Zara knew with all the windows, anyone could see into the house. Anyone. Whitney would get the information she stored in her brain from her, dead or alive. He didn’t need her alive, just her body. He would keep coming at her until he got what he wanted, and anyone near her would be in terrible danger.
What of Zhu? He would be coming as well. Gino and the others might think they were finished with him, but they weren’t. She saw his face and heard his promise. He would come after her and would take pleasure in killing those around her. Whitney might kill them, but there would be no pleasure in it. He would consider them sacrifices for the greater good. Zhu would enjoy the killing, making her—and everyone—suffer in the process. That would be his enjoyment.
Her body gave a shudder she couldn’t hide and she looked around. Needing him. Gino. Her shield. It was wrong to force the man into that role. He had rescued her. Taken care of her. Watched over her. And he’d delivered her to Bellisia and was gone. She knew he was probably sick of her clinging to him. Sick of having to hear her whine. How much whining had she done? She didn’t even remember. She was getting a little confused because of the additional pain pills Ezekiel had given her. She had to let Gino go. He was probably hiding out, so relieved to be away from her when she looked everywhere for him and listened with everything in her for the sound of his voice.
What was she thinking? Gino had kissed her. He’d declared his intentions, made it very clear that he intended to pursue her, that he wanted them to be in a relationship. He wasn’t the type of man to lie to her. Doubling up on pain medication when Gino wanted her to back off from it a bit clearly was affecting her thinking processes. He’d kissed her. He wanted her. She wasn’t going to let go of that.
“Zara, would you like a cup of tea before you eat anything? Tea can settle the stomach.”
Nonny asked her the question gently, but Zara had the feeling it was to give the other women something to do besides cry over her. God knew, if they saw the lacerations and bruises on her body, they would really fall apart. She couldn’t handle that. She felt like she was well on her way to healing, with the exception of her feet, but she knew her body looked as if she’d been through a battle.
She nodded gratefully. She wanted a cup of tea and then a room that was quiet, and mostly, she wanted Gino. She felt scared without him. She couldn’t help looking through the windows again, wondering if a sniper was taking aim at her head right that minute. She should have told him the truth about what she’d been doing there in Shanghai. She had to tell him soon. But if she did, he would have to share the information with whoever ran his team, that person would share with the major general and then they’d come for her. There was no way they would leave the intelligence in her head.
“We’ll fix you right up, child,” Nonny continued. Her thumb very gently brushed over Zara’s swollen face.
“It’s so much better already,” she assured the horrified women. She barely glanced at them. She didn’t care how she looked, although always, when she was in public, her looks were her armor. Now, she needed Gino. Her shield. “Gino really helped me. I couldn’t open my eyes before.”
Pepper, Wyatt’s wife, returned with several supplies, sent her a small smile and left again. She was the sexiest woman Zara had ever seen. Her skin was perfect. Her eyes, exotic. The color was difficult to describe, one moment almost a lavender, or deep purple, but there was a strange diamond color that looked like a starburst that spread through that dark purple. She had a natural pout to her full lips and thick, dark hair that had strange patterns in it that seem to come and go with every movement of her head, making the silky mass mesmerizing. Zara could hardly look away.
Gino was around Pepper every single day. He saw that sexy woman. Small, exotic, so sensual she could steal the breath from a man or woman. What he’d seen from Zara was blood and vomit and eyes swollen shut. And don’t forget the bathroom. Repeatedly. Lovely. How could he possibly want her after seeing Pepper?
Cayenne was very small, like Pepper, with dark hair so black that it gleamed blue under the light. When she moved a rich, red, hourglass came and went in the long fall. She had an oval face and high cheekbones. Her eyes were a deep green framed with long black lashes. Her mouth was generous. She didn’t say anything, but her eyes were watchful, and Zara had the feeling that if she made one wrong move, Cayenne would pounce and end her life instantly.
Ordinarily, Cayenne would have intimidated Zara. Nearly everyone did unless she was lecturing. Right now, she was so miserable she didn’t care how watchful and alert Cayenne was. It didn’t matter in the least to her. She wanted Gino. She didn’t even care that Cayenne, Bellisia and Pepper were beautiful, petite women. Warrior women, and she was … not. She needed him and she willed him to come to her, but once he’d turned her over to the women, he’d walked out without looking back. She knew he hadn’t looked back because she’d watched him walk away from her. She’d watched his back until he was out of sight.
It wasn’t like she could blame him. No matter what he felt for her, he had to take a break sometime. She hadn’t trusted him enough to tell him the truth about the information stored in her head. She took a deep breath and let it out, afraid she might cry in front of the very sympathetic strangers and Bellisia. Was she still upset with Bellisia? Gino had insisted she shouldn’t be. As it was, her skin felt clammy. Cold. She could barely catch her breath. She really needed air because she was getting dizzy, and there was a strange ringing in her ears. How long had she been out of the safety of the bedroom? How long away from Gino? Minutes? A half hour? An hour? It felt like an eternity.
“Zara.” Bellisia’s voice was gentle but very firm, catching her attention. “What is it? You’re having a panic attack.”
“Where’s Gino? Where did he go?”
“I’ll get him for you.”
Shockingly, that was Cayenne. One moment she’d been leaning her hip against the wall, draped there so casually and still. The next second she was all movement, slipping from the room before Zara could protest. It was one thing to ask where he was, another altogether to have them go get him. She realized these women were going to get her whatever she indicated she wanted.
“How much time did Whitney give you before the capsule breaks?” Bellisia asked.
Zara bit down on her finger to keep from screaming. She needed air. She needed a way out. Why did she always feel like she was less then everyone around her? She didn’t belong anywhere. How many times had Whitney drilled it into her that she was worthless? The other girls had something to contribute to their country, but she was a waste of his time. All the effort he’d put into her, and she was always a disappointment.
“Princess, take a breath.”
Gino was there, crouching in front of her, eye to eye. She couldn’t look at him, but that terrible burning in her chest, the raw soreness in her lungs eased enough to allow air to slip inside her. He moved right past Nonny’s protest and lifted her, settled into the wide, comfortable chair she’d been in and put her on his lap. His arms were familiar to her now. Safe. Comforting. She snuggled into his heat, those firm muscles that went on forever.
Instead of forcing her to talk to him, Gino rocked her gently and addressed Nonny. “What do you think about her feet?”
“It’s going to take some time to heal,” Nonny answered. “I’ve got some poultices for her face. I can bring down the swelling faster, but her feet are a problem. I’m thinkin’ on the best herbs to help them. Has Wyatt looked at them yet?”
Zara didn’t want everyone looking at her mangled feet. They were long and flat like two skis. Everyone really had to stop looking at them, especially Gino.
There was a small silence, and she realized she’d said it out loud. Bellisia broke the spell by laughing. “You always say that about your feet, Zara, and it isn’t true.”