Page 94 of Collateral Love

---

He laughed, sharp and ugly.

“See?” he said. “There she is. The real you.”

“No,” I corrected. “The prepared one.”

He stared at me like he was seeing me clearly for the first time.

He turned and left without another word.

The door slammed.

I exhaled slowly.

That was a test.

And he’d failed it.

A few moments later, Denise came back.

She wouldn’t meet my eyes.

“They're moving you,” she muttered.

“Where?” I asked.

She shook her head. “I don’t know.”

“That’s smart,” I said.

She hesitated.

Then crouched.

“They're scared,” she whispered. “Charles isn’t sleeping. He keeps checking his phone. Yelling about money.”

I nodded.

“Denise,” I said softly.

She flinched at her name.

“You already crossed the line when you gave me that phone call,” I continued. “There’s no neutral anymore.”

Her eyes filled despite herself.

“I got kids,” she whispered.

“So do I,” I replied.

That landed.

She swallowed.

“What do you need?” she asked.

“A delay,” I said. “Delay them just ten more minutes.”

I knew we had driven for about 42 minutes, and if my calculation was correct, Zayden should be getting here in 7.

---