Exhaling, I shake my head. “Your word, or I go back.”
“She’s not worth this. You barely fucking know her.” The sharpness of his voice tells me he’s considering it. If he wasn’t, he’d be calm while he refused. When I don’t speak, he finally says, “If I even attempt to do this, you will owe me.”
“I already owe you.”
“Not like you will for this. If you and I both get out of this alive, you willoweme. Anything I ask. No matter what.”
My eyes drift shut as warnings swirl in my head. Then, I think about Sawyer sitting innocently at my cousin’s kitchen counter, where I brought her like a lamb to the slaughter. I can’t leave her to her fate. “Right. Any payment, it’s yours.”
“Fucking suicide mission,” War mutters under his breath just before the call goes dead.
With a slow exhalation, I slide my phone away and walk the rest of the way to the gate.
* * *
SAWYER
Ash offersto set me up in the family room to watch movies or play video games while she plays with her nephews, but the boys are so cute and happy I opt to join her instead.
The boys’ bedroom is huge, and in one corner there is a life-sized teddy bear with his legs on the mattress of a daybed, which has been removed from its frame. On the mattress is what must be a two-foot-tall mound of smaller stuffed animals.
Sean and I, along with a stuffed elephant, search the pile for the dragon escapee. Ash and a babbling Finn, search the closet.
When I ask what the dragon did to end up in jail in the first place, Sean and his little brother show me the treasure chest behind Sean’s boat-framed bed. Inside the chest are a collection of plastic gold doubloons and jewels.
I have a hard time understanding some of the words Finn uses, but apparently seeing my confusion, Sean helpfully interprets, saying the dragon burned the lock with his breath to steal the treasure.
While we’re discussing fire-breathing dragons, there’s a knock on the door. The boys turn as the door opens and their mom appears.
“Guys, look who came over to play.”
The boys race toward her as two little girls enter. One has such pretty, delicate features she looks like a doll. She’s dressed in a black, glittery brocade tunic shirt and leggings, with a sparkly black ribbon around her dark ponytail. Her onyx-and-sapphire antique drop earrings look like they belong in the treasure chest. She’s carrying an e-reader with a black glossy cover that matches her outfit.
Behind her is a girl with lopsided pigtails who’s dressed in a dark t-shirt and leggings. Loose hair at the nape of her neck flutters as she runs in.
The girl with the e-reader hugs Ash and then extends her small hand toward me. A silver-and-sapphire bangle bracelet sways as we shake.
“Hello. I’m Irina Stroviak. That’s my sister Makayla. Are you another cousin of the Patricks?” Despite being as small as Sean, her speech is crystal clear.
“Hi. No, I’m not related. My name’s Sawyer.”
“This is my friend from school,” Ash says. “Irina, you look so cute in this outfit. Let me see your bracelet.”
“Thank you.” Irina holds up her arm.
“Gorgeous.”
A few feet away, the boys are explaining about the missing dragon. Sean conveys that they suspect the bear might have helped with the prison break. Unlike the other kids, Makayla doesn’t say a word. Instead, she turns and narrows her eyes at the bear. Then with a running leap, she jumps onto the bear’s chest and punches him in the head.
It’s so ferocious and hilarious that both Ash and I laugh.
“Oh, my goodness. Makayla,” Irina says in a long-suffering tone more suited to a parent. “Be careful. If you break his stitching, Aunt Laurelyn and Uncle Trick will probably be upset. Remember you’re supposed to be gentle?”
Makayla glances over briefly as she climbs onto the end of a dresser.
“Oh, my gosh.” Irina turns quickly toward Ash. “If she jumps on him, it might knock out his stuffing. It’s happened at our house.”
Ash strolls over and catches Makayla mid-leap. The little girl’s momentum is so powerful, Ash falls backward onto the mattress and stuffed toys.
