Page 45 of Deadly Storms (Sunrise Lake #3)

That didn’t mean her father hadn’t tried to hire the notorious assassin to kill her.

He certainly had the means to reach out to an anonymous assassin.

But then, if he had, he couldn’t possibly know Deadly Storms’ true identity.

No one knew for certain. She doubted if her father would even guess.

Rainier was a doctor. An officer. He worked for Blom in the Special Activities Division of the CIA.

That was all factual and could easily be verified.

She doubted anyone would suspect him of being a notorious assassin.

Rainier had confirmed that fact. If her father did know, he would use the information to get whatever he wanted.

There was no way he knew the identity of Deadly Storms.

The story of her rescue prior to the assassin striking during a sandstorm was plausible.

Rainier had kept her with him while she was partially healing because she’d begged him not to allow anyone else to see her in the condition in which he’d found her.

Again, he’d concocted a believable story, one his agency bought, that they had been trapped by Scorpion as he’d searched the desert for his captive, believing it would be impossible in her state to transport her a far distance quickly.

Rainier had convinced Blom it had been impossible to use a helicopter because of the strength and duration of the sandstorm.

Shabina had been in such bad condition that once he took her to a safe place, he had to treat her in order to keep her alive.

That had to be his first priority. As soon as he knew it was safe to contact his people, he had, but he hadn’t allowed transport until he knew she would survive, and no one could come to them because he wouldn’t chance exposing their position. It had all been very plausible.

Shabina couldn’t imagine how that would incur her father’s wrath. She sighed and tapped the back of her head against the seat. “Why does my father dislike you so much, Rainier? It isn’t some small thing between you.”

He brought her hand to his mouth, kissing her fingers and then bringing their joined hands to his chest directly over his heart all the while keeping his eyes on the road.

“No, baby, you’re correct, it isn’t a small thing.

It’s quite a few things.” He pressed her hand tighter to his chest. “Do you really want to know hurtful things about your parents on your wedding day?”

She had been avoiding the truth for years. Hiding like a child with her eyes closed, covering her ears, trying desperately not to allow her brain to give her answers because all along nothing added up.

“My father despised you, and he still does. He went out of his way to turn me against you. Even now, after all these years, every chance he gets, he says disparaging things about you. If he could, I think he would do his best to ruin your career.”

“He tried. Jack found he doesn’t have that kind of clout. I shut him down after that. I warned him to quit trying to mess with my career. He stopped. I would know if he did anything stupid.”

“Weren’t you worried he’d turn me against you?” She’d always been curious about that.

“You’re one of the strongest people I’ve ever met.

You stick to your own convictions and judgments.

You don’t let someone else make up your mind for you.

You’re fair. When I first got you out of Scorpion’s camp, you talked to me about the people you’d met, the good ones.

The brave ones. You were determined to beat Scorpion at his own game. There’s fire in you.”

“I was dying. I wanted to die.”

“Baby, you had a raging infection. You’d been tortured.

Raped. Through all that, you didn’t arbitrarily convict every man, woman and child born in that country.

You told me about the ones who helped you.

Nothing I said was going to change your mind.

You changed my mind. I had turned myself into a sword of revenge, but by listening to you, I learned to be a better person—at least I hope I have. ”

Rainier gave her compliments when no one in her life had done so.

Mama Ahmad had praised her when she was learning to bake or apply henna tattoos, but it wasn’t the same.

He didn’t sound as if he was trying to build her up or flatter her.

He sounded offhand, matter-of-fact, as if he were simply stating a truth.

“The way you say that, it sounds like you don’t believe you’re a good person, Rainier. I know you. Inside, where no one else sees.” She cupped his jaw briefly. “I’m so grateful that you let me see the real you.”

“That’s what I counted on when I knew your father would do his best to turn you against me.

You don’t let anyone persuade or intimidate you into thinking the way they do.

If anything, the more he talked against me or demanded you have someone else head your security, the more I knew you’d defend me.

You’re faithful to the people you believe deserve your loyalty. ”

“The security on the estate was so tight, not just the alarms on doors and windows, but guards everywhere. Still, you always knew when I had vicious nightmares, and you’d slip inside the house.

I don’t know why he didn’t turn you in to the cops.

I worried so much about that. I’d feel guilty when I’d make you stay with me, and then my father would find out you were there. ”

“You should have told me you were worried. I would have reassured you. Jack wasn’t about to call the cops on me. He might want to, but he’s a brilliant man.”

Shabina studied his profile. He was all angles and planes.

A strong jaw with a dark shadow that never quite left him even if he shaved.

He was the most intense individual she’d ever met.

He could be so still; he could blend into the background or exude such lethal energy everyone around him froze in place, fearful of moving.

He commanded a room simply by walking into it.

Even his dangerous demeanor wouldn’t stop her father.

“You knew something damaging about my father.” She murmured the statement aloud, more to herself than to him. Puzzling. That wasn’t necessarily right. “No, he would be more inclined to protect my mother than himself. Or the two of them together. Something to do with my kidnapping.”

Rainier kept his gaze fixed on the road, his expression giving nothing away. He might as well have been carved from stone.

“A year passed, and the ransom still hadn’t been paid to Salman Ahmad.

It was a simple business transaction. All the other ransoms had been paid easily, and the other prisoners had been released.

Ahmad was worried, so much so that he had decided to release me without being paid.

I overheard him tell his men, and then he came and told me not to worry, I’d be going home soon. ”

“Do you know why the ransom money hadn’t been paid?”

“I know they went to collect it on at least three occasions but came back empty-handed. We would break camp immediately and leave the area. Men would stay behind to cover our tracks.”

“What did Ahmad think happened to the money? Or did he believe Jack wasn’t paying?”

Shabina had been secretly happy the ransom hadn’t been paid.

She hadn’t realized how much she wanted to be with someone like Mama Ahmad, learning from her, sharing chores, telling stories, holding babies and looking after the children.

There was always joy and laughter from the time the sun came up until it went down.

She hadn’t been concerned about why her father wasn’t paying until the day she realized Salman Ahmad was worried.

Then she paid attention and tried to gather information quickly.

“My father claimed to Ahmad that he’d paid the ransom three times and Ahmad hadn’t delivered. Ahmad said no one showed to give them the money. He was very uneasy, and that’s when he told his men he was releasing me.”

“You believe that Jack paid the ransom?”

“Yes.” She did believe it. “Like I said, we were told that if we were ever kidnapped, it was treated as a business. Cooperate. The ransom would be paid. There can only be one explanation. Ahmad had a traitor in his camp. Scorpion must have intercepted the ransom each time it was paid. He took the money. He had to know when and where it was being delivered, and he got there first or had his mercenaries there to intercept. The only way he could do that was if someone tipped him off.”

“That’s logical,” Rainier agreed.

“When Ahmad said he would release me, word must have been sent to Scorpion, and he and his men came and murdered everyone. It was a total massacre. No one was prepared. They didn’t have a chance.”

Just thinking about that day tore her up. She didn’t want to see the images crowding into her mind, so she slammed that door closed the way she always did the moment vivid pictures formed.

“Qadri.” Rainier breathed the name he often called her. Destiny. “I’m with you.”

That was all. I’m with you. So simple, but it was everything to her. She wasn’t alone. She never would be as long as she had Rainier.

“I can do this, Rainier,” she said, more for herself than for him. She was determined to solve the puzzle once and for all. To know the truth.

“Scorpion and his cabinet hated me. It was personal. Very, very personal. I’d never met them.

I tried to stay quiet and do exactly as I was ordered, but it didn’t matter.

Scorpion was determined to torture me. He didn’t need excuses.

He took great pleasure in finding ways to not just physically but emotionally hurt me. I asked myself why a million times.”

Rainier kept his gaze on the road. “Baby.” There was caution in his voice. “Be sure you want the answers.”

“She didn’t look back.” The sudden lump in her throat nearly choked her.

“Who didn’t look back?”