Keep Me Safe (Slow Burn #1)(18)

“But you said you could pick up violence. And my thoughts most assuredly are violent.”

She smiled, only the second smile he’d been gifted with and it took his breath away because he caught a glimpse of what the real Ramie must have been like before her curse took her down a path she couldn’t return from.

“What I pick up on are people’s true natures. While you may entertain violent thoughts—revenge, retribution, even murder—that isn’t the true essence of who and what you are. I guess you could say my gift reveals the true heart of a person. Some people are inherently evil. Others are inherently good no matter if they deviate from their true nature in certain circumstances. But I have a way of seeing through a façade to the very soul of people and while our actions and words may speak differently, the soul is unchangeable. It remains constant. Some people are able to fight their true nature while others give in more readily to the darkness inside them. Even embrace it.”

Listening to her calmly explain away such an unbelievable gift as casually as someone might discuss the weather was mind-boggling to him. It wasn’t as if he didn’t believe or have faith in her gift. He just hadn’t realized the true extent of her abilities. He’d ignorantly assumed that it was a simple black-and-white matter where she touched something belonging to the victim and was able to trace the path back to them. He’d never once considered that her capabilities went so much deeper and were so profound—almost spiritual in a sense. Because only God was supposed to know the true heart and soul of a person. Only God could judge intent.

Caleb could well understand now why she’d led such a solitary existence. A reclusive who didn’t surround herself with people. How would she ever be able to protect herself from anyone? If people knew the extent of her gift she would be in constant danger. People would kill to silence the truth about themselves. It was no wonder what little he’d been able to discover about her was sketchy at best.

He’d once thought her selfish, back when he was frantically trying to locate her in order to save Tori. He’d deemed her selfish for purposely disappearing from the public eye and refusing to help others desperate to recover a loved one.

God, what an ass he’d been. Now that he knew what it cost her each time she traced a line back to the victim, he couldn’t imagine why she’d done it for as long as she had.

But now that he was assured that his touch wasn’t harmful to her, he carefully pulled her into his arms, watching for any sign that this wasn’t something she wanted. But he met with no resistance. She melted into his embrace and even buried her face in his chest, her head tucked snugly under his chin.

Her breaths were coming in ragged spurts and her chest heaved against him. He yanked her back in a hurry, worried he’d caused her yet another anxiety attack, but what he saw filled him with more dismay than if she had been suffering one.

She was crying. Heaving, heart-wrenching, completely silent sobs. Tears rolled down her cheeks, leaving damp trails in their wake. It was as if the final barrier had come down and something so simple as him offering a comforting hug had completely unraveled her.

“I’m not even sure I’m sane anymore. I feel . . . ​broken,” she said around the tears that seemed to be streaming faster the more she spoke. “I’m not sure anyone can help me or if they even should. The person stalking me is a complete sociopath. He thinks nothing of killing anyone he feels is an obstacle to his end goal. Anyone I’m around is in danger. And I can’t let your sister go through hell again. Not because of me.”

“Do you forget she escaped hell because of you?” he asked softly.

She went silent, allowing his question to go unanswered, but she could hardly refute his statement of truth.

“And what is his end goal, Ramie? You said that he would kill anyone posing an obstacle to it.” Even though Caleb had a very good idea, he wanted confirmation from Ramie. Even though he knew. And it was a stupid question.

“Me,” she whispered. “His end goal is me. And until he gets to me, countless other women will suffer horrifically because of me. How can I save myself knowing that other women have to die in order for me to stay out of his grasp? How can I live with that on my conscience? That he won’t stop torturing and killing other innocent victims until he finally achieves his ultimate goal? Me.”

NINE

CALEB stared at her in a mixture of what the f**k and absolute disbelief. “You can’t possibly think that the deaths of his past victims and any future victims he tortures are your fault. You’re not a stupid woman, Ramie. Even you have to recognize the idiocy of such an assumption.”

She looked angered by his statement. Her cheeks flushed with color and impatience flared in her eyes as though he simply wasn’t getting the point. Oh, he got it all right. And it didn’t make a goddamn bit of sense to him.

Her fingers curled into tight balls and she pressed one fist down on top of her thigh, repeating the motions as she spoke.

“Were he not so focused on me, and were I not so hard to pin down, then he wouldn’t be so hungry for his next victim. The longer I keep him at bay, the more frustrated he’ll become and he’ll utilize substitutes for me. Because I’m the only woman who manages to evade him at every turn. Not because I’m smarter than he is or that I somehow am able to outwit him. I’ve just been lucky. But my luck won’t hold out forever. And part of me wishes he would catch me because I know exactly what I’m dealing with and if I died I’d damn sure make sure he goes to hell with me.”