Chapter 371
[ 498 words ]
Chapter 371:
She saw K.C.’s eyes meet hers in the rearview mirror. His expression was carefully neutral, but she saw a flicker of something else. Something guarded.
“His mission was extended, ma’am. No definitive return date at this time.”
Her stomach sank. Of course.
K.C. seemed to sense her disappointment. He cleared his throat. “He checks in whenever he gets a signal. First thing he always asks is how you are.”
A small, fragile warmth spread through her chest. It was a pathetic comfort, but she clung to it.
“Is his mission… is it dangerous?” she asked, already knowing the answer.
K.C. was silent for a long moment. He kept his eyes on the road. When he finally spoke, his voice was low. “I know you already went through hell with him when he came back with that shattered right shoulder, ma’am. But the locals are pushing back hard in his sector. He re-aggravated the injury during a tactical retreat a while back.”
𝘓𝘢𝘁𝘦𝗌t 𝗰𝗁𝖺𝗽𝘵е𝗿𝘀 𝗼ո 𝗴alnо𝘃𝗲𝗹s.𝗰𝗼m
The world stopped. The fragile warmth in her chest turned to ice as vivid memories of his heavily splinted right arm and the cautious way she had held him back at the base flashed through her mind. She sat bolt upright, her heart hammering against her ribs. “Re-aggravated? Did the surgical hardware shift? Is he okay?”
“He’s pushing through, ma’am,” K.C. said quickly, his eyes flicking back to her in the mirror. “They managed to stabilize the joint in the field. He refused evac. No permanent damage, but it just… complicated things.”
The thought of Jarrod hurt, bleeding, in some dusty, war-torn country while she was here, oblivious—it made her feel physically ill. A fierce, protective wave of love and fear washed over her, so intense it took her breath away. All her anger at him, all her doubts, they seemed so petty now.
She peppered K.C. with questions, needing to know every detail. He answered patiently, his descriptions painting a picture of a man who was tough, resilient, and deeply concerned for her safety.
As he spoke, the image of the photograph she had discovered hidden in the secret compartment beneath his office desk surfaced in her mind. That faded physical Polaroid of the stunningly beautiful woman named Elena, laughing with a younger Jarrod in the background. The secret he kept tucked away so deeply. The question that had been eating at her for weeks.
She had to know. And the man driving this car was the only one who could tell her.
She took a deep breath, her decision made.
The SUV moved silently through the city traffic, a bubble of quiet isolation. Caroline’s heart was still beating a little too fast from the news of Jarrod’s injury. The knowledge made him feel both impossibly far away and closer than ever. It made her feel guilty for ever doubting him over a simple photograph.
But the doubt was still there, a splinter under her skin. She needed to pull it out.
She watched K.C.’s reflection in the rearview mirror. His face was a mask of professional calm.
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