“That’s your mystery to solve,” Will surmised grimly. “Right now I’m here and I’m available to help.”
“There are other men, Will. Her other guards.”
“You’re not thinking clearly, Ki. You cannot be certain, not right this moment, anyway, that those men didn’t place the traitor with her. You don’t know who you can trust on her team.”
“No,” Kiral nodded, thinking of the men who had served his sister for years. Had they turned against her? Against him? His stomach churned at the very idea that any harm might befall Lilah. “Will, you must care for her while I investigate this matter. I will send Alain to discover the details of this situation. But until then … Will … whatever is necessary. You must protect her.”
“Fine.” Lilah’s eyes spun in his direction. She was pale beneath her tan, but to her credit she continued to pack. Will didn’t have the heart to tell her that she’d have no need for the couture dresses where they were going. He doubted she’d have anything more appropriate, in any event.
“Where will you take her? What will you do?”
“The less you know the better,” Will promised. “Right now you don’t know how far this thing goes. Lilah says you trust me.”
“You know I do,” Ki agreed, confident the sentiment was not unfounded. “I am alive because of your actions.”
Will heard footsteps in the hallway beyond the apartment. He brushed the compliment aside. “Good. I will contact you once more to let you know we’re out of the city, and then not again for a week. Do you think you can get to the bottom of this in that time?”
“A week? Give me two hours in a room with the bastard …”
Will understood the emotions behind the statement. He’d seen what these political terrorists were capable of and it had churned even his stomach. “I’ll let you know …”
“Will? You must … Lilah is …”
“She’ll be fine,” Will promised. “As long as she listens to me.”
“Put her on the phone,” Ki urged.
“Fine. But you’ll have to be quick.” Will handed the received over.
Jalilah’s eyes were enormous in her face. “Ki? What’s going on?”
Will zipped the bag up and hoisted it easily over his shoulder.
“It’s not the time to explain.”
“I beg your pardon, I have a strange American man telling me to pack a bag and you –.”
“Will can tell you. But for now, Lilah, just don’t argue with him. I trust this man with my life, and I want you to do the same. Can you do that for me, labimn?” The pet name from their childhood made her heart swell.
Pushing aside her doubts, she nodded. “Yes, Ki. For you, I will.” She handed the phone back to the journalist, her heart racing.
“We don’t have much time,” he said, disconnecting the call and slipping it into his pocket. “Where is this phone conversation you’re expecting going to happen?”
“There is an office through there,” she nodded.
“How many doors are there into this suite?”
“Only one,” she said, adrenalin flooding her system. “That’s something my security chief insists upon. What’s going on? Please tell me.”
He ignored the question. “How do you go out?”
“Through the door,” she supplied, exasperation nipping at her heels.
There were several guards stationed directly outside her apartment. There was no way she’d ever get past them. Not if there was a widespread plot to harm her. And with the insurgent working amongst her guards, Will had no way of knowing for sure how many others were sympathetic to his cause.
He shook his head and crossed to the edge of her bedroom. The windows were pure glass. There was a balcony off the lounge area though. That was promising. “How often are there security checks?”
“Every hour.”