You Only Love Twice (Masters and Mercenaries #8)(110)

This was what the f*cker did. He loved to put scenarios out there. He could talk all day.

He could talk all day.

If the Caliph was talking, then time was passing, precious time Jesse needed.

“I don’t know. I think she was real. It felt real.” Phoebe was real. She was the realest thing in the world. He looked around, trying to take stock. He was weak now, but there might come a time when he could try to get out of here. “Is she here?”

He fought back the urge to dive deep. He had to stay in control. He had to figure out what had happened. Where was Phoebe? How had he gotten here?

A small room. There was a door, but he could see it was sturdy, likely reinforced. He glanced around. One window, but it was barred. There was nothing in the room at all except a cot, a bucket, and shackles attached to the far wall. He could only imagine what that was for.

Hani al Fareed looked down at him. Yes, it was the younger of the two brothers. Now that Jesse was close, he could match the man to his file. He focused on the man, really seeing him for the first time he could remember. The Caliph was in his forties, with a handsome face and cold eyes. He’d taken off his white robe and was dressed more casually in loose white cotton pants and a tunic. “Would you be frightened if she was here?”

Sometimes honesty was best with the Caliph. He tended to see through the lies, and there was punishment until he got the answer he wanted. Jesse nodded. “Yes.”

There was no way to hide the fact that he loved Phoebe. The last thing he remembered he’d been in bed with her, so they’d either killed her or left her behind.

If Phoebe was dead, he would let that beast out. It wouldn’t matter anymore. Nothing would matter if Phoebe was gone because she was the one. Kai had said something about his love saving him, but it was his love for Phoebe and only Phoebe. If she was gone, he wasn’t sure what would happen, but it would be nasty and bloody and wouldn’t end well.

“You like the female? Perhaps that’s a good place to start. You know I have no formal training in psychology, but it’s been an obsession of mine since childhood. I would watch my father train dogs. People are like dogs, though they often require more pain to learn a lesson. You know if you properly train a dog, you can give them as much pain as they can take and they will still defend you.”

“Like Ace.”

“Yes, much like your brother.” The Caliph stared at him for a moment. “You’re an interesting subject. I wasn’t able to modify your behavior before. I believe I simply didn’t have enough time, though some of my colleagues claim you’re simply too stupid to change. Maybe I didn’t have the proper motivation. If I bring out your female sexual partner, would that change? Would you do my bidding if it meant she was safe from pain? From rape? Rape is always a good way to control a female, but oftentimes it can only be used once to control a male partner. At least in my world, that’s true. Women lose their value when they’re tarnished. How many times could I f*ck her before you would see her as a whore?”

That was an easy answer. “I don’t know a number big enough.”

He chuckled. “I don’t understand Western men. You don’t see the true and only value of a woman. You marry non-virgins and then expect them to be faithful. You’re all fools. And no, I do not have her. She was not in bed with you when we took you, so she escaped, though now I think that was a mistake on my part. Do you think she was cheating on you? It’s what women of your culture do.”

Jesse didn’t give a flying f*ck what that * thought about his culture. He valued Phoebe for more than her sex, more than his singular possession of her body. He loved her soul and the Caliph couldn’t touch that, so no matter what happened to her, he would still love her, still want her.

And she would want him.

The truth settled over him. The Caliph could do his worst. He could beat him, batter him, get him hooked on drugs again, but as long as he held on to his soul, Phoebe would love him. Phoebe would stay with him. She would be there when he came out of this.

The deep need to regress, to give over to the darkness, faded. It always seemed to be there, something he had to fight back, but now that place was filled with something else. Her. He didn’t need the darkness if he had her.

She was alive. The Caliph rarely lied. His truths tended to be the things of nightmares, and he’d once told Jesse that the master didn’t bother to lie to his dog. Phoebe was alive and that meant Ten would protect her.

And Simon would look for him. His partner would do everything in his power to find him. That Brit wouldn’t stop. The only question was could he keep Phoebe from getting in trouble because Jesse doubted she would stop either.

“No. She wasn’t cheating on me.” She’d likely gotten up to talk to her brother, to explain why she wasn’t going back to DC.

He needed to give them time. He wasn’t sure how much time had passed, but they were likely still in the UAE. Simon would have his best shot if he could find Jesse before they took him to Saudi or some other country. Jesse had to find a way to give his partner that time.

The Caliph liked to talk. The Caliph didn’t bother to lie. Why not buy a little time with some conversation? He had a few questions for the man.

“Why bother with me? Why come and get me at all? Was it about concealing your identity? You know I can talk all I like. No one will believe me.” He had a unique opportunity for information gathering.