Page 71

Mick

I stare at the tiny memory card in my hand, the weight of it heavy for what it might contain. Evidence. Leverage. Maybe a way to keep her out of jail?

Carefully, I wrap it in the plastic she gave me and slide it into the slot behind my DOD ID. Not the most secure place, but it’ll do for now.

Samantha watches every movement like she expects me to change my mind. Like trust is a door she’s bracing to have slammed in her face.

“You need a better spot for that,” she mutters, worrying her bottom lip. “Wallets get lifted all the time.”

I glance up, something twisting in my gut. “This is what you were talking about before? You were telling the truth.”

She shrugs, her voice low as she meets my gaze. “Guess you weren’t ready to believe that was even possible.”

She’s right. I wasn’t. Not then.

I smile anyway, climb out of the car, and fall into step beside her as we head toward an antsy Jake. “Luke’s meeting us at a taco shack. He brought a change of clothes for you.”

Samantha groans. “No thanks. I like what I’m wearing just fine.”

Jake casts a glance over his shoulder. “So do I, but we want you to blend in, not stand out.”

Samantha flicks her hair over her shoulder, thankfully conceding. “Fair point, but it better not be a city worker’s coveralls.”

Jake turns back to the front. “We have three minutes to get there, or we’ll have to find another meeting spot.”

I climb into the back again, grimacing at the smell of vape fumes and dodging the empty cans of energy drinks. The way Jake drives, it’s probably safer, and I don’t want Samantha thinking she’s alone, not when I’m finally making progress with her.

“Is he still driving the truck?”

Jake snags the docket for the payment slip and starts the engine, gunning it before Samantha and I have buckled in. “Yeah. But he’ll ditch it ASAP. Said he’s already getting grief. Some guy asked him to take a look at his mom’s drainage problem.”

Samantha snorts a laugh, and despite the knot of worry still tightening in my chest for Brooke, I have to fight a smile as we walk out.

Once again, Jake drives like a maniac, but this time, and in this car, it probably makes sense to do so. The only downside is that this is probably the worst car for drawing therealcops’ attention. If we get stopped, it’ll be a game-ender.

As Jake navigates the streets, using GPS and an uncanny knack for shortcuts that actually work, by some small miracle we make it unscathed to a tiny taco truck with tables outside and a dozen other parked trucks.

While the vehicle Samantha chose is noisy—and thanks to the modifications, we’re easily visible—Luke isn’t easy to spot, and I get the feeling that’s just how he likes it. When I do locate him sitting alone at a table, he’s on his phone, talking, with a soda and a half-eaten taco beside him.

As we rumble into the lot, he glances up but immediately returns to his phone call, picking up his taco and taking a bite. Jake hops out, and after a quick scan of the lot, I encourage Samantha to join me as I do the same.

“I’ll go order. Grab the table next to Luke’s. Sit facing him, but don’t look at him when you talk,” Jake says.

“Wow,” Samantha says under her breath.

With my eyes on Luke, who is skillfully ignoring our presence, I guide Samantha to the table and sit as Jake directed.

Alongside us, Luke laughs into his phone, belying the seriousness of what comes out of his mouth. “Silas is en route. I’ll stay to coordinate with Caleb, you and Jake will meet him at the airport.”

I start to turn, ready to ask him a follow-up question, when Samantha reaches over the sticky table and grabs my hands, smiling as if she didn’t hear what he said.

She squeezes hard. “Where’s my change of clothes?”

It takes me a millisecond to recognize that she’s not addressing me but Luke, who doesn’t miss a beat. “In a bag under my seat. Get changed immediately.”

Following their lead, I smile back at Samantha, trying to speak through the smile. “Did Caleb lose them?”

When I hear the crunch of his taco shell and someone walks past our table, coughing, all my muscles tense and I hold my breath.