She swallowed back bravely but he could see the grief and devastation in her eyes. Then she turned away and went to stand by the glass looking out to the garden. She leaned her forehead against it, closed her eyes, and then he could see the
strain ripple across her forehead.
An uneasy sensation prickled his nape. His gaze narrowed as he watched Grace. Her hands pressed against the glass and then curled into balls.
She squeezed her eyes shut, and her entire body tensed and bowed inward. She let out a small cry and then she went limp. Tears slipped down her cheeks in silver trails. She turned and slid down the glass until she sat on the floor, her legs tugged up to her chest, and she buried her face against her knees as quiet sobs shook her shoulders.
CHAPTER 18
PAIN echoed through Grace’s head, pain she was responsible for because she’d kept pushing, refusing to believe that she couldn’t carve out that path to her sister again.
“Grace.”
Her name came softly. So gentle and quiet that she almost didn’t hear it. But she felt it. Like a warm brush, soothing away some of the darkness in her mind. Calming the wild, chaotic buzzing in her head.
She barely managed to lift her head and saw Rio crouched on the floor in front of her, concern creasing his brow.
“What is it? What happened?” he asked.
She lowered her forehead to her knees once more and took in long, steadying breaths. “I can’t do it. I tried so hard but it’s just not there. Oh God, Rio, what will I do?”
“What’s not there?” he asked quietly.
“The link,” she said in frustration. She raised her head and stared fully into his eyes, despair overwhelming her. “The link I destroyed to my sister. It’s gone. All of it’s gone. I can’t focus. I can’t reach out to anyone. It’s like there’s this yawning black hole in my mind and it’s consuming me.”
Instead of saying anything further, Rio rose and then reached down to pry her hand away from her legs. He tugged upward until she gave in and let him pull her to her feet.
“You need shoes,” he said as he pulled her back toward the main living area.
She stared after him, utterly baffled. “Where are we going?”
He remained silent as he walked through the kitchen and then to a closet off the living room. He let go of her hand to rummage around a moment and then came out with a pair of shoes that looked like they’d fit her.
He dropped them on the floor beside her feet. “Put them on.”
She stood there a long moment wondering what she’d missed, but seeing his determined look, she sighed and did as he said. When she was done, he went to the gun rack just inside the back entrance and pulled a pistol off the shelf. He shoved in a clip, pocketed two others and then reached for yet another gun. After giving it equal treatment, he donned a shoulder holster and tucked away both pistols.
He glanced her way and then crossed the room, took her hand and started toward another section of the house.
She shook her head to rid herself of the cobwebs that seemed to cling to her brain. She couldn’t imagine what on earth had spawned this reaction. “Rio, where are we going?”
“You’ll see.”
They took a short flight of stairs down into what appeared to be the basement. To her surprise, he stopped and pushed a button and elevator doors opened. Her mouth gaped as Rio ushered her inside. He hit another button and the elevator started down.
She tried not to think of down, because down was below the ground. Like way below. She had the sudden hysterical thought that he was taking her somewhere to execute her.
When they stepped off, they were surrounded by complete darkness. As her eyes adjusted, she could make out dim lighting ahead. Rio tucked her hand in his and guided her toward the distant glow.
It took a moment for her to figure out that the light was coming down from a long tubelike opening in the ceiling of a tunnel.
It was cool and kind of damp, like a cave, and she supposed that was indeed what they were in. Man-made but a cave nonetheless. She shivered, though she wasn’t at all cold, and Rio automatically pulled her in close to his side as if to share his warmth with her.
Men who did those kinds of things for a woman didn’t turn around and shoot them, right? What would he care if she was cold? If she were dead, she’d be plenty cold. She coughed to cover the hysterical laughter that threatened to bubble out. She’d well and truly lost her mind.
Rio wasn’t going to kill her. He’d had ample opportunity. Moreover, it was uncharitable of her to think it, given how good he’d been to her. Hell, he’d risked his life. His team had risked their lives. And here she was being a complete wuss because he was taking her down some dark tunnel God knows how many feet underground.
They continued a ways down until she was certain they were away from the house. She also honed in on the fact that they were gradually working up in elevation.
In the distance a faint noise made her brow wrinkle in concentration. She couldn’t quite make out what it was. It was a dull roar that got a little louder with every step they took.
Then she saw a small sliver of light from behind a boulder. There was a marked difference in the air. Mist. The sound was water. A lot of water.
Rio pulled her toward the light, and she realized it was an opening in the rock, well hidden from view. As she looked out, she saw that they were coming out behind a waterfall.
Transfixed, she followed Rio, her stare riveted to the beautiful water cascading from the rock above and plummeting to the pool below. They were standing in a large hollow behind the falls, and there was a small footpath leading around the edge and away from the falling water.