Page 10 of The Forbidden Sheik
Taking slow, deep breaths, she calmed herself.
Before she could finish her assessment, Marianna heard male voices. Their voices were muffled, so she couldn’t understand what they said. Strong arms picked her up. Marianna tried not to fight, hoping that he would think she was still unconscious.
There were more unfamiliar noises, and then she was tossed into a vehicle. This one wasn’t electric and she nearly choked on the gas fumes when the engine revved. Rolling over, she listened hard, her training finally kicking in.
Nothing. She heard nothing except the rumbling of the truck. Or a car? Was she in the trunk of a car? It was hot, but she didn’t feel the burn of the sun against her skin. She felt only the hard, rough carpet underneath her wounded shoulder.
“Understand your surroundings,” she reminded herself silently. That had been drilled into her over and over by her bodyguards. Of course, they’d also told her to remain in sight of her guards and she’d ignored that. They’d told her to fight back as soon as she felt threatened, but she hadn’t managed that either.
As the car rumbled over rough streets, Marianna cursed herself for getting so angry with her brothers over the years about the bodyguards that shadowed her everywhere. How many times had she argued that she didn’t need bodyguards? She’d tried several times over the years to convince Khal that she was just a minor family member; that she didn’t get the same kidnapping or assassination threats as Khal and her brothers did.
And how many times had Khal argued that he loved her, and the simple fact that shewasa member of the royal family made her a target? The fact that he loved her, that he could be manipulated if she were threatened, also made her a target.
Marianna sent out a silent apology. She knew that Khal couldn’t hear her, which made her feel even worse.
If she ever got out of this mess, and Marianna had to believe that she would, she vowed that she would never take her guards for granted again.
Since that vow was for the future, Marianna pulled herself together. What was she going to do right now? How was she going to get out of this pickle? She had training. What could she do to save herself?
Getting the bag off of her head was her first priority. She needed to be able to see. Wiggling around, she tried to get her hands free. But they were taped tightly together. No, not tape. Something thinner. And sharper! Most likely those plastic zip ties.
Okay good. This was good! Marianna was calming down enough so that she could think more clearly. Her head still ached, but she could ignore the pain for now.
Zip ties. Good. This was good! Marianna knew how to free herself from those. Of course, part of the move she’d been taught was to keep her wrists slightly apart so that she had wiggle room. Since she’d bungled that move, she had to move on to option two. That was to find something sharp that she could cut through the ties with. Since she couldn’t see, and couldn’t get the bag off of her head until her hands were free, she would need to figure this out.
Wiggling around, she felt with her fingertips for something that she could use to cut the zip ties. When she found the crow bar in the back of the space, Marianna nearly cried out with relief. The edge wasn’t particularly sharp, but she could use it to get her feet free. She could tell her ankles were only taped. Listening carefully to the sounds of the road, she wiggled around until she could rub her ankles against the edge of the crowbar. Within moments, her feet were free. Okay, goal number one was accomplished. Not only were her feet free, but the small success gave her a burst of confidence.
Ignoring the salty tears burning her eyes, she felt around for something else, something sharper that could bite through the thick plastic ties. She didn’t feel anything else, but it occurred to her that she could use the crow bar to snap the ties. After some more maneuvering, she found a position where she could prop the crow bar against something. It took her multiple tries, but she managed to free her hands. As soon as her hands were free, she pulled the bag off her head, gulping at the fresh air. The air wasn’t cool, not in the trunk of a car, but it was a whole lot better than the stuffy air inside the bag.
“Okay, now what?” she whispered to herself, looking around. Yep, she was definitely in the trunk of a car. The trunk was dimly lit by the sunshine peeking in through the taillights and the edges of the trunk.
Unfortunately, before she could come up with her next step, Marianna heard horns blaring. And then the vehicle stopped suddenly, throwing her violently against the back of the trunk. Shouts and screams of pain echoed around her. Was that…fighting? Had her bodyguards found her? Marianna felt around and discovered the trunk release, popping the lid open.
It took her eyes a moment to adjust to the shift from absolute darkness to light, but when she could see what was going on, she was shocked to find…Amit! He was fighting her kidnappers! Good grief, he was magnificent. He lunged toward the men who were piling out of another vehicle, wielding a knife.
There were about ten men battling now. Marianna didn’t recognize anyone except Amit and the two men who had yanked her off Stella. Everyone was moving fast and before she could make sense of the battle, gunshots were heard.
Automatically, Marianna ducked back into the trunk. She grabbed the crowbar. It was the only weapon she had. In a battle between a knife and a crowbar, she might have a pretty fair chance. But when one added a gun, then the effectiveness of a crowbar diminished significantly.
Still, a crowbar was far better than nothing. She noticed the men that came from the second vehicle were dropping fast. But the man fighting Amit was holding his ground. He was significantly shorter than Amit, and his expression was pure rage. However, Amit was determined and he was better trained.
“Don’t get hurt!” she whispered, wanting to scream a warning at him, but her voice was gone. Another man saw her and raced towards her, reaching out to grab her. A bodyguard followed behind, so instead of waiting for an introduction, Marianna gripped the crowbar and swung it with all her might. The wet thunk of the crowbar connecting with the man’s shoulder made her stomach twist warningly, but she didn’t have time to throw up since another man was coming towards her. She swung again, hitting the man’s hand, forcing him to drop his knife. He kept coming so she swung again. This time, she hit the man’s cheek and he crumpled to the ground in what seemed like slow motion.
The battle continued to rage as Marianna’s gaze kept returning to Amit. He was still fighting the same man. There were a few bloody gashes on the man and one across Amit’s upper arm. None of the wounds looked too deep, but the fact that blood had been drawn made her want to kill the bastard who had harmed Amit.
More guards appeared, converging on Amit and his attacker. One of the guards came around the big SUV with a pistol and shot Amit’s attacker in the head. Marianna watched as the man was thrown backwards, the knife falling from his hand. She noticed that he had a second knife sticking out of his stomach. Apparently, Amit had bested the man at the same time the guard had shot him.
Marianna would never be able to remember this moment later without getting nauseous. She caught movement from the corner of her eye and reacted instinctively. Lashing out with the crowbar, she swung towards the man’s chest, assuming that the largest target would be the easiest to hit.
She hit his shoulder just as the guard pulled the trigger. The bullet hit the man’s chest and he swayed, both arms flying out as he tried to keep his balance. But the menacing growl issuing from the man warned her that he wasn’t dead yet.
Before she could react, guards swarmed the man. Handcuffs were slapped on his wrists and ankles. Meanwhile, Marianna turned, watching with intense relief as Amit walked up to her.
She drew breath to speak but Amit pulled her into his arms without a word. He kissed her deeply before she could let go of the breath she was holding. His kiss was hot, deep, and passionate. She couldn’t help but respond in kind. Marianna gave him everything she’d been dreaming about, feeling his body pressed against hers as one hand cupped the back of her neck while the other wrapped tightly around her waist, literally lifting her off her feet.
The kiss lasted until Marianna’s head spun with desire.
When he finally straightened up, he pressed his forehead against hers, still holding her closely. “Are you okay?” he asked in a growly voice.
