Page 29 of Shadows Relived
Faint and tinny. Robotic.
“Dude, no! You can’t skip levels!”
It was Lucas’s voice, followed by a high-pitched laugh from Willie and a squeal from Sophie. Meaghan had taken them to the back room to color, leaving Callen to stew in his own thoughts while he tried, and failed, to relax.
But that sound didn’t come from crayons or sketch pads.
He eased around, the blade in his hand forgotten. That voice…
It was coming from a speaker.
From a table.
He strode toward the back hallway, his boots thudding heavier with each step. The laughter paused as he reached the doorway, and there it was. Lucas hunched on the floor with something in his hands.
A sleek, black iPad.
He played some sort of kid game, the screen bright with colorful creatures hopping around like hyperactive jellybeans.
Callen’s gut turned to stone.
Lucas stood frozen, small hands clutching his iPad like it had transformed into a live grenade as he stared up at Callen. “What?”
Callen took one look at the screen and saw it: the tiny icon in the top right corner. 4G. And four glowing bars.
His pulse stuttered. “Where the hell did that come from?” His voice was too sharp. Too loud. The kids all flinched, backing away slightly.
“Ummmmmm, you said a bad word,” Willie said. “Miss Harrington doesn’t like those words.”
He turned to ignore Willie, snatching the iPad from Lucas’s grip. “How long have you been playing on this?”
“Since breakfast,” the little boy said, his lips downturning in a pout. “It was in my backpack. I just wanted to play the fish game. My dad put it on his plan. Says it keeps me quiet. Wasn’t I being quiet?”
“Willie’s right. Miss Harrington doesn’t like bad words.” Meaghan entered from the hallway,drying her hands on a towel, eyes narrowing at Callen’s tone. “What’s wrong?”
Callen closed the game and checked the settings, the network ID. His gut twisted into a solid knot. It wasn’t Wi-Fi. The damn thing had data, probably still pulling from the family’s phone plan.
“It’s pinging cell towers,” Callen muttered, too quiet for the kids to hear. He looked up, guilt already flaring. “I didn’t think to check their damn electronics because I don’t even get signal here. Should’ve stripped the bags the second we got here, but hell, I don’t even have signal out here. How the hell does he?”
Meaghan went pale. “You think someone could find us with that thing?”
“I think someone already has.” He glanced up at her. “I’m sure by now, whoever is after you, knows the kids who are with you as well. I’m sure it was all over the news. All they had to do was get a glimpse of us running away, and they’d have something to work with. They would’ve been tracking them just in case we didn’t leave them behind.”
Lucas’s lower lip quivered. “I didn’t mean to cause trouble,” he whispered, eyes filling. “I always bring it to school. It was in my bag.”
Callen crouched down, suddenly aware of how massive he must seem. He softened his voice. “Hey, bud. This isn’t you fault. You didn’t know, and I should’ve checked the bags. But we’ve got to move now, okay? Like a fire drill. Fast and quiet. I’m going to need you to help Miss Harrington. Can you do that?”
Lucas nodded, tears welling but holding firm. “I—I didn’t mean to mess up.”
Meaghan swooped in immediately, pulling the little boy close. “You didn’t. It’s not your fault, sweetheart. Mr. Callen already told you that.”
Callen turned away, ashamed at the flare of anger still burning in his chest. Not at the kid. He could never be angry at the kid for something that wasn’t his fault. No, he was angry at himself. At how stupid he’d been not to think about traceable devices, even with children so young. What the hell kind of operator was he now?
Callen powered the iPad off, fingers tight around the frame like he might snap it in half, and shoved it deep into his tactical vest, dead and harmless now, but it made his skin crawl just knowing they’d been that exposed. “Meaghan, grab the bags. Food. First aid. I’ll grab some weapons. Whatever we don’t want left behind. It’s time to move.”
Meaghan lifted her head, her jaw tight. “How long?”
Callen already had the satellite phone out, sending a quick coded message to Blaze.
