Nowhere Left to Hide (The Royal Trilogy Book 3)

by Kat Mizera

  I’d expected to see Omar, but instead, there was a group of men, including Omar but led by none other than Daniil. Confident, handsome, and unabashedly smirking at me. “Well, well,” was all he said.

  One of the other men said something in Limaji and Daniil shrugged. “Had I wanted the little slut, I would have grabbed her a long time ago. Did you really think this was a worthwhile investment of time, money and resources?”

  I had a few choice words for him, but I held my tongue since I didn’t want them to know I understood them.

  The men were still talking and Daniil was laughing, shaking his head. Finally, he turned to me. “So, what do you think of our hospitality so far? Better than a prison, no?”

  I scowled. “Very fucking funny.”

  He turned to his men and told them to leave us alone, which terrified me, but I didn’t move, feigning ignorance.

  “I don’t know what you want,” I said. “But I don’t have anything to say to you.”

  “We can talk or you can take your chances with Omar and his goons—your choice.”

  A chill raced down my spine but I refused to show fear. “What’s going on with you, Daniil? Why would you turn on your brother and cousin like this?”

  He snorted. “Because they’re weak and ineffective. Someone had to do something and it turns out that someone is me.”

  “Do something about what?”

  “Taking the throne from Anwar. What else?”

  “And you thought kidnapping me was going to somehow get you closer to that goal?”

  “Kidnapping you is the only way I can get Erik to do what I need him to do.”

  “Which is what?”

  “You don’t need to worry about it. Just sit back, relax, and wait for your lover to arrive.”

  “What about your children?” I shot back, folding my arms across my chest. “Using Jesper is one thing, but don’t you care about those kids at all?”

  Something flickered in his eyes but then it was gone and he shrugged. “They’re fine. Jesper’s a great dad and he’ll take care of them.”

  “So you don’t want to be part of their lives? I mean, I get the need for power and all that, really. I do. But abandon your kids, your husband, your family… For what?” I motioned with my hand. “This? Are we in the palace? Parliament House? I mean, it’s not all that, to be honest. It’s nothing compared to a baby’s laugh or watching them run to your arms as they—”

  “Be quiet,” he growled, turning his back. “You don’t know anything about me or my kids. Besides, they’re Jesper’s kids, not mine.”

  I raised my eyebrows. “I adopted a little girl and I promise you, Sasha is just as much mine as the ones I gave birth to.”

  “I’m glad you brought up your biological children.”

  Crap. This wasn’t the direction I wanted the conversation to go, but I was an entertainer and had no trouble schooling my features, so I cocked my head and met his gaze directly. “What about them, Daniil?”

  “The paternity of your son is safe. No one knows and no one ever has to know.” He was speaking quietly. “As long as you convince Erik to do the right thing.”

  “I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about.”

  “Sure you do. Erik’s alive and we both know he wants his life back.”

  “That has nothing to do with me anymore.”

  “But it does. Because he’ll come for you. And you’re going to convince him that it’s time for him to do what he should have done years ago and challenge Anwar’s right to the throne.”

  I tightened my jaw. “He’s never listened to a word I say. What makes you think he’ll listen to me now?”

  “Because you’re going to convince him.”

  “Why do you need me to do it? Why don’t you just threaten him directly?”

  “This isn’t about threats,” he muttered. “You don’t see what’s happening, do you? Erik’s been content with the status quo for too long and the truth is, Anwar started to suspect Erik was alive because of your careless husband. Anwar always had his suspicions but no proof. He’s been watching you for a long time and your stupid husband led him right to Erik, though I’m sure that was unintentional. The only thing he doesn’t know about is Luke, but it’s just a matter of time before he figures it out. That’s why I had to do something to make Erik pay attention.”

  “You couldn’t just talk to him?”

  “Too dangerous. I’ve been embedded deep in Anwar’s organization for a couple of years and this was my first true test of loyalty. For me, it kills two birds with one stone, though I’m sorry I had to involve you. Unfortunately, Omar’s had a hard-on for you for years and once he found out your husband was having an affair, he wouldn’t stop talking about you being available soon.”

  “Fuck.” I couldn’t believe what he was telling me.

  “I know this is probably overwhelming, but trust me, I won’t let him hurt you.”

  The look on my face was probably pretty skeptical because he sighed.

  “I have some things to do, but I won’t leave you alone for long. And don’t worry, you can bet that Erik is on his way.”

  “That’s great,” I snapped. “So he can get himself killed trying to save me. I don’t think this is as black-and-white as you think it is.”

  “It’s not black-and-white at all, but the gray area we’ve been living in the last ten years just isn’t cutting it.”

  “For whom?”

  “For any of us.” He turned and walked out of the room, locking the door behind him.

  26

  Erik

  Ace, Sandor and Jesper met me at a safe house in Istanbul the next day. I had no proof Daniil had taken Casey but my gut told me he had. I stayed calm by reminding myself that I’d grown up with Daniil and though he was a little immature and maybe a touch arrogant, he wasn’t a killer. He wouldn’t hurt her. I had to believe that because anything else was inconceivable.

  “Tell me everything,” I demanded of Jesper as soon as we’d settled in.

  “I don’t know much,” he admitted, sinking into the chair across from me. “We ran into each other at a pub about four years ago and spent the night together. I was surprised; I had no idea he was gay, but he told me he’d been ashamed and now that the family was mostly dead, he was free to be himself, although he says he identifies as bisexual, not homosexual.”

  “I think he’s full of shit,” Sandor muttered.

  “The thing is,” Jesper continued quietly, “I don’t know what he got by being with me. We didn’t talk about the rebellion, the anti-rebellion…or you. We talked about normal couple stuff. The kids, the new house, my job at the university. I don’t know what the charade was about.”

  “It was about establishing himself,” Ace interjected gently. “He had the perfect cover in this new life. A husband, children, a house in the suburbs. As long as you were focused on the kids and your job at the university, he was relatively confident the anti-rebellion was dead.”

  “So he had to marry me and start a family?” Jesper looked furious. “That’s some serious bullshit right there. I’m okay with being used with regard to the anti-rebellion, but the kids too? I mean, what the fuck kind of shit is that?” He spewed a torrent of curse words in a handful of different languages, poured himself a shot of scotch and downed it before sitting down again. “Fuck him. If he thinks he got one over on me, he’s fucking wrong. I fell in love with the good-looking bastard but it never occurred to me he would include our kids in some kind of deception. I’m going to kick his ass.”

  “To be fair,” Sandor said. “He probably genuinely cares about the kids. Maybe even you too. Daniil is misguided, but I don’t think he’s evil. Anwar obviously offered him something he can’t get anywhere else.”

  “A title,” Jesper muttered. “I think he hates being a commoner.”

  “I don’t give a fuck what his motivations were,” I snapped. “I want to know where Casey is. Once I have her back, he can have whatever
he wants.”

  “I don’t think it’s going to be that simple,” Ace said. “He took her for a reason. He’s not just going to give her back without getting something.”

  “Money?” I asked skeptically.

  Ace shook his head. “It has to be more intense than that.”

  “Power,” Sandor said sadly. “This is about power. It’s always about power.”

  “Jesus fuck.” I glanced down as my phone buzzed. An unknown name and number flashed on the screen and I froze, my eyes meeting Ace’s.

  “Answer it,” he said automatically.

  I hit the button and focused on keeping my voice calm. “Casey?”

  “Hi.” She didn’t sound nearly as calm as I was trying to be. In fact, she sounded downright pissed.

  “Where are you? Are you okay?”

  “I’m okay, but your cousin wants to talk to you.”

  “Which one?”

  “It’s me.” Daniil came on the line. “Is my brother there, protecting you from yourself?”

  “If you hurt her, Daniil—”

  “Oh, relax. Jesus Christ, I’m not going to hurt her.”

  “You brought her to Limaj and you think she won’t get hurt?”

  “She’s fine. For now, anyway.”

  “What the fuck does that mean?”

  “It means as long as you play ball, she and your son stay safe and I eliminate our biggest problem.”

  “Our biggest problem?”

  “Anwar, of course.”

  Sandor and I exchanged glances.

  “What, exactly, are you planning?”

  He chuckled. “This is neither the time nor the place to talk about all that. I just wanted you to know she’s okay.”

  “Dammit, Daniil, what the fuck are you doing?” I yelled angrily.

  “Daniil!” Jesper yelled out his name at the same time but he’d already disconnected.

  “Little prick,” Sandor muttered.

  “Fuck.” I got to my feet and started pacing. “Is the underground railroad site still in existence?” I asked Jesper.

  He nodded. “As far as I know, but we’ve lost a lot of support over the years. The people are tired and hungry. No one has the energy to fight for much of anything.”

  “General Sarrano?”

  “He’s still involved but he’s gotten older. He’s seventy now and the last five years have been difficult on him.”

  “I have to get to Limaj,” I said. “Daniil may not plan to hurt Casey, but he’s naïve if he thinks he’s just going to waltz in and kick Anwar out of power.”

  “He has Omar on his side, but I’d be willing to bet Omar is playing him,” Jesper said.

  “I don’t give a shit what his end game is, who his allies are, or what he’s doing—my only focus is to get Casey back.” I walked to the far end of the room and opened a locked cabinet. I grabbed a go-bag that was packed and ready to go, adding some ammunition to it.

  “What are you doing?” Sandor asked, coming to stand beside me.

  “Did I stutter?” I asked, stuffing a few grenades into the backpack.

  “Stop acting like the twenty-five-year-old version of me,” he said. “For real. Stop and think. If you go busting in there, guns blazing, they’ll kill you and probably her too. If she manages not to die, they’ll most likely do things to her that will make her wish she was dead. Stop and fucking think.” He put a hand on my shoulder but I moved away.

  “I’ve been doing nothing but thinking for eleven fucking years!” I yelled. “I’m done thinking. I’m done waiting. We move now.”

  “Okay, wait.” Ace stood up and joined us. “I agree, we have to move, but we need a solid plan.”

  “The plan is, we fly to Ankara and then use our CIA assets to get us over the border. Once we’re in Limaj, we get to the underground railroad, assess the situation and get my fucking woman back. Done. Let’s go.”

  “We have the flight to Ankara and a long drive through the mountains to settle him down,” Jesper said under his breath, reaching for another one of the go-bags. “Right now, we need to go together or he’ll go on his own.”

  He knew I’d heard him and he probably also knew nothing he said made a difference right now. We were doing things my way and I didn’t give a shit who came along for the ride. Everything I’d done, everything I’d sacrificed, had been for Casey and Luke. Now that they were in danger, all bets were off. Daniil, Omar, and Anwar had no idea what I was capable of. I wasn’t sure exactly what I was capable of either, but we were all about to find out.

  27

  Casey

  I was bored out of my fucking mind. I’d read about international finance, British colonial law, and rounded out the experience with War and Peace—twelve hours of my life I’d never get back. Who the fuck thought that was the epitome of literature? It had put me to sleep four times and I hated the ending. At least it made the time pass, but damn, if I wasn’t depressed already, that book sealed the deal for me.

  It was early evening and I was bored with both the reading material and my current situation. I hadn’t seen anyone except the guard who brought me food and took me to the bathroom twice a day, so I didn’t know whether I was pissed or relieved. I was glad I hadn’t seen Omar again, but I had a lot more to say to Daniil and he’d ghosted me. He was goading Erik into coming to Limaj, which meant Erik would be in danger, and that pissed me right the fuck off.

  I heard the key in the lock and turned, gearing up for a fight, but the look on Daniil’s face stopped me in my tracks.

  “What is it?” I asked automatically.

  “I know I haven’t given you a single reason to trust me,” he said in a soft but hurried whisper, “but I need you to take a leap of faith and do everything I say.”

  I arched a brow. “Seriously?”

  “We don’t have time to argue. The choice is trust me or trust Omar—and he’s on his way.”

  This was probably a trick, but what choice did I have? I’d pick Daniil over Omar any day, no matter what the circumstances were. “You know I’ll come back from the dead to kill you if you hurt my children or Erik,” was all I said as I approached him.

  “Deal.” He grabbed my arms and put them behind my back. “I’m not tying your hands together, but you have to pretend like they are until we get outside. Once I give you the signal, run like hell.”

  “Run where?” I demanded, glancing over my shoulder at him.

  “Just follow me. If I’m caught, just keep going. We’re not far from downtown Hiskale, near Parliament House. Avoid soldiers and look for regular people. Many will recognize you and want to help. We have one chance to get out of here alive. Let’s go.” He tugged me out of the room, holding me by the elbow.

  He hadn’t tied my hands, I felt how loose the ropes were, but I was really confused. My heart was racing and I kept my head down as he practically dragged me through the hallways, making my recently healed ribs throb more than usual. A few people spoke to him in Limaji, asking what was going on, but he merely grunted in response and kept moving.

  “Almost free,” he whispered under his breath. He opened what appeared to be a side door and the cool evening air gave me goose bumps.

  We both looked around and he pulled me toward a gate.

  “There’s a truck waiting about three hundred meters from here. Can you drive a five-speed?”

  “Of course.”

  “As soon as we get in, head south and—”

  “I don’t have the foggiest fucking idea which way is south,” I snapped.

  He glanced at me and shook his head. “Sorry. Toward the church with the triple spires.”

  “Got it.”

  As soon as we were free of the gate he broke into a run and I followed, despite my bare feet.

  “There!” He pointed. “Key’s in the ignition.”

  I threw open the door, jumped in and started up an old pickup truck that had seen better days. The engine roared to life, though, and I winced as Daniil pulled a gun out
of his jacket and looked around. “Go,” he yelled.

  Something pinged off the side of the truck and I hit the gas. Daniil returned fire and I realized people were shooting at us. “What the fuck is going on?” I demanded, squealing down the street and narrowly missing a mailbox.

  “Fucking Omar,” he muttered. “I had it all worked out and he went and did exactly what I didn’t want him to do.”

  “Omar?” I repeated in confusion.

  “Left!” he yelled.

  I yanked to the left and we were almost on two wheels as I took the corner. “Fuck,” I said under my breath.

  We drove for about ten minutes before he said, “There’s an alley coming up on the right, don’t use your turn signal.”

  I glanced at him but nodded. “Here?”

  “Now.”

  I turned sharply again and he yelled for me to stop. “Get out and head toward that green door.”

  I don’t know why I did what he told me, but I did, running flat out for a green door. He pushed me through it and pulled it shut behind us, his body pressed against mine in what appeared to be a tiny anteroom.

  “What—” I began.

  “Shh.” He put a finger on my lips and I could practically hear the thudding of our hearts. There were shouts outside and someone yanked on the green door but it seemed securely locked.

  “Hold on to me,” he whispered, stepping in front of me and guiding me through the darkness. “This might be a little freaky, but trust me. I swear on my children, I’m not going to hurt you.”

  I had no choice at this point, so I merely nodded.

  “I’m going to open what looks like a garbage chute and you’re going to go through. There’s a slight drop, but you’ll be fine.”