Page 166 of Forbidden Fate

I find my seat near the back.

Middle seat.

Of course.

A man by the window barely glances at me. A woman on the aisle shifts her purse with irritation as I squeeze in.

I sit, clasp my seatbelt.

Only then do I realize my hands are shaking.

I made it.

Not out.

Not safe.

Never safe.

But on the plane.

The door closes.

The cabin prepares.

Announcements begin.

English first. Then Spanish.

The plane begins to move.

Slow.

Then faster.

I dig my fingers into the arm rests.

We rise, and for a moment, my stomach drops.

I got out.

Before Vega could ground the plane. Before Adriana could wake up and make calls. Before whatever net they cast could close around me.

The plane climbs.

The woman beside me asks the flight attendant for water.

The man by the window opens a magazine.

Ordinary people doing ordinary things while I sit between them with a dead man’s blood under my skin and a fake passport in my pocket.

I’m coming, Robin.

Wait for me.

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ROBIN