Spanish Eyes_Texas Heat Read online

  “Take care of yourself for me, Tyler Landon. With my last breath, I thank God you came into my life.” Aliyah’s answer was perceptible also and just as heart-wrenching. After placing a tiny slip of paper in Tyler’s fist, she pulled from his grasp and left to surrender herself into the hands of her greatest enemy. They watched as she was taken roughly by the arm and shoved through the door of the helicopter.

  Drew could see the look on the older Arab’s face, he was ecstatic, a dangerous gleam lit his eyes. The younger man with him expressed no emotion. The guard pushed Angelina out of the way as he jumped aboard and shut the door. In moments, the helicopter lifted off and as they all watched, it disappeared over the trees and out of sight.

  Benjamin Simone made it to Angelina first, closely followed by Rafe and Drew.

  “Angelina!” Rafe embraced her and she cried out pitifully as if his touch caused her pain. “You’re hurt. What did they do to you?”

  “Let’s get her to the hospital.” Drew took her arm. “I’ll help you, I’m a doctor.”

  “No, please, no.” She wept, pulling away from him. “I just want to be alone.”

  Cooper came to the door. “Let me get her settled, then you two can see to her needs.”

  Angelina allowed the other woman to walk beside her, but she said nothing.

  “My name is Cooper, Angelina. Let’s get you inside. I bet you could use something to drink, maybe a bath,” Cooper murmured soothingly.

  Drew’s eyes stayed on the women as they left. He had an overwhelming urge to follow.

  “God, what did he do to her?” Rafe muttered, harshly. “She looks like she’s ready to shatter.” Dry-scrubbing his face, he paced in a tight circle. “What am I saying? I know he tortured her, there’s no possibility she escaped it. I’ve seen so much of this, I don’t know why I’m acting this way.”

  “Because she’s your sister, Rafe,” Drew said simply. “When it’s someone you love, everything is different.”

  Benjamin Simone stood there, acting as if were expecting absolution. No one gave him any. Rafe raked his hand through his hair. “We need to clear this place out, then I think it’d be best if you left.”

  “Wait.” Tyler held up his hand, addressing Simone. “Do you have any plans to help Aliyah? Some covert rescue operation that we don’t know about?”

  The Director of Mossad shook his head. “No, this is a move to protect the state of Israel.”

  Glancing at Rafe, he jerked his thumb in the air. “Get the son-of-a-bitch out of my sight.”

  Rafe escorted the Director away and soon the sound of vehicles leaving the compound were heard. When the helicopter lifted off, spiriting Aliyah’s uncle away, everyone let out a breath they hadn’t realized they’d been holding. When Rafe rejoined them, he looked haggard.

  Drew felt helpless. He’d been involved in some crazy situations in his life, but nothing like this. “Tyler, why don’t we…”

  Jerking around, he saw Tyler beating his fists against the wall, bellowing with rage.

  “Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!”

  “Ty, come on, brother. Hurting yourself isn’t going to do any good.” Ky tried to take Ty’s arm, but he threw him off and stalked into the house, heading for the kitchen.

  When they filed in behind him, he glared at them all with a wild look in his eye. “Don’t tell me what to do! I’m going crazy!” He looked from Drew to Ky to the Cruz brothers. “I need to know what we’re going to do about Aliyah!” When they remained mute, he exploded. “Come on, you don’t really think I can leave here and pick up with my life like she never existed, do you?”

  “No, of course not,” Ky assured him.

  Drew wanted to say something, but he was at a total loss for words.

  Ty stared out the window in the direction the helicopter carrying her away had taken. “I don’t know how, but I’m going after her. There’s no way in hell that I can sit idly by while she’s tortured and killed.” His voice rose with every word.

  No one said anything for long moments. Finally, Jagger spoke up, “Tyler, I don’t know what we can do. We have zero government support. She’s being taken to a foreign country, where she’ll be locked in a dungeon, and guarded by God knows how many men with automatic weapons.”

  “Exactly, so what are we going to do about it?” He whipped around and faced Alejandro, who’d just returned to the porch where they had all gathered to watch Aliyah go. “If Black Raptor is as badass as you say, this ought to be a walk in the park for you!”

  Rafe looked tortured himself. At first, he said nothing. Seeing Angelina so damaged and fragile had ripped a hole in his soul. “We could possibly overpower the guards, yes. The trick would be getting into Yasin’s compound. Black Raptor has the means, we have the firepower and the expertise. What we don’t have is a way into the palace. Without that, all our planning is fruitless. Storming Yasin’s stronghold would be an exercise in futility. Aliyah would be dead before we got through the door.”

  Tyler paced. “There has to be something we can do.” He glared at Jagger, Rebel, and Rafe! “Think! This is what you fuckin’ people do! Those infidels are going to beat her, whip her. God, they’re going to waterboard her, maybe even rape her.”

  “She won’t die easy, that’s for sure,” Jagger spoke tersely.

  Tyler took a glass from the counter and hurled it against the wall. Not one of the men seemed surprised at the impact. Ky rose and found the broom to clean up the mess. “I won’t ask you if that made you feel any better, because I know it didn’t.”

  …In the back, Cooper tried to help Angelina. “This is a nice room. You’ll be comfortable here until we can get you to the hospital.”

  Each time Cooper touched her, Angelina flinched away. “No, no hospital!” Angelina groaned, holding onto the wall as she made her way to the bathroom. Inside, she sank down next to the toilet and stuck her finger down her throat. How foolish, she thought as the dry heaves overtook her. She had nothing to throw up and even if she did, it wouldn’t purge the poison from her system.

  Cooper put a worried hand to her forehead. “I’m going to go get Drew, he’ll know what to do to help you.”

  “Wait!” Angelina called out, rising to her feet and staggering to the sink to run water into her hands. She splashed it onto her face. “Tell him I need an anaphylactic system flush, it’s the only thing that will help.”

  “Okay, I’ll tell him.” She started out the door.

  “No, wait, don’t leave me.” Angelina knelt and bent over, pressing her head to the floor. “I need to talk to my brother first.”

  “I’ll get him for you.” Cooper was frantic to do anything she could to help the poor girl. “Are you in pain?”

  “Agony,” Angelina whimpered. “No, don’t bring Rafe. I don’t know how I’ll react.” She didn’t know what to do. She couldn’t seem to think straight enough to make a decision.

  “Okay. I’ll get Drew.”

  “Just give me a minute, just a minute.” Angelina crawled to the bed and clawed at the covers.

  “Where do you hurt? Is there anything I can do?” Cooper wanted to take her in her arms, but she was afraid to touch Angelina. She was so afraid she’d do more harm than good.

  “I ache. I burn. I want…”

  “What do you want? Just tell me and it’s yours, I promise.”

  Back in the living room, a thick, sad silence surrounded the men until a scream ripped through the house.

  “Angelina!” Drew said, as he and Rafe ran to the back to see what was the matter.

  When they approached the room, Cooper stood in the hall. There were tears streaming down her cheek. Rafe was about to push past her when she stopped him. “She doesn’t want to see you yet, Rafe.”

  “Why? I’m her family,” Rafe protested.

  “She seems embarrassed, Rafe. She’s asking for Drew.”

  “Help her, doctor, please.” The man called Black Raptor looked imploringly at Drew.

  “I’ll do my very best,
Rafe. I probably don’t have the right supplies here, but we can get them. If need be, we’ll transport her to the clinic.”

  “She doesn’t want to go to the hospital, she says she needs something called a system flush,” Cooper explained, looking worried.

  Rafe frowned. “She’s allergic to bees and wasps. She hasn’t been stung has she?”

  “I’ll find out what’s wrong,” Drew promised and let himself into the bedroom where Angelina waited.

  As soon as Cooper left the room, Angelina turned out the lights. Darkness seemed to be a balm for her fried nerves. The only illumination was the rays of the dying sun as they shone through the window. Sitting on the bed, she leaned against the headboard, her knees pulled up under her. When the door opened, she was shocked to see the blond giant of a cowboy coming toward her. He’d been the first one Angelina made eye contact with the moment she stepped off the helicopter. “Who are you?”

  “I’m Dr. Drew Haley, Angelina, I’m here to help you.”

  Her heart began to hammer in her chest. “You’re the doctor?” she said with an almost panicky note to her voice.

  “Yes.” He flipped on the light so he could see her better. When he did, he could see that her eyes were full of fear. “Don’t be afraid. I can help you. Will you let me examine you?”

  “I’m fine. I’m a doctor too. Nothing is infected.” The man was beautiful and his face held such compassion that she wanted to scream. “Did you know mankind is overdue for a pandemic? A fast-moving airborne pathogen could wipe out thirty million in a year. That’s the kind of thing they wanted me to do.”

  “That’s right, you’re a doctor, a smarter one than me, I bet.” He brought his bag to the side of the bed and knelt next to her. “Can you tell me what they did to you?”

  “They hurt me,” she grated out the words in a harsh whisper. “Did you know redheads are more sensitive to pain? A gene variation makes them process painkillers and anesthesia differently. For a while there, I wished I had red hair.”

  “Oh, sweetheart. I’m sorry. Just let me see.” He laid a gentle hand on her arm. “You’re trembling.”

  Angelina didn’t know if she could endure his touch…not without asking for… “God, why did you have to be the doctor?”

  Drew was taken aback. “I’m sorry, sweet girl. Do I scare you?” He traced a tiny blue vein on the inside of her arm. “I’m just big, I won’t hurt you, you can trust me. All the little kids in town do. I’m just a country doctor, nothing fancy.” He spoke to her as he would one of his frightened horses. “I just want to make you feel better.”

  Angelina bit her lip, quaking with burning desire. The man in front of her just made it worse. Turning her head, she stared at the wall, looking anywhere but at the kind stranger. “Did Cooper tell you I needed saline?”

  “She did. I don’t have any here, but I haven’t seen any bees or wasps. If you’re stung, I have an EpiPen in my bag. We’ll get you fixed up as soon as I get you to the hospital.”

  “Oh, God! No! I don’t want anyone else to see me like this! I don’t want you to see me like this!”

  Her groans tore at his soul. Drew took his stethoscope and listened to her chest, her heart was racing way too fast. “You’ve got to let me see what’s causing you pain so I’ll know what to do for you. Can I remove your blouse?”

  Angelina squeezed her eyes together. “I guess so, but that’s not the problem.” She stiffened when he unfastened the bottom three buttons on the shirt she wore.

  When Drew saw the raw burns, he cursed. “That monster electrocuted you?” Immediately, he set out to make her feel better, cleaning and applying healing ointment. As he coaxed the shirt from her body, he found his own hands shaking. What he found, infuriated him. Her back was covered with red welts and cuts made with a whip. “I’m so, so sorry,” he whispered. “We’ll have to wrap your ribs too. I think a couple may be cracked.” As Drew worked, he tried to tamp down his response to her. This woman had been through so much, yet he’d have to be made of stone not to see how exquisitely she was made. “You’re going to be okay, I’ll make certain of it. No one’s going to hurt you anymore.”

  Angelina kept her eyes closed, every muscle was so tense that she felt they might break. The kind doctor had no idea his touch caused her far more agony than the wounds on her body. She kept herself covered as much as possible, holding her hands over her breasts. Knowing nothing was hidden from him caused her untold discomfort. When he slid her pants down her legs, she curled sideways into a fetal position while he doctored the few whip marks on her lower back and legs.

  “If I ever get the chance to get my hands on the man who did this to you, he won’t be able to ever do anything like this to anyone else.”

  His promise was sweet, but her need was so great she couldn’t contain the shudders that shook her whole body. “Please, help me.” Angelina quaked with desire. Tears flowed freely down her face.

  “I’m going to give you a sedative, just a light dose. I don’t like to prescribe this stuff, so it’s only one.” He walked to the sink to get some water. “Here, sit up.”

  Angelina obeyed as the gentle giant of a man brought a glass of water to her lips.

  “Why are you shaking, Spanish Eyes?” He knew she was in pain, but the wounds weren’t severe enough to warrant this reaction. “What else did they do to you?”

  “I need…” Her voice broke. Angelina was beyond humiliation. A hunger for relief was tearing at her very soul.

  “What do you need, beautiful?”

  “Don’t call me beautiful, I’m not.”

  “I beg to differ. Please, tell me what you need. If it’s in my power, I’ll give it to you.

  His voice was so tender, she surrendered.

  “Sex.”

  The one whispered word shocked Drew Haley to his very core, Angelina could see it on his face.

  “What did you say?”

  Angelina thought she would lose her mind. She was torn between unbearable arousal and shame so sharp and painful she didn’t think she would survive it. “Will you please have sex with me?”

  Drew knew something was wrong. There was no way this beautiful young woman could be anything other than perfect. “No, baby. I won’t have sex with you.”

  A flush of mortification washed over her features. “I’m so sorry I asked,” she whispered. “They drugged me many times, the last time just before my arrival here. I apologize, my words and feelings are not my own.”

  “What did they give you?” He was horrified for her.

  She pulled away from him. “I don’t know. Two different drugs, the one they gave me today is different than before. Stronger.” Her face crumpled. “It’s hurts so bad. I just ache. I want to claw my insides, I need to be…” She bit back a harsher word. “Taken.”

  “I need to get you to the clinic for tests.” Drew felt desperate to help her.

  Angelina shook her head emphatically. “Please, just turn out the lights and leave me alone. You can’t help me.”

  You won’t help me.

  She didn’t say the words, but Drew heard them just the same. “Hell, no. I’m going to stay right here and take your vitals. If you become any worse, I’m throwing you over my shoulder and taking you to the clinic whether you want to go or not.” Drew was fighting feelings he’d never experienced before. Usually, a patient was a patient. None had ever turned him inside out like this one. God, he was tempted to give her what she asked for. Reaching for her, he crooned, “Come here. Let me hold you.”

  “No!” She bolted to the other side of the room and crouched down into the smallest knot she could draw herself down into. “It will wear off. Please, just turn out the lights and leave me.” Anguish colored her every word. “I’m more embarrassed than I can say.”

  “I did not want to take advantage,” Drew spoke softly. “I’m a doctor.” His explanation sounded weak to his own ears.

  “I understand. I’m refusing treatment.” When he hesitated again, she begge
d, “Please, just go.”

  “I’m going to talk to your brother. He wants to see you.”

  Angelina said no more.

  She was so small and her body shook so hard.

  Leaving her was the hardest thing he’d ever done.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  Drew left the room, but Rafe was nowhere in sight. He spoke to Tyler, answering a few questions about Angelina. Tyler’s concern for her, considering Aliyah’s predicament, spoke to the Ranger’s character.

  “What’s wrong with her? Is she going to be okay?”

  “Her injuries sustained during torture, while painful, aren’t a major threat to her health.” He led Tyler down the hall to a point where Angelina wouldn’t be able to hear them speaking. “They drugged her.”

  “Shit. Heroin? LSD?”

  Drew shrugged. “I can’t be sure what they gave her until I run some tests, but I think it could be something like flibanserin, a massive dose.”

  “Good God,” he muttered. “Bastards.”

  Drew didn’t have to be told that he was thinking of Aliyah.

  “What does that drug do?”

  Bowing his head and shaking it from side to side, Drew hated to say, dreaded adding to Tyler’s sorrow about Aliyah. “Flibanserin activates receptors in the prefrontal cortex, which increase dopamine and norepinephrine levels. Simply put, it has excitatory effects.”

  “Would you speak Texan, or at least English?” Tyler said dryly.

  “In the drug’s normal form, it increases a person’s need for sex. Dr. Montoya appears to have been given something more, something that’s playing havoc with her nervous system.”

  “Fuck! How can you be certain?”

  “She asked me for my…help.” Drew lowered his voice to a near whisper. “She asked for sex. I turned her down. She’s so vulnerable. I’m afraid I added to her discomfort. Now, she doesn’t want my help at all. I did give her a sedative and I’m going back in there in just a few minutes, whether she wants me to or not.”

  “You’ve never been one to give up.” Tyler gave him a small smile. “Hard-head.”