Page 9 of Cooper

Leo tries shaking Seghin, but he’s still out cold and that scares me more than anything else. If they’re going to kill us, we can’t stop them, but if we manage to find a way out, we can’t run and carry Doug too. Not to mention, if we get rescued, and Doug has been unconscious for days, his chances of recovery aren’t great.

“Keep trying every now and then,” I say quietly. I try to squirm to look out the small single window in the cell where we’re being held, but there’s barely a sliver of sunlight. It’s late in the day, and we haven’t eaten or slept, which will catch up to us soon. Unfortunately, I have a feeling another beating will happen before food or drink.

Leo and I exchange a look when we hear steps in the hall.

“Sorry, Cap.” He gives me a sympathetic look since we both know I’m going to take the brunt of whatever’s coming.

“We got this, Marine.” I close my eyes and let my mind drift. I discovered this was the secret to enduring torture. I can just put myself somewhere else, and the pain often doesn’t register until much later.

Someone is speaking Arabic again.

Well, yelling, actually, but I tune him out. I can’t tell him something I don’t know, and while I wouldn’t tell him if I did, I honestly have no idea what he’s talking about. I don’t have a clue what this is about, which makes this that much worse.

“Answer the fucking question!” My captor backhands me, and I taste blood again.

I meet his gaze without wavering. “Captain Ryan Cooper. United States Marines. Serial number 723—” He hits me on the other side this time.

“Do you understand what I will do to you?!” The leader of whoever these fuckers are is right up in my face and I long to drive my fist into his nose.

“Captain Ryan Cooper. United States Marines. Serial number—”Smack!

Back to the first side.

“Your CIA isn’t coming for you,” he hisses.

“Captain Ryan Cooper. United States?—”

“Shut up!” This time he catches me in the ribs with both fists, hard enough to knock the wind out of me.

My head drops to my chest as I try to catch my breath.

“The only one who can help you is you,” my captor hisses. “Tell me where she is, or you will die here with my name on your lips. Yusef Mustaffa. Remember it.Say it.”

He can hit me as many times as he wants, but I’m not going to say shit.

Because now I know what this is about.

Fatima and the other ladies we helped escape.

This jerk is Fatima’s husband, and I’ll die before I tell him where she is. Well, not that I know her exact location, but I won’t tell him what I do know either.

“You will think of nothing but my name and my face as you die,” he growls.

I definitely don’t get paid enough for this bullshit.

* * *

After another beatdownthat results in what has to be some broken ribs, they leave us alone again and I use the time to recharge. I feel like hell and would’ve done almost anything for a hot meal and an even hotter shower. I probably have a few more days of this in me, but Seghin won’t last much longer and I’m starting to worry. If no one is coming, we aren’t going to survive, and I refuse to die here.

Not like this.

At some point, I drift off to sleep but something wakes me. A scraping sound catches my attention, and my eyes fly open as I look around. It’s dark, and from what I can tell, Leo and Doug are sleeping. What the hell is that noise? Our captors are much noisier when they come for us.

“Leo!” I keep my voice low, but I know he’ll hear me.

“What’s up, Cap?” Leo is a light sleeper too.

“You hear something?”

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