Page 102 of Crossover

“You’re safe,” I assured, pouring every ounce of conviction I could muster into those words.

“I’m not worried about me, Grayson. I’m scared for you.”

This girl. She’d almost died on multiple occasions, and yet here she was, worried aboutmysafety.

“This will all be over soon,” I promised, praying that it was true. “And when it is, I’m going to take you on a vacation,” I declared, my voice softening with the image of her smiling face in my mind. I wanted to give her something to focus on—something other than carnage and death. “Anywhere you want to go.”

“I don’t care where we go. I just want to be with you.”

My lips tugged up slightly. If we got out of this alive, I was going to spoil Ivy rotten. She had struggled enough for two lifetimes, so I would spend the rest of mine showering her with love and giving her every experience and joy that money could buy.

“Just…” she whispered, her voice cracking. “Just come back safely.”

“Ivy…” I wanted to pull her into my arms and feel her heartbeat next to mine, but I refused to drive to her right now. God forbid, if Daniel learned of my meeting with the CIA and was following me, I’d lead him straight to her.

“I haven’t had much to look forward to,” she admitted. “Not for a long time, at least, and now that I do, I don’t want to lose it.”

“You won’t,” I assured, but guilt clawed at my chest, because it felt like a lie, promising something I wasn’t sure I believed myself. After all, if I was so certain, I wouldn’t have had Hunter draft up that document.

But the fear of my dying was nothing compared to the fear of Daniel getting to Ivy. I would gladly take a bullet or walk into a burning building if it meant saving her life; perhaps that was what she was sensing.

“I love you.” My voice was so raw with emotion now that if I didn’t end the call, she might hear the uneasiness in my tone, might hear the tears I was choking back myself. “I’ll call you later, okay?” I asked.

She hesitated. “Okay. I love you. Be safe.”

No sooner did I end the call than my phone buzzed and the caller ID flashed with a number I didn’t recognize. I debated answering, but with all the people trying to keep my family safe, I couldn’t afford to miss a call.

“Hello?”

“Grayson,” a familiar voice said.

My blood froze. The steering wheel creaked under my grip as my fingers went numb.

He’d been off the grid, unreachable to anyone, and now, here he was, on the other end of my phone.

This call could change everything.

57

GRAYSON

“Are you alone?” Daniel’s voice infected my cell.

I eyed Barry in my passenger seat and Seth in the back seat. My instinct was to lie to Daniel, but I had no idea if he could somehow see us right now or if this was a test. Nor what he’d do if I failed it.

“I’m not,” I answered.

I listened intently for any signs of where he might be—planes near O’Hare or Midway airports, the grinding metallic sound of the “L” train—but there was nothing. The silence itself was a clue, really.

Maybe he wasn’t in the city. Or maybe he was far enough away from windows that the sounds of the city would not penetrate his phone.

“Then, give no indication who you’re talking to,” he demanded.

Figuring out his location would be difficult, but it was the only way to get the police to take him into custodytonight. If the CIA wanted to spend twenty-four hours vetting the evidence against Daniel before they officially labeled him a traitor, that was their prerogative, but Daniel had committed crimes. Withhim in a jail cell tonight, I’d breathe easier, waiting for the CIA to finish their work.

“If you’re aware of who I’m with,” I said, “you’re fighting an uphill battle there.”

“I heard about your meeting.” Daniel’s voice was accusatory.

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