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CHARLIE RESTED HER LEGS ACROSS THE BACK SEATS, watching as Johnny and Robby fussed over the trunk. She quickly turned her gaze away, uninterested, they needed to hash out their issues, but Charlie had no intention of doing the same with Robby anytime soon.
She absently bounced her phone in her palm, noting the 6% battery—almost dead. They had a charger, but Johnny stupidly only packed his own and, of course, he had to have an android.
With a frustrated grunt, she felt the buzz of her phone vibrating against her thigh. Her heart skipped as Sam's name flashed across the screen. Quickly, she shot up from her slouch and flung open the car door, stepping away to grant them some privacy — though it seemed Johnny and Robby were too absorbed in their conversation to notice.
Once a bit of a distance from the vehicle, she glanced down at her phone, swiping to answer the call.
"Hello?" she muttered, pressing the device to her ear.
"Hi, Charls. Uhm, Miguel called me," Sam's voice dripped with a tone that instantly told Charlie this weren't going to be good news.
Charlie's eyebrows shot up, a mix of relief and disappointment flooding her. "Oh my god, is he—is he okay?"
"Yeah, he's fine," Sam replied, but there was a hesitation in her voice. "He said something about how finding his dad is a lot harder than he expected, and I kinda went off on him." A heavy sigh escaped the brunette, "Really regretting that right now."
"Hey, it's okay," Charlie reassured, she could barely imagine what she would have done in Sam's shoes. "I know you're just worried; we all are."
Sam's agreement was faint, her voice trailing off as she paced. Charlie took the moment to probe further. "Did he mention where he was going?"
"No, but Charlie, I think he's close to finding his dad. How far are you guys?" Sam's voice rose in pitch, a mixture of urgency and fear.
Charlie turned, scanning the stretch of road around them. "Uh . . . not sure. Dad almost crashed the car, so we're kind of in the middle of nowhere. I'll send my location."
She quickly switched to speakerphone, fingers flying over the screen to share her coordinates before returning to the call. "I think—well I hope we're close. Do you have any tracker or something on Miguel's phone?"
"No, he turned it off the second he left," Sam replied with frustration, "I just—"
Suddenly, the line went silent. Charlie frowned, pulling the phone away to check the screen. The battery icon flashed—0%. "Shit."
Just as she prepared to turn back to the car, a hand landed firmly on her shoulder, causing her to flinch. She spun around to find Johnny. "Come on, car's sorted. We're gonna drop Robby at the bus station."
