“I had a dream about Dutch.”
Mantis’ eyes met hers. “Yeah?”
“He was in danger.”
“Tell me about it.”
She did, and the part that bothered him the most was that, in it, Dutch had said he was already dead. Sure, he’d had plenty of bizarre dreams that didn’t mean a damn thing, but when she’d said the words, a chill went up his spine.
“I know Doc is working on making contact,” she said. “But I’m worried.”
He was too. Should he admit that to her or remind her that Dutch going dark was just part of the mission?
“Doc said that, as far as he knew, Dutch was in Germany. He has no reason to believe he is no longer there.”
“Do you think he’s refusing to make contact just because of us?”
“I don’t,” he said, shaking his head. “Dutch may be pig-headed, or a know-it-all, but he isn’t stupid. At the very minimum, he’d check in with Doc, even if he is ‘bravely’ letting you and I have space.”
Alegria nodded, but still looked troubled.
“Talk to me, Flygirl.”
“My instincts are telling me it’s more than that.”
“Let’s call Doc together, then.”
“You don’t think I’m overreacting?”
“Never.”
She reached over and put her hand on top of his. “I appreciate that.”
Mantis scrubbed his face with his hand, wondering if he was about to make a mistake by telling her about his conversation with his mother.
“My mom asked me to give her my top five words to describe you this morning.”
“Are you going to tell me what you said?”
He nodded. “Smart, stubborn, independent, and sexy as hell.”
“That’s only four.”
“I know…”
“You have to tell me the fifth. If you weren’t prepared to do so, you shouldn’t have brought it up.”
“Insecure.”
Alegria looked away from him. “I am all those things.”
“I’d always trust you to have my back, Flygirl. Always. I want you to know that. I trust your instincts as much as my own.”
“And I, you. Let’s call Doc.”
By the time they hung up, Doc had reassured them that he’d stepped up the efforts to find Dutch, but would add a few more feet on the ground.
“We have operatives around the world on the lookout for him,” he’d said.