Page 22 of Forty Days and One Knight
Biting his bottom lip, Darius didn’t respond. As much as he trusted the man, he’d also given Tahira that same trust. It was killing him to have to decide which one he had to betray.
Leaning back again, Ian sighed. “I figured out quite a while ago Tahira only flirts outrageously with the single men she trusts not to take advantage of her. That, and learning more about her and the religion and customs of Timasur, made me realize she was still a virgin. But that’s changed, hasn’t it? And not because you and she had a jungle fling.” When Darius remained silent, Ian pushed again. “Damn it, Batman. I might be a little slow on the uptake now and again, but I’m not fucking stupid. Look me in the eye and tell me I’m wrong and I’ll let it go. But if I’m right, it won’t leave this room—I would never,everdo anything to hurt that girl. She’s like a little sister to me and Angie. I care about her—I care about you too—but I can’t help both of you if you don’t talk to me.”
Taking a deep breath, Darius let it out slowly and made his decision. His friend had pretty much taken the choice away from him by being too damn perceptive. Darius also knew this conversation would never be repeated if Ian said it wouldn’t be. “There’s nothing you can do about it. When I got to the cell area to help the girls escape, I didn’t know she’d been taken upstairs by Secada. After leaving Costello and Romeo there to get the rest of them out, I ran upstairs, but I—I was too late.” He cleared the frog that had suddenly taken up residence in his throat, while picking at the label on the beer bottle with his thumbnail. “I killed the motherfucker, got her wrapped up in a blanket—she was still unconscious from the drugs—grabbed some clothes for her, then got her the hell out of there. By that point, everything had gone to shit.
“Later, when bits and pieces started coming back to her, and she figured out what’d happened, she freaked—understandably—but it was more than that. She told me she’d been a virgin and, if she wasn’t one on her wedding night, she’d be disgraced. Apparently, in their country, it’s not unheard of for assholes to tell the world their bride wasn’t pure on their wedding night and demand a divorce. It would’ve destroyed her parents and her reputation. Despite being a princess, many would treat her as an outcast—not her immediate family, but she would lose her respectability and everything she’d ever worked for—all her charity work would crumble. She’d be publicly humiliated.” He took another sip of beer. “She was so lost, so heartbroken, man, I couldn’t let her go through that. So, I came up with the plan to marry her; then, when it wouldn’t cause a scandal, we’d get a divorce. If she married again after that, the virginity thing wouldn’t be an issue. No one would know that we never had sex during the marriage, and she’d be safe.”
“Remind me again why you think you’re not a Dominant?” When Darius rolled his eyes, Ian said, “No, I mean it. Okay, so you’re not into whips and chains and some of the darker shit, but it’s so much more than that. If you’re really serious about this marriage thing, and there’s nothing I can say or do to change your mind ...” Darius shook his head—the whole thing sounded crazy, even to him, but he couldn’t retract his promise to Tahira. “Then down the road, maybe sooner than you think, you should consider using aspects of the lifestyle—the milder ones—to help her through this. She’s going to need counseling—Doc Dunbar would be ideal—but there are things you can do to help her too—non-sexual things. Dev and I can mentor you.”
Darius had met Dr. Trudy Dunbar several times. She was a psychologist who The Covenant used to counsel its members if they needed it, and she was also on the government’s approved list to treat veterans from the special-ops community for PTSD. Those guys had a lot of sensitive intel in their heads, so the shrinks had to be fully vetted in order to help them. Cowboy was one of those vets and had been seeing Trudy since joining the Omega Team.
After downing the rest of his beer, Ian stood and put the empty bottle back into the six-pack carton. “Think about it. In the meantime, you’re hired again. But don’t be a twatopotomus next time. Tell me what the fuck is going on, so I don’t feel the need to punch your lights out.
“Now, I’ve got to go get my wife and unborn kid some dinner from Donovan’s. Get a good night’s rest—you earned it. I’ll meet you at the hospital at oh-nine-hundred. We’ve got some security details, among other things, to work out with Amar.”
The man had finally said something Darius agreed with one hundred percent—he needed at least twelve hours of sleep before he could feel human again. Getting to his feet, he walked his boss to the door. “I’ll see you in the morning.”
Ian smirked. “Be prepared for the Trident women to take over your life once they hear you’re getting married. Five words—bridal shower and gift registry.” He shuddered dramatically, almost making Darius laugh. “Enough said.”
19
Darius jarred awake as his cell phone came alive on the nightstand next to his bed. Red digital numbers on the clock on his dresser announced it was 0210 hours. Without turning on a light, he grabbed the phone and checked the screen. An unrecognized local number was his only clue to whomever was calling. Stabbing the connect button, he then put the phone to his ear. "Knight."
“It’s Amar. I’m sorry for the late hour—”
"Is Tahira okay?" He tossed aside the covers and swung his legs off the bed to sit up.
The head of the royal guard sighed. "Physically, yes. But I’m afraid she awoke from a nightmare and is very upset. She threatened to scream if they tried to sedate her. She is asking for you and ordered me not to contact her parents. Can—"
"Tell her I'm on my way." Getting to his feet, Darius reached for the T-shirt he'd been wearing earlier and a pair of jeans from a pile of clean laundry he hadn't put away yet.
"Thank you, my friend. I will see you shortly."
Disconnecting the call, he tossed the phone on the bed and quickly got dressed, securing his holstered weapon at his lower back and letting the shirt cover it. His wallet went into his back pocket before he snatched up his phone and car keys. He'd only gotten about four hours of sleep, but years of being in the SEALs had taught his body how to regenerate itself quickly during combat naps. While he could still use another solid eight hours, he was awake enough to safely drive to the hospital.
Tahira had asked for him—needed him. For some strange reason that sent a jolt to his heart, causing it to pound. Butterflies took flight in his gut. What the fuck? The woman was a battered rape victim and yet his body was acting like a horny teenager who was going on a date with the head cheerleader.Get a grip, Knight.
After taking a quick trip to the bathroom, he stopped in the kitchen and grabbed a cold bottle of water from the refrigerator on his way out the door. At the late hour, it only took him ten minutes to reach the hospital. He parked in the lot and hurried inside. When a skinny, male security guard sitting at the front desk tried to tell him that visitors weren't allowed at this time of the night, Darius pulled out his wallet and flashed his Trident Security identification. "I'm with the detail on the fifth floor, private wing."
The pimply-faced guard, who couldn't he more than twenty years old, sat up straighter in his chair and nodded. "Uh, sure. Go on up."
Darius frowned and leaned forward. "Don't you want to check my name against the list of approved people who are allowed in that wing?"
The kid's Adam's apple bounced several times. "Uh ... um, yeah." He shuffled through some papers until he found what he was looking for. This was the best security the hospital had at night? "Um, w-what's your name again?"
"Darius Knight.” He held his ID closer to the guard’s face. “And if I catch you allowing anyone up on that floor without checking the list, I'll guarantee it will be your last shift here. Understood? There's a reason that's a private wing."
His eyes widened. "Um, y-yeah. Sorry, sir. It—it won't happen again." He ran his finger down the list of names of the royal guards, TS operatives, Tahira's parents, and a few members of the king and queen's trusted personal staff who'd accompanied them to Florida. "Um, h-here you are, Mr. Knight. Y-you can go up."
Glaring at the guard a moment longer to make sure he'd gotten his point across, Darius finally dipped his chin once and put away his wallet. Without saying anything further, he strode toward the elevator. Arriving at the fifth floor, he stepped out into the hallway. Travis "Tiny" Daultry, the head of security at The Covenant and occasional TS bodyguard when needed, was stationed at the door to the private wing with one of the royal guards. Both men were on high alert, their holstered weapons in full view of anyone wanting to challenge them. While the six-foot-eight, former professional football player towered over his companion by a good seven inches, Darius was sure the man from Timasur could hold his own if the two sparred.
A smile spread across Tiny's face as Darius approached. "Morning, Batman. This is Haji Mellouk." He gestured between the two men. "This is Darius Knight."
Darius wasn't offended when the other man didn't offer a hand. Instead, they each gave the other a curt nod before Mellouk's attention returned to the quiet hallway. Amar’s men took their responsibilities seriously, even more so since the kidnapping.
Meanwhile, Tiny opened the door to the private wing for Darius. "Amar told us you were coming. He's waiting for you in the princess's room."
"Thanks. When's Henderson due in?" Doug "Bullseye" Henderson was the head of the Private Protection Division at Trident and, in this case, Tiny's superior.
