Page 36 of Shadows Relived
The SUV roared down the dirt road, the cabin fading in the rearview mirror.
She didn’t look back.
CHAPTER 14
THE SUV’STIRES HUMMED along the two-lane blacktop, a rhythm that might’ve lulled Callen to sleep if not for the white-hot pain pulsing from his side. He leaned heavily against the passenger door, one hand pressing the jacket Meaghan had folded into a makeshift pressure pad. Blood had dried beneath his shirt, stiff and sticky, and every bump in the road shot fire through his ribs.
Meaghan flicked her eyes toward him every few seconds, checking on him. She seemed to always check on him. Her knuckles were white on the wheel, and her shoulders stiff with tension.
“You still with me?” she asked, her voice threaded with worry.
“Don’t worry,” he rasped, trying to summon a smirk. It ended in a grimace, however. “You’re not getting rid of me that easily. I’ll make it. Just give me a moment to catch my breath, and then I’ll call Blaze.”
They’d left the woods behind half an hour ago,winding down forgotten forestry roads until the pines thinned and the signs of civilization returned. Meaghan drove with a fury that came from nearly losing everything that fueled her.
As soon as he thought he could concentrate without passing out, Callen sat up straighter in the front seat and pulled out his phone, bringing up Blaze’s contact and praying he was around.
Blaze picked up on the first ring. “You’re alive. Good start. I thought for sure the lady you went after would have done you in by now. Or perhaps the kids. How’s it going?”
Callen’s breath came short and uneven. “Like shit. I need a new safe house. Somewhere off-grid, or at least way out of sight. People found us. And I need someone to get these kids quietly back to their families.” He gave the other man their location, telling him they were heading west.
A pause, then Blaze’s voice sharpened. “You all right? You sound like you’re gargling gravel.”
Callen shifted in the seat, biting back a groan. “We got ambushed at the cabin. Shots were fired, and I took one in the side. I’m still upright, though. Meaghan patched me enough to get us the hell out of there and now we need a place to hole up.”
“Jesus, dude,” Blaze hissed. “How the hell did they find you?”
Callen scoffed. “A fish game on an iPad did us in.”
“Shit. How bad is it?”
“Just a graze,” Callen lied automatically, though hisshirt was tacky with blood and every bump in the road made his vision flicker.
In the driver’s seat, Meaghan shot him a glare, her knuckles white around the wheel. “Graze, my ass,” she muttered. “Tell him the truth.”
Blaze didn’t buy it either. “I think it’s time to call in the troops, dude. Elvis and Gage are on standby. Dane sent them in that direction when we heard about the school shooting. I’ll ping their locations and get them headed your way. I’ll see who he wants to send for the kids, but I’m guessing you’re going to need a couple of extra firearms with you until this is over. I know Hawk and Grim are available.”
“Smart idea. This thing’s turned into something bigger than I expected.” Callen’s voice dropped, gravel-thick. “Get us somewhere safe first. I’ll get proper stitches when I’m in something that doesn’t bounce with every dip in the road.”
“You got it,” Blaze said, his tone gone deadly serious now. “And if you die and leave me to deal with this circus solo, I’m kicking your ass in the afterlife.”
Callen managed a thin, pained chuckle. “You can try.”
“Okay,” Blaze said, voice tightening with concern. “Give me fifteen minutes. I’ll find a place. Just stay on 10, heading west.”
Callen exhaled and let his head fall back against the seat. Outside, the roads stretched toward the edge of a small town. Familiar. Quiet. A place no one would think to look. I-10 was one of the most boring stretches of interstate he had ever traveled, which was good. Right then, he neededboring.
Blaze called back sooner than expected. “I got you something in Live Oak. A motel off Highway 90 called the Cypress Breeze Inn. It’s not much. Two-bed room under the name ‘Tomlin.’ But you can check in with the app I just sent to your phone, so no front desk where someone will see your face or where you might get recorded. Just use the code I’m texting and sit still until the cavalry arrives.”
“I appreciate it, Blaze.”
“I also called Dane. He’s sending Abbie and Sage to help get the kids back to their parents, and we rerouted Gage and Elvis to the motel to meet you. I’ve already booked them rooms next to yours, just in case.” He heard the younger man take a deep breath. “So, some serious players, huh? You reach out to the senator yet?”
“I haven’t, but his daughter pretty much told him to go to hell, I think.”
“Well, just watch your six until the others get there.”
His stomach clenched. “That’s the plan.”
