“I’ve had experience with people with psychic abilities,” he said calmly. “The bleeds seem to occur when the psychic is concentrating very hard on an object or mental thread. It can be overwhelming. Sometimes it can seriously harm them.”

She shivered, her arms going around her body in a measure of self-protection. He nearly drew her back into his arms, like she’d been before, but he forced himself to maintain a professional distance. Chill bumps danced over her skin either from shock or worse. With the mental strain she’d undergone, her brain might be temporarily unable to regulate her body temperature. It firmed his resolve that as soon as they had her safely tucked away he was going to have her thoroughly checked out by a physician he trusted. One who had experience with psychic bleeds.

“I’ve never used my powers like that,” she admitted. “I had no idea if I could do something of that magnitude. In the past I’ve floated objects. Small things. My parents said that from the time I was an infant I would summon my two favorite stuffed animals to my crib. It freaked my mother out until they realized it was me doing it and not someone in the room with me without their knowledge. I was told never to use my powers and so I didn’t. It’s been years. And then the incident at the school. I didn’t think about it. It just came naturally. Automatic almost, as though I’d been using and honing my skills my entire life. And just now. Did you see those cars flip?”

There was incredulity in her question as if she didn’t quite believe it herself.

Beau nodded. “Indeed I did. Very impressive.”

“I had no idea,” she said in a grave tone. “I have to find a way to control it now that it seems to come so naturally to me. I don’t want to hurt someone or, God forbid, kill someone by using my powers.”

Beau tucked his hand underneath her chin and turned her face so she looked him in the eye. “You’ll get it under control. What you did today seemed very controlled to me. You didn’t blow up anything. You just made it so they were incapacitated.”

Her face wrinkled in silent question. Then she flashed those mesmerizing eyes as she looked up at him.

“Do you think I could blow something up? I mean if I pictured it in my mind?”

Beau was hesitant to answer. Ari on a mission could be a serious wild card and impossible for DSS to do their jobs if she chose to go out on her own, confident in her ability to do anything. And maybe she could. But he’d be damned if she went after the bastards who held her parents alone.

“Is that how you caused them to flip and crash?” he asked calmly. “By picturing it in your mind?”

She slowly nodded. “It was hard, because I had to hold the image and focus solely on it. I couldn’t allow any distraction; otherwise I wouldn’t have been able to flip the car like I did. I haven’t practiced, haven’t used my powers since I was a child. So I’m not entirely certain what I’m capable of. Simply because I’ve never had the chance to measure my abilities in a controlled environment.”

“I’d say you’re pretty damn powerful, especially for someone who has barely used her talents and only when you were a child. I’m thinking if you practice any more then the world had better watch out.”

He said the last with a quirk of his mouth, a hint of a smile hovering on his lips.

“You forget I saved our asses,” she said tartly.

“Yes, you did, and I certainly thank you for it, but in the future, if you ever pull a stunt like that again, I’ll spank your ass and tie you to a chair so you can’t go anywhere. And I’ll make damn sure that there is nothing in the room for you to use to free yourself. Are we clear?”

She blinked in surprise. “Why on earth would you want me not to use telekinesis when we rescue my parents?”

He took note of the fact that she said when, not if, they rescued her parents. While he wanted her to have hope, at the same time he didn’t think he could bear her grief were she to discover they were already dead. It was obvious that she was extremely close to her parents and that they, in turn, loved her just as much.

“There is no we. I don’t want you involved, Ari,” he said bluntly. “Your father sent you to me for a reason. Because we’re the best at what we do. You’d be a liability because our focus would be split between protecting you and ensuring they don’t get their hands on you and rescuing your parents. Trust me to do my job and be patient. We—meaning me and my men—will find them.”

Relief was stark in her eyes, as if she’d shouldered a heavy burden for some time and now found it suddenly lifted.

“I believe you,” she said honestly. “And yes, I’ll stay out of your way unless you fail to find them soon. Then we do it my way and I turn myself over to them for the safe return of my mother and father. That’s all I can and am willing to promise.”

TWELVE

AFTER the initial surge of adrenaline wore off, pain snaked through Ari’s head and her side where the bullet had grazed her. She clenched her jaw, determined not to make a sound or allow Beau to know how much pain she was in. He had his own injuries from the wreck and the last thing he needed was to have to babysit and coddle her.

She’d been pampered, catered to and sheltered her entire life and it was time to take control of her own destiny, be proactive and grow a spine. It was time to become the independent woman she’d planned to become when she’d taken the first step in her bid to remove herself from the bubble her parents had surrounded her with, by taking a teaching job.