CHAPTER 6 — THE LIFE THEY DIDN’T EXPECT ME TO CHOOSE
The next morning, Marcus made a decision.
Not for himself.
For me.
“You can leave,” he said.
“I’ll arrange it. New identity protection. Safe relocation.”
I looked at him.
“And Annie?”
“Completely protected.”
A pause.
“And me?”
He didn’t answer immediately.
Then:
“Still being targeted indirectly.”
That should have scared me.
It did.
But not enough.
Because something else mattered more.
I looked at him.
“You said I was just a passenger,” I said quietly.
A faint smile.
“I was.”
“Then why am I still here?” I asked.
Silence.
Then he said:
“Because you didn’t leave my side when you had every reason to.”
That stayed in the air.
Heavy.
Simple.
True.
Later that day, we exited through a secured transport route.
No media.
No confrontation.
No chaos.
Just distance from danger.
But before we left—
Marcus handed me a small card.
No logo.
Just coordinates.
“If you ever need safety,” he said.
“You’ll find me there.”
I looked at him.
“You’re not coming with us?”
He shook his head.
“Not yet.”
A pause.
“They still think I belong to them.”
I held Annie tighter.
“And me?”
Marcus looked at us both.
Then said quietly:
“No.”
“You never did.”
And for the first time since that flight began—
I believed I wasn’t lost.
May you like
I was simply being redirected toward something I hadn’t expected.
END — HAPPY ENDING
