Carter’s POV
I was up before the sun.
Didn’t sleep much. Barely even laid down. My back had started to ache halfway through the night, but I didn’t move from the corner where I sat, boots still on, jacket half-zipped, waiting for a sound that never came.
It wasn’t fear keeping me awake.
It was calculation.
What to carry, what to burn, which trails would lead them off our scent, how far Ruby could walk before her ankle gave out. How many steps we had before Jake caught up.
I’d done missions in worse conditions.
But never with someone I couldn’t afford to lose.
The sky outside had started to pale,that dull, blue-gray light that comes before real sunrise. I stood and moved quietly through the cabin, careful not to wake her just yet.
She needed every minute of rest she could get.
Her
