Page 15 of Master Vidar & Vali

“Yes. But you need to understand that this is part of what we do. Keeping a person safe is almost impossible if they put themselves in more danger by ignoring rules specifically designed to minimize risk.”

“I won’t, but I also don’t think I can live like that long term. I don’t want to have to hide from Mihal, but I also don’t know what else to do.”

I sat down across from Zara. “You told us that he attacked you when you tried to leave. Why do you think he wouldn’t let you go?”

Lincoln narrowed his eyes and leaned forward. “Did you steal something from him or know something he doesn’t want getting out?”

With the background my friend has uncovered, I couldn’t blame him for being suspicious, but I wished he would ease back. She wasn’t a suspect we were interrogating.

“No.” Zara shook her head and took a gulp of water. “Well, technically I stole from him but only after he kidnapped me.”

“How does one technically steal?” Again Lincoln’s tone left much to be desired.

“Taking the job in Albania seemed like a perfect opportunity to grow my marketing experience. But once we left the U.S., Mihal changed. I tried to brush it off as nerves or adapting to a new culture, but on the day I met you, Colin, I’d realized it didn’t matter why I felt the way I did. I had to leave.”

“He didn’t want you to leave?” I asked.

“No. I expected him to offer me more money or argue for more time to adjust. Instead he informed me that we were going to get married.” She looked at both of us as if trying to gage our reactions. “Crazy right? I knew he found me attractive, but we’d never been intimate. Well, I demanded my passport back. He refused and when I threatened to go to the embassy, he got angry.”

“Is that what happened to your face? His anger?”

She nodded and I admired how she pushed through continuing to talk about something so obviously upsetting.

“Yes. If I’d thought for one minute he would get physically violent I would have handled things differently. He kept hitting me, and at some point I must have passed out. When I woke up, I was in a locked room on his estate.”

I kept my voice calm as I asked, “Not to insult your obvious beauty, but if you hadn’t been romantically involved, why was he so focused on you?”

Zara’s cheeks turned bright pink. “He told me I was rare, uh, and that I belonged to him.”

It was hard to keep my fists from curling with the need to punch someone. “What did he mean by rare? Is there something you’re not telling us?”

Forget pink, candy apple red was the color of her face from forehead to chin.

“He thinks I’m a virgin.” She pinched the bridge of her nose as if trying to push through a frustrating thought.

Laughter would be inappropriate but the disgust and disbelief she’d put into the statement was amusing. “I’m guessing you’re not by the way you said that. But why would he think that?”

“Because months ago, one of his bodyguards tried to see if I might be up for some fun. He was a good-looking guy, but I know better than to mix business with hook ups. To avoid bruising his ego, I made up a stupid lie about waiting for marriage and being too busy to date. I had no idea that comment would make its way back to Mihal.

“I also didn’t know some archaic standard of purity would appeal to him so much that he’d try to force me to marry him. The psycho even said he’d gotten his family to give approval for the marriage, whatever that means. But once it was clear he wasn’t going to be taking no for an answer, I ran.”

Imagining her hurt and held prisoner had my blood racing through my veins. Her story was almost unbelievable but experience and training told me she wasn’t lying.

“How did you escape?” Linc asked, drawing me from my thoughts.

“When I woke up, I knew things would only get worse. I used some stuff I found in the bathroom to pick the lock on my room. I waited till it was late. Luckily, I found my purse stored in the same place as my passport. There was also some money which Istole to help me escape. That is the ‘technical stealing’ I did. It was that or risk him tracking me by my credit cards.”

Lincoln snorted and Zara’s eyes narrowed.

“What exactly is your problem with me? I’m sorry if you think I did something wrong by stealing, but the fact he had beaten and kidnapped me are some pretty strong mitigating circumstances. Look, if you are too high and mighty to help a thief like me, I am more than happy to leave if someone can drive me back to the city.”

Zara had risen to her feet during her rant. Lincoln stood as well and towered over her. To her credit, she didn’t back down, glaring up at him in challenge. They looked as if they were about to start brawling or fucking. I knew it wasn’t the time or place, but the passion that would spark if those two ever got past the distrust would be explosive.

“It’s not the fact that you know how to pick a lock or crack a safe, since I’m assuming that was where you found your purse and the money. Nor that you have the skills necessary to stay under the radar while traveling across the world. It’s whether you’re trying to con my best friend. Because isn’t that what you're good at, Sue-Ann?”

His use of her old name had Zara stepping back as if he’d hit her. Instead of yelling, all the light and fight drained from her eyes and were replaced with tears. She stumbled, and I stood to steady her. Instead of stepping away, she curled into my arms clinging as if the world was slipping out of control around her.

It was easy to forget with her large personality that she was probably exhausted. The mottled bruises were even more evident as her skin lost color with her shock. She’d been traveling for a week and the bags under her eyes clearly showed she hadn’t had much rest along the way. If we weren’t careful, we’d push her past her breaking point and she’d run again.

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