She shook off the awareness that plagued her when she so much as called to mind his image. She squeezed her eyes shut and cursed herself. What was wrong with her? None of this could be true. She couldn’t have worked for the CIA or had an affair with this man. She certainly wouldn’t have had anything to do with anyone’s murder. There had to be a mistake.
She’d read about cases like this, had even seen a movie or two with this very plotline. The problem was, she must look strikingly similar to the real Amira Peres. Tanner had said as much. That coincidental resemblance had her in deep trouble. Hurt twisted inside her again when she thought of her baby. How long had it been since she’d seen him? Twenty-four hours? Longer?
It was dark now. She had to have been gone more than twenty-four hours. It had been almost dark when she’d been grabbed in the basement garage at the hospital. She’d been drugged and interrogated and when she’d awakened it had been daylight. Yes, she was sure of it. Just over twenty-four hours had passed.
She ran her fingers through her still-damp hair and exhaled a heavy breath. She had to find a way to escape. But before she could do that she needed to get the lay of the land, so to speak. If she could keep her cool, she would eventually learn where she was being held and how many of his men were here.
She squared her shoulders and made a promise to her reflection. She would find a way out of this. She had to. Nicholas was counting on her.
Another thought crashed into her musings. That Tanner guy. Jack. The CIA guy. He’d said she was in danger, that she was one of them. Surely the CIA would be looking for her since Robert had most likely reported her missing. A glimmer of relief warmed her chest. If what Tanner said was true, which she couldn’t see how it was, but still, if he thought it was, she was not only an American citizen, she was CIA. They would have to look for her. And Tanner knew where to look. He’d mentioned Michal Arad by name.
Her hopes shored up with that last thought, she smoothed her hands over the new jeans and checked her blouse to see that it covered all that it should. It was a little tight and a little revealing, but it was better than wearing that shirt of his. She shivered at the remembered scent that was uniquely his. That was definitely something she didn’t need cluttering her senses.
She moved to the bedroom door but hesitated before opening it. What if she opened the door and the guard took the move as one of aggression and shot her? She forced the idea away. She was expected for dinner. Besides, it was probably locked.
To her surprise the door opened when she turned the knob. Holding her breath she peeked into the hallway. The sight of the man holding a large, ugly weapon pointed directly at her registered instantly and she squealed before she could clamp her hand over her mouth.
“Come with me.”
Her gaze swung to the man who’d spoken. Arad waited, a few steps away. The guard immediately lowered his weapon, but his hate-filled glare stayed firmly in place.
Thankful to be free of the room, she followed Arad along a dimly lit corridor. She passed other closed doors and she couldn’t help wandering if anyone else was being held prisoner behind one of those doors. Or if one of them led to the outside. Nothing she encountered gave her any indication of where she was or how she’d gotten here.
The corridor finally gave way into a large room, like a great room. A couple of sofas and several chairs were scattered around. There was a huge stacked-stone fireplace and a television. The walls were wood, the decor rustic. And not a telephone in sight. She missed a step when her gaze fell on the enormous double-entry doors. Though the doors were barred like the entry to a fortress, the desire to run toward them was nearly irresistible.
Ami bumped into Arad’s broad chest as she moved forward once more and before she realized he had stopped and turned around.
“You are not to speak to any of my men. You will eat and then you will return to your room.” His next words told her he hadn’t missed her preoccupation with the doors. “There is a state-of-the-art security system. If you open an exterior door, an alarm will sound and, as I told you before, the guards have orders to shoot you on sight if, at any time, you are found outside the house without being accompanied by me.”
She nodded, too overwhelmed to speak. How could she feel anything but utter hatred for this savage? She hated him. Her fingers balled into fists as the need to do him bodily injury rushed through her veins.
He smiled, obviously reading her mind yet again. “You should have killed me two years ago.”
With a wave of his arm he ordered her to precede him into the kitchen. Helpless to do otherwise, she did as instructed. Several men pushed away from the table and filed out of the huge dining room, each glaring down at her as he passed. She counted six and there were more outside. One man, a barbaric-looking brute with long brown hair tied back into a ponytail, remained at the other end of the table. Tears burned at the backs of Ami’s eyes. How could she ever hope to escape with odds like this? She couldn’t.
She dropped into the chair Arad pulled from the table and admitted defeat. She was going to die and there was nothing she could do about it.
He placed a stoneware plate, laden with a generous portion of roast beef and mixed vegetables, in front of her. Even the smell made her stomach roil. She didn’t know when she’d eaten last, but the idea was more than she could deal with at the moment. She was going to die, why did it matter if she ate?
Her heart lurched. Was Robert seeing to Nicholas at this very moment? Feeding him? Bathing him and readying him for bed? She blinked back the moisture gathering. Would he remind her baby that she loved him? Would he tell Nicholas as he grew older that she hadn’t wanted to leave him? That some terrible man had kidnapped her?
“Eat.”
Her gaze connected with Arad’s and she couldn’t hold back the tears. She tried. She really did. But they would be contained no longer.
Fury tightened the features of his face, sending a new wave of fear through her. He scooped up a spoonful of potatoes and held it close to her mouth. “Eat.”
She moistened her lips and tried to open her mouth, told herself that she had to do as he said, but she just couldn’t. She shook her head. “I’m sorry…I-”
He grabbed her chin and held it firmly, forcing her mouth to open as he shoved the spoon inside. Her throat and stomach rebelled against the intrusion. She clamped her hand over her mouth to keep from spitting out the food. She instinctively knew that if she did she would regret it. After a few moments of fighting the gag reflex, she finally chewed and allowed the potatoes, little by little, to slide down her throat.
When she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, he shoved another spoonful toward her.
She couldn’t do this. Her stomach contracted once more at the very sight of the food. “I can’t…”
He grabbed her by the chin once more and forced her to look directly into his eyes. “You can and you will.”
Something in his eyes… The fury or maybe the other emotion she saw there. A hurt that didn’t quite mesh with the evil persona.
A sob burst from her before she could stop it. “Why?” she cried. “Why do you care if I eat? You’re going to kill me anyway.”
“The date and means of your death,” he snarled, “will not be your decision. It will be mine.” He released her as if touching her had somehow burned him. He barked something in a language she did not understand to the man at the other end of the table. The man pushed to his feet and stamped down to where she sat. He grabbed her by the arm and dragged her from the table, overturning her chair in the process.
Hysteria setting in now, Ami looked from the brute to Arad and back; he only stared after her as she was dragged away. She stumbled as she tried to keep up with the man’s long strides. Her heart thundered so hard in her chest she couldn’t draw in a breath. When he shoved her into the bedroom where she’d awakened, relief washed over her. Thank God. At least they weren’t going to kill her yet.