appeared to be a little better off than he had been before his power nap.
"Let's get moving." Mona nodded to the airport.
As we walked through the building, I noticed there was hardly anyone standing around. It was still early, not even ten in the morning.
A Suburban sat out front with someone standing right beside it. When the younger man saw us, he immediately headed straight to Tommy and handed him the keys.
"Thank you." Tommy took them but didn't slow down as he hurried to the vehicle.
"You're tired. Maybe I should drive." Kassie reached for the keys, but Tommy dodged her.
"No, I'm fine. Thanks." He sped up, rushing to the driver’s side door.
"That man ..." Kassie frowned and shook her head.
Mona scanned behind us and whispered loud enough for all of us to hear. "Hurry. Let's get out of here." There was an edge to her tone.
"I don't see anything odd." Kassie scanned the area, looking for whatever threat Mona had found.
"It's more of a feeling that we're being watched." Mona waved us forward, wanting us to move even faster.
As Kassie reached the vehicle, she opened the back passenger door for all of us to pile in.
"I'll go first this time." Louis jumped into the Suburban, closely followed by Ella.
"Go, hurry." Mona waved both Mason and me in. "Let's get moving."
Not needing any further encouragement, both Mason and I clambered into the middle row. Soon everyone else got situated, and we were on the road.
"So was that not peculiar to have that happen back there?" Louis asked from the back seat. "I can't be the only person thinking that whole thing was a little too convenient after everything."
"No, I agree with you." Mason turned his body so he could glance at the backseat. "Magic or something like it had to be in play."
"We need to figure out who's in charge of all these attacks." My heart dropped as I thought that one of them could be the very person I'd trusted for so long. "Do you think we could stop by Rose's shop before heading to James’s?"
"I know you and Mason are hell-bent on ..."
I cut her off. "No, I'm afraid you might be right about Rose. I'd like to go visit her and see if anything is strange."
"Wait." Kassie turned around, and her eyes caught Mona's. "Did she just say what I think she did?"
"That you were right?" A huge grin spread across Mona's face.
"Technically, she said you might be right." Ella arched an eyebrow.
"Listen here, blondie," Kassie growled, "she said I was right. Got it."
"Yes, she has it." Louis reached over and placed his hand across Ella’s mouth.
"No, I don't." She muttered the words as she bit his fingers.
"Damn." He jerked his hand away and shook it. "You almost drew blood."
"You weren't complaining last night." Ella tilted her head.
"For the love of God." Mason rubbed a hand down his face. "Please, shut up."
"Oh, but it's okay for you and Elena to suck face and moan in front of us." Ella leaned back in the seat and crossed her arms.
"Anyway." This was a conversation that I did not want to have, especially with the two people who had raised me in the vehicle. "Do you mind if we do a drive-by and see what's going on first?"
"Hell, it can't hurt anything at this point." Tommy glanced at Kassie. "Just tell me how to get there."
For some reason, my heart grew heavy.
Within minutes, we were pulling into the small parking lot of Rose’s shop. All the lights were off, which wasn't completely abnormal. She’d always had later shop hours.
"What do you want to do now?" Tommy pulled into a spot and glanced at the building.
"Let's see if it's open." I unbuckled my seatbelt and opened the door. "Sometimes, she’d have the lights off even though she was there. It was rare, but I always learned to check."
"Hold your horses." Mona croaked from the back. "You can't just go out there like you aren't being stalked."
It was rare for Mona to speak to me that way, so when she did, it made me pause. "But I want to go in."
"Then give us a second to get prepared." She lifted an eyebrow.
"I'm on it." Kassie's shoulders shook with laughter.
Damn, she can be scary. Mason's eyes widened as he glanced in Mona’s direction. Granted, she's right.
She's scary because she isn't constantly lecturing me like someone here in the front seat. She uses it only when she needs it the most. You could never underestimate