Page 32 of Forbidden Passion

“About Ciara,” Zayed replied, taking a sip of his coffee as he looked out the window. “About her childhood. And the abuse.”

For some reason, the fact that Zayed knew about the abuse before he did irritated Falk. He wanted to be her only confidant. Then he remembered how the bitch nanny had lied about Ciara’s parents ordering the whippings, and the idiot doctor who had brushed the evidence of her abuse aside as mere clumsiness. Ciara had needed someone to confide in. Obviously, she’d felt safe with Zayed. So instead of punching the man, he nodded and took a sip of his coffee. “Yeah. I know.”

The two men stood shoulder to shoulder as they watched the other members of the meeting chat.

Finally, Zayed turned to Falk. “So, what are you going to do to help her?”

Falk stared across the room at Ramit who was shaking his head, obviously responding to something his assistant said. Falk turned and faced his foe-friend. “I’m going to marry her,” he told Zayed. “And I’m going to figure out how to make her happier than she’s ever been in her entire life.”

Zayed’s eyes narrowed on Falk for a long moment. Finally, he nodded, his features softening. “Good. When are you going to start?”

“As soon as you break off your betrothal.”

Zayed chuckled. “That’s the answer I’ve been waiting for.” He punched his friend in the shoulder. “It took you long enough.”

Falk blinked, wondering what Zayed meant by that as he lifted his hand, signaling to Ramit. The man seemed to have been waiting for the signal because he immediately broke off his conversation and came over. He shoved his hands into his pockets, frowning at Falk. “Have you finally figured it out?”

“You knew too?” he demanded, his temper rising. “You knew she’d been beaten over and over and you didn’tdoanything about it?”

Ramit’s expression shifted to from smug to shocked in a heartbeat. “What the hell are you talking about?” he demanded.

Falk pulled back, his confusion taking over. “What are you talking about?”

Ramit sighed, rubbing a hand over his jaw. He glanced over at Zayed, whose gaze was sharp as he leaned back and forthon his heels, waiting for…something. “I’m going to step back and let the two of you figure this one out. It’s more amusing that way.”

Ramit rolled his eyes and glared at Falk. “I’m talking about the fact that you’ve been in love with my sister ever since you met her and you’ve been too stupid to do anything about it.”

Falk’s jaw dropped. When he looked over at Zayed, the man nodded. “We both knew. We’ve just been waiting for you and Ciara to figure it out.”

There was another long silence, then Ramit demanded, “What areyoutalking about?”

Falk felt Zayed take another step back. But his entire focus was on Ramit and his reaction to what he said next. “I was referring to the fact that Ciara was regularly whipped with a stick by her nanny and shoved into a dark closet for hours when she didn’t meet the bitch’s standards of conduct.”

Ramit froze, staring at Falk for a long time. Finally, he turned and glanced at Zayed, who merely nodded confirmation.

Falk was still livid. “You didn’t know?”

Ramit shook his head slowly, too stunned and horrified to speak.

“How could you not know?”

Ramit ran a hand over his face. “Seriously? She was abused?”

“Every damn day!” Falk snarled. He felt a touch of anxiety because Ciara hadn’t given him permission to tell her older brother. Hell, she’d barely been able to tell him! And now, he’d just revealed something that she’d been keeping a secret.

“But…she was protected!”

“Not by her nanny!” he snarled. “And apparently, the doctor dismissed the evidence as well.” Falk moved closer, poking a finger at Ramit’s chest. “She had no one to talk to.”

“I was away at school,” he muttered. Then shook his head. “No, that’s not fair. I came home for school breaks. I should have known. I should have gone to her and asked her how she was doing.” He ran a hand over his hair, shaking his head. “She was always so quiet, so still. I never really thought about why.”

“Now you know,” Falk replied, the tension in his chest beginning to ease now that he realized that Ciara’s big brother hadn’t known what had been happening to her.

“I know now,” he snarled. “And now, I’m in a position to ensure that the old hag never does this to anyone again!”

Ramit turned on his heel and hurried from the meeting.

Chapter 27