I had known taking this inheritance case would lead to what happened today, I never would have touched it. You’ve been through enough.”
The sound of his voice had a miraculous effect on the tangle inside her. The taut cords pulling her in a thousand different directions eased enough to allow her to breathe. Her muscles sagged in relief, and at last she was able to take in their surroundings—the unfamiliar white-tiled bathroom, a mirror on the door, the generic bone-colored Berber carpet and massive king-sized bed Nate sat on.
“Where are we?”
His head came up at the sound of her hoarse voice, looking as shocked as she was that she’d managed to cobble together something coherent. “Fairest View Suites, the Financial District hotel where I’ve been staying. You can see The Bean from my window.”
It was absurd, how normal that sounded. “Just what I always wanted—an unfettered view of a metallic legume the size of a tugboat.”
“Stick with me, kid, and I’ll show you the world.”
“How could the world compare next to a giant silver bean?”
“Sorry to hear you’re so attached, because I don’t know that I’m comfortable staying here indefinitely.”
Why?”
“If Archibald’s paying any attention to my travel expenses, he knows where I’m staying. Though I’ve already been in contact with him to insist my whereabouts are kept confidential—even going so far as to point out his loose lips are responsible for the deaths of Briella Fields and Gabrielle Litte—I don’t know how strong his professional integrity is. The smartest thing to do is assume Richard Rainier and that thing he had with him will eventually worm our location out of Archibald. As soon as you’re strong enough to travel, we need to hit the road and get some distance between them and us so we can regroup.”
At the mention of Richard Rainier, her stomach threatened to toss out whatever was left. “Actually, I think it might be best if you drop me off at the nearest hospital.” It was gratifying to hear how solid her voice was. At least she sounded sane. “I’ve, um... I’ve suffered some kind of psychotic break. I thought I was okay, you know? I thought I was handling seeing Richard Rainier just fine. But obviously that was the straw that broke the camel’s back.”
“Ella—”
“I’m seeing things. Bad things. Insane things.” There. She said it. The sooner she accepted she’d lost her mind, the better off she’d be.
Nate was quiet for nearly a minute before he nodded once, as if coming to a decision. He abandoned the edge of the bed to sit on the side of the tub. He reached out a big hand to smooth over her hair in a caress so achingly sweet it almost shattered what was left of her control. How beautiful this man was, to instinctively soothe someone who was so obviously a lunatic. It hurt her heart to the point of doubling over to know that he deserved better than having to deal with a crazy person like her.
“You’re not seeing things. I saw the same thing you saw. In fact, I probably saw one hell of a lot more than you did.”
She shuddered. “Don’t patronize me, Nate. You don’t know what I saw.”
“Yes, I do.”
“I saw Lana Dever, a woman who I know is dead. I was there when Charles Rainier slit her throat after he carved her face up until there was nothing left. But I saw her today, and then she...melted. She frigging melted into Charles Rainier. That alone is impossible—people can’t just change like that. But it’s all the more impossible, because I know I used Rainier’s own knife to kill him. Yet somehow he was suddenly there, right there standing next to the car, and I ran and...”
“And nearly got hit by an oncoming bus, which was what that...thing wanted. You would have been wiped out if I hadn’t rocketed to where you were with what I’ve always thought of as my blurring speed, and knocked you out of its path. Our landing wasn’t the softest, and you’ve been in and out of consciousness ever since.”
Nothing he said made sense. “Wait. Blurring? I don’t...what do you mean?”
“It’s a type of movement my kind seem to have in common. You saw me do it in the first-aid room—it’s an ability to move so fast the world becomes a blur to our eyes.”
Ella stared at him. Who would have guessed insanity could be contagious? “I’m sorry. Your kind?”
Nate loosed a rough breath before his hand fell