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“I have it!” He hurries off to the cockpit, and when he comes back, he grins at us. “They tried to wipe all of the hard drives, but in their rush, they didn’t corrupt them enough. I managed to save some documents on another location, another experiment, which they were comparing this one to.”
“That’s great.” Louis sighs, clearly relieved, the only sign that he was as worried as us. “So where to?”
“We are going to Scotland,” Dimitri tells us as he shuts his laptop and stretches. “We might as well get some rest and then we’ll hit the ground running when we get there. The notes on this one are odd.”
“Odd how?” I ask, and he looks at me, not with pity, but understanding.
“The age . . . It isn’t a child.”
* * *
Unsure what we will find when we land in Scotland, I spread out across the bed in the back of the plane. Right now, I’m grateful Dimitri’s money was able to provide this. We are all drained after this mission. We knew it would be bad, but we never expected that. We should have.
My father is dead, though, so then who killed the boy?
And why?
How did they know we were coming?
I have so many questions and not enough answers, and my turbulent thoughts only quieten when Isaac slips into bed next to me, taking my hand. “Are you okay?” we say at the same time and share a grin.
“No,” I admit, and he nods.
“Me either,” he murmurs.
Closing my eyes, I turn and lay my head on his chest, sliding my leg over his.
He sighs contentedly and wraps me in his arms. “We have to do this, Nova. I just wish I could make this easier for you, for all of you.”
“We do this together,” I mutter, listening to the steady thump of his heart. “I should have expected . . . but yeah, I guess I didn’t. It made it so much more real again, that’s all. That poor boy, what he went through . . .”
“We all did. Part of me is happy that he at least escaped the future we had, but either way, we cannot change what happened. We can only prevent it from happening again, and we will. No doubt there will be more horrors the deeper we investigate, but you are right. We will do it together, and when there is nothing left but the ashes of your father’s research, we will mourn them.”
Lifting my head, I meet his eyes. “You are amazing, you know that?” I tell him, and he blushes even as his eyes drop to my lips. Leaning in, I allow myself a little weakness and kiss him softly. “So amazing,” I whisper huskily against his lips as the bed bounces, rolling me into Isaac.
Grinning, I pull back and turn to see Louis stretching out next to me, closing his eyes. “Don’t mind me,” he murmurs, even as his hand snakes out and tangles in my hair. He sighs and settles down as if he just needed to feel me, so I snuggle between them, not even cracking an eye when I feel the others climb on, and we lie in a tangle of legs and arms.
There is a grunt and a smack.
“That better be your gun,” Nico snarls, and when I laugh, Jonas does too.
“Nah, I’m just happy to see you.”
There is a yelp, and when we look, Jonas is on the floor. He glares at Nico before pouting at me as he climbs up and lies on the full length of my body, burying his head in my chest. “He’s being mean, baby,” he whines.
“Nico, be nice.” I grin as he huffs, wrapping his hand around my ankle. Dimitri’s head is on my leg, and something settles deep inside me as I look over them.
“Sleep,” Isaac commands. “Dream of good things,” he whispers in my ear.
Closing my eyes, I can’t help but smile and feel protected and loved. I’m not alone, I know that, but there are people out there who are, and they need our help. I cannot afford to break, not now, but I know with the guys by my side, I never will.
FORTY-FIVE
By the time we catch a taxi into Scotland, we are all ready to stretch our legs and walk around. The air is cool and fresh, and the castle casts a beautiful shadow across everything we pass. The mixture of old and new buildings is incredible. I’ve never been to Scotland before, and my eyes are wide as I try to drink everything in. I know we are here for work, but it doesn’t stop me from bouncing in my seat, wanting to explore the little shops and climb to the castle and do the ghost tours. The taxi takes us just off the main road to a side street of houses. Once there, I pay and slip out, stretching my arms up into the air. I giggle when someone tickles my side and smack their hands away, then I turn and glare at Jonas who just winks.
“Guess this is home for a few days,” I comment as we stare at the three-story house.
Isaac hoists his bag into the air and takes off towards the front door. “Yep, I made sure we could just let ourselves in so we didn’t have to meet anyone. It’s private and gives us the cover of tourists we need. So get settled, but keep your bags packed. Dimitri is going to work on the next location information.”
