Okay, Talon,” said Drake, “let’s get started. Go to observation one. Hazard, you’re cleared to begin the deployment sequence.” “Roger,” Danny replied mechanically. Nick could hear the extreme nervous tension in his voice. He wasn’t sure about the wisdom of putting ground personnel in flight positions.
