Page 58 of No Bed Of Roses

Tomorrow, she’d meet her dad for the first time in twelve years. The nerves of that bounced through her veins, but it was a good anticipation. Tomorrow, she hoped they would also catch Ed.

Levi kissed her hair. “Shut down that beautiful brain and set it all aside for tonight. Let’s focus on the good guys winning because they figure out how to work together.”

She nodded and shoved the worries aside. Tomorrow would be there soon enough.

They had just finished breakfast the following morning when Troy and Piper arrived. Then Marcus. Then the entire group of twelve from Midnight Lake. Isla could only look around in shock. These people were all here to help look for Ed. “But what about your plans for the day? I don’t want to pull you away from anything important.”

Tansy laughed and hugged her. “You’re more important than any tasks.”

Sam patted her back. “We had a scheduled off-day for Midnight Security today, so we didn’t have to cancel anything.”

Isla’s gaze moved from person to person. “Thank you. I know that’s not adequate, but thank you.”

Graham rolled his eyes. “It’s more than adequate. We’ve got each other’s backs here.”

She was working to control her emotions when Tansy used a tablet to pull up an aerial map of the town and the surrounding area. “Tessa helped me divide into grids, but we’re not from here, so we don’t know if they make sense. Any adjustments you locals suggest?”

As Troy and Marcus moved to get a better look, Piper grinned. “What are the locals called, anyway? Phails? Phailites? Phailonians? Phailures?”

Everyone laughed, and Troy shrugged. “I don’t think it’s ever come up before. I’ve never used a collective noun for the people who live here.”

Piper grinned. “Sounds like a new poll to put up on the website. We’ll get some input from the town and see what they choose. We need a cartoonist to start making some local gear. Josie, are you up for another job? Or Nimii?”

Josie laughed and shook her head. “Not my forté. At all.”

Tansy and Joe shared a look. “There’s a cartoonist in the town where our cousins live. It’s called Bloo Moose, and Emmy does all kinds of fun things with the name. Maybe she knows someone who wants to move to Phail and wants to do the same job here.”

Isla was grateful for the attention being pulled off of her. These people were great, and she longed to be a real part of their group. A part who contributed and gave. Not the one needing all the help.

As always, Levi sensed her mood. He moved behind her and looped his arms around her, then pulled her back into his chest. Wordless support.

Tears threatened, so she blinked her eyes to hold them back. Her phone beeped with a message, and she pulled it out. Her father had arrived.

She held up the text so Levi could see. He kissed her hair and took her hand. “Isla’s father is here. We’ll be back in a few minutes with him.”

Everyone nodded, and she let Levi lead her to the front door. Her body shook, and she wasn’t sure she would have been able to keep moving without Levi.

He paused with his hand on the knob. “You’ve got this, Isla. You know he’s going to be happy to see you.” Then he kissed her lightly and opened the door.

The large open space in front of the farmhouse overflowed with vehicles of the people who’d come to help. Her father had parked his rental near the road and was walking toward them.

His step hitched when he spotted them. Then he picked up his speed and hurried. Isla had reached the bottom of the stairs when he stopped briefly in front of her, eyes full and mouth trembling. “Isla.” He breathed her name and then threw his arms around her.

Isla burst into tears, completely overwhelmed by the love and safety she felt from those arms and the way he breathed her name.

Her father kept murmuring, apologizing, and gulping back his own tears. Finally, they pulled apart, smiling and wiping tears.

He stepped back and took her shoulders in his hands. “You’ve grown up to be such a beautiful woman, Isla. So like your mother. She would be so proud of you.”

That brought more tears and more hugs.

This time, they were laughing as they broke apart. Pieces of her heart had been bouncing around for years, but now she felt them shuffle into place, settle in, and seal back together.

She initiated the next hug. “Thanks for coming, Dad. It means so much to me that you would be here.”

“I hope I can help. Or at least be another layer of protection around you. Now, what’s the plan to capture these idiots?”

Isla turned to the stairs where Levi stood, watching the surrounding land. She hadn’t even thought about the threat. Levi smiled down at them. “We’ve got a team working on that inside. Nice to meet you, Mr. Duggan.”

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