Page 62 of Smoldering Nights
He tapped a number on his phone.“Fielding.We’ve got eyes on Noah.He just showed up at my garage door.Dropped something and walked off.Southbound on foot into the woods.”
Izzy wrapped her arms around herself, staring at the frozen screen where the feed had paused.The white object, now clearly a single envelope, sat like a time bomb.
“We’re dispatching now,” Fielding said through the phone.“Don’t touch the package.Stay inside.Officers will collect it.”
“Copy.”Mitch ended the call and turned to her.“That’s it.We’re leaving.Now.”
She nodded, unable to speak.
Mitch pulled a second duffel from the closet and grabbed his go bag from the entryway cabinet.“You take the front passenger seat.Stay low.I’ll drive.”
He reached for her hand as they stepped to the door, that fierce protectiveness in his grip steadying her nerves.
They didn’t speak again until they were on the road, the condo behind them, the envelope left unopened.Whatever message Noah had left them, they weren’t going to wait around to read it.
Izzy looked over at Mitch as the trees blurred past outside the window.His jaw was tight.His eyes forward.
“Where are we going?”she asked softly.
“A place Jayson and I set up a while back.Out near the state forest.Quiet.Secure.No one knows about it but us.”
She reached across the console, found his hand, and gripped it tightly.“Okay.”
Mitch didn’t look at her, but he squeezed back.Then he tapped the button on his steering wheel, and the phone in the truck rang.
"Hey, where are you?"
" Izzy and I are out of the condo.Noah was too close for comfort.Let me know when Fielding finds him.We're headed to the shack."
"Okay.I'll boot up the additional security out there for you."
"Thanks."
The call ended, and in that silence between them, she knew two things: they were safe, for now.
And she was in love with Mitch DeMario.It hit her like a rock.These mixed-up feelings she had were feelings of love, and they felt mixed up because she didn't recognize them.She did now.
Chapter31
The crackle of gravel beneath his tires was the only sound Mitch let himself focus on as the truck turned onto the narrow, wooded path that led to the safe house.He and Jayson lovingly called it The Shack.Not another soul in sight.No taillights behind him.No tire impressions in the soft earth ahead.Good.That’s what he needed.Seclusion.
He risked a glance at Izzy, curled slightly in her seat, her knees tucked up, hands in her lap, eyes glassy with exhaustion.She hadn’t said much since they'd left.Her earlier realization, that eerie, intuitive sense that led to spotting Noah outside the condo, still weighed on him.It chilled him more than he wanted to admit.She had been right.Noah had gotten too close.
He tightened his grip on the wheel.
Izzy didn’t deserve this.She didn’t deserve to feel hunted in her own hometown.To lose her business, her peace, her damn safety.Mitch hadn’t protected her the way he swore he would.And now, they were holed up in a cabin like fugitives while a predator circled closer.
The tires bumped over a half-buried log, and Mitch eased the truck into the clearing.The structure was modest; an A-frame with reinforced windows, solar backup, satellite security, and a ground-level garage.Nothing fancy, but the place was tight.Safe.
He pulled into the garage and threw the truck in park, then turned to her.“We’re here.”
Izzy stirred slowly.“It’s...quiet.”
“That’s the idea.”He opened his door, stepped out, then walked around to hers and opened it before she could reach for the handle.She offered a small smile, exhausted, but grateful, and slid out.
Inside, the cabin was clean and stocked.They had it set up for cases such as this, and just this week, Jayson had come out here and set it up in case Mitch would need it, fresh linens, bottled water, enough food for a few days.He was right.
Mitch grabbed both his and Izzy's bags from the back of his truck.Inside, he switched the lights on and locked the door behind them.
