Valentine pushed the gas pedal deeper into the floor and the car's speedometer blew past 90 mph. Nothing but rural wasteland as far as she could see, and the roads were practically empty as she chased the Lakeshore Limited, hoping against hope that Atticus was safely on board. She would never have agreed to allow his participation in this mission if she'd known the whole thing would fall so utterly apart. Damn those stupid, selfish women who put the whole organization - not to mention a critical mission - at risk... and for what? Vanity? Power lust? And damn Knight. Fear mixed with anxiety pushed her foot deeper toward the floorboards.

"Atticus, please, please be on that train" she murmured to herself.

She promised herself she'd tell him everything after this was over. She'd confess how young she was, how unprepared to raise a child, how much it had hurt to walk away, to pretend he didn't mean everything to her as she watched him grow from a maddening distance. She had to watch over him, to protect him from a now uncertain future.