by Lily Harlem
“It’s Salim,” Leo whispered. “I gave him a gun.”
“You did?” Sister Afua looked shocked.
“Yes. Malik said he was a good shot.”
“He is. But…”
“Get in,” Namrin yelled at the man who’d grabbed Burta. “Get the fuck in. And you…drive.” He leaped into the Jeep and the engine revved.
Another shot, this time apparently skimming near to Namrin’s head as he ducked and thumped his hand on the dash. “Go! Go!”
With all four men in the vehicle, the Jeep wheel-spinned and careened past Malik and Burta, splattering dust over them.
“Don’t fucking come back!” Malik raised his fist into the air. “Or we will shoot you—all of you.”
The Jeep skidded and veered over lumps in the earth. The engine roared and the headlights bobbed wildly. Within seconds, it was out of the perimeter of the village and all became quiet.
“Has he gone?” asked the old woman whose bed Leo had hidden under.
“Yes. He has,” Leo said.
“What did he take?” Another patient wanted to know.
“A goat and some medication. But I think that is the last we will see of him,” Sister Afua said.
The ward door burst open.
Malik stood there with Burta behind him. “Is everyone okay?” He aimed the question at Leo.
“Yes. We’re all fine.” Leo tried to sound professional. What he wanted to do was rush to Malik, wrap him in his arms and check him all over for injuries, make sure he really was okay and unharmed.
“Good. That is good.” Malik pulled Burta into a hug.
“Burta, are you injured?” Leo rushed to her.
“Just my…” She held out her arms. They were mottled and bruises were already forming where she’d been snatched and dragged.
Carefully, Leo felt along the bone, checking through her soft flesh to ensure that her slender limb was unbroken. It seemed fine.
“It will be sore for a few days,” he said, “but no major damage.”
She nodded.
“Salim.” Sister Afua rushed past Leo, Burta and Malik, grabbed Salim and pulled him into a tight embrace.
He grinned and wrapped his arms around her. In his right hand, he held Leo’s gun.
Chapter Twenty-Two
It took an hour to settle the patients on the ward. Leo helped distribute the tea Sister Afua made for them all as Malik walked Burta home. He said he’d be back once she was safely with their parents. Leo could hardly wait for him to return. Letting Malik out of his sight felt wrong. He needed to at least be with him, even if he couldn’t touch him.
He renewed a saline drip then assisted Salim with carrying the abandoned stew and bowls into the office. Just as the kettle came back to the boil, Malik appeared.
Sister Afua poured the tea and turned to Salim, who sat between Malik and Leo. “So are you going to tell me what you did, Salim?”
Salim grinned. “I got rid of Namrin. But I couldn’t have done it without Doctor Leo.”
“I didn’t do anything at all,” Leo said, taking a mug of tea.
“Ah, but you did. You brought the gun. We had one once but it got wet and had no bullets. You have a good gun.” He pointed to the filing cabinet Sister Afua had locked it in. “Very straight shooter.”
“I have no idea how to use it, though. You, on the other hand, are a nifty shot, Salim.”
“Yes. I learned many years ago, when I had to fight.”
“You had to fight?” Leo was surprised.
“Yes. For a while.” Salim sipped his tea and glanced away.
“He doesn’t like to talk about it,” Sister Afua said. “He was very young.”
“Too young.” Salim shook his head. “Too young to fight.”
“Well, you managed to convince Namrin that there were five snipers all firing at him,” Malik said with a nod. “Well done, my friend.”
“I just fired and then ran to another place, fired again.” Salim shrugged as though it had been nothing, but he couldn’t hide a twitch of a smile at the compliment from Malik.
“It was a great idea.” Leo was impressed. “He had no clue where the next one was coming from. It really freaked him out. He thought he was surrounded.”
“I was scared, though.” Salim shuddered.
“I think we all were.” Leo glanced at Malik, who held his gaze for a moment then stared down into his tea.
“I was scared he would see me,” Salim said, “and fire his gun, shoot me dead.”
“I’m surprised he didn’t fire at you.” Leo frowned. “Even out of panic. I thought he’d release a few bullets into the darkness. I think I would have.” He paused. “Has he ever fired that gun?”
“No,” Sister Afua said. “And thanks to the gods because we could not treat a gunshot wound here.”
“He hasn’t even fired into the air?” Leo asked.
“No. Never. He saves his ammunition.” Salim shrugged.
“If he has any,” Malik added with a huff.
“That is exactly what I was thinking.” Leo held up one hand. “His rifle is empty. He just uses it to wield power and instill fear. It’s his tool for pilfering and pillaging and not actually capable of doing any harm at all, unless he whacked someone around the head with it, of course.”
Malik tutted and banged his fist on his leg. “All these years he’s been driving in here and taking what he wanted, using that gun to terrorize us.” He raised his eyes to the ceiling. “And all the time the damn gun was empty.”
“Has he tried to take a woman before?” Leo asked.
“No.” Malik shook his head. “That was a worrying new development, but bullets or not, I still would have done everything in my power to save Burta. She is my sister. I would not have let Namrin take her.”
Leo pulled in a deep breath. That nausea was back. It was the memory of seeing Malik with the end of a gun pressed against his chest. It was sickening. Sickening and horrifying and he never wanted to witness anything like it again.
“I am glad he is gone,” Sister Afua said. “And I hope he will not come back. I hope he is scared of our guns and our men who can shoot and that he stays away, forever.”
“Yes. Let’s hope so,” Leo agreed. He drained the last of his tea and stood. “Are you happy with all the patients, Sister?”
“Yes. They are settled. You go and rest, Doctor Leo.”
“Okay. Goodnight, Salim, Malik.” Leo placed his cup in the sink.
“Goodnight, Doctor Leo.”
“I hope you don’t have nightmares,” Malik said.
“Me too.” Leo pushed his hand through his hair. “Me too.”
****
Leo went to his room, lit a candle on the dresser then stepped into the shower in the dark bathroom. He couldn’t imagine that he’d sleep much, despite being exhausted. The terrors of the evening events were likely to rattle around his brain for many hours.
He lathered up his hair and scrubbed the dust and dirt from his scalp. He’d encountered many things in his line of work. Moments where he’d been scared, had to think quickly and on his feet, times of life and death, and he was the only one to make a difference to the outcome. But seeing Malik, about to be shot, and not able to do a damn thing… That had been the worst of them all.
He rinsed his hair and wished the knot of fear would unravel from his stomach. But it was still tight, still pulling at his insides. The idea that Malik could have been killed was too awful to contemplate but he couldn’t stop thinking about it.
He stepped out of the shower and dried, then climbed into bed naked and tugged the mosquito net around the mattress. He lay on top of the covers, arms folded behind his head and stared at the flickering candlelight on the ceiling.
How different to this time last night, when he and Malik had been in their very own, very private, paradise. They’d been snuggled up, limbs tangled, hearts beating as one.
A sudden recollection came back to him. He sat up. Sister Afua. Wha
t had she said, in that awful moment? She had said something…?
“Malik is a brave man. A good man and a brilliant warrior. But he is also in love and love changes everything, and you, Doctor Leo, must stay in here, where he knows you are safe.”
Did Sister Afua think Malik was in love with him? Was that why she’d said what she had? Leo pressed his palm over his chest. Love. Yes, he was in love with Malik. He was sure of that, even more so now he’d nearly lost him. But was Malik in love with him? And how the hell would Sister Afua know?
He remembered her expression when he and Malik had bumped into each other earlier. She’d studied them with her usual keen intelligence and quizzed Leo afterwards. Had she questioned Malik too? Had Malik told her about their relationship?
There was a quiet knock on his door. At first Leo thought it was the wind which had picked up but then the sound came again.
“Who is it?” he called, pushing aside the net and reaching for his boxers.
“Me.”
He pulled in a breath and that knot in his belly relaxed a little. Malik.
Leo abandoned the underwear and opened the door, naked.
Malik stepped quickly inside. “You really shouldn’t answer like that, you know.”
“Only to you.” Leo pushed up the door which, finally, after a very long day, granted them some privacy.
He turned and reached for Malik just as Malik reached for him.
They held each other tight. Leo buried his face in Malik’s neck and gripped his shoulders as though he’d never let go. He never wanted to let go. Malik had become his everything.
“I was so scared,” he murmured against Malik’s warm skin.
“Me too.” Malik pressed a kiss to Leo’s damp hair. “If he had found you, you would have been the ultimate prize and been taken away. I do not think I would have ever seen you again.”
“And if he’d had bullets, I think he would have shot you.” Leo swallowed a lump of fear.
“But he did not and we are both okay.” Malik rubbed his hands down Leo’s bare back, right to his arse cheeks then up again to his shoulders. He cradled the crown of Leo’s skull and kissed him.
It was a long, delicate kiss that held affection and relief.
“Please, stay a while,” Leo said, when the kiss ended.
“Yes, but first can I shower?”
“Go ahead.”
“I have been calming Burta and my parents and reassuring neighbors. I’ve told them that I am going to patrol the village, so I have a few hours free.”
Leo stroked his hand down Malik’s cheek—it was a little rough with stubble. “Are you sure?”
“Yes.” He pressed his palm over Leo’s hand. “Do you have a razor? Mine is no longer any use. Too old.”
“Yes. Here.” Leo reached into a drawer and plucked out a new razor. He passed it to Malik. “Ke
p it.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes, it’s not advisable to share razors.”
Malik nodded. “I agree.”
He shifted his gaze to the bed. “So are you going to wait for me there?”
Leo’s cock had grown heavy and stiff during their long kiss. He gripped it and slid his thumb over the end. “Yes, Malik. I will be waiting. Take as long as you need.”
Leo lay on the bed, again staring at the shifting shadows on the ceiling. He could hear the water dribbling onto the bathroom floor and the scent of his own shower gel filtering toward him. He liked to think of Malik naked in the room next to him and he stroked his cock, teasing it a little and enjoying the anticipation of having Malik’s warm, shower-damp body next to his very soon.
Eventually, Malik appeared as naked as Leo and stood beside the candle. The warm glow caressed his body, highlighting his row of tight abdominal muscles. Leo studied him as he skimmed the towel over his long arms and legs, catching the last of the drips that made his skin shine. He came to the bed, flicked aside the net and crawled next to Leo.
Leo sighed as their bodies came together as one.
“What were you thinking about?” Malik asked.
“How much I want to be with you.”
Malik pushed Leo’s hair back from his face. “It tore me in two not being able to speak to you on the ward this afternoon.”
“I think you could have. I worry that it’s more obvious if you just ignore me. After all, the staff know we’re friends.”
“Yes. But I do not want to give them suspicions.”
Leo thought again of what Sister Afua had said to him. Should he tell Malik? Would it help? He decided against it. Sister Afua was not a gossip, nor did she concern herself with other people’s business unless it was their health. If it hadn’t been in the heat of the moment, Leo doubted she would have said anything anyway and when she had, it had been almost cryptic.
“Please say good morning to me,” Leo said, kissing along Malik’s cheek to his ear. “Every morning.”
“I will.”
Oh, how Leo wished he would. He wished he could find a way for them to be together for real and make his dreams come true.
Malik’s erection nudged against his, their shafts coming together in alignment.
“Mmm…” Malik said, closing his eyes. “You feel good and taste good and smell good.”
“So do you,” Leo whispered. “Will you turn over?”
Malik opened his eyes and stared at Leo.
Leo smiled gently and ran his hand over Malik’s waist to his arse cheeks. “Turn over, and let me show you how much I love you.”
Malik opened his mouth and shut it again.
“You’re not shocked, are you? That I love you.” Leo’s heart rate picked up but he managed to maintain a cool, relaxed smile.
“No. I mean, yes. I mean… I feel very lucky.”
“No, I am the lucky one.”
Malik suddenly grabbed Leo’s face in his hands and pressed a hard kiss to his lips. “I love you, too,” he said into Leo’s mouth. “I love you the way I never have anyone else.”
Leo pulled him closer. Their erections pressed together harder. Leo thought he would burst with happiness. Malik felt the same. Perhaps they could find a way to make it happen.
“Will you promise to think about an idea I have?” Leo said. “I haven’t worked out the details but it would mean we could build a life together.”
“In London?” Malik frowned.
“No, Nairobi.”
“Nairobi?”
“Yes.” Leo slid his hand over Malik’s hip, reached for his cock and squeezed. “But I don’t want you to think about it right this minute because I have other plans for you.”
Malik groaned then smiled. It was one of the gorgeous big, white smiles he occasionally gave and it warmed Leo’s soul.
“Tell me your immediate plans now and tomorrow we will talk of Nairobi,” he said.
Leo stroked him root to tip. “Deal.” He kissed him, loving the softness of his lips and the need in his cock. “So turn over and I’ll tell you my plan.” He released Malik’s shaft.
Malik hesitated for a moment then did as Leo had asked. He flipped onto his stomach and pressed his face into the soft pillow.
Leo reached across him to the locker, then grabbed a condom and lube. He parted Malik’s legs and settled between them, on his knees.
After rolling the condom on, he set about sweeping his hands over Malik’s smooth, glossy skin, giving him a light massage.
Malik twisted his neck so he was facing the wall. “That feels nice.”
“It’s going to get a whole lot better soon.” Leo paid particular attention to Malik’s buttocks, kneading and caressing them. He gently spread them, stretching his cleft then rubbed down the crease, teasing his finger nearer and nearer to Malik’s arsehole.
Eventually he skimmed over it and was rewarded by Malik’s small sigh.
Good, he had him nice and relaxed.
He lubed his fingers and with his dry hand rubbed again at Malik’s buttocks. He had the f
eeling that Malik didn’t bottom very often so he was determined to make this good for him, especially with his high-located prostate.
He settled his fingertip over Malik’s arsehole. “Relax. Let me in.”
Malik blew out a long, low breath. His eyes were shut tight and his fingers splayed on the pillow by his head.
Leo pushed two fingers into Malik’s dark heat. His sphincter gripped but the lube gave him an easy journey to knuckle-depth.
“You feel amazing, Malik,” he whispered. “I love touching you like this.”
“I love you touching me like that too.” His voice was breathy and his lips stayed parted when he’d finished talking.
“Let me find your sweet spot,” Leo said, sweeping his fingers around the front wall of Malik’s insides. Nope. It was crafty bugger, this one.
Leo adjusted his position and tugged Malik’s right buttock to expose his anus more. Damn, that was a sight to behold. His pale fingers buried in Malik’s tight arsehole, just a hint of pink showing the color of his insides.
“Mmm…” Malik moaned.
“Here we go,” Leo said, sliding in a third finger and searching again for his hot-spot.
“Ah, yeah…” Malik gasped, balling his hands into fists.
Leo had found it. A small wave of triumph crested through him. He settled the tip of his longest finger against the nub and gently rolled over it.
Malik arched his neck. A visible shiver went down his spine and Leo rubbed it back up again with his free hand.
“You get it just right,” Malik said. “The perfect spot. It makes me want to come straight away.”
“I know. Good, isn’t it?”
“With you doing it, yes. You know how to find it.”
Leo loved that he’d obviously managed something Malik’s previous lovers had struggled with. It made him proud, as if he were a sexual master.
He smiled at the thought of being a sexual master and continued to work Malik into a frenzy with the small, delicate stimulation of his prostate. He adored seeing the big, powerful man beneath him shaking and trembling with pleasure and need.
When it became obvious Malik was near to coming, Leo pulled out.
Malik moaned and spread out his fingers. It seemed both relief and annoyance had captured him.