The Relentless Hero

by Angel Vane

  Another gunman rushed past Rahim’s body. Arm raised toward her, he pointed the barrel of his semiautomatic rifle toward her head.

  Mena froze.

  The air became quiet and still as the gunman descended upon her. Mena glanced down at the rose gold charm bracelet on her wrist. Sweat rolled down her face, dripping from her chin onto the red dirt below. The heart-shaped charm bracelet glowed in the sunlight. She took one long slow breath, which would probably be her last.

  Gunfire rocked the air.

  Mena shut her eyes, squeezing tightly as her body fell to the ground.

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Intense gunfire blazed above Mena, sending a flurry of birds skittering across the sky. A brief moment of silence was followed by more rounds of fire. A spattering of blood rained down on her legs as the gunman wobbled and collapsed onto the ground.

  “Get up! Go into the house now!”

  A man’s voice, concerned and insistent, spurred her into action.

  Mena stumbled to her feet and rushed toward the sprawling one-story concrete house stained a faded robin’s egg blue. White curtains adorned the two small windows on opposite sides of the door. Sprinting up the concrete steps, she stopped short, glancing at the mosaic-tiled cross that hung above the door. Thinking about the disaster that had been averted, Mena said a silent prayer of thanks, then turned the knob.

  Struggling to adjust to the darkness, she ran a hand along the smooth concrete walls until she found a light switch. Moments later, the room was bathed in a soft yellow glow. To her left was a neatly furnished living room. A dark brown couch accented with lavender pillows was flanked by matching chairs.

  Mena darted across the room and kneeled down behind the couch, pressing her body flat against the thin, threadbare tan rug covering the floor. She wasn’t sure what to do. The gunshots had ceased, but she was afraid to go near the windows. The man out there had helped her. He’d saved her life.

  Heart pounding in her chest, Mena rubbed her fingertips against her temples, trying to soothe the jackhammers beating against her skull. Exhaustion settled in her like a dead weight, draining her of the adrenaline that had fueled her escape. She craved water and rest.

  The door opened.

  Mena pressed up from the floor, peering over the edge of the couch.

  Time stopped.

  Heart racing, she shook her head, unable to comprehend what she was seeing was true and real.

  “Is it really you?” Her voice was barely above a whisper as she watched him walk inside and shut the door behind him.

  Slipping the helmet from his head, he dropped it on the floor and ran a dusty hand through his dark hair, slick from sweat.

  The soulful brown eyes she’d fell in love with stared back at her.

  “It’s me,” Julian said, resting against the door.

  A canyon of distance separated them. Mena trembled.

  In three strides, he was helping her up from behind the couch. Mena took shaky steps toward Julian, staring at him.

  “Did they hurt you? Are you in any pain?” He assessed her for injuries, his hands gentle, his eyes canvassing her body.

  “My head hurts, and I’m tired, but I’m okay,” Mena said, swallowing past the hot mass in her throat. Now that she was safe, her thoughts drifted to the one she left behind. “I’m fine. I can’t say the same about Wangari. When I left, they were beating her … I think they—”

  “She’s fine. We rescued her, and she should be at the hospital in Garissa now,” Julian said.

  “You rescued her?” Mena shook her head, unable to believe it.

  “Not just me. The whole TIDES team. We got a read on where Tubeec was from the video call and ambushed the compound to save both of you,” Julian explained.

  A tear slipped down her cheek. If she had waited, this nightmare could have been over hours ago. Julian and TIDES had been coming for her when she’d escaped.

  “At least two of us survived.” Mena thought of Grace’s bloody body lying in the alley behind the Irungu Center as Tubeec and his men kidnapped them.

  Julian grabbed her hands, raising them to his lips. His kiss was gentle, against her skin, leaving a trail of heat in its wake. “Grace survived the shooting. She’s in ICU but improving little by little every day. Might take several months, but the doctors believe she’ll make a full recovery,” Julian said.

  Relief surged through Mena’s body. Dizzy from the unexpected good news, Mena leaned into Julian, welcoming his strong arms around her. The sheer proximity of him had an instant effect. Her body craved him. Her lips yearned to kiss his. “I can’t believe you found me. I can’t believe you’re here.”

  “You doubted me?” Julian asked, raising an eyebrow, a grin playing at the corners of his mouth. His hand caressed the side of her face. Mena leaned into his touch as a tear slid down her dirt-streaked skin.

  “I’m sorry,” Mena choked out.

  “Hey, hey, don’t say that. I’m an asshole for trying to joke with you at a time like this. You forgive me?” Julian asked, slipping an arm around her.

  Mena nodded, unable to speak. Love swelled within her as she stared into Julian’s gorgeous face, glistening with sweat.

  “Let’s get you cleaned up,” Julian said.

  As Julian lifted her with ease, Mena wrapped her arms around his neck. She buried her head in his shoulder as he carried her into a small bathroom around the corner from the living room. Lowering her gently onto the floor, he stood behind her as they stared at each other through the mirror.

  Mena glanced at her own haggard appearance. Her hair was grimy, plastered against her scalp. Her eyes were tired and haunted.

  Julian slid his hands along her arms until he reached her palms. “Thought you said you weren’t hurt.”

  Mena glanced at her bloody hands, cut and scraped from crawling across the desert terrain. Her body was numb, unable to feel the pain of her injuries.

  “It’s no big deal,” Mena said.

  Julian turned the knob of the faucet. A soft trickle of water flowed into the basin. He gently moved her hands under the stream, massaging them softly as blood colored the water before disappearing down the drain.

  “I don’t know what I would have done if I lost you,” Julian admitted. “If I had made one wrong move, ignored one instinct, hesitated for one more second, I wouldn’t have been here to protect you. Instead of standing next to you right now, I could have been too late. I’m not sure I would have been able to go on—“

  “Don’t say that,” Mena said, lacing her wet hands in his.

  “Not saying it doesn’t stop it from being true,” Julian said. “I don’t want to know what life is like without you.”

  “You won’t have to,” Mena said.

  “Can you promise me you won’t get kidnapped again? This is the second time. I kinda need you to stay out of trouble,” Julian said, winking at her.

  Mena let out a laugh, her body relaxing from his attempts to lighten the mood. She was safe because of Julian.

  “You’re so beautiful,” Julian whispered.

  Mena smiled, biting her lower lip as she glanced at herself in the mirror. “Liar. I’m a dirty mess, and I stink … bad.”

  Julian scrunched his face as he playfully waved a hand in front of his nose. “Yeah, but that doesn’t stop you from being the most gorgeous woman in the world.”

  Julian turned her toward him and kissed her on the lips, his mouth moving tenderly over hers as his tongue swirled against her tongue. A familiar passion built between them. She was grateful to have this intimacy with him again.

  Breaking the kiss, Julian leaned his forehead next to hers. Their breaths synchronizing, she ran her fingers through his hair.

  Stepping back, Julian took his time unbuttoning her dingy white shirt and pushed it off her shoulders to the floor. His hands slid down her arms softly before he focused his attention on her trousers. Unbuttoning her pants, Julian slid his hands against her hips, pushing the pants to the fl
oor.

  Standing in front of him in her lacy black bra and matching thong, Mena shivered as goosebumps peppered her skin. She loved him completely. What they shared was the purest of unconditional love, bridging the good times to the bad and strong enough to withstand anything that tried to tear them apart. How could she have ever thought she wasn’t ready to commit to this man? He was everything she’d ever wanted and all the things she never knew she needed.

  “Let’s get you in the shower,” Julian said, then stepped away from her toward the showerhead. Fiddling with the knobs, he turned them back and forth. Satisfied that he had the water temperature right, Julian sat on the edge of the bathtub and reached his hand toward her. Mena placed her hand in his grasp and walked over to him, stopping in between his open legs. Julian leaned his face against her abdomen. The damp wetness of his tears against her skin startled her as his arms pulled her closer to him.

  Leaning down, Mena kissed the top of Julian’s head and whispered, “I love you.”

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  Minutes later, Julian stepped out of the bathroom, giving Mena time to wash up.

  The home had been empty when he’d arrived. Its inhabitants nowhere to be found. The location was along the route of two dirt roads in a town called Giriftu. Zale had highlighted the home as a place to shelter in case things went sideways during the rescue at the CSL, noting that satellite imagery hadn’t detected any movement at the house in several weeks. The owners were unknown.

  Julian figured it was the best place for him to set up base while he tried to determine where to look for Mena.

  He never expected to see Mena running full speed toward the house, chased by two gunmen. Another gunman was helping her, holding off the fire so she could make it to safety. Julian burst through the front door in time to see the gunman falling in a hail of bullets. In his descent, he’d shot the head off of another gunman and there was only one left. One man stalking Mena over the dry baked earth for Julian to take out.

  Lifting his M16 rifle, he’d stumbled upon his comms as it fell from his hip. Focusing on the danger unfolding in front of him, Julian locked onto the militant pointing a gun at Mena’s face. Pressing the trigger, he’d unleashed a series of shots to the chest of the assailant.

  Watching Mena fall backward, he’d been momentarily stunned. Fear that he’d been too late threatened to overcome him. But he’d seen no sign of blood on the front of her shirt. She was in shock, looking dazed as he’d urged her to get inside the house.

  While Mena was inside, Julian had rushed across the rocky landscape to drag the three dead bodies into a ravine with crackled, water-thirsted beds.

  It was only a matter of time before another contingent of Tubeec’s militia would discover the bodies. The small blue house was like a sitting duck in a sea of danger. They couldn’t stay here for long and survive. He needed to get them back to Wajir County.

  Julian fiddled with the comms, desperate to get it working again. Twisting the wires and testing the buttons, he managed to get the device to come back to life.

  Making contact with someone at TIDES was the only chance he’d have to save Mena and himself. Outside the window, the sun was slowly rising in the sky. A sunray flashed against a broken bottle, sparkling in the desolate terrain. The beeps continued from the comms as Julian tapped his fingers against his thigh, willing a connection to be made.

  “Julian. Where the hell are you?” Hakeem asked.

  Relief coursed through Julian. Stepping away from the window, he sank down onto the couch and sighed heavily.

  “I’m at the house in Giriftu, the backup point in case things went wrong with the rescue,” Julian said, remembering the map of the area he’d memorized as they’d planned the attack on the compound. “How close are Sunny and the other guys to here?”

  “Not close at all. Kemp was hurt real bad,” Hakeem responded. “Bullet nicked a major artery and he was bleeding out. Wangari was in a catatonic state. Timothy Irungu told Sunny to fly them to the hospital in Garissa and not to leave until his private jet could get him there.”

  “Is Kemp okay?”

  “Still in surgery.”

  “When is Timothy Irungu supposed to arrive in Garissa?”

  “Should be there within the hour,” Hakeem said. “I take it you didn’t find Mena …”

  “If you were a betting man, you would have lost all your money,” Julian responded.

  “You found her? She’s with you now?” Hakeem asked.

  “Yeah, she’s with me at the house. I got three dead men from Tubeec’s militia about to stink up the area. Can you reach Sunny?”

  “Look, you need to get out of there soon. Stick to the brush and trees along the main road between Giriftu and Wajir. Don’t use your comms pack anymore. We’ll need to conserve the battery to track you once Sunny is in the area,” Hakeem instructed.

  “Got it. How long do you think we have?” Julian asked

  “Probably two to three hours. Rest up, eat, then leave before then. I’ll call Sunny now,” Hakeem said.

  Julian turned in time to see Mena walking out of the bathroom, wearing nothing but a skimpy towel around her body, wet and glistening from the shower. Julian felt his erection become rock hard.

  “Will do. Thanks, Hakeem,” Julian said, then dropped the phone to the floor. Two to three hours. That was more than enough time.

  Crossing the distance between him and the woman he loved in mere seconds, he snatched the towel, allowing it to drop to the floor. His eyes feasted on her amazing body, toned and slender, with a delicious curve at the hips.

  He took a slow deep breath, trying to calm the fire blazing within him. Stepping toward her, he ran a hand against her dark wet hair, slicked back against her head. The look suited her. Nothing to distract from her face. The luscious lips, the long, curved eyelashes over deep brown eyes.

  Cradling the back of her head, Julian breathed in the scent of her before lowering his mouth onto hers. His lips were met with a hot, passionate kiss as Mena dug her nails into his back, holding on to him as if her life depended on it. Julian slid his hands along her naked body, resting against her waist. Savoring the taste of her sweet lips as she gyrated against his erection, sending his temperature through the roof. Slipping a hand against his waistband, he unbuttoned the pants, allowing them to fall to the floor. Easing out of his dust-covered, sweaty shirt, Julian stood still as Mena pushed his boxer briefs from his hips. She lowered her body in front of him, her tongue licking along the length of his cock as she forced the underwear to the floor.

  Julian writhed with desire, grabbing Mena’s arms as he dropped down to the floor. Mena straddled his waist, stroking him deftly. He grew more rigid, staring at her breasts, as she guided him inside her. Julian feasted on her body, caressing her nipples as she lowered herself onto him.

  The low moan escaping her mouth as he filled every inch of her, tipped him over the edge. Mena’s back arched as she bounced wildly against him, intensifying the pleasure surging between them. They reached a frenetic rhythm, spurred on by the sound of her calling his name over and over again. Julian watched her, mesmerized as his muscles constricted with powerful force and exploded into a tidal wave of an orgasm. Mena’s cry filled the room as she collapsed down on him. Her heavy panting matched his own.

  Julian held her tightly in his arms. Placing a kiss on her damp forehead, he whispered against her skin, “I love you.”

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  Julian awoke with a jolt, blinking quickly as his eyes struggled to focus. Muggy heat boiled within the confined space and clawed at his skin. Morning was transitioning into the blazing warmth of an African afternoon. Shifting to his elbows on the thin rug, he peered through the narrow hallway ahead, ignoring the stiffness of his muscles.

  Where the hell was Mena?

  Unnerved by the eerie quiet, Julian grabbed his clothes and slipped them back on. Reaching for the Beretta M9 resting underneath the coffee table, Julian secured it into his h
olster, then headed down the hallway.

  He peeked around the corner. Mena sat at the table, peeling overripe bananas and cutting them into thin slices. A towel wrapped around her body. Her long legs crossed, one over the other, revealing the sexiest calves he’d ever seen. A thin sheen of sweat coated her face. She looked up at him and smiled, sending a flurry through his body.

  Shaking her head, Mena said, “I was hoping you’d sleep a little longer, but I figured you’d wake up as soon as I left the room.”

  “How long was I in there by myself?” Julian asked, crossing the small kitchen and sitting next to her at the table. He couldn’t bear being apart from her for even a second.

  Mena raised an eyebrow and looked up at the ceiling, then replied, “Maybe sixty seconds.”

  Julian laughed. “Doesn’t take me long to miss you, does it?”

  “Nope. I love it, though. I found these bananas in the pantry, which is almost empty. Is this some kind of safe house or something?” Mena asked.

  “Not exactly,” Julian said, feeling guilty about breaking into the home. “I don’t know who lives here.”

  “Are you serious? We just made love in some stranger’s home, and they could be back at any time. Julian!” Mena said, dropping the crude knife she was using to slice the bananas.

  “It was the only option, and we won’t be here when they get back,” Julian said.

  “Where is here, exactly?” Mena asked.

  “Giriftu in northeastern Kenya, about five hundred miles away from Nairobi. Zale, one of the TIDES team members, located this as a meeting point in case the rescue operation hit a snag. All the intel she had on this place indicated that whoever lives here isn’t around often,” Julian explained.

  “And what if Zale is wrong?” Mena asked, pushing several slices of the banana toward him. “These people could come back and find us like goldilocks squatting in their home. What are we going to do?”