"These mountains are vast, Nova. Visibility is limited. We're tracking as fast as we can, but..."
He doesn't finish the sentence. He doesn't need to. Finn is alone somewhere in the wilderness with a killer who has been planning this for months. A killer who might have lured him into a trap.
And it's my fault. All of it.
"I'm coming out," I say, the decision crystallizing in an instant. "I can help."
"Absolutely not." Sawyer's voice hardens. "You will stay exactly where you are. That's what Finn would want. That's what we all want."
"But."
"No buts. Stay put. That's an order." His tone leaves no room for argument. "I'll update you when we have something. Sawyer out."
The radio goes silent again, leaving me with nothing but my fear and the knowledge that Finn is out there alone because of me.
Because his need to protect me overrode his tactical training. Because his feelings for me made him reckless in a way the careful, controlled man I've come to know would never normally be.
Because he loves me too, as he showed me so completely last night, even if neither of us has been brave enough to say the words.
I move to the monitors, scanning the cabin's interior for any sign of movement, any indication that Vance might have circled back toward the house while the McKennas are searching the forest.
Nothing.Just empty rooms, silent and still.
Until a shadow passes briefly across one of the exterior cameras.
I freeze, my heart slamming against my ribs. There it is again. Movement at the edge of the front porch. Someone is approaching the cabin cautiously, staying low, out of direct line of sight from most of the security cameras.
It could be one of the brothers, returning to check the house.
Or it could be Vance, drawn to where he knows I must be hiding.
The radio remains silent. No updates from Sawyer. No word about Finn. No warning about someone approaching the cabin.
Which means whoever is out there, the McKennas don't know about it.
I watch the monitors with tunnel vision focus, catching glimpses of movement as someone circles the cabin, checking windows, and testing doors. The methodical approach of someone who knows what they're doing. Someone looking for a way in.
Vance.
It has to be.
Which means Finn didn't catch him. Which means the brothers are searching in the wrong direction. Which means I'm the only one who knows Vance is here, at the cabin, looking for me.
I reach for the radio, then hesitate. If I call for help, if I alert Sawyer that Vance is here, they'll all come running back. Abandoning their search for Finn. Leaving him alone out there, possibly hurt.
And if Vance hears the radio, if he realizes I'm communicating with the brothers, he might run again. Disappearing into the forest to continue this deadly game another day.
Or worse, he might decide to set a trap for the returning McKennas. To hurt them when they come to protect me.
I can't risk that. I can't risk Finn. I can't risk any of them.
Which leaves only one option, as terrifying as it is.
I have to deal with Vance myself.
This man has been stalking me for months. Has broken into my home multiple times. Has left messages in blood and forced me to flee across the country. But something has changed in me since I came to this mountain. Since I met Finn. Since I discovered a strength in myself I didn't know I possessed.
I'm tired of running. Tired of hiding. Tired of others risking themselves to keep me safe while I cower behind locked doors.
