“Did you join a cult together?” Gabby asked. “Are you cheating on Dad with my ex-husband?” Gabby could barely get that sentence out. They could have kept the Jerry Springer show on the air for a few more seasons with that one line.
And even if she and Phil were having some sort of freaking cult-fueled fling, what were the chances that they would go to the same cult that Gabby and Markus were investigating?
Maybe it was like that Elizabeth Gilbert bookBig Magicthat Gabby had read three chapters of. Elizabeth Gilbert had said something about ideas floating around in the air, and sometimes the same people reach for the same very specific idea because it’s ready to be picked or something. She’d been talking about creative ideas, but it probably applied to this sort of thing, except this wasn’t good magic. It was Big, Shitty Magic.
“Why are you here?” Gabby asked.
“When Kyle showed me where the AirTag had finally stopped moving, I went straight to the airline and ordered tickets for Phil and myself. I was going to bring Granny and the kids, but she didn’t want them to miss school.”
“AirTag?”
“The one Kyle put on your shoe, Gabby.” She stared down her nose. “You didn’t see it.”
Gabby’s mind exploded. The silicone flower jammed in her Croc wasn’t a cute charm. It was a tracking device. She and Kyle were going to have to have a conversation.
While Gabby was still processing the “gift” from Kyle, Elena went on. “Oh, and I used your credit card. It was stored on your computer. Because this trip is a rescue. You’re welcome.”
Gabby rubbed her temples. That was her government card. Her mother had charged last-minute tickets to the Azores to the US government. How was she going to explain that to Valentina?
“How the hell is this a rescue?” Gabby said, her voice pitching up. “I’m on a freaking work trip.”
“Work?”
Okay, she wasn’t going to convince anyone that this was work, not unless she started from the beginning and explained that she was an undercover agent, which she wasn’t going to do. If anyone should not be trusted with a secret, it was her mother.
But she had to tell hersomething. So she was going to have to let her mom believe some version of Gabby ran away to paradise and was being irresponsible. That didn’t go down easy. For once, she wanted to get a “Good job, sweetie!”
The fact that she was even in this position… If she were in a Bugs Bunny cartoon, steam would be coming out of her ears, and her top would be rattling like she was a screaming teapot.
“This is not work, Gabby.” Her mom was struggling to catch her breath. “You left your eighty-three-year-old grandmother with the kids to go on a luxury vacation with some guy. You are a mother, Gabby!”
Gabby rubbed her temples. All Gabby had done for fifteen years was do her best at mothering, to the point she had lost herself. Admittedly, she might be out of balance now, but Elena was out of line. Gabby practically hissed, “You are tellingmeto be a good mother? That is rich.”
“If chasing your daughter across the globe to rescue her from a bad decision isn’t committed mothering, I don’t know what is.”
Her mom was delusional.
In a quiet but deadly voice, Gabby said, “Sometimes there are good reasons to lie. I have my reasons. You should not be here.” Gabby paced the room. “Don’t unpack a thing because you can’t stay.”
Her mom laughed. “I will do whatever I want.”
Gabby considered tasing her mother. She wanted to. Before she could act on her current deepest desire, her mom said, “I’m going to splash some water on my face and cool off.”
Good.
Gabby turned to the patio.
Phil. The man was sitting outside in a light drizzle, just letting it rain on his face. Maybe it was as good as crying for him.
“Phil, do you want to come inside? It’s raining.” Why was she being pleasant to him?
“Gabby,” he said, his voice filled with defeat, “I came out because I was so pissed. You know you’re supposed to inform me if you get married. It’s a violation of the custody agreement.”
She wasn’t even getting married. This was the dumbest day on the planet. Plus, she’d missed yoga, and she needed to be worried about Sheridan, who needed to get off the island ASAP per the president of the freakin’ United States’ direct order.
“Youbuilt that in because you were worried about me introducing ‘some ho to the kids behind your back.’ Do you remember that?” He glanced in her direction.
She laughed softly and nodded. She did remember that, but she didn’t think it was necessary to inform Phil about a fake marriage for undercover work.
