Page 11 of Shadows Relived
This was about survival.
The trees parted at last, revealing a clearing roughly the size of a football field. There, half-sunk into the curve of a hill and nestled among tall grass and wild azaleas, sat the cabin.
A dark log structure with faded green shutters and a rust-colored tin roof, it looked like it had grown from the land itself. Ivy crawled up one side, and the wraparound porch sagged in the middle, but the place was solid. Sturdy. Quiet.
Safe.
He cut the engine, letting the silence swallow them. “We’re here,” he announced, unbuckling his seatbelt. “Nobody get out yet, though. I want to take a look around first.”
He stepped out into the warm, earthy scent of pine and sun-dried leaves, scanning the perimeter first. His boots sank slightly into damp moss as he moved, eyes sweeping treelines, brush, shadows. He reached for the Glock holstered at his side and kept it low, just in case. Every bird call and distant squirrel scuffle sharpened his nerves.
The porch steps creaked under his weight as he tested the cabin door. Locked, as it should be. He keyed in the code his father had created when they first put in the special lock and heard the internal click of security bolts disengaging. A quick sweep inside confirmed what he already knew: it was clear.
Two bedrooms. One bath. A kitchenette with a wood stove and a fireplace in the main room. Bunk beds in the side room, and a full-size bed in the other. He would need to get food eventually, but he knew there was enough non-perishables to last for the night, having just been up there within the last month. More if he stretched it. Good enough for now.
When he returned to the car, Meaghan had already opened the back door and was reaching for Sophie, who was sobbing into her knees.
“You’re okay now,” she whispered to the girl, smoothing her hair. “I’ve got you. You’re safe.”
Callen crouched down and offered Lucas ahand out of the car. “Come on, soldier. Let’s get you somewhere with cookies and pillows.”
Lucas hesitated, then took his hand with a scowl. “I’m not a baby.”
“Didn’t say you were. Just think you’ll like this place, is all.”
Willie climbed out without help, his face pale but curious. “Is this like… a ranger house? You know, like a forest ranger?”
Callen chuckled, thinking how close the kid was. “Kind of. Only cooler. You’ll see.”
The children rushed ahead toward the porch, Sophie clinging tightly to Meaghan’s hand while Lucas and Willie clomped up the steps behind her. Callen stayed back, watching the woods for another long moment before following them in.
Once inside, the kids gravitated toward the couch like leaves to shelter. Sophie curled up in the corner, arms wrapped around a throw pillow. Lucas stared out the window, arms crossed, jaw clenched like he wanted to punch something but didn’t know what. Willie poked curiously at a bear figurine carved from driftwood near the fireplace.
“I’ll start a fire,” Callen said, looking away from the small kids, needing something tangible to do. “It’ll warm up fast.”
Meaghan dropped to her knees beside the children, murmuring softly, brushing back their hair as she checked for signs of delayed trauma. She was good with them, better than anyone he’d ever seen. Protective, steady, calming in a way that even he couldn’t quite match. Andfor all her fury and frustration and damn stubbornness… she was keeping it together. For them.
Once the fire crackled to life, casting flickering amber light across the wooden floors, Callen turned to find her searching for something, scanning the tables, the walls, frustration pinching her brow.
“What are you looking for?”
She slammed her hands to her hips. “A phone. You threw mine out the window, remember? I need to call their parents.” Her voice came out clipped, tight. “They need to know their children are safe.”
He stepped forward, wishing he didn’t have to tell her what he was about to tell her. “The whole point of being out here is to get away from people. We never installed a phone, and cell signal is almost non-existent for most services, even mine.”
She whipped around to look at him, dark eyes sparking. “That’s unacceptable, Callen. I need to get word to their folks. They have to be scared out of their minds.”
He shrugged as he moved to the kitchen to start some coffee. And search for some leftover whiskey. He really needed a drink.
“Be that as it may, there’s no normal way to call out,” he told her. “Besides, by now they might know the kids are with us and have their phones tapped. Calling their parents would leave us vulnerable.”
“I don’t care,” she snapped, her voice a harsh whisper as she glanced to the kids, making sure they weren’t listening to her. “You can’t expect us to keep them in the dark about their kids.”
He pulled out a highball glass and opened acouple of cabinets until he found a small bottle of scotch. It was only half-filled, but it was better than nothing. “I didn’t say that. However, I can reach out to Blaze through my satellite phone and have him reach out to their parents. He’s our tech guy.” He turned to her, glass in one hand, scotch in the other. “See, nice and safe. Then he can figure out how to get the kids back with their folks without risking our hides.”
She looked like she might throw something at him, and he was glad there wasn’t anything within her reach. Instead, she closed her eyes, jaw clenched tight enough to crack enamel. Then she dropped into one of the kitchen chairs, the fight leaving her in one long exhale.
“This is insane,” she hissed. “This is absolutely insane. My father…” She stopped herself, shaking her head. “What did he do to bring this…” She glanced at the kids and then lowered her voice. “Shit to my doorstep.”
