Page 35 of Shadows Relived
He moved like a ghost, and Meaghan held her breath, pulling the kids tight behind a fallen tree, whispering calming words she didn’t quite believe herself. She heard nothing for a long stretch of minutes, which felt like hours. Then—a thud. A groan. A muffled shout.
Another long moment.
Then Callen reappeared, his shirt bloodier, but his expression grimly satisfied.
“It’s clear. Let’s move.”
She didn’t ask because she didn’t want to know. She simply picked up Sophie, took Willie’s hand, and hustled across the clearing. Lucas ran beside her, sneakers kicking up dust.
Callen moved stiffly, his limp more pronounced now, but he still led the way to the SUV parked behind the cabin.
“Get them in the back seat. Seatbelts on. Now.”
They scrambled in as Meaghan glanced at him. “You’re not driving.”
“No argument here.”
She hesitated for a moment, glancing back toward where Callen had disappeared. “Is he dead?”
“No, but he won’t follow us for quite a while.”
“What if there are more?”
“Then we better hurry.”
They loaded into the SUV in a rush. She got the kids buckled while Callen collapsed into the passenger seat. She started the engine and tore down the dirt path like hell was still on their heels.
“Keep your heads down, kids,” she ordered as she left the cabin behind.
Callen groaned as he leaned against the door, one hand pressed to his side.
“Don’t you pass out on me,” she snapped.
“Wasn’t planning on it.”
“You look like death, you know. We should get you to a hospital.”
“Feel like death, And it’s not safe. These people wouldn’t think of a hospital as off limits.
“Where do we go now then?” she asked barely above a whisper.
Callen didn’t answer at first. His jaw was tight, eyes scanning the mirror. “We find another safe house. I’ll call Blaze. See what he can dig up for us and tell him to send someone for the kids. But first… we get far away from here.”
She glanced over at him, this man who had come back into her life only to bleed for her. Protect her. Carry her through the fire.
Her heart ached.
Because she had no idea what came next.
And for the first time since this all began, that terrified her more than the gunfireever did.
The kids were silent in the backseat. Not asleep, but too exhausted to do anything else.
She gripped the wheel tighter, her arms shaking. Everything was falling apart, and she didn’t know what came next.
But she knew one thing: she wasn’t letting Callen die. Not after he’d come back into her life. Not after he’d bled to protect her and her students.
Not after that kiss.
