Page 9 of Her Devoted HERO

“Get away from me.” It was a man’s voice.

“Please, Bill, get up. You’ve got to get up. I have a plan.” It was a woman’s voice.

It had to be the Mrs. Anders.

“Bitch, go back to El Mahdy.”

“I can’t. He’s an animal. He’s not like he was in Cairo. It’s all different now.”

“What the fuck did you expect? He’s a fucking terrorist!” the man rasped out. “What are you doing, Noreen?”

“I’m trying to cut the ropes.”

“I can’t walk. I don’t think I could stand, let alone walk. Where are the girls?”

“They’re asleep in a tent with the other two women in the camp. I gave them the last of my Ambien. They’ll sleep until morning. You have to help me get the girls and get one of the trucks.”

“They’ll kill us all. Our only hope is me trading the account passwords for Lottie and Clara’s safe passage out of this hell-hole.”

“You should never have stuck your nose in my business!”

“What the fuck are you talking about? If I hadn’t of gotten the bank account information, we would be fucked right now, it’s the only leverage we have with your boyfriend.” He said the last word with disdain. “I pray to God we can trade them for our daughter’s lives.”

“What about me?” the woman’s voice trembled.

“You literally made your bed, you can lie in it.”

“Taruk will never let the girls go. He plans to raise them and marry them off when they turn thirteen.”

“He won’t if he wants the money out of the accounts.”

There was a click on Dex’s earpiece. “The targets in the northwest tent are eliminated,” Griff reported.

“Got a situation in our tent,” Hunter said.

“Sleeping women and children?” Gray asked.

“Affirmative.”

“Aiden,” Gray bit out.

“I’m on it,” Aiden quickly replied.

“The rest of you surround the main tent. Dex and I have a situation. We found the husband and wife. The husband is injured. The rest of the targets, including El Mahdy, are in the main tent. Take them out.”

“Turn off the goddamn flashlight!” Anders damn near shouted. What the hell was he thinking, Dex wondered. The last thing he needed to do was wake up the terrorists.

“I can’t see, I’ll cut you,” Noreen responded.

As one, Dex and Gray entered the tent.

“Quiet. Not one more word,” Gray commanded. “He’s right, shut off the flashlight.”

The bright light fell onto the dirt and illuminated the bloodied, beaten, and naked man who had his wrists tied to his ankles behind his back. It was clear he had been tortured.

Dex breathed a mental sigh of relief when the woman didn’t speak.

“We’re going to get you out of here,” Gray said. “Nod if you understand.”