1. Kali

1

KALI

I can’t believe I did this.

Where in the world is my mind? I spent all that time at the copy center yesterday going through the samples book, choosing the paper stock, getting my resumes printed, even paying for them... and then I forget them. This job interview is important to me. I just graduated, and I’m lucky that the agency is even allowing me to come in for an interview when I don’t have any actual social work experience. I can’t be late for it.

I sigh deeply and blow the hair out of my face as I push through the door of the copy center. I wave at the man behind the counter as he gives me a knowing smirk, and I get in line before I dig my phone out of my bag and look at the time. I’m going to be late. No one is going to hire me if I’m late.

With my arms crossed over my chest, the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. A warm flush spreads through my body, and it’s the exact same feeling I had yesterday when I was here. It’s almost as if someone is watching me. I look around the store, and the man in the corner is occupied, trying to figure out the self-copier. The couple on the other side of the small store are looking at the wall of boxes, trying to find the size they need. Nothing is out of the ordinary, but the feeling doesn’t go away.

I can hear my own heartbeat in my ears, and it’s like the world is slowing down around me. It’s like every sense is on high alert and is anticipating that something is about to happen. I run my hands down the front of my pants to dry the sweat off my palms.

There’s movement behind me, and I turn to catch whoever is following me, but there’s no one there. I clench my eyes closed tightly and shake my head. Get it together, Kali.

Facing the counter again, I open my eyes, and there’s a man standing so close to me that all I can see are his eyes, bulging and bloodshot. The scream comes before I can stop it.

I sit up in my bed with a start. My alarm is screeching, and I’m drenched in sweat.

Another bad dream? I thought I was getting better.

I reach over to the nightstand and turn off the alarm, but once it’s off, the ringing continues. I groan and realize my phone is ringing too. I grab it, look at the caller ID, and inwardly groan. My sister Anna is calling, and I know exactly what she’s calling for.

I clear my throat. “Hey, sis!”

She pauses and then sing-songs into the phone, “Oooh, did I wake you up? You must have had a late night last night. How did your date go?”

I search my mind and try to remember the fake name I gave Anna. “Yeah, uh, Jordan and I had fun. We went and ate sushi and talked.”

“Jordan? I thought it was Jonah?” she laughs. “I swear you have so many guys asking you out even you can’t keep them straight, can you?”

It’s an assumption my family has jumped to several times before, and going with it is much easier than explaining all the reasons why I’m not ready to date. It’s been five years since everything happened. You’d think I’d be able to move on at this point.

“Kali? Are you still there?”

“Yes, I’m here. Sorry. Still waking up. How’s my beautiful little niece doing?”

I know getting Anna to talk about Faith will get her off the topic of me and dating. She thinks because I’m twenty-two I should be ready to settle down, but little does she know, I have no desire to even date... let alone get married.

“She’s running me ragged. She’s into dance, and we’re always going, it’s nonstop. She’s definitely keeping Nico and me on our toes. Buuuut... she misses her aunt. When are you going to come visit?”

And there it is. Guilt. I know she doesn’t mean to do it, but instantly, I feel guilty. I love my sister, brother-in-law, and niece. I want to be with them... but I can’t. Not without them seeing how messed up I am. There’s so much guilt. Anna feels guilty for what happened to me with Miles. I blame myself that Anna was hurt saving me. It’s a never-ending cycle.

“I know. I miss Faith too. I miss all of you.” I rest my head in my hands. Man, I wish things could be different. Why can’t I be normal?

After an uncomfortable silence, Anna clears her throat. “Well, we don’t have to talk about it today. You have your big interview this morning. You better get a move on. That’s why I’m calling. I wanted to wish you luck!”

“Thank you, Anna. I’ll call you afterwards, okay?”

“Sounds good, sis. You got this.”

I tell her bye and hang up the phone and then go open my bag. I sift through it, and right in the middle are the linen paper resumes that I had printed yesterday. I breathe a sigh of relief. Stupid nightmare. It seemed so real .

Knox

I can barely catch my breath, but I’m not going to stop. Not until we have everyone on the plane and we’re airborne.

Stone is helping the last couple onto the tarmac as I stand guard with my gun. It was supposed to be a simple mission. In and out. But I’m finding that the ones that are supposed to be simple end up being the ones that get out of hand really fast.

Luckily, we have all the hostages and eliminated the terrorists. Now all we have to do is get everyone on board and get back to the States.

“We’re good. Let’s roll!” Bear’s booming voice can barely be heard over all the noise, but when I look, he’s giving me the thumbs-up so I give him one back and climb aboard the plane before shutting the door behind me.

Aiden is already in the cockpit, preparing for takeoff. I stick my head in. “Package is secure. Wheels up.”

He nods his head, and I barely make it to my seat before Aiden has us airborne. Not until we’re about twenty minutes in flight do I finally start to breathe normally again. I’ve been doing this for a while now, and each mission is different. I know that shit can go bad fast.

I look over at Stone. “You good?”

He nods. “Yeah, I’m good. A little too close for my liking, but yeah, I’m good.”

I stand up and hit him on the shoulder. “We’ll have a few weeks stateside after this.”

I walk down the aisle, checking on the rest of the crew and the saved hostages aboard. Bear is sitting in an aisle by himself, and I don’t even consider approaching him. He’s the quiet one, and even though he has definitely mellowed out a little since he got with Sam, he usually takes time to process everything before he talks to anyone after a mission. I do make a point to catch his eye, and he nods his head, so at least I know he’s good.

Logan and John are talking, seemingly unfazed by it all. And after everything we’ve been through, I imagine it’s the truth. The hostages are another story. It’s always something to see how people react to different situations, and this time was no different. When we got there, a man was defending his wife and was about to be murdered. It’s obvious by looking at them they are both shaken up. I stop at their seats. They are guzzling the waters that were handed out, but what I can’t take my eyes off is the way they’re still clinging to each other. “You’re safe now,” I tell them, taking time to look each of them in the eyes.

The man nods. “Thank you for saving my wife.”

The wife squeezes his leg as if she’s reminding him of something. The man shrugs. “And me too. But most importantly my wife. She’s my life.”

They look at each other, and I can’t take my eyes off them. The love they have for one another is clear. I never really had that growing up and seeing people in love. The guys are all settling down now, and they all look at their wives like that.

I put my hand on the man’s shoulder and squeeze before I walk past them to the back of the plane. I sit down in the very back and look at the couple’s heads that are close together. Witnessing a love like that makes me think about how I have no one at home waiting on me. I lay my head back and know that the couple is lucky. Not everyone finds a love like that. I cross my arms over my chest. At least I love my job.