Page 51 of Todd
Cold flooded Sadie’s veins. “Search for what?”
“Anything you... shouldn’t have,” Nina replied, her gaze dropping to the floor as shame colored her features. “Phones, cameras, things that could...” She shrugged.
The confirmation of her worst suspicions should have triggered panic, but instead, Sadie felt a strange calm settle over her. The pretense was over. They knew she was hiding something, and Nina had been sent to find evidence that could justify whatever action they were planning.
“And did you find anything?” Sadie asked, though she was already moving toward the sink area where her phone lay hidden behind the exposed pipes.
Nina shook her head quickly, relief evident in her expression. “No, Ms. Sadie. Nothing.”
Sadie hesitated. If she checked to see if her phone was still taped behind the sink pipes, Nina's suspicions would be confirmed. But she didn’t want Nina to walk away without Sadie ascertaining—she would search Nina if necessary to ensure she had her phone.
She shifted to the side, letting Nina escape the confines of the bathroom. She moved to wash her hands, then knelt at the vanity, pulling out her toiletry kit and snagging her lotion. The simple act reassured her phone was still hidden. Standing with her lotion bottle in her hands, she turned to Nina, whose gazewas down. Sadie felt a small victory. They suspected her, but they didn’t have proof yet.
Looking back at Nina, she saw a woman caught between impossible choices, forced to search for guest accommodations or face consequences that were likely far worse than losing her job.
“Nina, if you need help, you can come to me,” Sadie said, the words carrying absolute sincerity despite her own precarious situation. “I know that might sound impossible right now, but I promise, if you need a way to keep you safe, I’ll find it.”
For the first time since Sadie had entered the room, Nina’s expression softened into something approaching hope. A small smile touched her weathered features, transforming her face with genuine warmth.
“Thank you, Ms. Sadie,” she whispered, gathering her cleaning supplies with hands that no longer trembled quite so violently. “Thank you.”
Nina slipped past her toward the door, pausing only long enough to offer one final grateful look before disappearing into the corridor. Now, Sadie was alone with the devastating knowledge that her cover was blown, and her time was running out faster than she’d feared.
The secure phone felt impossibly heavy in her shaking hands as she initiated the connection to Todd. Every ounce of energy she’d expended maintaining her facade with Nina had depleted reserves she didn’t have to spare, leaving her feeling hollowed out and dangerously fragile.
The phone rang once before Todd’s voice filled her ear like a lifeline thrown to a drowning woman.
“Sadie? How are you?”
The familiar warmth in his tone nearly undid her completely. She wanted to collapse, to let him hear exactly how terrified andsick she felt, but operational security demanded she maintain some semblance of professional composure.
“Not good, Todd,” she managed, her voice carrying exhaustion she couldn’t hide. “I’m nauseous, weak. Whatever they’re giving me is getting stronger, and they’re escalating the timeline.”
She could hear his sharp intake of breath over the phone and practically feel his protective fury radiating across the miles separating them.
“They had a housekeeper searching my room,” she continued, forcing her foggy brain to organize the critical intelligence. “Looking for phones, cameras, anything I shouldn’t have. They suspect me, but they don’t have proof yet.”
“Goddammit, Sadie?—”
“We have no choice but to move tonight.” She interrupted, knowing that hesitation could be fatal. “I have to get into those offices tonight. Whatever Dr. Selinski is planning, whatever happened to Melinda and the others… the answers are in there, and I’m running out of time to find them.”
The admission hung between them, heavy with implications they both understood. Tomorrow might be too late. Tomorrow, she might be too incapacitated to function, or she might simply disappear like Melinda had, leaving nothing but an empty room and vague explanations about early departures.
“Todd, I need you to know… if something goes wrong tonight… if I don’t make it out?—”
“Don’t,” he said fiercely. “Don’t you dare start talking like that’s an option. We’re going to finish this together.”
The conviction in his voice steadied her more than any medication could have, reminding her that she wasn’t facing this nightmare alone. Somewhere in the desert darkness, Todd Blake was preparing to move heaven and earth to keep her safe.
Tonight, she thought, clutching the phone like an anchor. Despite the dangerous unknown, the idea that she would also see Todd tonight made her smile.
26
Todd’s fingers clicked back on the emergency connection to LSIMT, his laptop screen filling with the faces of his teammates still gathered around the Montana conference table. The sight of their focus should have been reassuring, but all Todd felt was the crushing weight of time slipping away while Sadie was not with him.
“I need to go in with her,” he said without preamble, his voice carrying the edge of barely controlled desperation. “They suspect her. Had a housekeeper searching her room for contraband. She’s compromised, and she’s getting sicker by the hour.”
Logan leaned forward, his hazel eyes sharp with tactical assessment. “What’s her current condition?”
