Chapter 3
CHAPTER THREE
Pen hated being weak. Since being taken captive, she’d been beaten and starved.
She had little strength to fight back, and when she had fought, they’d beaten her so severely she prayed for death.
But death had never delivered her from the pain, so she was here, staring at some guy who seemed to be US military.
What branch was a mystery to her. They had no insignia, nothing telling her who they were.
She was going home, big whoop-de-doo. It was just another chance for her father to harm her. Trying to stand was too much. It was embarrassing, humiliating, but no more than what she’d suffered in captivity.
The guy reached for her. “I’ll help you.”
She glanced up, holding his gaze. What was his name? Foster. What an odd name.
This man wasn’t like the people she’d dealt with since being taken. He seemed nice. Her facade of indifference slipped for just a second as gratitude spilled out.
“Thank you for helping me. I can’t walk on my own.”
“No problem.”
His acceptance of her thanks made her stomach churn.
Before being taken, she hadn’t accepted help easily.
Her mom hadn’t laid a hand on her, but she’d been forced to be independent.
When she turned five, she had to learn to wash her clothes and cook her own meals.
She had a burn scar on her arm from her first foray into cooking.
It had faded, but she knew what the mark was from.
“I fucking hate being weak.” The words slipped out before she could stop them.
“Give yourself a break. You’ve had some bad stuff happen.”
A bark of harsh laughter escaped her lips.
“Bad stuff. That’s an understatement. Sure.
Let’s go.” It wasn’t that she didn’t appreciate his help, but she’d learned long ago she only had herself to depend on.
Also, going home scared the crap out of her.
Her father was still out there, and whatever waited for her at home might end up being worse than this.
There was no happy family waiting to help her get back on her feet. She would have to make her own life. What the hell was she supposed to do?
Foster picked her up as if she weighed nothing, and she guessed she had lost weight. They’d starved her enough to lose any padding she had on her bones. They wanted her weak so she couldn’t fight them.
Her mind wandered as he carried her out. Maybe she would return to college. That’s where she’d been when her father had sold her. She hadn’t dropped out before she’d left, because of course she hadn’t had time to stop by the bursar’s office as they were dragging her away in the middle of the night.
Had she failed the classes she’d been enrolled in? Was she reported missing? More likely, her father told people she’d taken off to do something selfish like spend a year on the beach finding herself.
The bastard hadn’t cared what happened to her before all of this. She’d been sold into a hellish existence, and he’d probably been living it up on the money he’d made from selling her.
The sound of the helicopter grew louder, and she had to choke back a sob. They were last in the line of people to board, and for a moment she wondered if they would tell her there wasn’t room for her.
Her throat seemed to close with emotion as they moved closer to the helicopter. “Are we really leaving?”
“Yes,” Foster said as the helicopter landed.
She wanted to cry, but she fought the tears. Her cage had been the smallest. Everyone else had been able to stretch out in their prison so they could walk to the helicopter. She was jealous of their ability to move on their own.
Again, the fear of being left behind hit, and she had to push it away. Foster handed her off to another guy, who moved her to a seat and made her strap in. She didn’t like being touched by strangers, but to escape this hellhole she had to put up with the strangers helping her.
Her head swam and her eyes blurred as everyone was loaded on and strapped in. Why did she feel so much worse than she had earlier? The rescue was here, and she felt like water was lapping over her head so she couldn’t make it back to the edge of the pool.
Was any of this real, or was it a dream?
She pinched her arm. When she glanced up, she met Foster’s gaze.
His lips quirked up on one side. Even with the pinch, and Foster smiling, she still couldn’t tell if this was real or if her body had given out and she was still trapped in that cage, lost in a dream.
The helicopter lifted off, and she flinched. Maybe it was real. She noticed Foster and his buddies hadn’t moved when the helicopter rose suddenly. Maybe they were just used to it.
Some of the other people who’d been trapped with her were crying. Others looked like they were husks tossed away after consuming what was inside. None of them were sleeping.
Outside the helicopter, stars splashed across the sky like a net of Christmas lights tossed on bushes. It had been forever since she’d seen the sky or holiday lights.
After a moment she glanced down, seeing lights on the ground indicating areas of population. There weren’t many lights out there, but she could see a few places with multiple lights. Though exhausted, she didn’t close her eyes. It had been too long since she’d tasted freedom.
She glanced at Foster again, and he nodded. She didn’t know what his nod meant, but she took it as something good.
Her throat tightened as emotions slid through her.
Before being taken, she’d learned to hide her emotions from her mother first, then her father once she got to know him better.
If either of them knew she was upset or sad, they’d use it against her.
Heck, they even used her being happy as a manipulation tactic, so she’d kept everything stuffed down.
But being rescued made it hard to stuff those feelings down.
She was free. But for how long? Would her father do this again? Or was she really free to live her life as she saw fit?
The helicopter landed at a base in Turkey. They were dropping off most of the people they’d rescued so they could find their way back to their home countries. Someone in Turkey would take care of them, help them find their families and return home.
Pen was a US citizen and would head out to the ship with them before being transported to a nearby embassy. Before then, she would have to figure out where she wanted to go. It sounded like she had a lot to think about.
They were on the ground, unloading the people they’d rescued. Emotions were running high as the captives connected with people from their home countries. Pen slid closer to the opening where he stood.
“What will happen to them?”
Foster shrugged. “Life will happen. Hopefully, they have a place to go back to.”
“What if they don’t?”
He let out a sigh. “They’ll find some place. Being free is better than being held by some madman.”
She nodded. “Yeah, the guy before this one, he was a real jerk. This guy was just pathetic. The place I was at before was terrible.”
“Where were you before this guy?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know the exact location, but he was a bastard. His name was Ashen Kaya. He was some rich guy who had a god complex. Evil through and through.”
The name sent a shiver down his spine. Ashen Kaya was a wealthy man who loved causing havoc.
He’d funded the attack on the Vinson, one of the US Navy’s premier ships.
They’d lost fifteen sailors in that attack, and another thirty had been injured and were medically retired.
Forty-five other men and women had been placed on light duty after that attack.
He hadn’t been on the ship, but Trip’s team had. It had been a horrific day for all involved. He’d wanted to get Kaya for years, but they didn’t have any good intelligence on him.
“Did you say Ashen Kaya?”
She nodded. “Yeah, he was a true bastard. He’s the one who sent me here, well back there as a punishment.”
He met her gaze, knowing there was no way she couldn’t understand the seriousness of the situation. “I think your plans have changed.”
Her eyes narrowed as she stared at him. “What do you mean?”
“Let me talk to the guys, but I think you’re coming to California with us.”
Her eyebrows rose, but she said nothing. It was good that she wasn’t arguing about where she would end up. Most people they rescued want to head home to family, but after what her father did, he bet she never wanted to see the man again.
She knew Kaya, which meant they needed information from her. She might be with them for a day or for weeks, based on how much she knew. Now, they just had to get the information out of her.