Cate had barely spoken to Jack since the night she’d found the photo, and as she came face to face with him in the kitchen, she found it almost impossible to meet his gaze. She’d stuck to her guns, staying strong and listening to her mother’s voice. He’d been relatively easy to avoid the past week, as both men rarely left the attic unless it was nighttime, and she’d made sure to go to bed early each night.

But they were about to be in close proximity for hours as they tramped for the beach at Calais, which meant they needed to get along.

“Any word yet from Elise?” Jack asked.

Harry was pacing the living room now, raking his fingers back and forth through his hair.

“Nothing,” Cate replied.

“How long can we wait?” Jack asked.

“We’re not going without her, so we wait as long as we need to wait,” Harry snapped, glaring at them. “There wouldn’t even be an evacuation plan if it wasn’t for Elise.”

Cate traded glances with Jack, knowing she’d have to tread carefully.

“I agree that we can’t leave without her, she’s an important part of the plan,” Cate said, her voice low. “But we may not get an opportunity like this again, so—”

“We’re not leaving without her, and that’s final.”

She looked from Harry to Jack, not sure what to say. She didn’t want to leave without Elise and Adelaide either, but this was their only chance at getting home.

“Cate, can we talk a moment?” Jack said, gesturing toward Harry. “Alone?”

She glanced at Jack, about to say that there was nothing he couldn’t say in front of Harry, but changed her mind. He moved into the kitchen, just out of earshot, or at least out of sight.

“About the other night . . .” he started.

“Please, Jack, can we just not talk about it?” she asked. “We have a long journey ahead of us and—”

“I’m sorry,” he said. “I just want to say that I know what I did was wrong, and you’re right for hating me. And I wanted to say that I’m so sorry, just one more time. I’m so, so sorry, Cate.”

Cate stared into his beautiful dark brown eyes, wishing she could forget that he’d lied to her. “I don’t hate you, Jack. But I don’t want to talk about it. I want us to focus on our journey.” She brushed away her tears and sighed. “I can’t even wrap my head around it all.”

He nodded. “Fair enough.”

“What do you think we do about Elise and Adelaide, though?” she whispered. “We owe them everything, but if something’s happened to them, if there’s a chance—”

“Someone’s here,” Jack interrupted, grabbing her hand as he ducked down low.