And the clock was ticking.

We ran without looking back, the sound of the rotor blades growing louder above us.

The final destination was near.

And I would not stop until I reached it.

The trees began to thin, revealing a small wooden cabin nestled in a clearing.

A light was burning in the front window.

I stopped, my heart hammering.

“Is she in there?” I whispered.

“Yes,” Daniel said.

“But we aren’t alone.”

A shadow crossed the window inside the cabin.

I reached for my weapon, my hand steady.

We walked toward the porch, our steps silent on the grass.

The front door was unlocked.

I pushed it open, my gun raised.

The room was warm, a fire crackling in the hearth.

Sitting in a rocking chair by the fire was an elderly woman, her back to us.

She was rocking a small bundle in her arms.

“You’re late, Morgan,” a voice said from the shadows near the kitchen.

It was Hayes.

He stepped into the firelight, his hands behind his back.

“I expected you twenty minutes ago.”

“Give me my daughter, Hayes,” I said, my voice cold.