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were about a million miles away."
    She was tempted to tell him she'd been farther away than miles could ever measure, but instead said,
    "Daydreaming, that's all." And immediately went on the defensive. "What are you doing out here?"
    "I was out riding and heard something," he said, not apologizing for riding on Gallagher land rather than his own considerable spread. He seemed to realize for the first time that he was holding her wrists and abruptly released them.
    "Heard what?" Nell asked, more rattled than she wanted to admit to either of them. She absently massaged her wrists as she noted the presence of a big, muscled bay gelding standing patiently ground-tied a few yards away.
    "You. You cried out."
    "What did I cry out?" she asked, reluctant but needing to know.
    "No. You said it a couple more times before I got to you, then went silent. Daydreaming? Don't give me that bullshit, Nell. You sounded like something or someone was hurting you, and you were white as a sheet. Still white, if it comes to that."
    Choosing her words carefully, Nell said, "I have very… vivid… daydreams. But, as you can see, no one is hurting me. No one is bothering me. I'm perfectly all right. I appreciate your concern, but I'm fine."
    "Are you? What about that?" He indicated the Band-Aid above her right eyebrow.
    Nell shrugged. "I'm not… reacquainted with the house yet, and a cabinet door caught me when I wasn't looking. It's just a scratch."
    Max wasn't frowning now, but his gaze was disconcertingly steady. "It's still happening, isn't it?"
    "I don't know what you mean."
    "The blackouts. You blacked out, that's how you hurt yourself."
    She almost denied it but finally shrugged again and made her voice wryly dismissive. "We all have something. I pass out from time to time, that's all."
    "Did you ever find out what causes it?"
    "Stress, the doctors say. I guess coming back here was more stressful than I realized."
    "Is that what happened here, just now?" But he shook his head before she could respond, and answered himself. "No, you weren't unconscious. Your eyes were wide open. But your pupils were dilated, and I got the feeling… you were somewhere else."
    "Obviously I wasn't somewhere else. I was right here." Nell wasn't entirely sure why she was clinging stubbornly to the fiction that everything was fine— and normal—with her. Depending on how much he remembered, Max knew things about her that no one else in Silence knew. But as long as he didn't admit to the knowledge, she wasn't about to remind him.
    He half nodded as though expecting the denial, but said, "Yeah, you were here. Why, Nell? With everything you have to do at the house, what brought you out here?"
    "I wanted to go for a walk, that's all." Again, she went on the defensive. "What's with you, Max? This is still Gallagher land, and I'm perfectly entitled to walk on it. I haven't sold out to you yet."
    His mouth tightened. "In case you've forgotten what Shelby told you yesterday, people have been dying around here lately. It's not especially safe for you to wander around out in the woods by yourself."
    "Men have been dying, according to you and Shelby. Not women."
    "So far. But there's no reason to push your luck, Nell."
    "I can take care of myself."
    "Can you?" He laughed shortly. "You were oblivious when I got here. Anyone could have walked up and— done anything at all to you."
    "I'm fine, and I can take care of myself," she insisted, and took a step back away from him to emphasize that independence. "Don't let me keep you from your ride, Max."
    For a moment, it seemed he would argue with her, but then he muttered a curse under his breath and went to remount his horse. He gathered up the reins and turned the horse back toward his own property but paused to deliver a last, flat warning before riding away.
    "Be careful, Nell. Whoever killed those men seems to want to get secrets out in the open. And we both know you have plenty of secrets to protect."
    She didn't move or