Ruthless Game (GhostWalkers 9)

"Javier spotted them, and the team went into action. We'll be having a meeting soon to discuss what went wrong and what went right so we can improve response time and damage control."

Jaimie sat on the arm of the couch. "No civilians got hurt and, aside from keeping Whitney's men from taking you and Sebastian, that's always the main thing in urban situations."

Kane brushed his mouth across Rose's lips. "We're going to be all right, honey. The team came through. We had one casualty. Brian's in surgery now, but both Paul and Marc are with him, and you know how bossy Mack is. He won't let Brian slip away on us."

"I want to take a shower." Rose shuddered as she rubbed her arms up and down. "I'm itching all over."

"I can put a chair in the shower," Jaimie offered. "You shouldn't try to stand by yourself, Rose."

"I'll go in with her," Kane said.

Fear exploded through Rose's body. For a moment she could barely breathe. "No!" Rose caught Kane's wrist and held on hard. "You stay with Sebastian." She would never forget those minutes, fighting off the kidnappers, knowing she wasn't going to stop them from taking her son. She'd failed to protect him. All of her training, all of her resolve, none of it mattered. She touched her neck again. "I'm sorry, Kane. I'm so sorry."

She'd been so certain she could do it all herself. She hadn't trusted anyone else, other than Kane, not really. She knew Whitney better than any of them; she'd known he'd make a try for Sebastian. Sebastian was everything he'd worked for--all the years of experimenting came down to a child. She knew if Whitney saw him or even got hold of a sample of his blood, he would know he'd been successful.

She covered her face with her hands, her lungs burning. She'd almost lost their child. She couldn't ever face Kane again. Everything was coming flooding back. Sebastian's eyes widening as he lay on the floor playing with her. He'd known that she couldn't protect him. She would never forget that moment when both of them had known she wasn't going to be able to stop the men from taking him. A sob escaped, and she clamped down hard on it. She wouldn't cry. Wouldn't make Kane think she wanted sympathy.

"Rose." Kane's gentle voice was her undoing.

He should be railing at her. Yelling. Telling her what a screwup she was. She hadn't protected her own child from the worst monster alive. She shook her head, unable to look at him. She might never be able to look at him again. She'd failed in the most important mission of her life.

"Rose, look at me."

She shook her head again, even more adamant this time. Whitney's taunting voice flooded her mind. Women aren't of any use; they just don't have the strength or intelligence men do. Their weakness compromises missions and jeopardizes teams. Men are wounded--killed--because of the weaknesses displayed by women. Even when using their psychic talents they have seizures and can't function properly.

Baby, do you really believe that nonsense? Any psychic, male or female, without an anchor close by will experience all of those things and more. Some have had strokes. Some meltdowns. It makes no difference whether you're male or female.

Kane pushed Whitney's voice out of her mind, filling her with warmth. His tone caressed her, gave her the courage to look up at him. His green eyes had gone nearly emerald, a heated promise that made her breath catch in her throat--made her want to believe the impossible. The moment their eyes met, hers filled with tears of guilt, and she looked away again.

"I've put some clothes out for you, Rose," Jaimie said. "I'm going back downstairs to contact Flame and have her start spreading the word that Eric has compromised all of us so the other teams can take precautions as well. He was inside the compound up in Montana as well as being in Wyoming with a couple of the GhostWalkers there. No one will bother you here for a while, so go ahead and use the shower, and if you want to eat, there's plenty of food."

Rose shifted her gaze to Jaimie, alarmed. Had Mack sent for her telepathically because Brian had taken a turn for the worse? She studied her face. No. She was being polite, giving her time to be alone with Kane. She silently shook her head in protest, but Jaimie just patted her shoulder and walked away, leaving her to face her son's father alone.

She swallowed hard. Guilt and shame were ugly things. She hadn't even had time to be terrified. She pressed her lips together and shook her head, knowing Kane was willing her to meet his incredible green gaze again. "I can't, Kane," she whispered once she'd heard the door close behind Jaimie. "I don't think I can ever look at you again."

"Because Whitney fed you bullshit to justify his experiment?"

The small edge to his voice made her glance up at his face. The lines were carved deep, making him look tougher than ever. His jaw was set in a stubborn line she'd come to know. He didn't understand. Her shame wasn't about Whitney--maybe he added to the voices in her own head telling her what a screwup she was--but her shame was all about the way she'd acted toward his family members. As if they weren't trustworthy enough to be alone with her child. In her mind she had been the only one who could adequately protect Sebastian. Okay, there was Kane. She had trusted him--maybe.

Her face flamed. Not completely, not with Sebastian. She was so determined Whitney wouldn't get his hands on their son, and she didn't think Kane adequately understood the danger Whitney presented. She'd been so foolish. Without his family, without the very men she'd snubbed, her son would be in Dr. Whitney's laboratory.

"I'm so sorry," she whispered again, shaking her head. How could there be forgiveness? Kane had brought her into his home and offered her a life with him. She wanted him--but she hadn't really wanted the rest of them. She didn't know how to act with them, what to think or do. She felt such an outsider, and yet they had risked their lives for her son.

"Tell me what happened. All of it. What each person had to do to get Sebastian ..."

"And you," Kane said quietly.

She shivered continually, unable to stop her body's reaction from the aftermath of the drug, or perhaps the time spent in the cold seawater. She could smell fish on her hair and skin. Dragging the blanket closer, she nodded. "And to get me back. Tell me."

She listened in silence to the quiet sound of his voice as he detailed the rescue and what each team member had contributed.

"If Javier hadn't spotted the SUV, they might have gotten away with it."

"It may have taken longer, but we would have found you and Sebastian, Rose," Kane said. "We had the microchip in Sebastian, and Whitney isn't the only one who can track with a satellite."

She felt a wave of raw fear. "My tattoo. Javier and Jaimie got rid of it."

"They deactivated it. There's a difference."

Now her teeth were chattering, but she didn't

care. She was horrified. "If they know a way to activate it, so will Whitney."

He shook his head. "I'll put Jaimie and Javier up against anyone Whitney has in electronics. Jaimie's figuring out how they managed the lock on the door, but my guess is, the doc had something to do with it."

She felt color flooding her face. Once again she'd not trusted the members of his team.

Our team, he corrected. "Our family. We're a unit, Rose. You. Me. Sebastian. And our family. We have to think that way, believe that way. It has to be absolute. No individual is going to be able to fight Whitney. As a team, a family, we're stronger than he can possibly imagine."

He was right. When she'd been in the compounds, if Whitney separated all of the girls, it was much more difficult to fight him, but together, they had too much strength and too many psychic talents for him to control.

"I grew up with every single man and woman in this team other than Paul. You've met Paul. He's no plant. His talent is incredible, and we all watch over him, especially Javier."

Her breath caught in her throat. She knew Paul was no threat. He was too honest--he felt too good--not that he wouldn't fight if he was forced to do so. But Javier ... He scared her, and yet it had been Javier who had ultimately been Sebastian's guardian. She'd seen the look on his face when he dropped in to see the boy. He always referred to himself as Uncle Javier, and she had secretly cringed.

Rose shook her head. "I'm sorry," she repeated. "I didn't trust them. I didn't want to like them or give them a chance."

"Rose." His voice was a velvet caress, stroking over her skin. "What did you expect? You've never been around a man who wasn't keeping you prisoner or torturing you. Did you think it would be easy? All of us knew we'd have to earn your respect and trust. It's never automatic, not when our lives depend on one another."

"But you trusted them. I should have ..."

He drew her up, blanket and all, pulling her shivering body against his, and she let him, wanted to melt into him, to draw from all that male heat and strength. She let herself be fragile and vulnerable, she already was--to him. She let herself open to him. He was so deep inside her that she'd never get him out, nor did she want to.