Your Next Breath

  “And I’ll be glad when you prove to be entirely wrong,” Eve said. “When can you operate?”

  “Within the next four hours.” He looked back down the hall at the ICU. “It’s remarkable, you know. The artery appears to be strengthening and healing itself. No other physician has looked at her?”

  She shook her head. “Only family … and friends.” That was almost true, she thought. Though Jane would not call Caleb a friend, Eve would accept him in that position for her. He had saved her, dammit. If that didn’t let him into the club, she didn’t know what would. “Nature is a wonderful and mysterious thing. When she came out of the coma, I thought you should take another look at her.” She smiled luminously. “Thank you for coming.”

  He grinned. “Why do I feel that you and Joe Quinn would have come down to Houston and dragged me out of an operating room to put me on the next flight.” He turned and started down the hall. “You can stay with Jane for a little while longer, then we’ll begin the prep.”

  She watched him disappear into the elevator before she hurried toward ICU. Joe was coming out of the room when she reached it, and a broad smile lit his face. “Basle told you?”

  She nodded and went into his arms. “Optimistic skepticism,” she said, as her arms tightened around him. “It couldn’t be anything else considering what he told us previously. But we know better, don’t we, Joe?”

  “I hope we do.” He looked back at Caleb, sitting by Jane’s bed. “God, I hope we do. Should we kick him out until after the operation? Jane rests better when he’s not in the room.”

  “No, I think we should leave instead. Maybe it’s better if he keeps her stirred up. All I know is that he’s healing her, and I don’t care how he’s doing it.” She linked her arm with Joe’s and pulled him out of the room. “And he has a little more time to give Basle a head start…”

  * * *

  “Why don’t you go, too?” Jane asked Caleb as she watched Joe and Eve leave the room. “That doctor tired me out. I’m going to take a nap.”

  “Go ahead.” Caleb smiled. “But I’m staying. You should be used to me by now.”

  That was an understatement. He had been so close to her mentally and emotionally during the last days that she almost felt he was a part of her. A disturbing part that she fought against but couldn’t push away. “I don’t need you here, Caleb.”

  “Yes, you do. My work’s not done yet.” He tilted his head. “Every minute counts. I think Eve senses that and wants me to have my chance at saving you. Otherwise, she’d be in here.”

  “I’m surprised she’s not.” She smiled crookedly. “Eve is sure that you brought me back from the pearly gates. It’s a done deal as far as she’s concerned.”

  “You’re wrong, she’s still scared. She won’t give up trying until you walk out of this hospital. She told me that before you were shot, you were getting better about accepting Trevor’s death. It was slow, but you were on your way. But the attack came at just the wrong time. You reached out and grabbed at what you thought fate was handing you.” His lips twisted. “And you’re so damn stubborn, I had to pry you away from it. Now she’s afraid you’re going to slip back.” He added deliberately, “No, not slip, turn back.”

  She wearily shook her head. “I won’t do that. I know it’s not going to happen now. That I can’t let it happen. Eve’s had enough tragedy in her life. I can’t be that selfish. It was wrong of me.”

  “But so tempting,” Caleb said mockingly. “You’re right, it’s not going to happen. If you take a step back, I’ll be there to pull you forward.”

  “And I’ll tell you to stay the hell out of my way. I’m in control now, Caleb.”

  “Not yet. That’s why you’ve got to fight to get out of that bed. As long as you’re lying there pale and sickly, I won’t leave you. The only way to get rid of me is to get rid of all signs of illness.”

  “Then you can be sure I’ll definitely work on it,” she said grimly.

  “I know.” His smile faded. “You used to be only a little afraid of me. But that’s changed, hasn’t it?”

  “I’m not afraid of you. I just don’t like that you interfered with my life.”

  “Not your life; I interfered with your death.” His voice was suddenly fierce. “Get used to it. That’s one interference that won’t go away. After you’ve beaten back this attack, there will be others. I won’t leave you, I’ll stand beside you, until every one of Santos’s men is in hell. I’ll never let death have you. I’ll fight, and I’ll win.”

  She was stunned by the sheer power he was generating. She tried to dismiss it, to ignore what he was making her feel. “You already won that battle. So just go away, Caleb. I don’t want—” She stopped. As usual, his passion had sparked her own emotions to an equally high level, and she was saying things that even to her sounded unreasonable and self-absorbed. “I know I should be grateful to you for all your time and effort trying to save me. I will be grateful. Just give me time to become accustomed to—”

  “Screw your gratitude. We both know that’s not what I want. I saved you because I had to save you. Now be quiet and let me concentrate. Your Dr. Basle is arranging to have his staff prep you for the operation, but I’ve got to do my own prep before he takes over.”

  He was already concentrating, she realized as she studied his expression. She was being wrapped in that dark, pulsing flow that was both soothing and energizing. She smiled shakily. “No nap for me?”

  “Basle will let you sleep. Right now, I’ve got work to do. Put yourself in my hands. I’ll never fail you.”

  “Won’t you?” She closed her eyes. “That sounded remarkably like something Trevor would say.”

  “I’m nothing like Trevor. I’ll never be him even if that’s what he wants. You’ll have to take me the way I am.”

  “Or not at all.”

  “Shh. Worry about that later. Just a few more adjustments…”

  * * *

  “Dammit, Basle should be finished by now,” Joe said harshly. “How long is it going to take?”

  “He said that it wasn’t going to be easy.” Eve took a drink of her coffee. How many cups had she had during these last five hours? “Think positive. He’s being careful, and that takes time.”

  “And I shouldn’t be this on edge and mouthing off.” Joe grimaced. “Sorry. I’d just like to be in there and making sure that I couldn’t do anything to help.”

  “And running the show,” Eve said. “I’m afraid that you’d have to have a couple decades of medical education and experience to have Basle step aside for you.” She glanced at Caleb, who was leaning against the wall; his intense gaze focused on the operating room. He had scarcely moved from that position during the last five hours, but she didn’t sense that he was as on edge as she and Joe. “How about you, Caleb? I’d think you’d be the one to want to burst into that operating room.”

  He smiled sardonically. “Because I’m not as cool and controlled as Joe? You’re right, I’m a savage when things aren’t going my way. But this is going my way. So I’m just monitoring it, so that it continues on that path.”

  “You’re sure of that?” Joe asked, his eyes narrowed on Caleb’s face. “How?”

  “I gave Basle a smooth road for the graft. I checked his credentials, and he should have no trouble doing it.”

  “I saw you talking to him before they brought Jane into the operating room,” Joe said. “What did you say to him?”

  “Do you think I threatened him?” Caleb’s brows rose. “Why, I wouldn’t do that. I needed his hands to be steady and skilled. I just introduced myself and told him that it was exceptionally important to me that Jane get through this operation with flying colors. He seemed to understand.”

  And that aura of hypnotic intensity and danger that Caleb always cast could not have helped but to make an impression, Eve thought. “I’m sure he did,” she said dryly.

  He shrugged. “That was only a preventative measure in case Santos had managed to get
to him. There was the slightest possibility. And I checked out everyone in that operating room to be certain that everything would be safe.”

  “So did I,” Joe said.

  “I thought you would. It didn’t matter. I had to be sure.”

  Joe stared at him for a long moment. “I still have problems with you, Caleb. But I’m beginning to think we may have a lot in common.”

  Caleb shook his head. “You have a few savage elements yourself, but you have much better control. You’re one of the good guys, like Trevor.”

  “And what are you, Caleb?” Eve asked quietly.

  “What do you think I am? Aren’t we who we are perceived to be? Ask Jane.”

  “I prefer to form my own opinions. And Jane is on the defensive. But you may be right about perception being—”

  The doors of the operating room burst open, and Basle strode out into the hall. Eve jumped to her feet, and she and Joe rushed toward the doctor.

  He’s smiling, she saw with relief. Thank God, he’s smiling. “It went well?”

  “Excellent. Better than I hoped. She’ll have a few more nights in ICU, then I think we can move her to her own room.”

  “No.” Caleb was suddenly there beside them. “Talk to him, Quinn. He has to put out a statement that the operation didn’t go as well as he hoped, and she’s still hanging on by a thread.”

  “I won’t do that,” Basle said. “It’s not true, and besides, word would get out from the nurses and doctors in that operating room that it was a lie.”

  “Talk to him,” Caleb said. “If you don’t, I will. And I won’t be worried about his hands shaking now. The minute Santos knows that she’s on her way to recovery, it will give him a green light to send someone to take her out.” He was suddenly smiling recklessly. “Not that I might not enjoy that. But Eve wouldn’t, and I wouldn’t take a chance with Jane.”

  “Doctor Basle’s right,” Eve said. “It will be hard to keep the news from spreading in a hospital. It’s a community in itself.” She turned to the doctor. “But we’ve got to try. We need your cooperation.”

  “And we’ll get it,” Joe said grimly.

  “You don’t understand,” Basle said. “It’s not going to—”

  “You deal with him.” Caleb turned and moved toward the door of the operating room. “While I have a chat with the nurses and the assisting doctor. I’ll bet they’ll be much more cooperative.”

  Basle was looking warily after him. “Who the hell is he?”

  “A friend of Jane’s. I believe he introduced himself to you,” Eve said. “And he can be very persuasive.” She smiled at him. “I only hope that we can be just as persuasive. We need your help. Did I tell you how grateful I am that you saved my Jane? I know it’s not fair to put you on a spot and risk damage to that wonderful reputation, but you’ll understand after I explain.” She took his arm and led him toward the coffee machine. “Let Joe and me get you a cup of coffee and we’ll talk about it.”

  RAIN FOREST

  GUATEMALA

  “What do you mean you can’t find him?” Dorgal tried to keep his temper. Juan Pablo was usually clever and an expert tracker, and he was the one Dorgal had chosen to take over the hunt for Montez. However, unless Pablo could show some active progress toward finding Montez, Dorgal would have to face Santos’s rage and charges of incompetence if he left Pablo in charge. Then he would be stuck here in this damned rain forest instead of getting to a position where he could wriggle himself back into Santos’s favor. “Have you gone back to the monastery and questioned those monks again? I can’t believe they don’t know something. Montez lived with a priest for almost two years. He’s a religious nut.”

  “We searched the monastery twice. He’s not there.”

  “Then tell me where he is,” Dorgal said through his teeth. “The bastard’s an inventor and a doctor, he shouldn’t have been able to hide out in that forest for more than a few hours before you caught him.”

  “He’s gone to ground somewhere.” Pablo shrugged. “We’ll find him eventually.”

  “Santos doesn’t understand the word ‘eventually.’ If Montez has gone to ground, give him a reason to bolt out of his hole.”

  “He knows we’ll gather him up the minute he does. What reason is good enough for him to risk his neck?”

  “You have no imagination.” Dorgal moved out of the shrubbery to the edge of the hill and gazed down at the red clay roof jutting out of the trees. “It may not be that hard at all.”

  * * *

  “Good morning,” Cameron said as he watched Catherine come down the stairs. “You look bright-eyed and wide-awake today. I’m glad. Does that mean we can stop spinning our wheels?”

  She stiffened. His words had been more attack than greeting and so was his demeanor. She could feel his impatience. “It’s only been one day. Sorry you’ve been bored. You don’t have to stay here, Cameron.”

  “The hell I don’t. The minute I walk away, you’ll be on the move.” He grimaced. “Though I hoped to wrap this up sooner. I’m having problems dealing with my own minor affairs long-distance.”

  “The committee giving you a hard time? Of course they are. You’re the crown prince to their chosen new world. You shouldn’t waste your time on anything else.”

  “I’ve told you, I’m only the security chief. That’s all I’ve ever wanted to be. And I’ve not consulted the committee about my private affairs. I just have to work around them.” He made an impatient gesture with his hand. “You didn’t answer me. When do we move? It’s not like you to hesitate.”

  “I wanted to see if Kelly was going to come up with a possible destination.” Her lips tightened. “But I can’t wait any longer. Though she does think she’s getting closer. It’s something to do with boat rentals and gas consumption.”

  “Interesting. But I can see why you’d not want to wait for her to connect those particular dots. Montez?”

  She nodded. “I’m going to call him and see if he’s had time to think while he’s been on the run. Using him as bait for a trap is still our best bet to get to Santos.”

  “And now that you know more about his dealings with Santos, you have more ammunition with which to persuade him.” He paused. “The latest report I have from Dario is that he’s sure Montez is in the cave area. But Dorgal is frantically searching for him and has increased his manpower. If you want to set him up, you’d better do it quick. His time may be running out.”

  “I’ll call him now.” She went toward the library. “Which was what I was going to do anyway.”

  “Only a gentle push to nudge you toward the way we both want you to go.”

  “Cameron.”

  He held up his hands. “I’ll let you do it without hovering over you. I’ll go see Luke and talk to him for a while.”

  She frowned. “You’ve been spending a lot of time with Luke.”

  “I find him interesting. He’s on the verge of being something very exceptional.”

  “And he believes you’re some kind of superhero.” She had a sudden alarming thought. “You’re not fooling with his mind?”

  He shook his head. “I took one quick look when I first met him. That’s all I needed. And I know he’s off-limits as far as you’re concerned.”

  “You’re damn right he is.”

  “Besides, I can wait for him to get a little older before I make a decision about him.”

  “Decision? You will not try to recruit him.”

  He smiled. “No?” He turned away and started up the stairs. “We’ll see. Go try to persuade Montez. If you get us on the road again, I won’t have an opportunity to influence your son.”

  Which might be a very good thing, she thought grimly. Cameron exerted a tremendous charisma even when he wasn’t using that psychic mojo. Well, he could just stay away from Luke.

  But he was right, if he was kept busy at the violent tasks at which he excelled, he wouldn’t have time to draw Luke into his web.

  She pulled out Montez’s nu
mber and quickly dialed.

  Would he look at the ID and not answer?

  It rang once.

  Twice.

  Three times.

  Come on, Montez, pick up.

  Four times.

  Montez answered the phone. “I don’t want to talk to you, Catherine Ling.”

  “Yes, you do. Or you wouldn’t have picked up. You’re still on the run from Dorgal and his men, and you must be tired and a little scared. It’s going to keep on. They won’t stop. They’ll never stop until I take Santos out.” Her voice lowered with urgency. “Help me take him out. Then the running can stop.”

  “I told you that I’m opting out. I’ve caused too many deaths already. Go get him yourself.”

  “I will.” She paused. “But unless I have an edge, I may not be able to stop him before he kills someone I love. He’s been very quiet for the past couple days, and I think it’s because he’s concentrating on hunting you down. You’re very important to him. Why does he need you? Surely, you’ve completed your work on Delores.”

  Silence. “I don’t know what you mean.”

  “Maggi.”

  He inhaled sharply. “You’re guessing.”

  “It started as guessing, but as my friend, Hu Chang, made his way through those equations, the guessing became a certainty. He’s a brilliant man, and he said that you were also exceptional. That your cryogenic formulas might well do what you intended if the container or coffin in which Delores is held is as mechanically sophisticated as he thought it might be.”

  “How condescending,” he said sharply. “My formula does exactly what I meant it to do.”

  She had stung him. Evidently, he was very defensive about his work. “I’m sure it does. And Hu Chang didn’t mean to be condescending. I told you, he thought your work was exceptional. He appreciated the fact that you went a step beyond cosmetic preservation to actually preserve life itself.”

  Another silence. “You did work out what I was doing. I was hoping it would be too complex for you.”