“Get on your knees.”
“What?” I squeak, baffled by his direction. Snickers and laughter emit from the recruits.
He licks and then bites on his lower lip, trying not to laugh himself. His dimple becomes more pronounced. “Get up so I can fix the strap for you.”
“Oh. Why didn’t you just say it like that?” I kneel in front of him. The van sways back and forth, so I brace myself with a hand on his shoulder.
“Why is your mind in the gutter?” he whispers.
“It’s not. I’m just nervous and scared. What if this doesn’t work and I just put everyone’s life in danger? Or worse…” I don’t want to admit it, but what if we fail? I fail, and they die because of me.
“It’s a good plan. The Leads wouldn’t have gone with it if they didn’t agree.” He checks the rest of my weapons.
“Anders wouldn’t have approved.” He adjusts some of the other straps and pulls on the ballistics vest, ensuring it’s on securely.
“It’s hard to think rationally sometimes when you care about someone and their life is in danger. Not sure if you noticed, but Anders wasn’t quite himself. This is his life. This is all he knows, and he couldn’t lead because there were too many things running through his head. He might not show it, but he cares about you and Shadow like you’re his own.”
“Was he like this when I was kidnapped?”
“Yeah. He lost it a couple of times and kind of shut down, similar to what you saw.”
“Why did he let himself get caught? Why would he do that?”
Luke smiles sadly as he replaces the daggers in my vest. “I think he did it on purpose to save you.”
My eyes burn with unshed tears. A loud whack and a sting jolt me back in surprise.
Luke chuckles.
“Did you really just slap me?” I rub my arm.
“Worked. Didn’t it?”
“Just when I was starting to like you,” I grumble and plop down on the shuttle floor, facing away from him with an exaggerated pout.
He gently rubs my arm and winks when I glance back in his direction.
“You’re just as bad as Charlie,” I mumble under my breath as I stare out through the windshield. A glint of light from the street lamps above ricochets off Liam’s diamond earring. I can’t think about him right now. I need to focus on the mission.
Liam points. “Right there. See the hole in the roof?”
Ean slows the van and pulls into a wide alleyway. This is it. No turning back. We’re going to get them back.
Suddenly, I can’t breathe. I tug on the high neck of my undershirt.
Luke pokes my arm. He takes an exaggerated breath, and I mimic him. We do it two more times. “You got this. Now, do your thing, Jess.”
I close my eyes and link all of our minds together. Then, we wait for Darwin’s instructions.
Tech crew in position. Sharp shooters up next.
Alexis slides a phone into the center of the van. A vortex opens, and both he and Skunk slide feet first into it.
“I still think that’s super cool,” Luke whispers. Not only can Darwin physically hack into systems, he can also get into them by opening a portal. Squirrel figured out how he could manipulate the vortexes that he opens for others to enter.
Slowly, everyone climbs through the portal to get into position. Luke and Liam are the only two left, besides me.
Alright, Luke. We’re ready for you. Take your position, Darwin instructs. Luke kisses my cheek, winks, and slides into the vortex.
