Page 22 of Deadly Force

She laughs lightly. “Boring, huh?”

Even though she can’t see me, I shake my head. “Not at all. Water management is essential. Even more so in Arizona.”

“Yeah. I guess.”

She sounds so despondent I wish I could say something to cheer her up, but I can’t think of anything that won’t sound glib.I could pray. I should pray for her.

Something shifts in front of us. Not an animal. Not the wind.

Footsteps—fast, purposeful, too close.

Caleb? Not likely. He promised to stay hidden, and I know full well how stealthy he can be.

I stop. Eliza does too.

“Did someone come with you?” she asks, freezing. Her eyes widen as they dart to mine.

I wince. If I say yes, she’ll think I betrayed her trust. If I say no, she might grab the folder and run.Hearing my mom’s voice in my head, I go with what I value most: honesty.

“My tires were slashed the night we were supposed to meet. I… a friend of my brother has been keeping an eye on me.”

A tiny whimper escapes her frozen face. I rush to reassure her. “It’s probably unrelated. I don’t shy away from heavier stories. People don’t like their secrets being exposed.”

She doesn’t respond. Her shoulders start to shake, and she backs up, preparing to run.

Though I’m trying to sound unflappable, I’m anything but. Whoever’s approaching isn’t stopping. Any second now, they’re going to be on us.Where is Caleb?My pulse thrums. My chest tightens as I struggle to breathe and stay calm.

Ahead of us, someone coughs.

Eliza curses. “He’s followed me. He’s here.”

She grabs my shirt sleeve. “Hide the folder. Throw it away… hide!” Her fingers claw into my arm, nails digging in.

“I can’t do that. I’ll lose it.”

Her voice drops to a whisper. “Please. You don’t know what he’s capable of.”

I try to pry her fingers off my arm, but she won’t let go. “Eliza, no one is going to hurt you…”

A voice, hard and familiar, cuts into my sentence. “Hands where I can see them, buddy. Nice and slow.”

Caleb. Just ahead.

Eliza shrieks and grabs the folder from under my arm, yanking hard. “Give it back. I changed my mind. I don’t want to do this.”

Caught off guard, I try to reason with her before she throws the entire thing into the arroyo beds. If she does, I’ll be out here all night looking for it. “Don’t panic. It’s just Caleb, making sure no one bothers us.”

But she’s not listening. She’s so freaked out, she’s ready to run down the trail in the dark. As I try to gently convince her to stay, Caleb is having his own very loud battle, making it even harder.

“This is a public trail; I’m allowed to be here!” an indignant male voice echoes toward us.

“Doing what exactly? You’re not wearing trail boots, you have no pack, no water?—”

Eliza bolts, taking the folder with her.

Without thinking, I take off after her, flashlight bobbing on the trail as I watch her ponytail swing. “Eliza!”

I give chase just long enough to see her hurl the file into the desert brush. Her hoodie vanishes into the darkness between the saguaros.