Rogue remained on the porch. “Please tell me you don’t have to use the combination to get out.”
Keira chuckled. “Okay, I won’t tell you.” Then she relaxed. “Of course, you can get out without having to use the combination.” She touched a switch on the wall. Soft lighting illuminated a front living area with a brown leather sofa, a lounge chair and wood-paneled walls. Bookshelves lined one wall, the shuttered windows another and a fireplace took center stage at the far end of the living room. It had a masculine vibe she hadn’t tried to change. She hadn’t been there often enough. Most of her time had been spent on the Onyx compound in South Texas.
Rogue studied the locking mechanism and tested the inside doorhandle before he closed the door.
“You can drop the bags in here for now,” she said. “I want to get a shower before I think about food.”
He laid the two bags by the door and looked around. “What do you do for water?”
“There’s a well that taps into the aquifer five hundred feet below.” She turned away. “Come on, I’ll show you the rest of the cabin.”
He followed her out of the living area and through an open, heavy steel door into a kitchen.
“It’s not a chef’s dream, but it works,” she said of the stainless steel refrigerator, smooth concrete countertops, a farm-style sink and a small handmade wooden table with matching handmade chairs. On the far side of the kitchen, she opened a door to a pantry lined with shelves full of canned goods, bags of rice and dried beans. “It’s fully stocked with enough canned and dried goods to last a couple of months. Solar power runs the water pump and lights. Because the cabin is built into the hillside, it’s more or less a cave in the rear, which helps keep the temperature moderate. Not too hot in the summer, not cold in the winter.”
“Very self-contained,” Rogue said as he ran a finger across the counter. “And sturdy.”
She led the way out of the kitchen. “The back of the cabin can be closed off from the front. The walls are twelve-inch-thick concrete. The door we passed through to get to the kitchen is like a vault door. It can withstand an explosion. The back of the cabin relies on the thick concrete and the limestone hillside for protection.”
“It’s a bunker,” Rogue said as he followed her down a short hallway lined with wood like the living room.
Keira flung open a door into a bathroom with the smooth stone walls and a man-sized shower. Instead of tile, the shower walls and floor were smooth gray stones. The room made her feel like a part of nature. Calm in a harsh, chaotic world.
“So far, this is my favorite room in the cabin,” Rogue said. “It has a relaxed feeling. A Zen vibe.”
Her lips curled. “It does have that going for it.” In that moment, she could imagine standing naked in the shower big enough for two people. Heat filled her cheeks and spread south to her core as her mind conjured an image of herself and a man—Rogue—sharing the shower.
Keira backed out of the bathroom and opened the door to the room across the hall. “This is a combination utility room and armory. It houses the water heater, ventilation system, water pump and the cistern that collects the water from the aquifer.” She waved toward a large safe. “It’s also where I store the weapons I’ve accumulated over the years.”
“Does Onyx know about this place?” Rogue asked.
She shook her head. “It’s best that they don’t.” Her lips pressed into a thin line. “A girl has to have her secrets.”
“And the weapons you’ve accumulated?”
Again, she shook her head. “What they don’t know won’t hurt me.”
Rogue’s lips twisted. “Why did you stay with them for so long?”
She drew in a deep breath. “They taught me that I wasn’t a victim. That I had a purpose greater than myself. I was helping my country.” She snorted. “Or so I thought.”
“Until they asked you to kill a senator.” Rogue nodded. “I get it. We all need to feel like we have a purpose.”
“Why did SOS leave the government?” she countered.
“Much the same reason you left Onyx. We were being used as political weapons—not for the greater good of our country.”
Keira sighed. “I’m glad I no longer consider myself a victim. However, I realize men haven’t stopped using me.” She held up her hand. “I don’t say that for sympathy. You should be forewarned; I don’t hold much faith in the male of our species.”
“I can understand,” Rogue said. “I want you to know that I would never use you for my own gains. I have no intention of hurting you or any other woman.”
“I’ve had the exact opposite experience throughout my life. Excuse me if I don’t believe you.”
Rogue nodded. “I don’t expect you to believe my words. Actions are what reveal a person’s intent.”
“True,” Keira said as she closed the door to the utility room and armory. She strode to the door at the end of the hallway and paused with her hand on the knob. “This is the only bedroom in the cabin. It’s protected on three sides by the weight of the hillside and twelve-inch concrete walls.” She pushed the door open and stepped inside.
Rogue followed, letting out a long, low whistle. “Wow. This is not what I expected.”
