Page 26 of Brave Horizons (Barrington Billionaires #19)
TOPEKA
The night had been different, almost sacred.
It was as if they all knew their time together was drawing to a close, and every moment had to be savored.
Conversations had been deeper, laughter a little louder, and even the silences were filled with unspoken understanding.
They were more than a group of people thrown together by circumstance; they had become a family of sorts.
At dawn, they packed up camp and made their way to the foot of the mountain. The sky was painted in hues of orange and pink, the promise of a new day overshadowed by the imminent goodbyes.
Topeka’s heart ached as they descended. The terrain was rugged, and each step brought them closer to the end of this chapter.
As they reached the clearing, she saw the security team waiting in two vehicles.
Her stomach dropped. She knew what this meant: one for her and one for Russ.
They’d likely be taken in two opposite directions .
The vehicles were sleek and unmarked, the kind that didn’t draw attention but were equipped for anything. The head of the security team, a tall man with a stern but kind face, stepped forward.
“Topeka?” he asked, his eyes meeting hers.
She nodded, feeling a lump form in her throat.
Sensing her unease, he flashed a smile. “My name is Blake. I’ll be annoying you for the foreseeable future with rules and regulations you won’t want to follow.
Your chariot awaits. We’ll make it a smooth ride, I promise. ”
Russ approached her, his expression layered with remorse. “Topeka, I’m sorry again for getting you into this. If I’d known?—”
She cut him off, shaking her head. “Russ, I have no regrets. I wouldn’t change anything.”
Alex, trying to lighten the mood, chimed in with a grin. “Everything happens for a reason, right?” It harkened back to their last deep conversation and she couldn’t help but giggle a bit.
Hillary, holding a stack of documents and the information she’d gathered, approached Blake. She handed everything over, her arms trembling slightly. “Here’s everything,” she said, her voice steady but tinged with fatigue. “It’s all in order and should be exactly how it was requested.”
Blake took the documents and nodded approvingly. “Your job is done now,” he said, his tone respectful. “Considering you’re not technically an employee, how did you like the work? ”
Hillary shrugged and shook her head. “I’m not sure exactly what I think of it yet. It’s been... intense.”
With hardly a chuckle, he agreed. “That’s an understatement. You did well. All of you did.”
Topeka turned to Russ, her eyes brimming with unshed tears. “Stay safe, okay?”
Russ hugged her tightly. “You too. I’ll see you on the other side of this, somehow.”
“You’re in that vehicle, sir,” he said to Russ, pointing at the other SUV. “And I’ve been told you’re assigned as her detail,” Blake said to Alex. “You’re in this until the end I hear?”
“You hear right,” Alex said, straightening up. He looked relieved not to have to argue his way into the car and by Topeka’s side for the long haul.
Blake took some of the bags and gestured to Hillary. “Ma’am you can hop in too and we’ll meet up with someone who can get you back home.”
“So Russ is going on his own?” she asked, looking at the other SUV like it was the electric chair. Something so final and lonely.
“Yes ma’am. He’ll be taken to a different location. I know that can be a lot to process and it can feel like there is no end in sight but these things do resolve.”
“I want to go with him,” Hillary said definitively. “I’ll ride with Russ.”
“He’s not going in the direction of your home,” Blake explained apologetically. “Logically it won’t work.”
“No, I want to go wherever he’s going. I’ll stay on and I can be a legal asset as needed. You’re going to be doing an enormous amount of litigation in these cases. He’ll need to be prepped to testify. I can do all that.”
“Oh, ma’am, that’s way above my paygrade as far as decisions go. I’d have to make a call.”
Russ waved his hands in the air. “You don’t want that, Hillary.
This is going to take ages. I’m not going to be in some five-star hotel.
Not to mention the danger is far from over.
Once Topeka makes that newscast, it’s going to amplify the search for me.
I’m the corroborating witness. My head will be on the chopping block and you don’t need to be there with me. ”
“It’s not fair that you have to go on alone,” she pressed. “You’re right, this is going to be even worse soon. That’s more of a reason to have people around who you...” she trailed off for a second. “people who you know.”
Blake stepped away for a moment, his phone to his ear.
“They aren’t going to let you do this,” Russ said, looking like he was disappointed by this fact. “You don’t work for them. It’s more risk than they’re willing to take on and?—”
“They said it’s your call,” Blake interrupted. “If you want to go with Russ to his next location and be legal counsel, they’re approving it.”
“They are?” Russ asked, looking puzzled. “And you seriously want to come? What if I end up in a yurt in the Arctic or something?”
Blake cleared his throat. “A yurt wouldn’t be properly insulated to stand up in the Arctic. We wouldn’t do that. ”
“You know what I mean,” he said, never taking his eyes off Hillary. “There are literally no guarantees after this point. If you’re just worried about me being alone, I’ll be fine.”
“I’m coming with you,” she asserted. “I had no idea what I was getting into when I started this, but now I’m not getting out until its done.”
Blake clapped his hands together. “We’ve got to get on the road folks. Final goodbyes and then we’re off.”
They all exchanged hugs and Topeka took some comfort in knowing Russ wouldn’t be alone.
Before Russ stepped in the SUV he gave Topeka one more piece of advice. “Give him hell on that news segment. Lay it all out there.”
She couldn’t imagine standing in front of the world and telling everyone that her father was evil.
All this time she’d wanted him stopped. Hoped he’d be held accountable.
However, she never thought she’d be the one exposing him to the world.
But the thing she had to remember was he started this.
It was up to her to bring it to a close.