Ghostwalker 09 - Ruthless Game

little harder.”
    She laughed. “Does he know you’ve been training for the last couple of weeks?”
    He frowned at her and gave a quick shake of the head.
    “I knew you were lying to me when you said he gave the thumbs-up.”
    “I never told you Eric gave me the thumbs-up. When you asked me if it was okay for me to train, I put my thumb up, that’s al . I can’t help how you interpret gestures.”
    “I can give you a couple of other gestures you might want to interpret,” she threatened, trying not to laugh. He was impossible to keep down.
    “We can discuss that when I get back. Or you could cal Jaimie and ask her if she wants to go shopping with you.”
    She could see the effort it took for him to make that concession. He was determined to give her whatever freedom she needed. “I might put off the shopping until tomorrow, and you can arrange for our shadow escort ahead of time. That way, no one has to scramble or interrupt any plans they might have already made.” She leered suggestively. “I think a discussion is definitely in order when you get back. I’l have Sebastian asleep by then. I’m going to play with him now. He likes to be on the floor.”
    “He rol ed over the other day.”
    She didn’t have the heart to tel him she’d seen Sebastian doing that particular trick a few times. He was abnormal y strong. She planned on mentioning it to Paul the next time she saw him. There was no question that Sebastian had inherited special DNA from both parents.
    “He’s great, isn’t he?” she answered. “Don’t overdo, Kane. Real y, just do what the physical therapist says is safe.”
    He blew her a kiss and shut the door behind him. She could hear his laughter fading away as she snapped her bra back into place and buttoned her shirt before lifting Sebastian to her shoulder to rub his back until he burped.
    She loved the way he smel ed, al clean and fresh with a hint of his father on him. “Do you feel like playing today, son?” She crooned as she spread the thick rug Kane had brought her just for this purpose. He had more baby toys than any one child should ever have because the team was constantly bringing him gifts.
    She stretched out on the floor, lying on her stomach next to him. Sebastian immediately pushed himself up as if doing a push-up from the knees up. He held his head up and looked around the room before looking at her, almost for approval.
    “That’s a boy. Stretch out. Doesn’t that feel good? Your arms are getting very strong, Sebastian. Now push with your legs.” She turned him over and took his legs, singing softly as she mimicked kicking and walking in the air.
    Sebastian laughed and cooed at her. She loved his bright eyes and the instant response. He rarely cried, watching her and Kane with his intel igent eyes. She leaned down to kiss his foot. “You’re such a happy baby,” she told him.
    Sebastian’s gaze shifted from her face to look just over her left shoulder. His eyes went wide and staring, and his mouth opened in a silent scream.
    Rose rol ed away from the baby, trying to get her feet under her. A dark shadow loomed over her, caught her by her hair, and threw her forward so that she landed hard a few feet away, sprawling facedown again. The moment she hit the floor, she rol ed under the bed and out the other side, leaping to her feet and grabbing for the knife she kept on the nightstand.
    A second man appeared in the doorway, scooping up Sebastian, who stiffened and began to wail at the top of his lungs, kicking and squirming, fighting the large hands of his kidnapper.
    As Rose rushed around the bed, the first man caught her by her ankle and yanked. As she went down, he slammed into her back with the force of a linebacker, knocking the wind from her body. She felt a sharp sting in the side of her neck, and the man caught her body up and tossed her over his shoulder.
    She hit his back with her head, unable to move. The knife dropped from her hand, the tip sinking into the floor. It wobbled back and forth for a long, strange, slow-motion moment, and then everything went black.

CHAPTER 15
    “Keep going,” John Baily snapped, his face a stern mask.
    Kane wiped the sweat from his forehead where it was dripping down to sting his eyes. He glanced at Eric. The doctor leaned against the wal staring into space, paying no attention to the therapist torturing him. Everything hurt. He could barely breathe, and he wasn’t altogether certain he could keep going. Was