Page 158 of Override

I don't know if I'm trying to reassure her...or myself.

The trees finally begin to thin, the dense wall of pines giving way to the narrow clearing where I'd left the SUV tucked beneath the canopy. Relief unwinds something tight in my chest as the familiar outline comes into view exactly where I'd left it. No headlights. No waiting security team. Just my vehicle hidden well enough that anyone driving past would never know it was there.

I don't stop moving until we're completely around the back side of the clearing. Habit forces me to scan the road one last time before stepping into the open, my gaze lingering just long enough to convince myself we hadn't been followed.

Nothing. For now... Nothing.

I round the front of the SUV, fishing my phone from my pocket while unlocking the passenger's door. The screen is still littered with missed calls from Matt, Rachel, and Wheels, but I ignore every one of them and tap the only person who'll understand exactly what I need.

Bullet answers before the first ring finishes. "I'm twenty minutes out."

No greeting. No questions. Just the assumption that I'm somewhere in the woods needing backup.

I pull the passenger door open before answering. "I don't need you."

There's a beat of silence. "...You sure about that?"

"I have her." I let go of Maeve’s hand to move some of the items off the passenger seat. For some reason my brain can’t figure out why I have the need to grab ahold of it again.

Another pause. Short. Heavy. "You got her out?"

"I did." I glance toward Maeve.

She's standing exactly where I'd left her, chest still rising and falling from the run. Her eyes move between me and the phone pressed against my ear, trying to piece together a conversation she can only hear half of.

I hold out my hand.

She doesn't hesitate this time. Her fingers slide into mine, and I help her into the passenger seat, steadying her as she gathers the skirt of her dress and ducks beneath the doorframe. She settles onto the seat with a quiet exhale, her eyes lifting to mine for just a second before I gently close the door.

My heart is still hammering against my ribs. I have extracted people from active war zones with a steadier pulse than this.

"I need your cabin," I say as I round the hood.

Silence. "...My cabin?"

"The safe house."

Another pause.

"I don't have a safe house."

I can't help the corner of my mouth lifting. "Bullet."

"What?"

"I've seen the satellite imagery."

A long sigh crackles through the speaker. "...You've got to be kidding me."

"I wish I was."

"How long?"

"A couple years."

"You've known about it for years?"

"I like maps."