“I’m going to stop at the clearing just ahead and call Maverick,” I shout over the engine, and I feel her nod against my back as her arms tighten around my waist.
When I get to the small clearing about twenty minutes from camp, I set the engine to idle and grab the satellite phone out of my pack, wait for a signal to show up, and quickly call Mav. I let him know I’ve got Cybil and tell him what went down so he can call the warden along with the police and have them meet us at the campsite tonight.
By the time I hang up, Cybil’s body behind me has begun to shake. Lifting my shirt, I place her frozen hands against my stomach, then pull my shirt down before I take off. I know she’s cold, and the fact that her clothes are soaked isn’t helping. I’m also sure she’s about to crash, and when that happens, I want her to be somewhere safe. As we pull into camp, all eyes come to us, but I ignore everyone standing around the fire. I don’t even acknowledge them as they start to ask questions. Without a word, I turn and drag Cybil onto my lap before I get off with her and carry her toward our tent.
“Cops and warden are on the way up,” Maverick says, stepping forward to unzip the tent. “It shouldn’t be long.” He turns his attention to Cybil. “You okay, sweetheart?”
“Y-yes, thank you.” She burrows against me.
“I’m gonna get her dry and warm,” I tell him, and he lifts his chin before I duck inside the tent and set Cybil on the ground.
“I don’t know what’s wrong with me.” Her hands tremble and her teeth chatter as I remove her wet clothing before helping her into a dry shirt and tucking her into her sleeping bag.
“You’re crashing, sunshine. It’s normal after going through a high-stress situation. It will pass; you just need a few minutes.”
“I’m so cold.”
“I know.” I lie down next to her and then drag my sleeping bag over the two of us, turning her into my chest, curling myself around her, and resting my lips against her forehead. “You did good today.”
Her body starts to shake harder; then I hear her laugh before she tips her head back to look at me. “I did so good that I ended up lost and shot at.”
My entire body tightens at the mention of a gun being fired in her direction, and her fingers come up to touch the space between my brows. “I’m guessing from the look on your face it’s too soon to joke about it.”
“Yeah, it’s too soon,” I agree. “Then again, I don’t know that I’ll ever think it’s funny.”
The truth is that seeing the look on her face as she ran into my arms when I finally found her caused me to feel fear like I’ve never felt in my fucking life. I wasn’t worried about myself; I was worried I wouldn’t be able to protect her from whatever it was that had scared her.
“Well, thank you for finding me. I don’t know what I would have done if you didn’t show up.”
“You would have been okay.” I curve my fingers around the back of her head and tuck her face against my neck. This woman in my arms is stronger than she thinks she is; she just needs to be reminded of what she’s capable of.
“I’m not so sure about that. I used ‘eeny, meeny, miny, moe’ to choose which direction to go, and it obviously didn’t work.”
Groaning, I close my eyes. “You didn’t.”
“I did. It was cloudy, so I couldn’t make a compass with a twig like you taught us, and honestly I didn’t know what direction the river was, so it wouldn’t have mattered anyway.”
“Right. Well, tomorrow, I’ll get you a compass, and from here on out, I’ll make sure you know which way you should go if you get lost again.”
“So we’re staying here?” I hear the worry in her voice. “I thought we would be leaving tonight, after what happened.”
“After we talk to the warden and the cops, Blake, Maverick, and I will have to discuss what we should do,” I tell her gently while kissing the top of her head. “Whatever happens, I promise you’ll be safe.”
“Okay, I trust you,” she whispers, and my gut tightens, because fuck it feels good to hear the truth in her voice, and it means more than I even thought it would to get that from her.
“Tanner,” Maverick calls, breaking into the moment. “Blake’s on the way up, and the warden and sheriff are right behind him.”
“Be out in a minute,” I call back as Cybil burrows into her sleeping bag.
Placing my fingers under her chin, I tip her head back and search her gaze before touching my mouth to hers, unable to help myself. “I’m sorry, sunshine, but you’re going to have to get dressed. They’re going to want to speak to you.”