My home, but with new layers added. Security systems monitoring the perimeter. A man in the living room standing guard. A threat circling somewhere in the darkness beyond our walls.
I still don't know which scares me more—the danger outside, or the possibility that I never really got over him at all.
5
STRYKER
Dawn breaks over Tucson in shades of orange and pink that would be beautiful if I wasn't scanning for threats.
I've been awake since before sunrise, monitoring camera feeds on my phone while the house stayed quiet around me. Rachel's living room couch is too short for my frame, and my lower back protests as I sit up and roll my shoulders. Tommy's voice filtered through my earpiece earlier with the overnight report from Echo Base. All quiet. No alerts. Nothing but neighborhood cats and an early jogger who triggered the motion sensor just after dawn.
Coffee brews in Rachel's kitchen, the smell filling the small house. I found the grounds in the cabinet above the sink and made a full pot without thinking about whether she'd want any. Old habits. Making coffee for two when there used to be two of us waking up together.
Rachel's phone rings from where she left it charging on the kitchen counter. Screen shows Desert View Elementary. Lucas's school.
I grab it and head down the hallway, knocking quietly on her bedroom door. "Rachel. School's calling."
She appears a moment later, hair still mussed from sleep, and takes the phone from me with a frown. "Hello?"
Face changes as she listens. Color drains. Hand tightens on the phone.
"When did this happen?" Her voice stays steady, but barely. "Did he get any information?"
Eyes find mine. Fear there tells me everything I need to know before she even speaks.
"Can you hold on one second, please?" Rachel pulls the phone away from her ear. "Someone came by the school yesterday. Claimed to be from child protective services. Asked questions about Lucas."
My jaw clenches. "Did they give out any information?"
"The secretary refused. Said they needed parental consent." She's still looking at me, calculating. "The principal wants to know if everything's okay."
"Ask if the man had any distinguishing features. Scars, tattoos, anything unusual."
Rachel nods and brings the phone back to her ear. "Principal Martin, the person I'm with is a security consultant helping us with a family situation. He's asking if your secretary noticed anything unusual about this man? Any identifying marks?"
Puts the call on speaker so I can hear the response.
"Let me check with her. Mrs. Walsh is here with me." There's a pause, muffled voices in the background. Then Principal Martin comes back on the line. "She says yes, actually. When he reached for his identification, she noticed a tattoo on his forearm. A snake wrapped around a dagger."
My blood runs cold. Kessler. The Committee sent their most dangerous operative to an elementary school to gather intel on a six-year-old kid.
"We've flagged Lucas's file in our system," the principal continues. "No one gets any information about him withoutdirect written consent from you, Ms. Donovan. I've also alerted campus security to watch for anyone matching that description."
Rachel's voice is remarkably steady when she responds. "Thank you for calling and for taking precautions. Lucas won't be at school today. We have a family emergency. I'll call the office later to make it official."
"Is everything all right?"
"It will be. Thank you again for your help."
Rachel ends the call and looks at me. Fear and anger war in her expression, but anger is winning. "They went to his school."
"Yeah." My hands ball into fists at my sides. "Which means they know his routine. Know where he's most vulnerable during the day."
"We need to leave. Now."
"Agreed. Let me call Kane first, get the safe house activated." I pull out my phone. "Wake Lucas and pack essentials. We move fast."
She nods and disappears back into her bedroom. I hear her moving down the hall toward Lucas's room as I dial Kane.
