“No,” she whispered.
She stood, turning, holding the phone higher, lower, then pressed against the door. Still nothing.
Panic surged through her body. Bile churned in her gut. She swallowed hard. No time for that. She had to think.
She forced herself to stop moving. Her body ached. The air felt heavier now. Damp.
She shut the phone off to save the battery and pressed her forehead to the door. Cool. Solid. Unmoving.
She pounded once. Hard. Then again.
Her chest tightened. She needed to slow down. Conserve energy. Conserve air.
She slid down until she was sitting, knees drawn tight, arms wrapped around herself to stop the shaking. She was breathing too fast.
Caleb would notice she’s missing, she told herself. He’d find her.
He had to.
The air felt wrong. Stale. Like it wasn’t moving anymore. Panic clawed up her throat before she could stop it.
She pressed her forehead to her knees, forcing shallow breaths, counting them. One. Two. Three.
She knew deep in her bones that hope might last longer than the air.
And the darkness pressed closer.
CHAPTER 44
Caleb arrivedhome in the early morning hours. Ranger barked an excited hello from inside the house.
He parked his truck beside Mia’s car and frowned. Why hadn’t she picked it up?
He pulled out his phone and dialed her number. It rang. No answer.
No matter. He’d ask when he got to the farm. His guys would be there later to start repairs on the damage.
First things first. A shower, then coffee and something to eat.
Still, as he headed inside, he glanced back once more at Mia’s car. Unease stirred, the kind he’d learned not to ignore.
Before he could get to the farm, Caleb stopped by the Brotherhood campus. Chase called a quick meeting to go over new cases and get updates.
It was early enough that Melissa wasn’t there yet. Neither was Jeannie nor Ava. Voices carried from the conference room down the hall.
Inside, Titus, Finn, Dex and Ryker sat around the large conference table. Caleb greeted Ryker, whom he hadn’t seen in a while, and asked about the new baby he and Dani had. Theytalked for a few minutes, easy and familiar, before Chase stepped in from his office.
More voices approached from the hall as Zach and Will joined them.
“I guess we’re only missing Nate and Ford,” said Chase, taking his seat at the head of the table.
He ran through updates quickly, assigning priorities and timelines.
“Caleb,” he said, glancing up, “how did your security detail work out?”
Caleb gave him a rundown. Easy job. Bodyguard work for a prominent businessman in Florida, only in town for a couple of days.
Chase nodded. “Good. We have a couple of weeklong jobs coming up.”
