“I don’t know enough about Cameron to reveal anything. All I have is vague suspicions, nothing concrete.” She added, “And I won’t betray Erin. She went through hell to protect Cameron. But that doesn’t mean that I’m not going to dig until I find out whether I should go after him.”

“You may not have to dig. You may be able to ask him yourself. Cameron won’t leave Erin unprotected.” He shrugged. “And he seems to be able to read you very well. If he thinks you’re on the attack, he won’t wait for you to make the first move.”

“He reads everyone very well.” She paused. “But he promised me that he would stay out and not intrude unless there was some threat to me or Erin. Can I trust that promise?”

“As I told you, he’s kept his word to me. But I don’t know if he would if he sensed a danger to himself.”

“Is he able to do that?”

“It wouldn’t surprise me. How else would he sense the danger to you? I don’t know. Cameron doesn’t want me to know what other talents he possesses. I imagine he feels more at ease if the people around him aren’t aware of anything more than he has to show them. I’ve always been comfortable with that.”

“I’m not.”

“No, you want everything spelled out. Cameron would find that difficult. And I didn’t mean that Cameron was using any mental tricks to read you. He could probably stay out and just use what he’d already found out about you. He was interested enough to make a thorough exploration. He even wanted to see how you and Luke interacted.”

She stiffened. “Luke? That’s not good.”

“Because you think that he could manipulate your relationship if he chose? But there’s always that threat when dealing with Cameron. I find it a trifle bittersweet that he can never get away from having that hang over the heads of anyone with whom he has a relationship.”

“And I only find it terrifying.”

“Yet you’re far more empathetic than I am. And you’re always challenged to find a way to work around a problem that appears unsolvable. Why aren’t you reacting like that toward Cameron?” He added softly, “I am very curious to know why you’re afraid of him when I can’t remember anyone else who intimidates you.”

“I have my moments.” She changed the subject. “When will we arrive in San Francisco?”

“About two hours.”

“Then I think I’ll go back and talk to Luke for a while.” She wrinkled her nose. “If I can tear him away from that electronic game. He seems fascinated.”

“He likes puzzles,” Hu Chang said. “Like his mother. By all means, go talk to him. He may be feeling a little insecure after giving you that jolt with Tashdon.”

“I’m the one feeling insecure.” She turned and moved back down the aisle toward Luke.

And she was definitely feeling insecure about Cameron’s unusual interest in Luke. She had felt an instant of pure panic that had turned into the beginning of fierce anger.

Yet you’re far more empathetic than I am.

Hu Chang was right, her response wasn’t characteristic. None of her responses to Cameron were characteristic. She had been on the defensive since the moment she had seen him and felt that first explosive bolt of sexual attraction. The knowledge of what he was and what he could do had only compounded that initial burst of wariness. His effect on her mind and body was incredibly sensual. She had only to look at him, talk to him, and she felt weak, breathless. Every time she had to make an effort to block it, to stop feeling and fight it.

Empathetic? Yes, she had empathy for Cameron. She could feel what he was feeling because what he was feeling was lust. The electricity between them was like a powerful wall that she wanted to reach out and touch, wrap herself, sink into the flames.

Oh, God, if he was eavesdropping now, then she was lost.

Get control. You’ve been able to keep steady and not do anything stupid or unprofessional. She didn’t even know whether he was one of the good guys or a master criminal. She didn’t care, she realized with shock. All she wanted to do was go to bed with him. She’d worry about the rest later.

Wrong. Worry now. Walk away.

He was too dangerous to her, maybe too dangerous to Luke.

She had reached Luke’s seat, and she smiled with an effort. “Hi, I thought I’d come and let you teach me that game that you’re finding so cool. Hu Chang just pointed out to me that we both have a passion for puzzles.”

HONG KONG

Blood.

The blood was staining the floor and the rush mat where Jack Sen’s mother had been doing her prayer ritual.

Her throat had been cut.

Cameron gazed down at her and felt the anger begin to surge through him. She was white-haired, small and fragile. She had not had to die. She would have told what Kadmus wanted to know with very little torture.

Or perhaps she would have not told where her son had taken Erin and Catherine. Maternal protectiveness was an amazingly strong feeling. He had just encountered that particular emotion in Catherine.

At any rate, the sight of the old lady’s blood-soaked body filled him with rage. A waste of an innocent life. And he’d had a part of the ugliness that had been brought down on her. The innocent were often savaged by Kadmus, but Cameron’s not being permitted to kill the bastard had caused this particular atrocity. The domino effect had started and wouldn’t stop until Cameron halted it.

Banish the anger. Think. The old lady had not been dead long and consequently any information she’d told Kadmus or Brasden might not have been acted upon. The flight to San Francisco would not have landed yet. Damage control.

Don’t contact Catherine as his instincts told him to do. She would be angry, too, and it might lead her to act when he preferred her to hide until he could get to her.

Hu Chang.

Two minutes later, Cameron had made contact with him. “How long before you land?”

“Another hour. You are well, I trust? You left us in rather tumultuous circumstances.”

“I’m safe. But you may not be. I’m at the home of Jack Sen’s mother, and her throat’s been cut. The place has been ransacked. It’s reasonable to assume that she told Kadmus everything she knew. I don’t believe they would have killed her unless they were satisfied with the information she gave them. They would have toyed with her longer.”

“Sen lived with his mother?”

“Yes, and he wouldn’t have given her details, but he might have thought it safe to mention San Francisco.”

“Then we may expect a welcoming committee?”

“Possibly. Or they may not have had time to rally their troops. The flight is going to land at a private airport. The minute it hits the ground, get Catherine, Erin, and Luke off the plane before it taxis to a hangar. Run and keep on running until you leave the airport behind. Tell Sen to taxi to the hangar and stall for at least fifteen minutes before he opens the door. If he thinks any of Kadmus’s men are at the hangar, tell him to stay put and call the police. Sen was supposed to take you to a safe house, but scratch that. Do you know anyone in San Francisco who might be safe shelter for Erin?”

“I have a few acquaintances who might qualify.” He paused. “This is going to cause Catherine to be upset.”

“Tell me about it.”

“I believe it best that I not involve her until the last minute. Then she will only be concerned about saving Luke and Erin and not planning long-range.”

“Wise man.”

“That goes without saying. But that doesn’t take wisdom, only the knowledge of my Catherine.” His tone hardened. “I do not like the fact that Sen was vulnerable and that you’re having to scramble to keep Catherine safe. I thought better of you.”

“I don’t like it either. Sen has always been trustworthy before. He might have gotten careless.” He added wearily, “I suppose no one is trustworthy who has people he cares about.”