Chapter 16
Sadie woke to the gentle chime of what she could only assume was her room’s built-in alarm system, which was designed to ease guests into consciousness rather than jolt them awake like a regular human alarm clock.
Through the tall but narrow windows, the Arizona desert stretched endlessly under a sky painted in pastels, the morning sun casting long shadows across the pristine landscape.
Day two in paradise, she thought dryly, stretching muscles that felt surprisingly loose after yesterday’s treatments. Despite her skepticism about the spa’s methods, she had to admit she’d slept better than she had in months.
The heated floors warmed her toes as her body moved on autopilot toward the bathroom, where they sank into the plush bathroom rug before she was fully awake.
After taking care of business, she wandered back to her bed, where she reached underneath her pillow, her fingers finding her phone where she’d tucked it after last night’s conversation with Todd.
Todd. Even thinking his name sent a flutter of confusion through her chest.
She paused, phone in hand, as the memory washed over her. His initial text had frozen her mid-breath last night. For eighteen months, their communication had been careful, and then suddenly, there he was in her messages, reaching across the chasm they’d both helped create.
Her own fingers had trembled as she’d typed back, heart hammering against her ribs. The tentative exchange of texts had felt like stepping on thin ice. But then, the desperate need to hear his voice, to reconnect with him, had overridden every rational thought.
The conversation that followed had been a revelation. For the first time since that awful morning when he’d called what they’d shared a mistake, she’d heard echoes of the Todd who’d made her just laugh until her sides ached, who’d listened to her with genuine interest.
The device buzzed in her palm, yanking her back to the present. Her stomach dropped when she realized she was missing Timothy’s morning check-in. Timothy was clockwork reliable, and dread crept up her spine.
“What’s going on?” The words tumbled out before she could stop them, her voice raw with barely contained panic.
“Timothy is in the hospital—” Logan said.
She gasped as her free hand gripped the edge of the bed so hard her knuckles turned white, and her stomach churned. “Oh my God! What happened?”
“Appendix. He managed to call 911, and he’s in surgery.
Cole and Todd are flying down. Their ETA is approximately 2 p.m. Once Todd gets to Ajo from Phoenix, he’ll take Timothy’s place in the mission.
Cole will go to the hospital to be there for Timothy and then fly him home as soon as he’s cleared for travel. ”
“He’s going to be okay?” She stood and paced the room.
“I spoke to the surgeon, and he should be fine. They’re not expecting any complications. He made it before his appendix ruptured.”
“Good, good,” she said, her mind already snapping into analytical mode. I’m on my own until this afternoon when Todd gets close. Wait… Todd? “Todd is coming down?” Her voice cracked on his name, betraying emotions she’d spent over eighteen months trying to bury.
“Yes. He not only volunteered but insisted on going. He’ll check into the hotel and be your partner on the assignment.”
Partner. The word sent heat spiraling through her chest. He was coming here. To me. To work alongside her in this undercover operation.
“Okay, fine,” she managed, nodding frantically even though Logan couldn’t see her.
“I assume that’s okay with you?”
The question hung in the air like a challenge, loaded with implications that made her cheeks burn. Did Logan know? Had her feelings been transparent all this time?
“Of course, it’s fine. I’d be fine with assistance from any of the Keepers,” she said, the professional mask slipped into place with practiced ease, but underneath, her heart raced like she’d run a marathon.
“As soon as they land, Todd will contact you.”
“Fine. Please keep me updated on anything I need to know before then.” The words came out steady, controlled, completely at odds with the chaos in her chest.
“Take care of yourself… especially since there’s no backup until later,” Logan warned.
“I will.”
The call ended with Logan’s usual efficiency, leaving her staring at the silent phone. She sank back down onto the edge of the bed. The mattress dipped under her weight, as her mind raced.
Timothy is in surgery. The thought made her stomach twist with guilt and worry. Todd volunteered for this. Todd wanted to come and be here specifically for me.
The realization hit her like lightning, impossible to ignore.
Logan could have sent any of the other Keepers.
Hell, Logan could have come himself. But Todd had stepped forward and chosen to be the one racing across the country to work with her.
After last night’s tentative reconnection, he was coming to her.
She pressed her palms against her hot cheeks, trying to sort through the tangle of emotions threatening to choke her.
Irritated? Yes, she’d been irritated by his dismissal, by the way he’d reduced something beautiful to a regrettable mistake.
Embarrassed? God, yes. The memory of his words still had the power to make her want to disappear into the floor.
Angry? She’d been furious, hurt beyond measure by his casual indifference.
But underneath all of that, if she was brutally honest with herself, there had been a deeper pain. Disappointed. Heartbroken. Lonely.
She winced, a sigh escaping her that seemed to come from her very soul. What they’d shared had been a night that had rearranged something fundamental inside her.
But Todd volunteered. No, Logan said that Todd had insisted on coming.
The distinction mattered more than she wanted to admit. Volunteering was a duty. Insisting was... something else entirely. Something that made her pulse skip and her carefully constructed defenses tremble.
The chimes sounded through the spa’s walls, their melodic notes a sharp reminder that she was supposed to be maintaining her cover.
Glancing at the clock, she realized with a start that she needed to hurry to make breakfast on time.
Any deviation from the routine could raise suspicions she couldn’t afford.
Her fingers flew over the phone’s keyboard as she composed a text to Todd: I know to expect you. Won’t be near my phone until sometime this afternoon.
She stared at the message, cursor blinking after the formal words. So cold. So professional. So completely inadequate for everything churning inside her.
Before she could lose her nerve, she added, I’m glad you’re coming.
Four simple words that carried the weight of unspoken longing, of worry that went far beyond professional concern, of feelings she’d tried so hard to bury but had never quite managed to kill.
Her thumb hovered over the send button for a heartbeat, then, with a sharp exhale, she pressed it. The message disappeared, carrying with it a piece of her carefully guarded heart. In a few hours, Todd would be here. The thought terrified and thrilled her in equal measure.
Get it together, Sadie. She re-taped the phone in its hiding place underneath the sink, then moved toward the shower to begin the ritual of becoming someone else for the day.
The hot water cascaded over her skin in her marble-appointed bathroom, complete with a rainfall showerhead.
The array of organic toiletries probably costs more than most people’s weekly grocery budget.
She dressed in the yoga attire that had been “suggested” for this morning’s session.
Mary had given her the company credit card and told her to buy what she needed for the assignment.
“Look, you’ve got to play the part, so you need high-end athletic wear and lounging clothes for the downtimes. They need to believe the story you gave them on the application.”
It had felt wrong to get online and purchase what she’d need, especially seeing the price tag.
Now, the expensive athletic wear’s luxurious softness against her skin felt foreign.
She was more accustomed to her practical workout clothes that could withstand real training sessions, not designer pieces meant to look pretty while barely breaking a sweat.
The dining area was already humming with quiet activity when she arrived for breakfast. The same ethereal music drifted through hidden speakers, and she wondered whether the sound system ever played anything with an actual beat, or if the entire facility was locked into this perpetual state of artificial serenity.
Her table from the previous evening was available, and she claimed it with relief.
The breakfast menu offered the same limited selection of “cleansing” options of steel-cut oats with organic berries, green smoothies packed with vegetables she couldn’t pronounce, and what appeared to be some kind of quinoa porridge that looked about as appetizing as wet concrete.
The idea of eggs, bacon, and fried potatoes filled her mind as she ordered the oats and berries.
As she lifted her glass of water, she noted the packet of pills next to her plate.
She opened the packet and poured the variety of shapes, sizes, and colors into her hand.
In one movement, she lifted her hand to her mouth and then grabbed the water, taking a large swallow.
After wiping her mouth delicately with her napkin, she draped it over her lap.
Looking around, she found Dr. Patel standing in the corner, her sharp gaze moving about the room.
With a smile, Sadie sat quietly, but underneath the table, she took the pills that had never left her hand and maneuvered them into her jacket pocket.