Page 57 of Silver Elite

“I don’t know. I guess I’m in the same place you were in on Liberty Day. Tired of it all. Pretending to be normal, hiding what I am…it’s draining.”There’s a long pause.“Every day, I feel like I’m losing a part of myself.”

It’s a rare glimpse of vulnerability from Wolf. I know how he feels, though. Sometimes the weight of my abilities presses down so heavy on my chest, it’s hard to breathe.

“It wears on you,”I agree.“Always looking over your shoulder, always second-guessing everything you say and do.”I bite my lip and stare at the ceiling.“How long do you think a person can keep doing that before they break?”

“We won’t break.”

He sounds very confident of that.

“No?”

“Nah, Daisy. We have each other. We’ll keep each other strong.”

His words are a balm to my weary soul. But that sense of contentedness doesn’t last. After he retreats from my mind, I’m left feeling trapped and restless again.

I slide off the bed and head for the door. Voices travel out of the common room. The film is still playing. I walk in the opposite direction toward the exit of the building. I’m very aware of the cameras affixed to the ceiling, tracking my movements.

When I emerge outside, I jolt in surprise at the sight of Kaine sitting at the bottom of the short steps, his source in hand.

“Reading anything interesting?” I call out.

He twists his blond head to look at me. “Not in the slightest.”

“Do you want to take a walk?”

“Sure.” Tucking his source in his back pocket, he waits for me to descend the stairs and then holds out his hand.

I stare at it.

“What?” Kaine says.

“What are you doing?”

“If we’re going to take a romantic walk together, Darlington, we should hold hands.”

A snicker pops out. “Hold your own damn hand.”

Those green eyes twinkle as we wander away from the barracks.

The night is unnaturally quiet, considering it’s barely nine o’clock. I expected to see more activity. To hear more voices carrying in the darkness. But the only sounds are my soft breathing and the distant hum of the security force field that marks the perimeter of the base. I try to ignore the guard towers looming over us, the sensation of being watched, not just by the sentries but by the blinking cameras all around us as well.

Kaine is quiet, too. I wait for a flirty remark, but his gaze is focused straight ahead, his hands tucked loosely into the front pockets of his uniform pants. I follow his lead and stay silent.

We meander our way toward the east quadrant, where several supply warehouses sit in the shadows. Beyond them is one of the base’s delivery gates. As we approach, I finally hear some voices. Male. They waft through the open door of a small outbuilding with a gray exterior.

Tension snaps my shoulders straight. The door isn’t the only thing that’s open in our vicinity.

So is the delivery gate.

And there’s a motorcycle standing unattended just beside it.

Chapter 14

This is my chance.

Unless it’s a trap.

It has to be a trap, right?

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