Page 94 of Rescuing You

He pulled off the hat and wig and rumpled his short hair. “Sorry. I should’ve warned you.”

Jasmine backed up enough for him to step in.

He did and held out a shopping bag, which Jasmine took. “We need to leave soon. I have disguises for both of you.” To Jasmine, he said, “Put on the skinny jeans and graphic T-shirt.”

She peeked in the bag. “I am to be…what?”

“You’re small enough to pass for an adolescent boy.”

The women were still wearing the T-shirts and shorts they’d had on since they left Baghdad. They might not like the disguises he’d chosen for them, but at least the clothes would be clean.

To Leila he said, “You’ll also wear jeans, but looser to make you look bigger than you are, along with a sweatshirt. I’ve got you shoes with lifts to give you a little more height. You also have a wig cap and wig.”

“How will I be dressed?”

“Like your sister’s older brother.”

“I will pass for a man?”

“When I’m done with your makeup, you will. You two eaten?”

Leila nodded, her eyes narrowed. “What are we doing?”

He really didn’t want to tell her. “Do you trust me?”

“I told you I did. I also told you I like to know the plan.”

He took a breath. Braced for impact.

“They’re going to be looking for us at the border.” And not just Leila’s father’s men, either.

After calling the hospital and checking on Splat—he’d survived the night, and his prognosis was good—Michael had called the embassy in Baghdad to tell them where Splat was.

The embassy would send someone to check on him. And they’d run it up the chain, flagging Michael’s name, which would alert Brock.

“What are we going to do?” Leila crossed her arms, preparing for bad news. Maybe she guessed because there really was only one way out now.

“Splat’s recovering,” he said. Avoiding the question.

“Oh, good.” Her shoulders relaxed the slightest bit. “Thank God.”

“Yeah.” He took a breath and blurted it out. “We have to go to Lesvos⁠—”

“No!” Her arms came down while her voice ramped up. “Are you crazy? On a boat? Do you know how many die crossing the sea?”

“It’s just four miles. I’ve gotten you this⁠—?”

“I do not swim.” Leila grasped her sister’s hand. “We do not swim. If we land in the water, we will drown.”

They didn’t know how to swim? He hadn’t realized… “You’ll have life jackets⁠—”

“They stuff newspaper in the life jackets!”

Her words were practically shrill, her terror zinging through him. He’d known she’d be opposed, but he hadn’t expected this.

“They do not care if we die. Don’t you understand? The rafts sink. The so-called life jackets sink! Even if the people can swim or float, some are in the water for days. Others are discovered and pushed back to Turkey. And before that, the smugglers steal everything. They take and take.”

He hated that she spoke from experience. She hadn’t gone to Europe via Lesvos the first time she’d escaped Iraq, but she’d still had to depend on smugglers to get her there. He stepped toward her. “Did they? When you were traveling? Did they⁠—?”