The Sheikh’s Tempted Prisoner by Holly Rayner Page 0,30
to take her away, and they pulled her roughly by the arms. Her toes barely touched the ground as they led her, scared and panicking, into the back of a cop car. They slammed the door behind her before speeding away from the tiny desert village, presumably back toward the capital.
Lily realized, then, that Atnan had been right. She would have been safer with him, no matter what he had supposedly done. If she’d had any water left in her body, she would have cried the whole way there. As it was, all she could do was rest her forehead against the dirty glass window and watch the world pass her by.
Chapter Thirteen
As time passed, the stark desert landscape gave way to a smattering of plant life, before transforming again into the lush greenery that filled Al Yibri’s capital city. Lily watched with forlorn eyes at the streets she had once thought of as so magical, so alluring. From behind the caged bars of her automotive prison, they had a whole different sense to them.
The cop car pulled into the station, the driver turning off the engine and exiting. They had been silent the whole way there, for which Lily was grateful. She was hardly in any condition to have a conversation with anyone, much less her new captors. She could feel bruises blossoming on her arms from their rough touch, and she had a brief flashback to the gentle way Atnan had held her close.
She had been such an idiot.
Lily heard muted voices outside the car, and she waited, shaking and afraid, as footsteps approached the car and the officer’s face peered in at her.
“Come on, out with you.”
She scooted toward the edge, hoping that if she was obedient, they might not manhandle her like they had before. She was soon disappointed, as the officer grabbed her arm in the same place he had before, dragging her from the garage and into the station.
The police station was air conditioned, which was heaven on her burnt toes. Otherwise, there was nothing at all nice about it. The walls were a stark white color, the light from above blinking in and out due to a faulty bulb. She felt heavy stares on her from every direction, and she fought back a resounding shiver. Men were being booked in several corners, but even those officers stopped berating their captors to stare with open mouths at Lily.
She had to be quite the sight. Not only did she look different than anyone else in the building, but she was disheveled, barefooted, and covered in dried, salty sweat, her skin bright red from the hot sun. Ignoring all the glances, Lily kept her eyes steadfastly on the ground, trying her best to keep up with the officer’s brutal pace.
Finally, he stopped in front of a door, unlocked it, and tossed her inside.
“Interrogation room,” he said in accented English.
Lily fell to her knees and glared up at the man. Glaring appeared to be her only defense, and she wondered if it was the best one. Would they really treat her better if she acted the part of a sweet school teacher?
Somehow, she doubted it.
She was still on the ground when the door opened again and Kaveh stepped in. For a moment, there was a flash of concern in his eyes, but he quickly masked it, hardening his stare.
“I told you we could do this one of two ways. You shouldn’t choose the hard path with us, Miss Hawthorne. You will find it very difficult indeed.”
“Indeed. I’ve heard how you treat your prisoners. There is nothing I could do to be treated any better, and you know it.”
Kaveh placed a hand on his heart, mock wounded.
“You’re telling me that we have a less-than-stellar customer service report from the criminals we keep in line? I’m hurt.”
“Don’t patronize me,” she hissed.
He stared down at her for a moment as though considering something. Then, he reached down a hand for her to take.
“Come now, Miss Hawthorne, let us at least be civil with one another. I understand that you might be experiencing some level of Stockholm syndrome after a few days with my brother, but I can assure you that he is in no way the man he might have led you to believe he is.”
“Oh really?” she asked, her voice laced with sarcasm.
She stared at his hand, which was still held out for her to grab. Glancing at the table behind her, she pressed her palm into the ground