Page 16 of Zain

She winced. “I don’t understand.” Part of her wanted to escape the truck. To run from this man who was so angry and confused—a ticking time bomb that might be her demise if she wasn’t careful. “Zain?” she asked softly, desperately needing an explanation.

Or some kind of guarantee he wasn’t the heartless killer he appeared to be.

Fury emanated from his body. Yet she sensed his anger wasn’t directed at her, even though he’d been cold and abrasive.

“Is Rami here?” he asked, keeping his gaze ahead. His voice sounded hollow. Like the voice of a man who’d lost his best friend. But he also sounded cautiously hopeful and... afraid? She couldn’t be sure.

“No.” She cleared her throat. “He... uh. Doesn’t exactly know I’m here.”

Zain swung his probing stare her way. “What do you mean?”

She toyed with a strand of her hair. “Well, everyone who works for Backcountry knows about your case. Rami has been working tirelessly to find you. But it wasn’t until August, one of the employees—and Rami’s best friend—handed me your file that I really got absorbed in locating you.” She couldn’t dim the passion in her voice. The excitement when she discovered the video of Zain still radiated through her.

Maybe because she’d always been a thrill junky. Maybe because she’d been so touched by Zain’s story.

“That doesn’t answer my question. Why isn’t he here?”

“I didn’t tell him I found you because I wasn’t sure it was you. I knew that unless I got closer, I wouldn’t know if you were still...”

One dark, thick eyebrow arched. “Alive?”

She nodded. “The footage I found of you was old. I was afraid Rami would get his hopes up only to find out you were dead. So I decided to find youmyself.”

He pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. The sound was one of defeat.

Her shoulder sagged. This wasn’t exactly the rescue she’d envisioned. He wasn’t thrilled to have been found. Wasn’t eager to go home. Did he even want to leave? What if she had to return to the US to tell Rami she’d found his brother but he wouldn’t return?

Devastation spiraled within her. She had to convince him to come with her.

“Zain, please.” She wiggled closer, this time a little more confident he wouldn’t hurt her. “You’ve been through a lot. I’m sure you’re traumatized and confused. Imprisonment does terrible things to a person. It can take years to get over the hold your captors had on you. Stockholm syndrome is probably a factor. But—”

A deep, rough laugh rumbled from his throat, and his shoulders jostled. She frowned.

“Stockholm syndrome? Are you kidding me?”

“Not in a romantic way,” she added. She kept her tone soft, understanding. Hopefully he’d get the message that he was a victim in all this. “Zain, there are a lot of people who want you to come home.”

He lowered his hand from his face and met her stare. “Like I said before, lady. You have no idea what you’ve done.”

Apprehension climbed her spine. “I think youneed to elaborate.”

A muscle jumped in his jaw. “When the troops were pulled out, my unit was hit with an IED. Eleven men died. Everyone except me.”

Dread filled Dana. She kept her hand on his arm. “I’m so sorry.”

He glanced down at her fingers then out the windshield. “I still haven’t figured out why I’m the one who survived.”

The sad note in his voice struck a chord of sympathy in her heart.

He shrugged. “I was in the hospital healing from minor wounds when the CIA came in and told me I was being placed inside Jaysh. I was given a mission to integrate with the group, work my way up the chain, and locate the leader.” He faced her again. “That plan and all my hard work blew up in my face the moment you found me.”

Her stomach bottomed out as realization struck her with a ten-foot pole. Oh god. She’d screwed up his mission. Endangered him. Pressure built at the corners of her eyes, and she forced down the deluge of tears that threatened to come. She’d almost gotten herself killed. Didn’t know if Brick was alive.

And she’d messed up the CIA’s plan to take down the leader of a terrorist group.

She covered her lips with her fingers. “Ohmigod. I—”

“Don’t. You didn’t know.” Despite his words,his voice was rough. Disgruntled.

---