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“May I borrow your phone to call the hospital and check on him?”
“I thought about that earlier, but I’m afraid to call attention to him. What if one of the terrorists overhears the conversation and goes after him?”
“There must be some way to find out how he is, Rachelle. I’ll go crazy if I don’t know.”
“We’ll figure out something.” She understood Amy’s deep desire to check on Eric. If anything happened to her favorite coffee date, Rachelle would be frantic to learn about his condition.
Hearing Cal’s voice on the phone earlier had calmed the panic threatening to overwhelm her at the hospital. What she wouldn’t give to be in his arms.
She sighed. Nice thought. Wouldn’t happen, though. Despite frequent coffee dates, Cal Taylor hadn’t asked her for a real date. She probably wasn’t vivacious enough for an operative. Where many of the women the operatives dated or married were outgoing and the life of every party they attended, Rachelle’s personality was at the opposite end of the spectrum. She preferred meals at home and found parties stressful unless the people in attendance were good friends.
Since the handsome Navy SEAL hadn’t asked for a date after all these months, he likely wasn’t interested in her beyond friendship. A depressing thought. Cal had fascinated her from the first time she’d seen him outside Micah’s office.
On both sides of the hallway were several open doors. Rachelle and Amy checked each one, closing each door afterward, until they reached the last office, the one closest to the woods. Like the others, this office had a heavy wood desk pushed near the back wall.
Rachelle walked closer and studied the gap between the wall and desk. Although a tight fit, she and Amy should be able to hide from sight underneath the desk if all else failed.
Next, she unlocked the window and tried to lift it. The window slid up without resistance or, even more important, noise. “This is perfect. We’ll wait here for Fortress.”
“Fantastic.” Amy sank to the floor and leaned her back against the wall. “I might have cried if we had to walk further. My feet and legs are killing me. How long before your friends arrive?”
Rachelle checked the phone’s screen for the time. “Three hours at least. Once they land, they’ll have to figure out where we are and avoid terrorists on the way here.”
“Would your friend Cal be able to learn Eric’s condition?”
“If he can’t do it, he’ll know someone who can.” She brought up her contact list and touched Cal’s number.
He answered on the first ring. “Are you safe?”
Her eyes burned at his question and obvious concern. “For the moment.”
“Where are you?”
“I’m not sure exactly. We took a meandering path instead of a straight line away from the area.”
“Good. That’s exactly what you should have done. Were you followed?”
“I don’t think so. We used roads off the main drag, and no one seemed to pay attention to us.” She swallowed hard. “I’m sorry, Cal. I couldn’t keep track of the roads we walked.”
“It’s not a problem, Rachelle. We have a tracker on the sat phone. As long as you have the phone with you, we know exactly where you are. I was asking about your hiding place. What did you choose?”
She relaxed again. Thank goodness. If she’d had to give him an address or something, she and Amy would be in serious trouble. “An abandoned warehouse in the warehouse district. There must be 50 warehouses in this area, and the one we chose isn’t the only abandoned one in this section.”
“Perfect. Good job. Sit tight. We’re three hours out. All you have to do is stay hidden and quiet.”
“That’s the plan. Can you do me a favor?”
“Name it.”
“Can someone check on Eric’s condition? Amy’s worried.”
“Hold.” Cal’s voice became muffled as he spoke to someone, then he returned. “Jon will see what information he can dig up without alerting the wrong people.”
She frowned. “Jon Smith?”
“That’s right.”
“But he’s a sniper.”
