Aye, Lachlan’s interruption had prevented him from acting without thinking. He would need to be more vigilant in the future. As much as he wanted Faye in his bed, the clan came first. If he failed his mission, who knew what could happen.
His dragon chimed in. They haven’t acted in months. A week or two more wouldn’t matter.
He couldn’t allow his dragon to sway his decision, so Grant ignored him. A week or even a few days could make all the difference in the world when a threat was concerned.
As Faye entered the room, he avoided looking at her. Thankfully Lachlan spoke up as soon as Faye closed the door. “Max Holbrook went to the toilet twenty minutes ago and never came back. He left a brief note in the toilet saying he had an errand to run, but no one saw him leave the restaurant.”
He shot a look at Faye and raised his brows slightly. If they had been alone, she would’ve stuck her tongue out at him. Grant had been right about needing to be closer to the DDA party in the restaurant.
Aaron Caruso from Stonefire asked, “I’m not sure why you’re talking to us about it. He’s not any of our charges.”
Lachlan’s voice remained calm as he replied, “I’m aware of this fact, Mr. Caruso. However, the exhibition is set to debut tomorrow evening. If we can’t find Max Holbrook, we can’t hold the event.”
Faye spoke up. “Why? All of his artifacts should already be in the DDA’s custody, aye?”
“Yes, but this event can’t be tinged with scandal. I will postpone it indefinitely unless we find him.”
“And by ‘we’ you mean ‘us,’” Grant stated.
Lachlan met his gaze. “Dragon-shifters see better at night than humans. It’s only logical that I ask for your help.”
Adrian chimed in. “You’re not asking, you’re telling us. You should still ask first.”
“We’re all working as a team for the time being,” Lachlan answered. “I’m not about to waste time when I know you want this event to be a success, just as I do.”
Grant grunted in agreement. If the exhibition were canceled, Grant and Faye would have to return to Lochguard and he wouldn’t be able to look for his uncle or the others. For Lochguard’s sake, Grant needed to ensure the event opened on time.
“Was the note in his handwriting?” Faye asked. “Given how important the exhibition is, it could be one of our enemies that took him.”
Lachlan stood a little taller. “Max has a tendency to do this. Before we selected him, we vetted him thoroughly and looked into his past. He’s gone to the toilet and left a note before disappearing on digs before. And before you ask, my security team kept an eye on the hallway where the toilets are located. Since we’re on the first floor, we didn’t worry about any windows.”
Aaron spoke up. “And that was probably your mistake.”
Lachlan ignored the Stonefire dragonman. “My security team will look into nefarious possibilities and sweep the area nearby. I need your help in looking further afield in case he did disappear to do some digging.”
Grant could tell some of the dragon-shifters were on the fence about helping because of their dubious expressions. As much as he wished Lachlan would plan with them, he wasn’t about to let the whole event fall to pieces at this stage. He looked to Aaron. “What do you say, Caruso? Shall we stretch our wings? Unless you’re getting too old and need to take a nap.”
Aaron was a few years older than Grant and he ribbed the English dragon-shifter whenever he could about it.
Aaron took one last bite of his curry and stood. “Quinn and I will fly circles around you. I only hope you can catch up.”
“We’ll see, old man.” Grant looked to Adrian of Northcastle. “And you lot?”
The Northern Irish dragonman shrugged. “I suppose we could help otherwise Faye and I will never get the chance to sing that song together.”
His dragon chimed in. Ignore him. Faye was about to kiss us in the hall, not him.
> The Welsh dragonman, Wren, joined in. “We’ll help as well, although we don’t know the Scottish countryside as well as you.”
“No worries. We’ll form a grid pattern and divide up the work.” He looked to Lachlan. “Can we entrust our clan members to your security team? I doubt Max is part of some nefarious scheme to capture everyone, but I want to play it safe.”
“Are they going to pay attention this time?” Adrian drawled.
Lachlan moved his hands to behind his back and gripped them. “Once everyone is inside our accommodations, it would take an army to break our defenses. They will be well protected.”
Grant’s dragon spoke up. I believe his words.
So do I. Maybe we should suggest that all meals are taken inside the B&B from now on.