A subtle look of shock crossed his face, and she realized the words had surprised him as much as her.

The words had stumbled out of Alex’s mouth before he’d had time to consider them. But they were true. He didn’t want his new friends to suffer. Especially from an incident he might have caused. He wasn’t guiding Besand’s hand, but the killer had definitely reacted to Alex’s presence; therefore, he’d put his friends in danger.

“We’re perfectly capable of hiking out of here when the weather clears. We don’t have to wait for someone to come find us.”

“I know that.” And he did. “It’s more…” He didn’t know how to say it.

Brynn cocked her head in a movement like Kiana. “You’re afraid you’ve brought us into Besand’s range of interest.”

He exhaled. She’d nailed it. “Yes.”

He’d seen firsthand the horrific pain Besand could inflict on a person holding his interest. He’d seen the autopsy photos and heard the descriptions directly from Besand’s mouth. He’d told the stories with a calm detachment that scared Alex more than the words themselves. Besand simply liked to hurt people. Alex was an anomaly for him. He could hurt Alex without touching him. Besand simply opened his mouth to speak and Alex felt pain.

He didn’t want that for Brynn. Besand would take his time with her, wrench as much pleasure from her physical pain as possible. Alex’s chest grew hot and his fingers clenched on his thighs. He remembered how the skin of her face had felt when he’d touched her that morning as she slept. If Alex had his way, Besand would never touch that silkiness.

Possessiveness landed on his back like iron weight.

“You can’t control what he does.”

“Yes, I can.”

Brynn jerked like the words had stung her. “You’d kill him.”

Alex looked at his hands; his knuckles were white as he squeezed them together. “I didn’t say that.” But he wasn’t saying he wouldn’t. He didn’t know what he was going to do. He didn’t know if they’d even cross paths. If they did, what would his gut tell him to do? He’d had satisfying dreams where he choked the life out of Besand, but a frail voice in his head told him it wouldn’t be the same in real life. Could he attack with intent to kill? On the offensive, not the defensive?

“You don’t sound like law enforcement.” There was a question in her words, and in her eyes he saw caution, a watchfulness. Like she would bolt if she didn’t care for his answer.

“I’m not.” He held her gaze. Don’t run from me.

She nodded slowly, prudence still on her face. She was reserving judgment. For now. “Jim let something slip. And Ryan got a confusing message from base camp. Collins said that you weren’t a marshal. We didn’t know what to think.” Her voice dropped into a whisper. “We didn’t want to believe it.”

She’d said “we,” but he knew she meant “I.”

“I was. I was a deputy marshal for fifteen years. I walked away from it.”

“Why?”

Meaningless words pushed at his lips, but he bit them back. She didn’t need the story softened. She deserved the truth. “I assaulted my boss about a year ago. It was more of an accident really, but I hurt him pretty bad. I’m lucky he didn’t press charges.”

Brynn blinked a few times and sat a little straighter, but she didn’t look too surprised and that disturbed him. Did he seem like someone who would hurt his boss?

“They fired me, but I’d already decided to never go back,” he clarified.

“Why did you attack your boss?” Her voice was quieter but not upset. She didn’t speak to him like he was the stinking liar he had been since meeting her. She sounded simply curious and her gaze raked his face, searching for something.

Alex tried to swallow. No more lies. Not with her. “Because he was giving Darrin Besand preferential treatment. Not handling him the way a killer should be handled. We’d moved the guy several times. Besand was facing charges in several states for his murders, and my boss would transport him like he was a ninety-eight-pound accountant with sticky fingers. Like he’d wanted the guy to be able to bust out. One time Besand attacked the marshal escorting him and he would’ve escaped if the pilot hadn’t taken him down. The pilot and plane were a private lease, like this one. We were lucky the pilot was a big physical guy with a military background.”

“Didn’t your boss believe Besand was dangerous?”

Alex paused. “That’s what I thought at first.”

“But?”

“I don’t know.” He turned in his chair to look deliberately back at Ryan again. Alex was done with the topic. He didn’t want to voice his thoughts on Besand and Paul Whittenhall. He had no proof, just hearsay. And his own gut reaction.

Brynn sat silently for a long moment, still watching him with sharp eyes. “Ryan said you guarded federal judges.”

“I did. Then I moved into prisoner transport.”

The silence stretched between them. Alex’s mind whirled as she waited for him to explain why he’d switched. This had been one of Monica’s biggest complaints. He hadn’t talked to her. He’d answer her questions, but he’d never let her know what he was feeling.

Brynn didn’t want to know how he felt, he told himself. She was simply making conversation, finding out about the person she’d been in the wilderness with for the last three days.