Shannon breathed, her voice low and rough, like she was biting down on the phone.

“Yes. We’re heading to her location now. Hopefully she cooperates.”

“Yeah. I just hope that bastard is willing to negotiate and hand over the antidote.”

“This is going to take a long time… we’ll have to go deep into the forests,” I whispered quickly.

Shannon exhaled, steady but strained. “It’s fine. Whatever it takes, if it’s for Jennifer, I’ll wait.”

Her voice softened at the edges, a quiet promise threaded through the static of the call.

“Yes. Thank you,” I murmured, then ended the call with a small tap, the screen dimming in my palm....