“Talib?” she questioned softly.

  “I heard,” came the mumbled reply. When she started to move once again, Talib tightened his arms around her, whispering in her ear, “Hold still unless you wish to start this morning by giving your teammate an earful.”

  PJ became as still as a statue, “I’d rather not, if you don’t mind. Exhibitionism was never my style.”

  “Mine either.” Talib placed a tender kiss upon her cheek and then hugged her close a moment before pushing her away from him and rising to his feet. “We hear you, Carlos. Give me an update.”

  “The target started moving around about ten minutes ago. From the pictures I’m getting, I think there might be a problem.”

  “What kind of problem?” PJ inquired, not liking the sound of Carlos’s voice.

  “Our man seems to be a little agitated this morning.”

  Talib looked at PJ as she slipped her shoes back on before inquiring, “What aren’t you saying?”

  “Man, stay calm, but it looked like he backhanded her pretty good.”

  “What?!” Talib roared, muttering beneath his breath in a fury of Arabic that PJ had no Brock of understanding.

  She watched him as she spoke to Carlos, “He hit her?”

  “Yeah, the bastard.”

  “Did she get back up?” PJ asked, wanting to know if they now had a seriously injured captive to rescue.

  “Not right away. And when she did, she immediately doubled over again. He didn’t even try to help her, he just threw something at her and walked off.”

  “What did he throw at her?” Talib asked, his voice very quiet and calm.

  “It must have been her veil cloth, because she picked it up and then pulled it on over her head.”

  “He’s making her stay in disguise to avoid suspicion. Is everyone in place?” Talib was more anxious than ever to get this guy and rescue Miss Malone.

  “Slade and Blaine went in on foot and have a visual on them right now. Brock and Tim are about a few hundred yards from your position. I’m ready to put everyone on com if you are.”

  “Go ahead.”

  “Slade? Brock?”

  “I’m here. The target and his captive are heading your direction, slowly, but they are moving. Talib and PJ, do you all have a plan in place?”

  “Good morning to you too, Slade.”

  Slade chuckled through the line, “Same back at ya, darlin’. Now, a plan. You’ve got maybe twenty minutes at the rate their moving before they have a visual on you.”

  Talib took the helm, answering for them both, “PJ’s going to be outside the tent, while I stay hidden. I’m not sure that he wouldn’t recognize me up close. She’s going to invite him into the tent to speak with her husband and share some refreshment.

  “If he takes the bait, I’ll disable him at that time.”

  “And if he doesn’t?” Slade asked, always one for having multiple plans in place.

  “Then we’ll do whatever is necessary to gain Miss Malone’s release.”

  “Blaine, did you bring your special gal this trip?” PJ asked with a smirk in Talib’s direction.

  “Special gal?” Talib mouthed to her with a raised eyebrow.

  She made a quiet sound with a finger over her lips as Blaine responded, “You know I did. Never leave home without her. What do you want me to use as the signal?”

  Talib covered his com unit before asking, “Explain. What’s he talking about?”

  “Blaine was a sniper in the Marines. He can take out a target at 800 yards without blinking an eye. Especially on flat terrain with no wind.”

  Talib nodded his head before uncovering his mouthpiece, “I have just been informed as to what you all were talking about. Blaine, when this is over I would love to look at your weapon and see it in action.”

  “Not a problem, man. So, PJ, what signal are we using this fine morning?”

  Slade answered for her, “PJ, I’ll have constant eyes on you. All you have to do is mouth the word ‘Now’ and I’ll relay that information to Blaine. There’s no need for a big drama scene here.”

  “Sheikh Kamal would like the kidnapper taken alive…”

  “So that he can have the pleasure of hanging him?” PJ interjected, cutting him off.

  Talib grinned at her, “It is his right. But that would be in a perfect world and we all know that does not exist.”

  “Hey, ya’ll, I hate to break up this scintillating conversation, but the target is going to have visual any minute now.”

  “Roger that.” PJ grabbed her headdress, looking at Talib for assistance, which he gave her, but not before planting a promissory kiss upon her upturned lips. Whispering next to her ear so that the other’s couldn’t hear, “Just a little something to tide you over. When this is done, I’m going to kiss every inch of you, and then when I’m done with that, I do believe I’ll start all over again.”

  PJ felt her breath hitch, and couldn’t even respond as he deftly arranged the veil over her blonde hair and pushed her towards the tent’s opening. “Remember, keep your eyes downcast or the game will be up.”

  PJ nodded as she stepped out into the bright morning sunlight. She casually glanced off in the distance, seeing the beginning of a shape start to come over the horizon. She wandered over to the camel and took up a one-sided conversation with the animal, not minding in the least when several male chuckles filtered through the com line.

  “Is she telling it a bedtime story, or what?” Tim asked, never having understood PJ’s predilection to talk constantly.

  “Hey, PJ, you are in the middle east. Why don’t you tell it the story of Aladdin and flying carpets?”

  “Heads up, guys! If this is Miss Malone, she’s not looking too well. She appears to be walking with a limp and keeps stopping to hold her middle. Brock, did you bring your medic kit?”

  “Sure did, hon. As soon as the bastard who hurt her is secure, I’m there.”

  Talib was silent as the Americans traded comments back and forth. At the familiar use of endearments rather than PJ’s name, he started to get angry, but then he reminded himself that the use of endearments was more common in America than in Jawhara. Men commonly referred to women as ‘babe’ or ‘doll’; her teammates use of the terms ‘darlin’ and ‘hon’ were aggravating, but more than likely were part of their normal speech.

  PJ continued her conversation, oblivious to the dilemma Talib was having in his head. “Good. Okay, here goes nothing. Talib, you’re going to have to interpret for me if he starts talking fast. My Arabic isn’t all that bad…”

  “He won’t speak standard Arabic. The Sumari have their own dialect, which sounds much different. Don’t speak to him at all unless you have to and then use single words as much as possible.”

  Chapter 14

  Erin saw the tent and then the woman tending to the camel and almost fainted in relief. “Amir! Amir, please! Could you please see if they have any water to spare?”

  Erin hesitated to ask anything from the man who had backhanded her so hard earlier that she was still seeing stars and had left her jaw throbbing something awful. Her nausea had taken over sometime during the night, and without any fluid in her stomach, she was now having dry heaves and very concerning cramping in her lower abdomen. She feared for the safety of her unborn child, and she had tried to refuse going any further without adequate water.

  Amir’s response to that had been to hit her. He had then threatened to tie her over the back of the donkey if she gave him any more problems.

  Amir turned on her, stalking back to her with menace in every step, “I told you we would drink when we reached the caves. If you weren’t so pathetic and weak we would have already arrived there.”

  “Amir, please. I don’t know how much longer I can do this without something to drink.”

  Amir gave her a disgusted look and then commanded, “Fine. But you will remain right here. I will go see if they have any water to spare.” Here was approximately fifty yards from the camp.

  Amir dropped the donkey’s lead and Erin leaned against the tired animal, watching Amir approach the camp. She covertly looked around her, disheartened when all she saw was sand and more sand. Sighing, she rested her tired head on her arms, closing her eyes in an effort to stave off more dry heaves.

  Her jaw was throbbing in time with her heartbeat and she longed to remove the heavy veil and assess the damage, but to do so would incur Amir’s wrath and he was not being nearly as patient with her today as he’d been the day before. Kamal, I hope someone is on their way to get me.

  Another stomach cramp had her moaning softly and it was all she could do to stay on her feet and not give into the stabbing pain.

  Amir approached the woman who appeared to be talking to a camel. She was dressed in the colorful garb of the Jawharan women and when she heard him approach, she quickly looked up and then averted her eyes. As any respectful female should do in the presence of a man!

  Speaking in the dialect most commonly used in Jawhara, Amir called out a greeting, “Marhaban!”

  PJ hid her surprise, and bid him a good morning softly in her best accent, “Sabah el kheer!” Not wanting to Brock having to speak further to the man, PJ quickly made her way to the door of the tent, calling inside for Talib.

  Talib answered her, telling her to invite the man into the tent.

  PJ kept her head lowered, but gestured for the man to approach the tent, she pulled the flap back as he approached and Talib called out to him.

  Amir approached the tent, not overly concerned with the lack of communication from the female. Most middle eastern women did not feel comfortable talking to strange men. As he neared the tent, he glanced at the woman one more time, stopping as he caught of glimpse of her porcelain skin and... Blues eyes? What in the hell is going on here?!

  Quickly backing up, he placed one hand upon the sheath of his knife, calling out for the occupant of the tent to show himself.

  PJ watched in dismay as the target stepped away, his hand grasping his knife in preparation to fight. Awesome! Here we go!

  She stepped away from the tent door, making sure to keep her eyes down and plenty of room to maneuver in case she needed to evade him before Talib showed himself.

  She didn’t see the packs that had been on the camel’s back sitting in the sand right behind her, and her foot connected with them, sending her sprawling backwards just as Talib stuck his head out of the tent.

  Everything seemed to happen in slow motion. Her headdress slipped off, her blonde hair tumbling free, Amir pulled his knife, shouting obscenities and attempting to get back to his captive. Talib shouted for him to stand down and lower his weapon multiple times, but the young man wasn’t listening. I don’t want to kill him and prevent Kamal from exercising his right to do so! “Tawakaf makanak!” Talib tried once more before glancing out the corner of his eyes to see PJ struggling to stand back up. Seeing that she was managing just fine on her own, he started advancing towards the man, brandishing his own weapon of choice – a Glock semi-automatic handgun.

  He didn’t want to shoot the man, and his erratic movement made Talib hesitate in regards to shooting him. He would not take any chances with possibly missing and hitting Erin instead!

  PJ gained her feet, tossing the worthless scrap of fabric away from her and started flanking the young man. If she could get his attention focused on Talib, she might be able to reach the woman before he did.

  Talib was of the same mind and started circling to his left, drawing the kidnapper’s attention away from his captive and PJ. Unfortunately, the young man was behaving erratically and when he realized what was happening, he turned and rushed back towards the woman and donkey.

  PJ started yelling, “Get down! Miss Malone, get down! Blaine, Now!” She watched the kidnapper get closer to Miss Malone, waving the knife at her and yelling at her in words PJ couldn’t understand. “Miss Malone! Please, get down on the ground. Now!”

  Slade had watched the action unfold, cursing loudly at how things were playing out. When PJ yelled for Blaine to act, he relayed the information. “Do it! Kill the son of a bitch! Kamal can get his revenge elsewhere.”

  Blaine didn’t even hesitate. He had kept the kidnapper firmly in his sights the entire time, moving with him as he rushed back towards his captive. He waited until the woman in the black robe dropped to the ground and then he acted. He let his breath out, nice and slow, as he squeezed the trigger, watching as the bullet found its mark, dropping the young man in his tracks. The force of the bullet knocking him backwards so that he stared up at the morning sun sky.

  PJ saw the man fall and then took off at a dead run towards the young woman who had collapsed on the ground, with her hands covering her head. She hadn’t stepped away from the animal, and the commotion was making it very nervous. PJ didn’t want to compound her injuries by adding being stepped on by a donkey to the list.

  “Miss Malone!” she called out, hoping that Brock was heading towards them already.

  As she neared the crumpled figure, she lowered her voice, “Miss Malone? Erin?”

  Erin heard her name, but didn’t have the energy to lift her head just yet. “Yes,” she called out softly. Then again a little louder, “Yes, I’m here.” Another round of dry heaves took over, and the cramping in her lower abdomen was so severe she could hardly breathe through the pain.

  When she felt a touch upon her back, she whimpered and turned her head to the side, “Please, help me!”

  “Help’s on its way! Just hang on! Can you tell me where you’re hurt?”

  “Cramping!”

  PJ heard the unspoken worry in Erin’s voice and helped her remove the heavy veil cloth. Talib reached her. After quickly assessing her condition, he picked Erin up, carrying her back to the tent so that her injuries could be more accurately assessed.

  “Tell Carlos to send the helicopter to this location. She needs to see the doctor immediately.”

  Erin heard Talib’s voice and started crying, “Talib, is Kamal…”

  “Shush! Kamal is waiting for your return. He has been very worried about you. We all have been.”

  “Thank you for coming for me,” Erin told him through her tears. “You always seem to be rescuing me.”

  Talib laid her down in the tent just as Brock and Tim rushed inside. “It is my honor and a privilege. Now, let these men see about making you more comfortable while I wait for your transport to arrive.”

  Chapter 15

  Talib didn’t leave the tent until Brock and Tim arrived. After ensuring that the chopper was en route, he stepped outside and pulled his cell phone from his pocket.

  “Talib?” asked the worried voice of Kamal across the line. “I heard the helicopter take off. What is happening? We lost the com signal early this morning and have been unable to reconnect with the American team.”

  “Your Majesty, the kidnapper is dead. I apologize that you were unable to actively listen in to the mission, but things moved very quickly once we made contact with the target.”

  “That doesn’t matter now. What about Erin?”

  “Miss Malone is currently being treated by the American medic and the helicopter has been summoned to return her to the palace.”

  “Is she okay? Can I speak with her?” Kamal fired the questions at Talib quickly.

  “She is in need of medical attention. If the royal doctor has not already been summoned, that should be done immediately.” Talib stopped, not wanting to give voice to the possibility that Erin was losing the baby.

  “What is wrong with her?” Kamal demanded to know. Khalil walked up behind him, and Kamal quickly whispered for him to summon the doctor.

  “She is dehydrated.” Talib paused for a heartbeat before he added, “She is also experiencing severe stomach cramping.”

  Kamal gasped in shock, “The baby?”

  “I really can’t say, but that is a possibility.”

  “I wish to speak to her.”

  “I will see if she is able to talk. Hold on.” Talib re-entered the tent to see Erin sitting slightly propped up and sipping from a bottle of water while tears coursed down her cheeks.

  Squatting down next to her as Brock moved back, he handed her a rag before saying, “The Sheikh would like to speak to you.”

  Erin eagerly nodded, desperately needing to hear Kamal’s voice. Taking the phone, she placed it at her ear, “Kamal?”

  “Habibiti, it is so good to hear your voice. I thought I had lost you.”

  “Never! I knew you would send someone to come get me.” Erin tried to stop her tears, but they just kept coming.

  “Talib tells me you are not feeling well?”

  “Kam, what if…?”

  “We will not go there until you have seen the doctor. Whatever happens, know that you are my heart.”

  Erin felt her heart melt as Kamal continued to talk to her in his native tongue. She didn’t understand the words, but the emotion behind them left her speechless. She closed her eyes, relaxing for the first time in almost twenty-four hours, and allowed his voice to lull her into a light slumber.

  Talib watched Erin’s eyes close, and when her hand went lax and the phone slipped from her fingers, he retrieved the phone, “Your Majesty, she has drifted off to sleep. I must say that whatever you were telling her relaxed her. Brock, the American medic, is giving me a thumbs up sign. I assume that sleep is one of the best medicines for her right now.”

  Kamal let out a breath of relief, “Bring her home, Talib!”

  “Yes, Your Majesty! I hear the helicopter landing now.” He disconnected the call and looked up to see PJ standing in the corner of the small tent watching him.

  “You really care for them both, don’t you?”

  Talib nodded, “They are both easy to care about.”

  PJ smiled at him softly, adding another mark on the positive side for Talib’s character. He was such a big, strong man, in charge of ensuring the security of royalty, yet he could be soft and tender when the situation called for it. He was a man of many facets and she couldn’t wait to learn more about him.