Page 13 of Cole
CHAPTER SEVEN
“He’s hurt, Dad, but he’s safe in the hotel for now. We need extraction for four people.”
“Four?”
“Yes, four. Me, Angus, Cole, and Hala.”
“Who the fuck is Hala?”
“The woman who pulled him from the well. With her donkey,” smirked Bailey.
“Then she comes with all of you,” he said.
“Dad, it might not be that easy. Her grandfather is a powerful warlord here and just might be one of the men conspiring to use the nuke.”
“Fuck. Why do you kids make everything so damn hard?” he cursed.
“We don’t try to make it hard,” she smiled. “We’ll be waiting for the extraction. Just let us know where to go.”
Bailey walked into the other room, watching as Hala tended to her brother’s injuries.
“He’s very lucky the ribs didn’t puncture his lungs or other organs. He’ll be okay, but the wrist is broken. It didn’t have to be set, just wrapped, as did the ribs. He needs water and food.”
“I can get that,” said Angus. “I’ll order room service.”
“If anyone sees me, it could be problematic for all of us,” she said staring at them.
“Just who is your grandfather?” asked Angus. “You said he was a warlord that most likely knew of the nuclear device. What is his name?”
“Hilal Nasif,” she whispered as if someone might hear her.
“Fuuuck,” muttered Cole and Angus beneath their breath.
“You know him?”
“Everyone knows him,” said Cole. “Forgive me, but you seem very kind, sweet, intelligent, and uh, normal.”
She smiled at him, nodding. Bailey noticed how beautiful the woman was. She had dark brown hair, with streaks of a blondish auburn, making it look alive with light, and the greenest eyes she’d ever seen. Staring at her brother, she smiled internally, knowing that Cole saw it as well.
“I am normal. I am intelligent. When I was a little girl, my grandfather brought me to his home and said I would live with him from now on. My parents, he said, were killed by other tribes. I knew nothing of such things. As I got older, I learned that it was my grandfather that killed them because they were planning on leaving the country with me.
“I was fortunate that he allowed me a great deal of leeway to do what I wanted. I received an education, I was able to talk to men not in my own family, all the things women should be allowed to do but usually are not in my part of this country. He approached me one day and said I would be allowed to attend university in America if I became a doctor.
“I thought it would be my opportunity to escape. It wasn’t. It was another trap to control me. His men followed me everywhere, even slept in my apartment. Just before I was to take my final boards, receive my license to practice medicine in America, they awakened me in the middle of the night and said I would come back here.”
“I’m sorry,” said Cole.
“I’ve patched up his men, watched as he tortured other men and then forced me to ‘fix them’ so he could torture them again. When I saw you, I thought perhaps he’d thrown you down there. I had to get you out.”
“I’m glad you did,” said Bailey. “My brother, sister, and I are very close.” She nodded, a sad expression on her face.
“If he finds me, you’ll all be punished,” she said shaking her head. “I should leave.”
“No!” said Cole. Bailey smiled at her brother. “No. You’ll go back with us.”
“He’ll find me,” she said.
“No. He won’t find you where we live,” said Bailey. “Trust me. You’ll be safe with us.”
