The Jeep swerved ahead, trying to lose them. Kawan stayed tight, watching the road and the trees on either side.
“He’s gonna ditch it,” Lark said.
“Yeah.” Kawan braked hard as the Jeep veered off the asphalt and onto a dirt road flanked by mesquite scrub and dry riverbed.
“He’s heading toward the old quarry,” Thor cut in. “We’ve got him.”
But the suspect wasn’t giving up. His taillights disappeared behind a cloud of dust and foliage.
The chase twisted through narrow cuts in the terrain, over a splintered fence line, and down into a rocky basin. Kawan navigated sharp turns and loose gravel, nearly losing traction more than once.
Lark hung on, eyes scanning, breath shallow. “He’s either desperate or he knows something we don’t.”
A few seconds later, Lief’s voice came through. “He’s bailing—vehicle’s slowing. Driver’s out on foot. South ridge.”
Kawan brought the SUV to a controlled stop and jumped out, gun raised. “You stay?—”
“I’m not sitting this out,” Lark said, already rounding the hood to join him.
They moved fast, footsteps light on the dry ground, eyes searching the fading light.
Far up the ridge, a flash of movement.
Then—gone.
They climbed a few yards more, found tire marks, and the Jeep still idling in the dirt. But no shooter. No clues. Just empty wilderness and a bullet hole in the side of Kawan’s vehicle.
He exhaled slowly. “Something tells me that whoever that was, wasn’t the same man who left us the envelope.”
Lark looked toward the horizon. “Nope. No limp, and whoever that was, the build was small. Kind of like Mina.”
Kawan rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah, I noticed that too.”
“She missed your leg by at least a foot.”
Kawan holstered his weapon, jaw tight. “Yup. Well aware.”
“Which means, if she’s on the other side, then the other side doesn’t have the AI.”
“And they think we do, but they can’t just kill us.”
“So why do they keep taking pot shots at us?” She planted her hands on her hips.
“Lorre.” He arched both brows. “You still haven’t sent in your AAR. He’s emailed, called, and texted. Last one was basically a threat. Hand it in, or I'll come to you. But what he’s really doing is forcing you to ask for help.”
“Because he knows I don’t ask for it often,” she said. “And when I do, it’s reluctantly—even from you.”
Kawan tossed his arm around her shoulder. “Mission Groundhog Day.”
“That wasn’t the official ops name.”
“Nope. But that’s what we called it because it was like waking up and repeating the same shitty day over and over for three days straight.” He kissed her temple. “Except for that one moment in the shower.”
“Men,” she mumbled.
“Hey, Thor,” Kawan called. “Either you or Lief can take that Jeep back. See if we can learn anything from it.”
Thor glared. “Since when do you bark orders at me?”
