“Sure you have time for shooting practice? We’re getting married.” Her voice rose two octaves, her heels shaking beneath her feet.
“Don’t worry, I already packed, and I took the whole week off.”
“Excellent, because you’re helping me rent a hall, get a caterer, find tuxes, pick out bridesmaid dresses, and invite all our closest friends and relations to drop everything and appear at a wedding this week.” Her head pounded. Where did one even find a baker to make a cake in five days?
“Traditionally, the bride’s supposed to plan the wedding.” He looked at her, hand resting on the butt of his concealed carry, shoulders spread.
She looked right back at him.
A sigh slid from his chest. “You don’t believe in tradition, do you?”
“Nope.”
He let his hand fall off his concealed carry. Expression glum, he looked out across the budding green of spring foliage. “I bet the five-kid-church-pew-sitter would have planned the wedding for me.”
“The who?” Kay wrinkled her brow.
“I hope you know, I really love you, Kay Bianchi. Because there is no way I’d look at,” he wrinkled his nose, squinting as his mouth curled into a more disgusted expression than when facing terrorists, “centerpieces for any other woman.”
“Not that it matters what the woman thinks in feudal patriarchy, but I’m madly in love with you too.” Touching his shoulders, she reached up and kissed him. The collar of his shirt wrinkled beneath her touch as her eyes laughed.
He closed his arms around her. As she looked into his eyes, she could see the reflection of her own. His fingers felt warm against her cowl neck sweater.
“You are planning on changing your married name, right?” He dragged the word out as if only one correct answer existed.
“Why?” She flicked her hand against his chest where his unbuttoned collar revealed skin. Laughter filled her eyes. “Would five-kid-church-pew-sitter have changed her last name?”
“No, she’d have died in Yemen, not wrestled a Kalashnikov from a terrorist like my bride.” The man she loved brushed his hand against her cheek, his callused fingers sliding across her skin.
Minus the patriarchal “bride” language, it was a truly sweet sentiment.
Radical Trilogy
Book 1: Veiled by Privilege
Book 2: Veiled by Coercion
Rosna longs for a strong husband and many children, but when ISIS overtakes her Iraqi village, they enslave Rosna. One day blurs into another for Rosna under her captor’s harrowing oppression. Even if she can escape, she’ll forever be a scarlet woman in Iraq.
Ali’s an Iraqi smuggler who’s been paid to free Rosna. He loads up his machine gun for a swift money-making venture, but nothing goes according to plan. Soon ISIS guns are aimed at Ali too. No amount of smuggling money is worth risking certain death, but will Ali find a higher reason than wealth to try to save Rosna? Or will the plague of ISIS consume Rosna and Ali along with their homeland?
Book 3: Veiled by Choice
As a homeless, pregnant teen, Jessica Walker was tricked into joining ISIS by her boyfriend. Three years later, ISIS’s death cult has claimed the lives of her boyfriend and son and she is desperate to escape.
Dr. Kaleb Schelensky’s goal was to live the good life when the FBI pounded on his door. His fourteen-year-old sister just became an ISIS bride. He’ll do anything to free her, even infiltrate ISIS.
Trapped inside Mosul, Iraq, as airstrikes rain from the sky, Kaleb and Jessica come face-to-face. Kaleb is everything Jessica ever despised about Western men, and Kaleb is disgusted that Jessica joined ISIS. When ISIS ensures that neither will make it out of Mosul alive unless one of them sacrifices everything for the other, will they rise to the challenge?
Glossary
Abaya—a robe-like black covering that Saudi Arabia mandates that all women wear
Al Saud—The Royal Family in Saudi Arabia.
Al’ama—an Arabic curse that roughly translates to “blindness!”
Ana as’fi—I am sorry
ACU—the fabric print used for Army uniforms
AQAP—Al Qaeda of the Arabian Peninsula
As-Salamu Alaykum—an Arabic greeting that translates to “peace be upon you.”
Battle Buddy—a partner assigned to a soldier
BDU—an older style of fabric print used for Army uniforms
Bisht—a black formal robe worn by men for occasions formal enough that a Westerner might choose a tuxedo.
Caliphate—a religious government under the leadership of an Islamic leader.
Cubicle Farm—derogatory Army slang for a desk job
D.V. Perp—domestic violence perpetrator
Efendim—master
Emir—a high up leader
Epsilon—a Greek letter
FINTEL—finished intelligence
Fotur—a city in Iraq
Ghutrah—turban
Glock—a gun
Great Satan—a terrorist term for America
Govvy—a government employee rather than a contractor
Green-Badger—a government contractor rather than a government employee
Hadith—a book of stories about Muhammad that are less holy than the Koran, but still very significant in Islam
Halal—allowed, it is an Islamic term for things that are permissible to do under Islam. Of course, every school of Islamic thought has a different opinion on what is “halal.”
Haram—forbidden, it is an Islamic term for things that are not permissible to do under Islam. Of course, every school of Islamic thought has a different opinion on what is “haram.”
Hijab—a veil that covers a woman’s neck, ears, and hair, but reveals her face.
Ibn Qutaybah—a famous Iraqi scholar from the ninth century A.D.
Imam—roughly the equivalent of a pastor in Islam
Indig—short for an indigenous person. It refers to the local people that U.S military personnel are working with.
Inspire Magazine—a propaganda publication created by Al Qaeda
JAG—the legal branch of the military that is composed of lawyers
Jinn—spirits or some other kind of supernatural creature
MashAllah—“God has willed.” Used frequently after complimenting someone so as to avoid drawing the “evil eye” onto your blessings.
Mahram—a woman’s male relative, father, husband, brother, or even son. In Saudi Arabia’s guardianship system a woman never becomes a legal adult, but is always under the guardianship of a male relative.
Mutazilite literature—the Mutazilites created a school of Islamic theology that was prevalent from the 700s to the 900s A.D.The Mutazilites encouraged science and literature and are considered heretics by many modern conservative branches of Islamic thought.
Mutwa—the Saudi religious police, also called the Committee for the Prevention of Vice and Promotion of Virtue. Unlike an actual police force, religious police are vigilantes. The Saudi Royal House, the Al-Sauds, have at a variety of times reined in the power of the religious police.
Niqab—a veil that only reveals a woman’s eyes
ODA—Operational Detachment Alpha, a small number of Special Forces that work together in a team
P.O.G.—stands for person other than grunt. A grunt is military slang for a soldier in the infantry. P.OG. is used derogatorily by military members or ex-military members about other service members who worked military desk jobs and didn’t “get their hands dirty.”
Pyramus & Thisbe—a love story written by the Roman poet Ovid in the first century A.D. that was said to be the inspiration for Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet.
SCIF—a secure area where authorized personnel can work on classified intelligence
SERE school—an Army survival course taken by Special Forces soldiers and pilots aimed at teaching them how to survive and escape a prisoner of war situation.
Sharia law—a system of government laws derived from Islamic jurisprudence.
Shisha—similar to tobacco
Shukran—thank you
Siddique—A black market type of alcohol made from sugar water. Alcohol is illegal in Saudi Arabia.
Sigma—a Greek letter
Summa Theologiae—a theological work written by Thomas Aquinas in the 1200s.
Sura—a section of the Koran roughly equivalent to a chapter in the Bible
Tameez bread—a type of flat bread
Thobe—a robe like garment
Tusbih ‘ala khayr—have a good night and happy dreams
UAE—United Arab Emirates, a country in the Middle East
Umma—the community of Muslims everywhere. Similar to the Christian idea of the “church universal.”
USCIS—United States Citizenship and Immigration Services
Watsa—power
Yazidi—a tribe located mainly in Iraq and Syria who have a distinctive religion. The Yazidis have been specifically persecuted by ISIS because of their religious beliefs that incorporate elements of Zoroastrianism.
Dedication
To my friend Elizabeth. Thanks for all the long walks and sage advice.
About the Author
Anne Garboczi Evans writes intellectual romances set in unique locales and eras.
Contact Anne at
www.facebook.com/annegarboczievans
annegarboczievans.blogspot.com
Other Books By Anne Garboczi Evans
Love & Warfare Series
Book 1: For Life or Until
Book 2: When Gambling
Book 3: To Deceive an Empire
Book 4: Without Love
Children’s Books
Book 1: What’s a Foster Family?
Book 2: What’s a Forever Family?
Veiled By Privilege (Radical Book 1) Page 34