SEAL INVESTIGATIONS: A 5-Books SEAL Romance Series

by Lola Silverman

  “On the family side, yes.”

  “Would she have been able to access his location?”

  Yates pursed his lips, looking doubtful. “Rachel was a lot of things, but computer expert she was not. If she had help though, yes. I think she probably could have.”

  Nobody added the thought that if someone was helping her, that meant someone had truly turned Rachel against them. Trapp was grateful for his team’s willingness to ignore it. For now.

  “Rachel is the one who’s helping them now,” Trapp said grimly. “I can feel it.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  A thousand things ran through Isabella’s head. She had been to a million seminars that outlined in graphic and often bloody detail what could happen when an agent was taken hostage. Captives, hostages, they were pretty much the same thing. Meaning that she was now completely at the mercy of Hasim ibn Armeen al Saud. The guy was pretty much crazy as a loon and Isabella couldn’t say exactly what his plans were, but she knew they were bad.

  There was a bag over her head. It wasn’t soft. It was scratchy and it kept making her nose twitch like she had to sneeze. She couldn’t see much, just a bit of greenish glow as though she was inside a vehicle with brilliant green dash lights. Although to be as accurate as possible with her mental analysis, she would have to guess that she was lying down in the backseat of a van of some kind. Probably one of those creepy stalker vans with the solid panel sides and painted over windows. The road rumbled by beneath her cheek and every time they hit a bump her body flew more than a few inches into the air.

  There were voices in the front of the vehicle. She recognized the timbre of Hasim’s speaking voice, but her Arabic wasn’t good enough to understand what he was saying. The driver kept speaking in rapid, halting tones that made it sound as if he wasn’t happy about something going on.

  Maybe it she was really lucky they would start fighting and kill each other. Then the van took a sharp right turn and she rolled two times fast and slammed into the wall. Perhaps it wasn’t good for her if they killed each other right now. Someone had to drive.

  There was an odd smell in the vehicle. It reminded Isabella of the doctor’s office though she couldn’t put her finger on exactly why. Maybe it just the right combination of ammonia, alcohol wipes, and something else medical. Cotton, maybe? It was difficult to say. But at least trying to figure out the combination gave her mind something to do. Something other than imagining the torture that Rachel had gone through before they killed her. Was Isabella going to wind up dumped overboard on the eastern coast?

  The van suddenly stopped. Isabella skidded forward, the thin industrial carpet leaving a scrape on her cheek. Then the side doors of the vehicle were thrown open. The air changed abruptly. It was a lot colder and a lot fresher all of a sudden. And then she heard the screaming.

  “You fucking bastard! You have no idea what I’m going to do to you!” a woman was shouting, presumably at Hasim.

  Then Isabella heard him laugh. “Ms. Campbell I would dearly love to see you try. But since you are wrapped up like a neat little package, I’m going to consider you no threat at all.”

  Isabella’s heart lodged in her throat. Campbell? It did sound like Tasha. But as four more thumps landed right on the floor of the van, Isabella got a really bad feeling in her gut. Hasim was playing a very deadly game and he knew exactly how to change the rules to suit him.

  *

  Trapp felt the apprehension in his gut building the closer they got to Yates’s apartment. The trip to Herndon had been a complete waste of time. Or, he supposed it was not a waste of time to know that Asif was truly dead.

  “I can’t believe Hasim murdered his brother,” Romero murmured to the others from the backseat. “We had always speculated that he wouldn’t touch Asif because his father was attached to the baby of the family.”

  “That seemed to be the case when we kidnapped Asif,” Sparks agreed. “That was the one thing that his men kept telling him. They needed Asif alive.”

  “So what changed?” Trapp muttered. “Why is he so bold?”

  Yates looked grim. “Maybe he doesn’t care anymore.”

  “He has to care about what his father thinks. At the end of the day, his daddy still holds the keys to the city. His bank balance depends on his father’s support,” Sparks reminded them.

  “Maybe it doesn’t,” Romero hypothesized. “Maybe that was what he was doing all this time. While Jabar was playing the game by the rules and giving Daddy control of the money, Hasim was skimming and then keeping it for himself. He and Jaipriya’s uncle could have set up quite the international bank roll given time and capital.”

  Trapp grimaced. “Then he’s a man who is unraveling.”

  “He’s close to his end game,” Bones supplied from behind the wheel. “That’s your answer. When a man gets close to the end, he doesn’t care anymore.”

  “So you’re thinking that Hasim falls into the suicide category now?” Yates made a scoffing noise. “I don’t believe it. That man’s favorite person is himself.”

  “True,” Bones allowed. He backed the truck into the alley beside Yates’s apartment door. “But if he’s close to exposing himself as a terrorist and an enemy of the state, then there’s nothing left for him to hide. He’ll lose his diplomatic status and probably his father’s respect. Or maybe not. But you can at least imagine that he’s about to expose himself as an enemy of the US.”

  Trapp felt a strange sense of urgency. He was getting out of the truck before Bones had thrown it in park. “Then he has nothing to lose and everything to gain.”

  It was the opposite of what Trapp and the others felt and that wasn’t good. As soon as Trapp’s boots hit the pavement he was running. He keyed in the code and the door popped open. The sight that greeted him made his blood turn to ice.

  “Hello, big brother,” Rachel said with a smile. The corner of her mouth twisted into a sick, sadistic parody of her usual good natured expression. “I’ve been waiting for you.”

  *

  Someone whipped the bag off Isabella’s face so quickly that she thought they might have taken her nose with it. She became acutely aware of the other women standing close by. There was beautiful Cassidy, stubborn as hell Tasha, tiny Jaipriya with her dark skin, and Marina with her big dark eyes. Every last one of them had been pushed, pulled, yanked, or otherwise coerced into this investigation for a bevy of reasons. Now they had all been sucked into the endgame scenario without even knowing what it was.

  “Hello, ladies,” Hasim said dramatically.

  Isabella stared at the ass and wondered if he really thought of himself as some kind of showman, or if he was just bluffing. She had a feeling he was narcissistic enough to believe that he was some kind of criminal mastermind, the freak.

  Tasha snorted at Hasim. “You do realize that you’re going to bring hellfire and damnation down on yourself with this ridiculous stunt. Right?”

  “I’m counting on it,” Hasim retorted.

  Isabella let the other woman keep Hasim busy. She kept herself occupied with trying to figure out where they actually were. It didn’t look like a warehouse. In fact it looked more like a barn. Hadn’t the guys just gone out to a farm in Herndon? Surely they couldn’t have missed a big fucking reception like this one?

  There were men with guns positioned at every potential entrance. The two story structure was old. It appeared to be partially subterranean, and the walls were filled with chinks that made it look like it was actually made of wood slats nailed together. The five of them were chained in the old horse stalls. It was all very theatrical in nature. She couldn’t help but wonder about the significance of their location.

  “Why the show?” Isabella called out, cutting through Tasha’s constant tirade. “You’ve set this all up like you think you’re some kind of reality TV star.”

  Hasim’s eyes gleamed with eagerness. “And who is to say that I’m not.”

  Now Tasha had shut up. She was gaping open mouthed at the
sociopath standing before them. “Are you fucking serious? The only thing you’re going to star on is Crime TV. And that will be in the case solved section.”

  “You think you know so much,” Hasim told Tasha. “But you don’t know anything.”

  He started to turn around, preparing to walk away with his men in tow. Isabella was glad to see the back of him. The sooner he left, the sooner she and the other women could figure out a way out of here. There had to be something they could do. The five of them weren’t shrinking violets. They’d been up against these assholes for months and even years. They could figure out a way to get Hasim out of the way for good.

  *

  “Rachel,” Trapp sank to his knees. It was as if the strength had left his body. He had nothing left. Not when his worst fears had been confirmed. “Why?”

  “Why did I try to shoot you in the parking garage? Or why did I try to burn you to death in your bed?” Her voice was odd. She sounded both like herself, and yet not. There was something so hard and so angry in her voice.

  “What happened to you?”

  “What happened to me?” She jumped up from her seat on a chair in the middle of the room. “I was beaten and tortured and raped every single fucking day until I could not tell when one day ended and the next began. I watched everyone else around me die. I watched them get beaten. I watched them be sold for pennies on the dollar. And I learned something, Alex. You want to know what?”

  He couldn’t answer. Behind him he could feel his men standing in shocked silence right along with him.

  “I learned to hate,” Rachel hissed. “I learned to see you for what you really are.”

  Romero finally stirred from his shock induced silence. “And what do you think your brother really is, Rachel?”

  “He’s a selfish piece of shit who goes running all over the world sticking his nose in everyone else’s business. But when something happens at home?” Rachel’s voice rose. The anger was palpable. “He can’t be bothered to come back. He has to send his little lackeys to look into it.”

  “I sent the men I trust most in the world!” Trapp protested.

  Rachel only laughed. The bitter sound grated on his nerves. “You sent a bunch of ham fisted morons who made a huge mess and got nowhere!”

  “That’s not true.” Yates’s tone was flat. “They’ve brainwashed you, Rachel. We dismembered their network looking for you. We took Hasim apart piece by piece until he had nowhere left to hide. The only thing he has left is this despicable play to turn you against us.”

  “Well it worked,” she spat. She pointed at them. “All of you and your women.” She curled her lip at Romero. “And you! You’re fucking my best friend! What? You had to use my disappearance to get laid? That’s low.”

  “That’s not how it is at all,” Romero said gently. “I love Cassidy and we both love you. She would be heartbroken to hear this from you. And what about these other women? They’ve been hurt by Hasim just like you have.”

  “Just like I have?” Rachel’s shrill voice nearly shattered Trapp’s eardrums. “Not possible! Do you understand? He gave me more. He put me through more. He beat me and hurt me more.”

  Trapp stared wide eyed at his sister and realized that she had bonded with her tormentor. For some damn reason he could not explain, his sister had fallen for Hasim—or something equally horrifying. This entire operation was never going to go the way he had hoped. Now his only wish was that Rachel could get out of this with some scrap of herself intact.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Isabella wiggled her hands and tried to relax. It was a pretty tall order considering her predicament, but if she was going to get herself and the other captives out of this mess she needed to keep her head on straight. They were all tied in much the same way. They had been tossed on their bellies with their legs secured with lengths of chain to the front posts of the horse stalls. Their hands were secured behind their backs with cuffs. Who used cuffs anymore? Didn’t most criminals use zip ties these days?

  Not criminals who know you always carry a knife somewhere.

  Isabella grunted in irritation. Considering the company that all of these women kept, it was likely they all had a Ka-bar stashed somewhere on their person. Okay. So cuffs it was. Surely they could get out of these stupid things somehow. There was a century’s worth of junk in this barn. There had to be something useful.

  “What are you doing?” This came from Tasha. The woman had been yanking on her bonds and cursing a blue streak ever since Hasim had left the premises. Until now Isabella had tuned her out.

  Isabella shot her a look of annoyance. Tasha was strong and independent. Isabella could respect that. Where she started to get crabby about Tasha’s behavior was with the woman’s horrible habit of turning everything into a big fucking deal. Yes. They were being held captive against their will. No it did not require all of Tasha catastrophizing to make it any worse.

  “Hey!” Tasha snapped. “There’s no need to go get on your high horse. I don’t see your Homeland Security buddies coming to the rescue. I’m trying to get loose so I can get us out of here. It’s not like any of these others are going to do it.”

  “Excuse me?” Marina narrowed her dark eyes to slits. If you would shut up and pay attention, you’d see that Isabella is trying to get her arms relaxed enough to stretch her body forward toward all of that farming junk.”

  Marina. Lock picks. The woman was a regular Houdini! Isabella ignored Tasha. “Marina, do you have your picks?”

  “Yes, but I can’t reach them. They’re in my hip pocket and I’m kind of laying on them.” Her frustration was palpable.

  Isabella looked at Jaipriya Bhatia. The woman was so little that Isabella could hardly believe that cuffs could hold her tiny wrists. “Jai? It is Jai, right?”

  Jaipriya nodded. Her eyes were huge and frightened. She was so quiet, but Isabella had a feeling there was a core of steel in there somewhere. “Jai, can you reach Marina’s pocket? You guys are only a couple of feet apart. I can’t believe they had cuffs small enough for your wrists.”

  “I—I think so.” Jai nodded her head, her expression determined.

  Jai wriggled a bit. She bowed her body nearly in half so that her front end came all the way off the floor. The move put her arms at an incredible angle. Then to Isabella shock, one of Jaipriya’s hands popped right out of the handcuff.

  “My left thumb is double jointed,” she explained. Then she puffed out a breath and stretched her arms. “Okay. Which pocket, Marina?”

  “The one closest to you, on my hip.” Marina did her best to roll half on her opposite side.

  Isabella watched with mounting excitement as Jaipriya scooted as close to Marina as she dared. Her diminutive height was a bit of handicap as the distance between her and Marina was just about further than she could stretch. Reaching beneath Marina, Jai groped in her pockets until she came up with a few tiny pieces of metal.

  “You open locks with these?” Jai sounded mystified.

  Marina puffed out a stream of air to blow some long strands of her black hair out of her face. “I can’t do this by myself from this angle. You’re going to have to help me.”

  “What?” Jai did not look encouraged by this idea. “I can’t pick a lock!”

  “Sure you can.”

  Isabella liked Marina’s calm voice and very matter of fact and encouraging words. Isabella knew from reading reports of the woman’s captivity that she was severely claustrophobic.It was impressive that she was able to set aside her fear long enough to actually function in this situation. It was damned impressive.

  “Go ahead, Jai,” Isabella encouraged. “You can do it. Marina will tell you how.”

  “Okay.” Jai sucked in a breath and positioned herself so that she could reach the cuffs holding Marina’s hands behind her back. “But once your hands are free, you get to do the rest.”

  “Deal,” Marina agreed. “Now, put the thinner one inside the little keyhole. You should feel a dimple. Push d
own on that.”

  “Okay?” Jai didn’t sound encouraged at all, and then her expression suddenly brightened with excitement. “I feel it! I’m pushing down. What now?”

  “Use the other one to turn the locking mechanism. You’re going to kind of shove it out of the way. Think about how a key works in one of these things. You push in and there’s a spring feeing, right?”

  “I’ve never unlocked handcuffs.” Jai sounded apologetic. “I’ve never even held a pair before.”

  Tasha snorted. “Figures.”

  “Would you can it?” Isabella snapped. “Seriously? If you can’t be the hero you have to mock everyone else?”

  “You do realize that there are guards outside, right?” Tasha said derisively. “We’re not going anywhere unless we can fight our way out.”

  “So we need a distraction,” Isabella murmured. Then she realized she had the perfect distraction in Tasha Campbell. “Oh I’ve got it!”

  There was a click and then Marina’s hands were free. Jaipriya looked stunned. “I did it!”

  “Yes, you did!” Marina pulled her hands around, rolled to her side, and flung her arms around the other woman to hug her tight. “Thank you!”

  “Hang on a second,” Isabella called out to Marina. “Before you free the rest of us, I think I have an idea that will work to get us all the way out of here. It’s going to take some teamwork though.”

  *

  “So,” Rachel drawled in that voice that was not quite hers. “Here is how this is going to go.”

  “Rachel, please?” Trapp felt his heart shriveling as he looked at his younger sister and felt an overwhelming sense of guilt. “I’ve been searching for you every since I discovered you were missing. Don’t do this. Don’t buy into this asshole’s plan. Don’t be his pawn.”

  She only laughed at him. “His pawn? That’s what you think I am?”

  Rachel stood up and stretched. She looked leaner and more haggard than Trapp had ever seen her. There were deep shadows around her eyes and she had the appearance of someone who had suffered from malnutrition. He could not even fathom what she had been through. A quick glance at his team determined that they were all on the same page. They would have to play her game until they could figure out how to get her away from Hasim. Dealing with Stockholm Syndrome behavior was no easy thing.