“I know.”
“I understand why he does what he does, but, man, I wish he wouldn’t scare the shit out of us like this.”
“He must be really worried about something,” King said. “You know he only does this when it’s something big, but why wouldn’t he tell me if that’s the case?”
There had to be a reason. Leo never keptanythingfrom King. It just wasn’t logical for him. Leo often got lost in his head, yet he always snapped out of it in his own time. But getting lost in his head and wandering off without realizing it? That was reserved for incredibly stressful situations, like when he’d been forced to work on a top-secret government project, fearing that at any moment, they’d take him from his family and make him disappear.
King had made damn sure that didn’t happen. It was how they’d met. King’s job was to look after Leo and keep him safe. He’d been doing it ever since. King needed someone to protect, and Leo needed to be protected. It was how they were made. But Leo also kept King on his toes and showed him he was worthy of love. King showed Leo that he was perfect just the way he was. And that there was more to life than computers.
King rechecked his phone and sighed. “Still nothing.”
There was plenty of lighting around the tree farm, but the farther out they went, the less there was. Ace hated the thought of Leo being out here despite his resourcefulness. The weather alone posed a threat.
King’s phone buzzed, and he quickly checked it. “Gio says Merry saw Leo earlier this afternoon in the café. He had a glass of milk and a fish-shaped gingerbread cookie.” He smiled and shook his head. “Him and his fish-shaped snacks.”
“Does Merry know where he went after?”
King shook his head. “No.” Another text came through, and King paused. “He was at the ornament shop this afternoon.” More texts followed. “It looks like he’s been to several shops throughout the day. Why wouldn’t he have checked in?” Another buzz, and King frowned. “Colton says Leo was at the reindeer farm earlier but left a little over two hours ago. He didn’t say where he was going.”
“Damn. You don’t think he would have wandered out here, do you?” Ace pulled the flashlight from his pocket and turned it on as they headed toward the woods where they’d been earlier. Considering the gap in the trees where they’d planted the tiny sapling, it wasn’t hard to find.
“He might have come back here because it’s where you and the fellas had been when he left, but I don’t think he would have ventured into the woods. He would have known you had no reason to go in there.”
It was all about logic for Leo. “True.”
“Leo,” King called out. He shone his flashlight around them. There was no movement, no sound, nothing.
They focused their beams on the ground, but even if someone had been out here, the freshly fallen snow would have covered any tracks by now. Everything Leo did had logic to it—a specific reason—so they had to think like Leo.
Ace hummed. “Okay, so he had a snack because he got hungry, then went around town visiting shops for whatever reason. He might have come back here, seen we were gone. So where would he have gone after?”
They put away their flashlights and headed back to the tree farm.
“Logically, he would have gone home, but he would have needed a ride,” King replied.
“The Ice Castle,” Ace said. “He would have looked for one of us, and his best bet would have been the Ice Castle since we’ve been in and out of there since we arrived at Winterhaven.”
They quickly made their way to the Ice Castle, though neither of them stated the obvious. Lucky and Mason would have bumped into Leo by now since they were sent to check the Ice Castle.
Lucky and Mason were still inside when they got there, looking around.
“Any luck?” Ace asked, meeting up with them.
“No,” Lucky replied, shaking his head.
“We checked every room,” Mason added. “It’s a big building, but there’s no sign of him.” He wrapped an arm around Lucky.
“Ace, estoy preocupado.”
“I’m worried, too, primo,” Ace replied quietly.
They all reconvened at the Ice Castle. No one had seen Leo.
King ran a hand through his hair when Colton’s phone rang. He picked up, and the visible sigh of relief said they’d found Leo.
“Thank you so much, Clara. I will.” Colton hung up and put a hand on his chest. “Clara says her husband just got home. Leo had asked him for a ride back to the cabin.”
Joker gaped at him. “What? When?”
