"Why does it have to be so completely hidden?"
Without responding, I stood still until she looked at me.
"Oh."
Stepping into the hole in the wall, I flipped on the light and let her see the deeply sloped staircase. When she went ahead of me, I pulled the wall section closed with the handle on our side.
At the bottom of the stairs, I pulled the key from my pocket and unlocked the thick steel door. When I turned on the main lights, Kinsley gasped.
"How did I not know there was another entire house down here?"
I shrugged. "Only Logan, Caden, and Noah know this exists. And now you."
"Spousal privilege," she muttered before entering the basement and turning in a slow circle.
"This can be used as a safe house, a panic room, and a bomb or storm shelter. There's food and water in case of emergency and a separately run HVAC system. There's a bed, a television, a couch, a kitchen, and a bathroom." I watched Kinsley clutch her shirt over her heart. It was a habit of hers I'd noticed when she was distressed. "Tell me what you're thinking."
"That it just hit me."
Coming up to stand beside her, I asked, "What's hit you?"
"The extent of it all." Stepping further into the room and spreading her arms, she encompassed the massive bottom floor of our home. "It speaks volumes without having to say a word."
"If the dents in the back of the Mercedes from the bullets didn't spell it out, I suppose this does."
"Don't be cruel now." She aimed accusatory eyes at me. "You grew up with this. I grew up with law enforcement."
"Kinsley, I know how incredibly hard all of this is on you. That’s why I've tried to convince myself time and time again to send you back home."
Kinsley cocked her head. "Are you that much of a coward?"
"A coward?" I repeated in disbelief.
"If you don't have the courage to accept me being in your life, I'll have to have enough for both of us."
"Is that what you call it?" Stalking closer, I stood toe to toe with her. "Wanting to see you safe is cowardice?"
Forced to tilt her head back to hold my gaze, she responded, "You take risks every day. It's the same thing."
"It's not the same when I chose this."
"I chose this too!" She backed away, pacing around the room. "I chose to move here, to be with you! I accepted this side of your life with my eyes wide open, Burke!"
"It doesn't stop me from wishing I could keep you locked up in a bubble with Finn." I saw her frustration plainly but knew she didn't actually understand my feelings. How could she when I struggled to express them?
"Then teach me. I want to learn how to protect myself. Then maybe you'll believe I can handle your world."
"It's your world, too, as you've pointed out."
"Fine. Our world."
I led her to the far end of the room, unlocking another door and allowing her to go in first.
"Holy crap."
We stood in a rectangular room, one-hundred-fifty feet long and half that width. Along one wall, various weapons hung in a locked glass case. With care, I opened the case and withdrew a handgun, pulling out the clip and showing it to her.
"This is a Beretta. As you can see, the clip is empty." I set the clip down and turned to face her. "The first rule, the one above all others, is to always assume a gun is loaded. That's the safest way to protect yourself from an accidental discharge."
