Page 65 of Shadowing You

Everything faded—the world outside the windows, even the man in the front seat—until all Ethan was aware of were Mei Lin’s palms on his skin and her lips against his.

His wife was the shy one, the one who’d always waited for him to lead. But she wasn’t shy right now, and her boldness was a drug he couldn’t get enough of. He pulled her closer and deepened the kiss, his body suddenly right back where it’d been at the hotel that morning.

Except it wasn’t the same. This wasn’t a starting something kiss. It was the opposite. Mei Lin was kissing him like it might be her last chance.

He was still processing that when she pushed away. He didn’t miss the sheen of tears in her eyes.

“I’ll see you soon.” She turned and reached for the door handle.

“Mei Lin.” He grabbed her hand.

She looked back.

“Be safe. Please.”

Her smile was small. “You too.”

She slid out of the car.

He watched her cross the sidewalk and disappear through the door to a tea shop. He couldn’t tear his eyes away from that door, praying she’d change her mind and come back. They could still stop this crazy thing. Get a flight out of Asia and figure out how to keep her safe once they were in North America.

Lord, protect her. Please, take care of her.

Minutes dragged by, each one feeling like forever, before a man stepped out of the tea shop and headed straight for the car. He had neatly cut white hair and enough wrinkles that Ethan guessed he was in his sixties, close to Gavin’s age. He wore slacks and a dark jacket and carried a leather messenger bag over his shoulder and a small shopping bag in his hand.

He opened the rear door and slid in beside Ethan. “Good afternoon, Dr. Winslow.” His English was clear as he held out his hand. “I’m Han.”

Winslow? That must be the name on the papers Michael had secured for him. Ethan shook his hand. “Thanks for being here.”

Han said something in Mandarin to the driver, who pulled away from the curb. The car merged into a line of traffic, scooters threading the gaps.

Han waited until they were rolling, then lowered his voice. “The engine noise should mask our conversation.” He shoved the shopping bag onto the floor between them. Ethan spied Mei Lin’s jacket on top. He assumed the rest of the clothes she’d changed out of were underneath it.

Han unzipped the messenger bag and handed Ethan a passport and leather wallet. “Give me yours.”

He traded his wallet and passport for the forgeries and studied them. The wallet was worn at the corners and filled with a driver’s license, a few credit cards, an insurance card, and a hospital ID, all in the name of David Winslow. The passport had Ethan’s face with the fake name and was even stamped on a few pages. Apparently, Dr. Winslow was a frequent traveler.

He had to admit, he was impressed.

Han put Ethan’s authentic papers into the messenger bag. “We will leave this in the car. The driver can be trusted to keep it safe, should anything go wrong.”

“Keep it safe where? I’ll need those papers to get out of China.”

“If something goes wrong, Michael will be able to track him down.” Han drew a small case out of his bag and snapped it open. A flesh-colored earpiece sat in foam. “In the right ear, please.”

Ethan worked it in.

Han handed him a little electronic…something about the size of a business card. “That goes in a pocket. Say something.”

Ethan slid the card into his front pocket. “Hello?”

“Got you.” Michael’s reply was as clear as if he were sitting in the front seat.

“How’s Mei Lin?”

“She’s good.” Michael acted like he did this every day. “You won’t be able to hear her, but she has the same setup you have. I’m listening to both of you. We’ve got a feed from the hospital’s exterior cameras and most of the interior. I’ll be watching for anything that looks like an alarm or an emergency call. If I tell you to go, you go. Don’t ask, don’t argue. Out the nearest door and back to the car. Got it?”

“I understand, but you need to understand something. Mei Lin is the priority. If anything goes wrong, you get her out first. Nothing else matters to me.”