Chapter 25 - Sayid
We had driven over an hour away to meet Ivan, and when we arrived at the club, he wasn’t in the lounge. So I sit waiting for him, my fingers drumming against the crystal glass in my hand, the amber liquid inside untouched. The meeting had been set for ten minutes ago, and Ivan Pavlova was never late.
I had waited enough, something felt off. I lift my chin toward my security team stationed across the room. Youssef, head of my security, nods and steps away to make the call. A moment later, he returns, his expression is unreadable but firm as he approaches.
“Ivan’s men have no knowledge of any meeting,” Youssef says his voice low, professional. “He’s currently out of the country.” A cold sensation settles in my chest, my grip tightening around the glass. Then my phone vibrates. Ivan.
I answer immediately. “There is no business deal, Sayid” Ivan says, his usual calm, calculated tone gone. “At least, not one that involves you. I’m overseas, and my immediate team has confirmed no such meeting was arranged by them.”
There is a pause, then he continues, “It had to be someone else within our organization. And since our last talk, Tyson has been... unreachable.”
My muscles constrict throughout my entire body. “Unreachable?”
“Disappeared. No contact. No trace.” Another pause. “Congratulations on your engagement, by the way.” Then the call disconnects.
I rise to my feet, already striding for the exit, my men falling into step behind me. The moment I slide into the backseat of my car, my phone vibrates again. A message from Ivan:
“Just confirmed another associate was asked to set up this meeting, by Tyson. They didn’t know his motives. Tyson is no longer under my employment or protection. Consider this your engagement gift. Dasvidaniya.”
A sharp curse leaves my lips as I clench the phone in my hand. Tyson. I force my voice steady. “Drive!" I order with practically lethal conviction, slamming my fist onto the seat next to me. With no hesitation or question, we accelerate faster onto the main road.
I should have never left her alone. My jaw locks as I stare out at the darkened window, highway traffic is blurring as we drive. I can’t help but go over every worst case scenario in my head. I can’t lose her. We are still at least 30 minutes away when my phone vibrates again.
A picture message from an unknown number. I open it. Then my world stops right in front of my eyes. It is worse than I ever imagined. He didn’t just kidnap her, taking her away from me. He was playing with her, hurting her even deeper.
I force myself to look deeper, studying the image for any clues to where he had her. Tyson straddling her small body, Tyson’s hand on her stomach. I slam my fist down again on the seat next to me. Not there . My grip tightens around the phone until my knuckles burn. I text back before I can stop myself: “I am going to fucking end you. Walk away now, and maybe I’ll allow you to live.”
Then another: “If any harm comes to her, expect the same to be inflicted unto you.” My pulse thunders in my ears as I dial, but the call rings out. No answer. The coward wants to taunt me, but not face me.
"Trace the photo," I ordered, handing my phone to Youssef. Within minutes he has the location.
“He is in your Boston hotel, Sayid.” He responds, handing me back my phone. He is in my hotel. Youssef displays the hotel security footage onto the car’s dash screen. My stomach twists at the sight. Tyson, carrying Nora through the hall. Her body limp in his arms, a towel slipping from her shoulders. He may look different, but it was definitely him.
“Find his room. Track everything from the time he arrived.” He sent details to his team, already tracking the metadata of the image, isolating the hotel’s guest logs. Within minutes, they have everything I need. Rome found her robe with her phone left behind in the women’s locker room.
My phone vibrates again, another picture message. I unwillingly look at it. It’s a ring of teeth marks on her shoulder. The bastard bit her. So hard, that she had bits of blood running down her shoulder. I am suddenly sick with the thought of how else he is hurting her. Rouhi. My soul is shattering.
I swallow down the violent rage clawing at my chest. I will not reply again—I need to act. We are blocks away now. “What room?”
“952. He shaved his head, and used false identification. Employees had no idea.”
The moment the car screeches to a stop at the back entrance, I jump out, sprinting towards the door, and into the hotel. I order my team to stay back and wait for my instructions. I will be entering the room alone. There will be no guns, no weapons. This is personal.
I don’t have time to wait for the elevator, I bound up the stairs, not caring for second that it is nine floors up. My strides are controlled, lethal, and by the time I reach the ninth floor, my pulse is a steady calculated rhythm of war.
Once I reach the door, moving like a shadow. I slide my master keycard through the lock, and there is no beep as I open the door. Inside, the room is dim, filled with a sickening sense of familiarity. I can hear Tyson’s voice whispering to Nora, and then the sound of his grating, almost maniacal laughter.
I turn the corner, and then I see her. Qamari. Helpless. Bound and gagged. Her swimsuit is torn off of her, no longer shielding her body. And a blindfold covers her eyes, stripping her of the chance to even see me coming to save her. My breath stills as I see her body shuttering.
Tyson has no idea I am here. He is at the foot of the bed, his back to me, his hands working to unbutton, and unzip his pants. Hopefully a sign that he has not violated her further. He then pulls his belt through the loops of his pants. Whipping it out, and raising it up like he is about to use it on Nora. Big mistake.
In a flash, I grab the belt from behind and wrap it around his throat, yanking back with all my strength. He chokes, his body convulsing as I tighten the leather, cutting off his air. He claws at the belt around his neck, fighting. He is taller than me, but he is nothing compared to me—my years of advanced military combat training.
As tempted as I am, I’m not going to kill him. Not yet. I show just enough restraint to only render him unconscious. Enough to make him feel a fraction of the helplessness he has forced onto her. His body sags against my grip. I release him, letting him crumple to the floor like the filth he is.
I turn to Nora. She is shaking, unable to see, unable to call out for me. I kneel beside her, my hands gentle as I reach for the blindfold. “Nora,” I breathe, the rage in my chest replaced by something deeper. She flinches at first, but the moment she recognizes my voice, she stills.
“It’s me, Habibti. You are safe.” I pull the blindfold, soaked with tears, off from around her head, my own hands are shaking more than I want to admit. I move to undo the rope around her hands. Red marks mar her wrists where the bindings held her too tight. Her lips tremble against the gag. I untie it with urgency, barely able to breathe until I see her mouth free, gasping for air.
"Nora," I whisper, my voice breaking. She flinches again at the sound of me. Her eyes, wild with panic, but the moment she holds my gaze, and comes back to the present, her face crumples. The sob she lets out absolutely wrecks me.
I gather her in my arms, lifting her against my chest. She clings to me like I am the only solid thing in her world. She is trembling so hard I can feel it deep in my bones. Her fingers dig into my shirt, sobs shaking her whole body.
"Habibti," I whisper, pressing my lips to her hair. "I’m here. You’re safe. I’ve got you." But she keeps sobbing, her body wrecked from fear and adrenaline. I carry her out of the room, leaving Tyson in a heap on the floor. I don’t care if he is dead or alive at this moment—all I care about is her.
She doesn’t stop crying. She can't. And the sound of it cuts into me like a blade. I had promised. I had sworn to her, over and over, that she would never feel this fear again. That she would never be helpless.
And yet, here she is. In my arms, completely shattered. "I’m sorry," I whisper into her hair, my voice thick with a grief I can't swallow. "I should have been here. I should have stopped this before it even began."
Her sobs don’t slow. She is only shaking harder. I can feel her slipping, her body falling into shock, her mind detaching from the horror of it. The sound of her cries dig straight into my heart. Rouhi.
As we get out into the hallway, her body stiffens and her breathing changes. "Nora?" Then, her body jerks in my arms. Then again. And then she starts convulsing. Pure terror slams into me as I grip her tighter.
Her body isn’t just trembling from fear anymore—this is something else. Far worse. Her muscles lock up, her head tilting back as a harsh, broken gasp leaves her lips. Her fingers twitch violently, her entire body seizes in my arms.
“Nora!” What the hell is happenin ? Realization hits me like a gunshot. Tyson drugged her. He must have forced something into her before I got there. And now it is coursing through her system, ripping her control away, just like he planned.
A new wave of rage ripples through me, but I can’t focus on it now. I turn to my guards as I pass them in the hall. "Take him," I ordered, my voice lethal. "Lock him up. I don’t give a damn where, but I want him breathing until I decide otherwise."
They nod and head towards the room as I sprint down the hall to the elevator. Nora’s convulsing slows, but it doesn’t stop the entire way down. “Stay with me, Habibti," I beg, but she is slipping, her eyelids fluttering, her body losing its fight. I kiss her forehead, and pray to Allah that I did not get to her too late.
The moment I walk out the doors, the car is still waiting. “Front seat,” I instruct. He opens the door, and I carefully place her in. I buckle her in, my own hands shaking, then I close the door. “Keys.” He obeys without question, and I slide into the driver's seat.
The second I am behind the wheel, I floor it. The tires screech, the car fishtailing as I tear out onto the street. I weave in and out of traffic, my vision tunneling. The city blurs past me. I don't care about traffic laws, about who I am cutting off, about anything except getting to the hospital.
She convulses again. A soft whimper, that sounds like my name, leaves her lips, before her body slackens even more. No. No, no, no. "Just hold on," I rasp. "Stay with me, Qamari. I finally have you. I can’t lose you like this. Allah please don’t take her from me.”
I can hear my pulse pounding in my ears. I have never been more afraid in my life. I finally see the hospital come into view. I swerve into the emergency entrance, barely stopping before I jump out, run around and fling her door open and rip her from the seat.
"Help!" I roar as I carry her inside. "She’s been drugged!" Doctors and nurses rush toward us, taking her from my arms. The moment she is gone, I feel cold, empty. She disappears behind the ER doors, and I can do nothing but stand there, frozen, useless.
I can’t help collapsing into the nearest chair in the waiting room. My team has already texted me that they are at the hospital and are taking the car. Minutes pass. Then hours. I don’t move from that chair in the waiting room. Every time I close my eyes, I see her face, her body convulsing in my arms, her life slipping away. Rouhi.
Then—"Mr. Hassan?" I am on my feet in an instant. The doctor nods positively. "She’s stable. We were able to pump her stomach in time. She’s going to need to stay here awhile, but she’s going to be okay." Relief hit me so hard my knees nearly gave out.
“Can I see her?”
“She’s going to be sleeping for awhile, we gave her some meds to help stop the convulsing. But yes, you can stay with her in her room now." I follow the doctor down the hall. When I step inside her room, my chest is cracked wide open.
She is pale, so small and fragile against the hospital sheets, but she is breathing. I grab the chair from across the room, and set it down right next to her bed. I carefully take her hand in mine, and press a gentle kiss to each of her fingers.
I keep her hand in mine and don’t leave her side. I carefully watch all of her monitors, shifting with every beep. I was almost starting to let my guard down enough to relax, when the door opened. The doctor from earlier is followed by none other than Dr. Kasey.
Our eyes meet briefly, his expression unreadable. He says nothing to me as the other doctor briefs him on Nora’s situation. He assures me that the nurses are available with the press of the button, and they will alert Dr. Kasey if there is any change to Nora’s condition overnight.
I don’t realize what time it is at this point. It seemed like just a few hours ago, I left our perfect lazy morning behind, and headed into a total nightmare. I didn’t have the energy to even think about Dr. Kasey after what had happened today.
My team sent texts offering to relieve me, take guard so I can go back and sleep in my own bed. But that simply isn't an option I was even going to entertain. I am not leaving her, not now, and hopefully not ever again.
I keep my eyes open as long as I can, but eventually exhaustion hits me. I rest my head on the bed next to her, and fall asleep. I drift in and out of sleep throughout the night, only stirring when the nurses come in to check Nora’s vitals or refill her IV bags.
I got a bit more sleep before the sound of the door unlatching woke me again. This time, it is Dr. Kasey that is entering the room with one of the nurses. I hear the nurse whisper, “her fiancé has been by her side all night long.”
I sit up, and let the early morning light hit my eyes. Nora is still asleep, but her face already looks better, more rested. I run my hand through my hair, trying to tame my disheveled appearance before speaking.
“Was there any change during the night?”
With a warm smile the nurse assures me, “she has only improved. She’s a fighter, that’s for sure. I bet she’ll be waking up soon, we have been weaning her off the meds.” I rub my thumbs over the back of her hand before kissing her. My Qamari is so brave, and so strong.
Dr. Kasey looks over some of the displays on the screen, and checks her heart output. “She has shown great improvement overnight, and she is stable. I would like to keep her here for at least one more night, assuming that when she wakes up she continues to improve.”
I look up at Dr. Kasey, my gaze is sleepy, much less sharp than last time, but I am still assessing his every move. He doesn’t challenge. Instead he nods. “I can see that she is in good hands. Let someone know if you need anything.” And for the first time, I do not feel any sort of threat from the man.
Once they leave, I turn my attention back to Nora. I kiss every knuckle on the back of her hand, whispering to her how much I love her, and need her. I look at her beautiful freckled face, glistening in the morning light. Then, her eyes start to flutter.
Her eyes open and immediately land on mine. Her lips part. "Sayid…" I stand, my hands cup her face, and I press my forehead against hers.
"I’m here," I whisper. "You’re safe." A shaky breath leaves her lips. We stay like this for a long time, until I finally pull back, and brush a strand of hair from her damp forehead before kissing her there.
“You saved me—again.” Her words strike deep into my heart.
“I should have never left you, Qamari.” I held her hands up to my lips, kissing her fingers. “I should have known that this was his plan all along. I am so sorry.”
“Sayid, you do not need to be sorry. You are the most thoughtful, and protective man I know. But you couldn’t have anticipated this. Tyson…he was different. Even for him, and his twisted self, this was more than just that.” She took a deep breath in, steadying herself before she continued.
“He wanted more than just to take me again. He was going to kill me if it meant it would destroy you more than just stealing me away from you.”
My heart nearly drops out of my chest, then anger rockets through my body. I see red, and all I want to see is Tyson's blood spilled for even thinking about ending Nora’s precious life. I cool down enough so I do not frighten her when I speak again.
"I will kill him," I vow, my lips at her temple. "If that will make you feel safe in this world, Habibti, just tell me. I will end him right now." After a long pause, she finally moves. A slow shake of her head against my chest. I pull back just enough to look at her.
Her lips part, barely able to form words, and when she does, her voice is hoarse, fractured—but steady. "I don’t want him dead," she whispers. "I want him to suffer."
I stare at her, at the fire flickering through the wreckage of her pain. "Lock him away," she continues, her breath uneven. "Take everything from him. His freedom. His control. His comforts. Everything he’s ever used to feel powerful—I want it gone. I want him to rot."
I inhale deeply, pressing my forehead again to hers. "It will be done," I swear. As she rests, fragile in my arms, my mind is already working out a plan. The first thing would be to alert the authorities, so that they could bring Tyson in and detain him.
I leave Nora when the nurse brings her breakfast tray in. I step out into the hall, and walk down a few yards to an area with no one else around. I keep Nora’s door in my line of sight at all times. First, I send a text to my team letting them know that they can report the attack. I have connections at the Boston police department that will respond quickly. I expect them to show up here to question Nora and myself by the end of the day.
Next, I dial Ivan. "He more than crossed the line. Attempted to kill my Bride. I incapacitated him, and his attack is being reported as we speak. I need him erased.”
Ivan is silent for a moment, then he chuckles lightly. "Sayid Hassan, you don’t ask for small favors, do you?"
"I want him locked away," I respond, my voice leaving no room for debate. "I don’t care what it takes. Drugs. Trafficking. Fraud. Every crime he’s ever touched—I want it on paper. I don’t think this attack alone will be enough to keep him buried in the system. But, I want to make sure that his crimes are not connected to you.”
Ivan lets out a low hum. "I can assist with this. Consider it done, my friend." I hang up and look down the hall towards Nora’s room, to the woman who has survived hell and is still here. Still mine. No one will ever harm her again.