Gideon shook his head. He didn’t speak. He knew he was in the same state he’d been in when he’d gone after Elio Barone’s empire and taken it down. He just needed a direction. A hint of one. The brief, distorted glimpses Rory had given him were all over the place. He had to wait.
The GhostWalkers had swarmed all over the wharf, the parking garages, apartments and anywhere there might be places with pipes and dripping water. He continued to wait—counting the seconds, the minutes, the next hour—until he felt that faint stirring in his mind again.
Pain exploded in his head. His lungs felt raw. Burned. So did his throat. His body ached. He was afraid to move.
Red. Breathe. Take a breath.
Can’t.
She had to.
Where are you? Give me a direction.
It could be him.
Gideon felt his heart stutter. Her breath came in shudders. She was struggling. Really struggling.It doesn’t matter.
It does.A pause.
More struggling against the mask to draw in air. He thought she drew in strands of material, or maybe it was plastic. Now hisheart was pounding. Could they have covered her mouth and nose with plastic?
Think it’s him.
Rory, listen to me. It doesn’t matter who it is. I just need a direction. Give that to me.
If she gave him more than a short burst of consciousness, without her brain being so confused and chaotic, he could track her. One tiny clue and he’d find her.
They’re coming back.
The fear in her mind was overshadowed by her determination to keep him safe. To keep Sebastian safe. Whoever was questioning her would get nothing from her. She was willing to die to save Gideon and the little boy.
Rory, I want a direction from you now.He poured command into his voice. Few could resist his compulsion. So far, he’d never known anyone who could.
The problem with being paired with Rory—and he was certain Whitney had paired them—was that usually meant she would be the one person who could resist his voice. In order for them to be compatible, they had to be able to work together as partners.
He heard footsteps. His scalp hurt as someone caught at her hair where she’d been struck. They yanked her head back and started yelling something at her. He couldn’t make out the words. The words were muffled by the covering over her head, roaring in her ears and the terrible wheezing.
“She’s not going to make it.”
He heard that voice much clearer.
“She dies and he’s going to be pissed.”
“This is bullshit. Torturing her isn’t going to get answers. We never should have taken her in the first place. She can’t breathe.”
Gideon heard that very distinctly. The voice belonged to a man. He was in a mask, that much he could tell because there was aslight distortion, but the speaker was close to Rory. Suddenly, someone pulled the covering from her head. She didn’t lift her head or look around.
Red. Open your eyes for me. Just open your eyes. Take a breath.
Was she that far gone that she couldn’t?
Breathe for me. I need you to do this for me.He was pleading. He didn’t give a damn if she heard the pleading in his voice.Rory, I’m asking you to do this for me. Open your eyes and look around you and take a deep breath.
Who knew when she might get another one? All he needed was one look at her surroundings. That was it. One look. She just needed one good breath to sustain her, and they would come for her. She could be angry with him later. He’d sort it out, but he needed her to live.
Her lashes fluttered and then lifted. The lenses appeared blurry, but she slowly looked around her, uncaring of the two men staring back at her. Gideon ignored them as well. He filed their appearances away to take out to examine later. Right now, all that mattered was the place Rory was being held.
He could see he didn’t have much time before she collapsed again. Already her eyes were closing. The two men cursed. One slammed the hood back over her head.
