Page 76 of Steinbeck
“That’s all of us, Em.”He leaned back.“That’s how we go from survival to...saved.To a different life.To the life we were created to live.”
He seemed to be taking his own words in, nodding, almost to himself.
And maybe that’s why she said it, letting the words spill out.“What if everything was different?What if...I left the Swans?”
He pulled away, his blue eyes on hers.“What?Really?”
Except, of course, Nimue chose right then to enter the kitchen.She stopped, her golden-brown eyes wide.“Sorry.”
Stein’s mouth tightened, and he sighed.
“Nothing to be sorry about,” Emberly said and stepped back.
He considered her a moment, as if trying to salvage their conversation.She looked away.
“I need to get back to work,” he finally said quietly.He picked up his lemonade and walked out the door.
“I have mentioned he’s amazing, right?”Nimue stood, hands on her hips.“Yum.”
“He’s taken, Nim.”
She turned, grinned.“Finally.”
Emberly met her smile.
“So, good news.I got into your server and found the trace of Luis’s hack into the Russian compound.He’s good, but I’m better.”She winked.“Because it led me into their cloud storage.I’m downloading it now.Maybe, just maybe, we’ll figure out what Tomas is up to.”
Emberly turned, looked back outside at Mr.Handy, putting up another pillar.“He’s right.The mission isn’t over.But it will be.And then...then this life is over.”
* * *
Steinbeck hadn’t originally hoped he could stay here forever, but frankly, after a week, and now, with the morning sun just tipping the far horizon, the warmth of the day eating at the dissipating velvety night, and the sense of doing something with his hands—building the gazebo—he’d started to wonder.
“That’s how we go from survival to...saved.To a different life.To the life we were created to live.”
His own words stuck in his head, along withSteinbeck, the one Jesus loves.
Those words could change his life if he let them dig into the soil of his heart.But he couldn’t escape the sense of purpose.The sense that maybe God had put him right here, right now and...
Well, he had no other moves on his horizon.
Which didn’t seem tragic as he stood, his feet mortared in the sand, the ocean waves soft, the sea almost tranquil.The scant wind off the ocean was just enough to cool the thin layer of sweat that coated his skin, thanks to his morning calisthenics, and it stirred the scents of salt and brine and seaweed into the air.
He’d need a walk on the beach this morning, especially after Declan’s phone call.Clearly the man had forgotten the time change, because a glance at the clock had registered 4:00 a.m.
“Fun and games are over.I need you to come back and work for me.”
Not the call Stein had expected after walking away from his job as Declan’s private security.But he’d sat up in bed in the guest room, the sky still dark, all ears.
“We finished the virus.And now I’m taking it to New York City.”
He’d grunted, surprised when Declan said something about an exhibition at the upcoming UN General Assembly.
And then he said, “I need you, Stein.”
Andshoot.The words had the power of bait.He hadn’t said yes...but the urge stirred inside him.
Except,“What if...I left the Swans?”
