Page 160 of Protecting You
“Alyssa.” Callan launched to his feet.
He should’ve anticipated…
When she’d come in just now, it wasn’t just to check on him. It was to say goodbye.
Gavin’s eyes were wide. “What about her?”
Callan shoved out the door, through the deserted dining room.
He was running across the foyer when something outside the glass doors caught his eye.
He skidded, angled that way, and spoke to a uniformed cop standing guard there. “Where’s my car?” He pointed to the empty space in the circle drive. “What happened to the red Mustang?”
“Ms. Wright took it,” the cop said. “She said you wanted her to…” His faded, clearly reading Callan’s expression.
Callan spun to Gavin, who’d followed.
The man's face had paled to paste.
“He called her. He…he must’ve…” Callan didn’t want to face what he already knew.
Ghazi had called Alyssa and demanded she come.
And Alyssa had gone. To save Peri, she’d gone to meet the terrorist.
CHAPTERTHIRTY-FIVE
Alyssa had known it would come to this.
She’d changed out of the dress because she’d known.
She’d taken the package Grant brought for her because she’d known.
She’d agreed when, the previous afternoon, Michael had insisted she be prepared, because she’d known.
Knowing didn’t make it any easier.
The phone call from Ghazi had been short but to the point. “A simple trade. Peri for the information I need to take over the drone system.”
He was no longer pretending he owned the company he’d hired her to hack. Everything was on the table now.
“The exploit isn’t ready, but I can create it.”
“Good. You will leave right now. Alone. Tell no one. Get in the car and drive away.” He gave her specific instructions, naming roads she’d driven all her life. “I am watching everything, so do not try to alert anyone. Do not try to get help. Do not try to wear a listening device or a tracker. You understand?”
“I understand.”
“We will see you leaving the property in five minutes or the girl will be harmed.”
“Ten minutes,” she said. “I’ll have to tell my mother one story and Caleb and my father another. Otherwise, they’ll realize I’ve gone. I can’t let them stop me.”
Her request was followed by a long stretch of silence.
Alyssa had stared out at the churning Atlantic. The dark blue water reflected a clear sky. In the distance, all seemed calm, but the waves crashing against the jetty told a more violent story.
“Seven minutes.”
“It’ll take what it’ll take, Charles.” She congratulated herself on remembering to use his fake name. “Trust me when I tell you, I’ll do everything in my power to save Peri.”
