Page 87 of Everything We Found

Nadia’s head whipped toward the older woman. Did Cammy know something after all?

Kira glanced between them, assessing the situation. “I’m afraid I can’t leave this without him present to sign for it.” She tapped the portfolio against her palm.

“What about Nadia’s papers?” Cammy asked.

“I can process Ms. Jacobs, but…” Kira looked at Nadia with something between compassion and empathy. “Their new identities are designed as a package, their backstories interconnected. It’s not as simple as just giving you your half.”

“Shit,” Cammy muttered under her breath, then to Nadia, “We’ll have to order you new papers.” Which would take another few days. Who knew where Thomas would be by then. Who knew if he’d even be alive.

The thought of disappearing with him had been almost impossible to process. But to do so alone? To just walk away from her life into the unknown, starting from scratch on her own? No friends, no family. Knowing Thomas was most likely dead. A belt pulled taut around her lungs.

“Nadia?” Cammy prodded.

She couldn’t respond, her stare fixed on the Ford Fusion. He’d left the keys for a reason, hadn’t he?

A hand snatched her wrist, startling her. Nadia met the other woman’s knowing gaze.

“I hope you aren’t thinking about going after him,” Cammy cautioned. “That would be suicide.”

She wasn’t, not yet anyway. But like Thomas, she wasn’t inclined to let fate dictate her next move. When it came to her destiny, she sat behind the wheel, even when the universe seemed determined to steer her off course.

28

NADIA

The blue sedan made its way back down the dusty drive to the highway, taking with it their new identities and any hope of safely disappearing. Deputy Kira Ross had been apologetic but adamant. Without Thomas here to sign his documentation, their new lives were on hold. The interconnected backstories created for them couldn’t be separated.

Nadia watched the car disappear, her fingers twitching on the porch rail. Every second that passed was another second Thomas was out there, alone, walking into death’s arms.

“I never should have showed him the keys.” Cammy’s cool demeanor had long since vanished, replaced by thinly veiled agitation.

They returned inside, Nadia doing her best to keep her mounting panic under control. “Why would he just leave like that? He wouldn’t just abandon everything without a reason.” Thomas calculated before he executed. Whatever had him taking off, he’d been planning for some time, even if that amount of time had only been an hour. He wasn’t prone to spontaneity.

Cammy’s weathered face creased with concern. “He’s protecting you the only way he knows how.”

“By keeping me away from whatever it is he’s planning to do?” she asked as something he’d said yesterday in the stable came back to her.You shouldn’t have to disappear.He’d regretted getting her involved ten years ago, and he regretted even more she was involved now. He once upended his life so she could keep hers. Now it seemed he was willing to end it for her.

She lost control of her panic. “Whatexactlyis he planning to do?”

Cammy’s hesitation was clear in her eyes. “Let me make some calls. Somebody might know of his whereabouts.”

Nadia nodded. Yes, that was good. They needed information.

Cammy retreated to her office, her phone already at her ear and Nadia stood alone in the living room, awash in a wave of helplessness, something she did not handle well. She wasn’t built for inaction. While her career called for contemplation and thoughtful decision-making, she preferred direct intervention when it came to a crisis.

She couldn’t just stand here andwait.

Nadia hurried to the guest room, stripping off her sleep clothes and stepping into the shower. The hot water didn’t wash away the fear that had lodged itself like a stone in her chest, making every breath feel labored under its weight. But it did clear her head. She dressed quickly in jeans and a white fitted tee, pulling a thin zip-up hoodie over it. Her damp hair went up into a practical top knot, her face left makeup free, making the purple-yellow bruising on her cheek stand out starkly. But the wound was nothing compared to the gaping hole she felt inside where Thomas’s presence once was.

When she returned to the living room, Cammy was just finishing her call. “All the necessary agencies have been alerted.”

“And? What did they say?”

“Nothing solid. They’re aggressively tracking the cartel’s movements. They’re still searching for Ruiz. The news just now reported multiple kidnappings. Without knowing exactly what Thomas is up to…”

Cammy didn’t have to say it. Their resources were stretched too thin to actively search for someone who’d gone rogue.

Then it hit her, and her world narrowed to a single horrifying thought. This wasn’t about protecting her. Maybe she did factor into his decision to leave. But she hadn’t been the entire reason.