Not when she would worry more about being a distraction. No, she would do her best to keep from scaring anyone. Restlessness invaded my veins, a wild kind of buzz that both muffled the world and made it seem too loud all at the same time.
Milo put a hand on my right knee, the gentle touch drew my attention to the fact my foot was bouncing. I stopped, dragging a deep breath to fill my lungs.
“We’re going to find her,” Milo said, the sincerity in his voice insisted that I believe him. It was all I wanted to do.
His skin felt like fire under my palm when I set my hand on his. “I hope so.”
It was the best I could do and when my gaze snagged on Adam’s, I saw the same worry reflected back at me.
“Milo is right,” Adam said. “We’re going to find her. She’s going to be fine. And we’re going to gut anyone who has laid a single finger on her.”
“For starters,” Bodhi tacked on to the end.
“And we’ll make sure it hurts,” Ezra added.
“For a long time,” Kellan chimed in from the front.
The ease with which they circled the party line made me smile. “I’m down for that.”
For all of that.
The ride from the villa to wherever the school was located took us from one side of Prague to the other. I knew very little about Prague despite the research I’d done on the flight over. Maybe, someday, I could come back and be an actual tourist.
I could take Andrea on a proper European tour. England, France, Belgium, Germany, Italy, and so much more. We would find her and she would be up for this trip someday.
She had to be.
Milo turned his hand over and threaded his fingers with mine. The cold inside of me seemed to continue to spread until ice sheathed the hum, and put a very firm wall between me and the rest of the world.
My heart seemed to race and beat too fast at the same time. I couldn’t quite regulate my breathing. When Ezra pressed his leg against mine, I tried to absorb the comfort they were all offering.
“I’ll be fine when we get there.” The wild energy invading everything made calming myself down almost impossible. That said, I would not be the reason this got screwed up.
“Yes you will,” Bodhi said. “Inside, you’re with me or Milo. Does she know Ezra?”
“Yes,” Ezra said. “I’ve known her since she was a baby.”
“Okay, then we’ll put you with Liam. Milo or I will be with Adam. We’ll sort the Vandals out after that.”
Three teams.
Three teams, each team with someone that Andrea knew.
I blew out a breath. “That’s smart.”
“Thank you,” he said easily.
“He’s modest too,” Milo added.
Ezra let out a hysterical little snort and even Adam snickered. Laughter swam up from under all the noise and I had to bite my lip as I started to chuckle. The sound cracked some of the ice surrounding me, bringing the world closer.
The tectonic shift helped. Closing my eyes, I drank in their nearness and focused on my breathing. With every inhale, I pulled in calm and exhaled my stress.
My system wasn’t really listening to me. Despite it seeming to take a century, we were finally there. The slowing of the vehicle had me sitting forward. Milo’s hand tightened on mine.
“I’ll go with Adam,” Milo said. “You take care of Mayhem.” He locked gazes with Bodhi. The two seemed to be in a wordless conversation but they also resolved it swiftly.
“Done.”
Milo looked at me. “Mayhem…”
“I’ll stay with Bodhi,” I told him. “I promise.”
“Thank you.”
Then the car stopped and Kellan glanced over his shoulder. “We’re gathering here…”
By here, he meant not far from the drive leading to the school. It was cold, dark, and there weren’t a lot of streetlights. The area seemed to be trapped in time where old cobblestone roads intersected with freshly paved areas. There were buildings that dated back to the previous century, but just a half a block up, was a corner store and it looked far more modern.
“This area is being gentrified, more or less,” Margareta said. She’d arrived right behind us and slipped out to join me as I studied our surroundings. “The academy is located on five acres above. I believe it has more land attached, but I’m waiting for more information from my people.”
“How many ways in?”
The Vandals had arrived and they were talking strategy with Bodhi and Milo. Adam was within arm’s reach. Ezra split the difference, partially with the guys but also closer to Adam and me in case we needed him. I didn’t think I could love these men more.
“Three,” Margareta said and she held her phone over for me to see the screen. A map appeared with the local area highlighted.
The school was in the center. There were routes stretching away from it in three different directions. The fourth butted up against the river.
