Page 59 of Cole

He hesitated, and her suspicions rose. Finally, he replied, “I’m calling him to say I need to come back to do some re-measuring. This will give me a chance to put surveillance in his house… to watch him.”

“Oh…”

“I was going to do it with one of the Keepers, leaving one to stay with you. But now, I’ll go myself and know that they will both be with you once they get in.”

She nodded, hating the idea of him going to the mine owner’s house again, but trusted that he knew what he was doing. Much like how he trusted her when she wanted to go back out to necropsy the deceased animals.

The drive to Cantwell took twenty minutes. She watched the snow-covered wilderness slide past as she tried to process everything that had happened over the past few days. And of everything filling her mind, she kept circling back to that interrupted kiss at the cabin, to the way Cole had looked at her just before his phone shattered the moment.

What would have happened if Logan hadn't called? What would happen now?

The small town appeared ahead, its handful of buildings clustered along the highway. The hotel sat on the main road, the sign advertising "Clean Rooms, Reasonable Rates" appearing like a beacon. Several vehicles filled the small parking lot, probably more travelers who'd sought shelter from the storm.

"My room should still be booked," Cole said, pulling into an empty space. "I paid through the week just in case. I’ll check in the lobby.”

The elderly man behind the counter looked up from his newspaper, recognition flickering in his eyes when he saw Cole.

“Hello. Is the tavern still delivering?"

"Should be. Donna's been running meals to folks who got stranded."

The old man's gaze was friendly. "You need anything else, just holler."

He walked back to the vehicle and nodded to Janice. They gathered what they could carry, including the sample cooler, Janice's laptop, his duffel, and a small bag of her toiletries, and made their way to the lobby. The room was small but clean, with one queen-sized bed, a battered dresser, a tiny bathroom, and a window overlooking the parking lot. Janice set down her bags and took in the space that would be their refuge for the foreseeable future.

One bed.

Cole seemed to realize it at the same moment. "I can sleep on the floor. Or see if they have another room⁠—"

"No." The word came out with force, and she held his gaze. "I want to stay with you."

His dark eyes searched her face. "Janice..."

"Yes, there's only one bed." She felt a smile tugging at her lips despite everything they were facing… the danger, the exhaustion, and the uncertainty of what came next. "I think if we made the cabin work, this is much better. At least this bed is big enough for two."

Something shifted in Cole's expression… maybe surprise giving way to warmth, and beneath that, a heat that made her pulse quicken.

"Okay," he said. "We stay together."

The tension that had been coiled tight in Janice's shoulders began to ease. They were safe, at least for now. They had shelter, they had each other, and tomorrow, more Keepers would arrive with reinforcements and a plan.

A knock on the door interrupted the moment. Cole's hand moved instinctively toward his weapon before he checked the peephole.

"It's okay," he said, relaxing fractionally. "The man has ID. He’s Apex Security."

He opened the door to reveal a man in his fifties, stocky and professional-looking, wearing a jacket with the Apex Security logo embroidered on the chest. He handed the ID he’d held up to the peephole to Cole, allowing him to scrutinize it. He carried what looked like specialized packaging equipment.

"Bill Markowitz." The man extended his hand to Cole, then to Janice. "Logan Bishop said you'd have some samples that need special handling."

"That's right." Janice moved to retrieve her cooler from where they'd set it near the bathroom, still packed in ice. "Biological samples that need to stay frozen during transport. They're going to my parents' veterinary clinic in Washington State."

Bill set down his equipment and opened the larger cooler, revealing layers of dry ice that immediately began smoking in the warmer hotel air. "I have everything we need. Double-walled insulated packaging, dry ice rated for forty-eight hours of transit, and documentation for the overnight carrier. Your samples will arrive at the Lynch Veterinary Clinic by nine o’clock tomorrow morning, guaranteed."

Janice watched as he worked with practiced efficiency, transferring each of her carefully labeled containers into the specialized packaging. He added dry ice around each sample, then sealed them in an inner container before placing that inside the larger cooler with more insulation. Then he placed the entire cooler in an insulated cardboard box. He secured the box and ensured the labeling was correct.

"You do this often?" she asked.

"Not handling lab samples," Bill said with a brief but genuine smile. "Apex works with LSI West Coast on various projects, and now we’re proud to work with LSI-Montana when we can. Sometimes that means installing security systems, and sometimes it means making sure important evidence gets where it needs to go without being compromised." He sealed the final layer of packaging and affixed several bright labels. "Biological specimens. Keep frozen. Handle with care."