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What was it like to be someone who could smile after everything she’d gone through and not want to lash out at the world? To not be consumed by darkness?
I was a little envious of that, but far more relieved that was the case for her. The last thing I wanted was her hellish week to stain her outlook on life.
“I’m about all set,” she said while tidying up her things on the bed as if preparing to leave for a five-star resort. She returned her toothbrush and deodorant to the bag and kept a hairbrush on her lap. Apparently, her mom had packed like Diana was going on vacation, and I wasn’t sure if that frustrated me or made me grateful.
“You went to the bathroom on your own,” was the best I could come up with as I remained leaning into the interior doorframe, some invisible force preventing me from approaching her. She began combing her wet hair. “Not alone. Dallas had my six.”
Fuck me. Dallas had my six? Of all the things she could say, those four words were apparently my kryptonite. If I didn’t have my shoulder against the doorframe, I would’ve been the one falling.
I cleared my throat, trying to rid myself of the emotions twisting me up like one of those old wind-up mantel clocks my father used to collect. He always told me the most precious thing we had in life was time. I’d never appreciated those words until lung cancer had taken him far too early, stealing away my time with him.
Now, time was knocking at my door once again. In this case, as to how many more hours I had to share with Diana.
“So, uh, you’re doing better.” Yeah, I was batting zero right now in terms of communication.
“Much better. I finished the broth, and Easton dropped off some yogurt. Ate that as well. I’m feeling more alert and energized, and I think the drugs are almost gone from my system.” She glanced at the phone on the bed, Dallas’s tail inching a bit closer to her with each wag. “So, yeah, I’m ready for that call. Just not ready to face my mother.”
I finally joined her in the bedroom, and she lifted her eyes, taking me in from my change of boots all the way to my chest covered in a black shirt. The crucifix was now hidden, and I wasn’t sure if I was hiding it from her or the world in general.
“We’ll make it fast. Proof-of-life kind of thing.” I picked up the phone and called the number Griffin had already preprogrammed, then switched it over to FaceTime and handed it to her.
“Diana?” Susan’s voice was the first one I heard.
I rounded the bed to stand behind her so I could see the screen and let Susan see me.
“Hey, Mom.” Her tone was soft, but she kept steady. Resolute. God, I admired her strength, and if I was being honest, her brilliance, too. “I’m, um, okay. He saved me. Again.” Diana tipped her head my way as her mom quietly stared at the both of us.
Susan gave me a terse nod and a quick thank-you before diving into sharing her overwhelming relief that Diana was okay.
“Does Dad know what happened?” Diana asked as the President came into view next to her mother.
“He knows you were taken and are safe, yes,” Susan replied before deferring to President Bennett.
“Glad to see you’re all right.” The President shoved his hands in his slacks pockets, shooting me a wary look. “We’re still working on a location for the extraction plan.”
“I know the truth.” Diana’s words stole President Bennett’s attention. “And I’m not okay with it.”
She was bold, standing up to POTUS like that, and it elicited a strange reaction from me at a time like this—the need to smile. I covered my mouth with my hand to hide it until I could will the emotion away.
“You told her what exactly?” The President narrowed his eyes, waiting for me to answer.
That effectively erased the smile from my lips, and I let my hand fall. “Nothing you want to discuss on this call. Just tell us one thing. How many more labs were hit that night?”
He gripped his temples, and on a sigh, he revealed, “One, but it was American-led only. No other countries were aware of the location.” He paused to let that sink in. “Each country had their own lab, separate from the collaborative efforts of the project in Amsterdam.”
This was even more compartmentalized than we thought. “Were their labs hit, too?”
“They won’t tell us. We’re trying to find out, but?—”
“But no one trusts each other right now,” I finished for the President, putting two and two together. “Where was the American-led lab located?” I was agitated all over again at the need-to-know situation. How the hell did they expect me to help if they kept me in the dark?
“Montana.” He slowly lifted his head, and I read the anguished look in his eyes. I knew he wouldn’t say more, but he didn’t need to. I’d heard a rumor or two over the years about what our government had been testing out there.
“End the call,” I told Diana.
“Wait.” The President abruptly held up his hand. “I still need you to do what I asked. Are you changing your mind?”
“No, sir,” I hissed. “You’ll hear from me when we’re ready for her extraction.”
