Page 27 of Keeper of Talon Mountain
"You would have." Zara's voice is certain. "Maybe not that day, maybe not that year. But eventually. Because the alternative is death—fast or slow, but always death."
The fire pops, sending sparks up the chimney. Outside, the wind has picked up, rattling the windows we've covered with curtains.
"Do you ever think about going back?" Zara asks. "Not to him. Just to Phoenix. To the life you had before."
"No." The answer comes without hesitation. "That person doesn't exist anymore. She died the night I got on that plane to Anchorage."
"Good." Zara settles back against the wall. "Because she sounds like someone who let other people define her worth. The Mara I know doesn't do that."
The words settle into something warm in my chest. The Mara she knows. Not the broken woman who fled Phoenix, but the one who built this lodge, who saved Gabe's life, who's sitting here armed and ready to defend what's hers.
"Thank you," I say quietly.
"For what?"
"For asking. For listening. For not making me feel weak for staying as long as I did."
"We do what we have to do to survive." Zara's expression is matter-of-fact. "Anyone who judges that hasn't lived it."
My phone buzzes. Unknown number. Every muscle in my body tenses as I answer.
"Ms. Bennett." The voice is smooth, educated, with an edge that makes my skin crawl. "I don't believe we've been formally introduced. My name is Commander Vex Crane."
I mouth the name to Zara, who immediately starts recording on her phone.
"What do you want?" I keep my voice level.
"The same thing everyone wants, Ms. Bennett. To go home at the end of the day knowing my affairs are in order." A pause. "Gabriel has made that difficult. But you—you might be able to help."
"I'm not helping you with anything."
"Not even to save his life?" Crane's voice remains pleasant, conversational. "Because that's what's at stake here. Gabriel can walk away from Widow's Peak tonight alive and free, or he can leave in a body bag. The choice is entirely up to you."
My heart pounds so hard I can barely hear over it. "What do you want me to do?"
"Good. You understand the situation." There's approval in his tone that makes my stomach turn. "Here's what's going to happen. Gabriel has information I need—specifically, the location of certain files he stole from my organization. Files that could cause problems if they fell into the wrong hands."
"He doesn't remember. He has amnesia...”
"Oh, I'm aware. Convenient, isn't it?" His tone sharpens. "But memory is a tricky thing, Ms. Bennett. Sometimes it takes the right motivation to bring things back to the surface."
Ice runs down my spine. "You want me to make him remember."
"I want you to encourage him to try. Really try. Because if he doesn't remember where those files are within the next seventy-two hours, a lot of people are going to die. Starting with everyone in that charming little town of yours."
"You're bluffing."
"Am I?" He sounds almost amused. "I have a small strike force within a two-hour drive of Glacier Hollow. I have satellite surveillance on every structure in your town. I know Sheriff MacAllister is organizing watch rotations. I know Nate Barrett has tactical experience. I even know that Mrs. Lancaster on the eastern trail has her husband's hunting rifle."
My blood runs cold. He's been watching. Everything.
"I could level your town in less than an hour," Crane continues. "Gas line explosion. Wildfire. Take your pick. Federal investigators would find nothing but accidents and bad luck."
"Why?" My voice comes out as a whisper. "Why go to all this trouble for some files?"
"Because those files contain evidence of things that would make me and several very powerful people uncomfortable. And because Gabriel made this personal when he decided to betray the unit that trained him, protected him, gave his life meaning."
"You're insane."
