Gifted Connections 2

“I’m calling Leo,” Troy finally stood up and brushed his pants off. “I remember working hard to chase my own demons away, but now whatever it was doesn’t seem that important anymore. I’m going to take a leave of absence until I figure this all out.”

I tried to stifle my gasp as I sat up. I looked up at him. Understanding dawning. “Your foster brother?” I silently communicated with him. “What happened to him?”

His eyes widened for a moment. He cleared his throat. “Blake,” he said hesitantly. “Will you like to follow me to your room? I think Gavin said Jemmy brought you some clothes you can change into.”

I nodded, knowing he would like to speak to me in private. He still wasn’t ready to share his secret with the guys. He didn’t want to know that his foster brother had been grooming him to molest him. “I’ll be right back,” I murmured as I let Troy help me up.

He waited until we got to my room, before he turned to me. “So, I told you.” It was more of a statement than a question.

I nodded as I bit my lip. “You let me know he had molested another little boy. You blamed yourself after you found out other boys had been placed in their care after you. You were afraid that only the last boy had been brave enough to come forward, and if you had spoken up earlier, maybe they all could have been saved from him.”

A large smile spread across his face. “My team had been investigating him. None of the other boys had been there long enough for him to attempt his grooming process. The last boy had come forward with a lap top that was filled with enough evidence to put him away for a while. He never got the chance to touch him. What did you do?” He pulled me in tight, squeezing me so hard I was afraid I might pass out. Not really, but it was tight.

“Judge Myers,” I smiled in relief. “I remembered, and I had a feeling he knew the whole situation. Especially since he did your adoption. With his gift. He would have known the truth, so I asked him to look into it for me.”

The look he gave me made me feel like I had hung the moon singlehandedly.

“Hey,” Remy came barreling into the room. “They found Alex, and they want to extract him now.”

Even though no one wanted me to go, I was going. Especially after I found out they were traveling out of state to get Alex. Gavin hadn’t seen Alex in a while, which was the norm at the shelter. Once Judge Myers got involved, he was able to search more thoroughly. It had been confirmed that Alex’s father had died while drinking and driving, crashing his car into a median. The authorities were never made aware of a son, so they never thought to even look for him.

Judge Myers had circulated the picture of Alex to all his contacts. He got a lead on Alex’s whereabouts, and now we were heading to Delaware. We were going to land on an airstrip that shared a runway with a Guard Base. We were hoping the element of surprise would be on our side.

Generally, when the Knights were dispatched, certain protocols were set in place. Will had people that were set up at headquarters to provide us with assistance if needed. This mission was too sensitive to trust just anyone. He didn’t want any information to fall into the wrong hands. His plan was to secure Alex and then deploy another team for any clean up.

The private jet was taking Will, Remy, Jace, Troy, Noah, Drake, Jaxson, Jemmy, Rachel, Gavin, Collin, and I to Delaware. I don’t know if most of the guys were more displeased that I was coming along, or that Collin was as well. They didn’t want Collin to go, for obvious trust reasons, and they didn’t feel I was physically ready to go. We were flying in blind. We didn’t know how many people were keeping Alex. We didn’t know their abilities, or if they had any.

The only reason I won the argument to go was because I informed them I was able to communicate with Alex in the future/past. We were hoping he had obtained his gift at this point, and I was able to communicate with him. They finally relented to allow me to go if I promised not to get physically involved.

It was the first time I was able to suit up like a Knight, and it felt kind of exhilarating. The black and silver suits were form fitting and made of a fire-retardant material. The chest had a Kevlar-like material built into it. It didn’t hurt that I had seen the look of appreciation in a lot of the guys’ eyes.

I had only got to accompany them on one other mission in the past; the same mission I found Alex the first time.

Drake seemed slightly withdrawn as he sat in the back, talking on the phone. Jaxson was beside him playing on his own phone. Will had slipped in the sleeping quarters in the back, occupied on his phone. Collin, Rachel, Gavin, and Jemmy had found seats in the recliners up front. I was sitting on the couch located in the middle of the jet with Noah and Troy, while Jace and Remy had taken seats across from us.

I was feeling slightly awkward. In the past, we had clicked quickly, but this time around they almost seemed hesitant with me, like they were unsure how to proceed. I had no clue either. Everything seemed more natural the first time around.

“So, you have a brother Micah out there as well. How do we find him?” Troy asked.

I shrugged. “The last time we found him, Alex helped us. Micah was in Baltimore. Horatio’s already a step ahead of us. He may already have him in custody.”

Remy’s eyebrows knitted. “We’ll find him,” he said gruffly.

Noah shifted on the couch and pulled me close to his side. I sighed and leaned my head into him.

Jaxson seemed agitated as he came back with Will. “I tried to tell Tamara we needed to talk, but I’ve been unable to reach her,” he said as he took a seat next to Jace and Remy.

Will sighed as he rubbed his eyes. “They’re gone. I sent a team to apprehend Bridgette, Zach and his connections to question them further, but they’re nowhere to be found.”

“Did Collin warn them?” I exclaimed.

Will shook his head. “We took his phone. He has no way of contacting them, and we’ve been with him the whole time. Plus, with the help of Rachel, we know Collin is regretting his actions. He never knew how Horatio operated.”

“So, someone else tipped him off,” Jace said grimly.

“What do we do now?” I asked.

Will took a seat on the arm of the couch across from us. “I think for now, we focus on your connections. Troy and Jace, I would like it if you stayed home for a while. Remy, I don’t want you travelling to your restaurants out of state, not unless you all go.”