Her head lay against Julian’s chest, the steady rhythm of his heartbeat slowly easing the panic that still gripped her ribs. She’d dreamt of metal chairs and cold concrete and that man’s voice repeating again and again: Three days. No more delays.
But now, she was here. Safe. Or at least physically.
She stirred, her lashes fluttering against his skin. The soft light of the morning filtered into the room, and with it came reality. Everything had changed. Again.
Julian’s arm tightened around her. “You’re awake,” he said quietly.
She nodded against him.
There was a long silence, then Lexi slowly pulled back and sat up. Her voice was quiet, hesitant. “How did you find me?”
“I traced the message. Had to dig through encrypted channels. Then we tracked the van on security feeds from a priva
