Fear and panic made her tremble, her shoulders and hands shaking. Then she simply nodded her agreement.
Caleb picked up his cell phone and made a series of calls, one to ensure his pilot had fueled the plane and was ready to go at a moment’s notice. Then he called Antonio and told him to meet him outside Ramie’s room so they could provide a solid barrier around her the short distance from the hotel room to the car waiting downstairs.
When he was finished, he simply held out his hand to Ramie, a signal that it was time to leave. Heaving a deep breath, she slid her fingers over his palm and allowed him to help her to her feet.
“You ready?” he asked.
She squared her shoulders resolutely and then nodded. “I’m ready.”
“Then let’s do this,” he said.
TEN
RAMIE studied Caleb from her position in the plane. He seemed tense and ill at ease. But then wasn’t she a stark reminder of what had happened to tear his family apart a year ago? She felt horrible for bringing that all back. But she was truly scared. She knew she’d run out of time and that her stalker was tiring of the game. That he was ready for the final chapter in his morbid fantasy of killing her.
No, she couldn’t get a solid read on him, but when he slipped into her mind, she sensed frustration. Impatience. It was why she knew he’d established a link to her, one that she couldn’t control. He remained there, a dark shadow in the deepest recesses of her consciousness. He lived to make her life hell. For her to be afraid every minute of the day, both awake and in her dreams.
Never before had she come up against something like this. She tracked evil, could feel it—and the victims’ pain. But no one had ever held such a hold on her mind. Never before had she experienced the kind of helplessness—and resignation—that she was feeling now.
He was controlling her. Not physically. Mentally.
The day she’d helped locate his victim, when she’d slipped into his mind and the mind of his victim, he’d gotten a lock on her. A reversal of roles because usually she was the one creeping into someone’s mind. Not the other way around.
What was the extent of his psychic abilities? Was it how he’d controlled his victims in the past? How he’d been able to lure them by controlling their minds? And was that why he was so frustrated by her, because she wasn’t as easily controlled as his other victims? Was it why he viewed her as the ultimate challenge? His ultimate victory?
And then a horrifying thought occurred to her. He had been able to track her as surely as she tracked others. What if he went after Caleb’s sister, who’d already endured unimaginable horror? What if he went after Caleb or his brothers? Was she putting them all in terrible danger by association?
“What the hell are you thinking?” Caleb demanded.
She lifted her startled gaze to his to see he was staring intently at her, a frown marring his features.
“You look scared to death.”
“What if I’m bringing pain and death to your doorstep, to your family and the people you love?” she whispered. “You’re risking your sister, your brothers, yourself, by helping me. I’m a reminder of all your sister endured. Is she mentally prepared for that? Isn’t there somewhere safe I can go that’s away from you and your family?”
It was apparent he had no liking for what she’d said, but one of them had to face reality. She appreciated that he’d responded so quickly, and that he’d taken steps to protect her. But helping her didn’t mean he had to become personally involved.
She sat forward, her expression earnest. “Think about it, Caleb. You have no idea what he’s capable of. You didn’t see or feel what he did to his victims. I did. I live with that reminder every single day and know that he’s planned a lot worse for me. I could never live with myself if you or your family became collateral damage in his quest for me. Or that he knew by hurting you, he hurt me.”
Caleb reached across to fold his hand over hers. Warmth traveled up her arm, filling her with undeniable heat. She snatched her hand back, shocked that what she was feeling was?. . .??desire. She’d felt the same reaction in the hotel room earlier, but hadn’t recognized it for what it was. Now that she was somewhat removed from the hysteria of that moment, she could see that there had been something from the very moment he’d walked through her door.
Judging by his own reaction, he was just as aware as she had been that something had sparked between them. He frowned over her withdrawal but retreated, moving his hand back to his lap.