Wyatt stared at me like I was insane, but then his mind caught up.
“Okay. You think– what? They were at a festival to snatch a rare affinate and got into it over whose family they’d be visiting for the holidays? Be realistic.”
Be realistic?Was he serious?That was the most realistic reason for an argument ever.
“No,” I said slowly, because he was an idiot. “They were there for someone, but Shafer was distracted by Skye. We know the Crusader collects rare affinates. They weren’t there for Skye, but what if the Crusader changed his mind after the Sensors felt her? What if–”
“You think he decided to kidnap Skye?” Wyatt said. “That doesn’t make sense.”
“No, it doesn’t.” I agreed, back to my feet and pacing.
I was missing something.
What was I missing?
“He recognized Skye,” Wyatt said. “He thought she was her mom.”
“What if the Crusader had been involved with Skye’s mother? Ittracks. His reaction to Skye, his reaction to learning of Iris’ death at the massacre…”
Wyatt stood up so quickly, his chair rolled back into the wall.
“Holyfuck!” he cried.
“They go to the festival to snatch someone. Shafer is distracted, so Crusader goes to check it out. But he becomes distracted by his old flame. Regina, the new crazy flame, loses her shit in a jealous rage, then sets off the lightning bomb. Then they take their original target…the other missing affinate, the one that isn’t Levi. Some kid.”
“Rafe…” Wyatt said slowly. “I…”
“What?” I turned back to face him, feeling like my own face had to be just as pale as his.
“The eyes,” Wyatt whispered, sounding pained. “How did we not realize before?”
The eyes?
My brain grinded to a halt.
The Crusader’s pale blue eyes.
So pale, one might call them…silver.
“He didn’t just run into an old flame,” Wyatt said quietly. “He ran into an old family.”
After nearly an hourof Wyatt and I talking in circles, Wyatt made a strangled sound as we prepared to leave.
I jumped. “What is it?”
“Someone…fucking…look at this!” Wyatt grabbed his stapler, and it didn’t move. He slammed his hand against his desk lamp, then winced when it didn’t move at all. He shook out his hand. “Someone fucking…glued all my shit down?!”
I snorted, then laughed. “What the hell?”
I stood, leaning in to examine the lamp more closely.
It was glued down, alright.
Come to think of it…
At the same moment, Wyatt and I both tried to shove different items off the desk.
Only nothing moved.
