“They took video, too,” Ben said.
“Oh well.”Rio didn’t seem concerned.“I just dropped by to see Sarah.Becca needs me at home.Twins are exhausting.”
“Come in when you can,” Ben said.“The new guys are due in tomorrow.”
Rio blanched.“Tomorrow?Well, crap.I’ll be in, then.Becca will be okay with the babies for a few hours.”
“I can help her,” Sarah offered.She wanted to make herself useful, and she wanted to see her new nephews.
Both men frowned at her.
“No,” Rio said.
“Absolutely not,” Ben said.“You’ll be staying here.With me.All day.At the end of the day, you’ll go home.With me.You won’t be goinganywherewithout me.”
“Agreed,” Rio said.
Ben looked at the other man as though the matter was settled.“Tomorrow afternoon we need to line out the new guys.I’ll try to keep you only half day so you can go home early.”He turned to Sarah.“Sarah, from now on you’ll stay within touching distance of me.That’s final.”
Sarah threw down the rest of the paper.Feeling rebellious, she nearly stamped her foot.“I want to see the babies.”
“I’ll take you for a quick visit tomorrow morning,” Ben said, “if that’s all right with Becca and Rio.”
“Sure,” Rio said.“Becca’s been asking about Sarah.”
She nudged the paper on the desk, still feeling recalcitrant.“Okay.Tomorrow’s good.”
“Still want that nap?”Ben asked.
“No, now I’m riled up.Damn scavengers.”She took a turn around the office.“There’s no right to privacy with paparazzi.None.An acquaintance of mine, an actress, was in her home, in her bathroom, and the dirty rats managed to snake a camera through her window and take her picture while she was on the toilet!”
“Think I remember that photo in a tabloid.”Rio named a well-known celebrity and Sarah confirmed his guess.“Even for them, that was a nasty trick.”He rubbed his jaw tiredly.“Gotta head home now.See you two in the morning.And Ben?Thanks for watching out for Sarah.I owe you.”
“You owe me nothing.”Ben made the statement definite.
After Sarah gave her brother a quick hug, Ben said to her, “If you’re not sleepy anymore, how about a tour of the facility?”
“Yes, please.”She was curious about the security business, how it was run, and most especially she wondered about the sort of boss Ben made to his men.“I’ve already learned a lot from your staff, but they say you have a kill house here.What in the world is that?”
“I’ll show you.”He opened the door for her and they moved through the office out a side door and into the sunshine.
A large concrete area was backed by a two-story building.On the concrete she saw weight machines, old truck tires, and kettle bells.A group of shirtless men were working out.
Ben gestured at them.“This is The Grinder, named after the workout area at Naval Base Coronado where SEALs are trained.That program’s a bitch.Men are pushed to their limits.Ask Rio.We went through BUD/S together.Here, we don’t go that far, but close.”
A few of the guys and two instructors glanced at Sarah.Most of them snuck second looks.
On the ground, five men were on their backs, legs lifted off the ground, scissor-kicking over and over.To Sarah, it looked like a difficult core workout.Then, another man, apparently an instructor, turned a garden hose on full blast, and sprayed water in their faces.They weren’t allowed to stop.In fact, the instructor shouted at them to go faster.
Sarah raised her brows.
On another area on The Grinder, two men were doing pull ups on a high bar.They had to jump to reach the bar, which meant they were forced to lift their entire weight each time.One man struggled, his arms shaking, and at last he collapsed to the ground.The instructor stood over him dispassionately.“Get up,” he said, without feeling.“Do it again.”
“Goodness,” Sarah said, sorry for the poor man.“Your training is almost sadistic.”
Ben gazed back at her, his expression blank.“No, it isn’t.It’s just training.This isn’t nursing school, you know.We need strong men who can face adversity and overcome it.”
She nodded, chagrined.She shouldn’t have blurted that out.“Of course.I’m sure you know what you’re doing.”
