She looked at the bruise on his head. “Do you not want me around because you sucked as a dad?”

His smile was a surprise. “Yes. Well, it wasn’t that I didn’t want you around. I just couldn’t figure out why you’d want to be around me, so I figured it wasn’t a good thing.”

She shook her head. “Working for a super-secret governmental agency makes everyone paranoid. Maybe I just wanted to get to know you.” She could finally see the flawed human being in the father she’d never known. Nari looked back at her mom’s room. “Besides, don’t worry about it. I have the best parents in the world.”

He nodded. “That’s what I thought. But I would like to know you and maybe be friends?”

That was odd, but what the heck. “I’d like that.” She needed to see Angus, and now.

“Good. I told Agent Force that he could put his team back together, and if he does, you have the choice of working with that team or taking the job Opal offered you. It was actually my idea—that job, I mean. It’s needed.” He shuffled his feet.

The team was back in action. Nari nearly hopped. “I’ll think about it. Thanks.” She’d consider everything later. “I have to go now.”

He nodded. “We’ll talk soon.”

She turned and walked as sedately as she could toward the room where Angus was supposed to be. Upon arriving, she had to make her way through the entire team. Wolfe had somehow gotten the kitten inside, and the animal was perched on Angus’s chest, purring contentedly.

Angus lay in the bed, looking dangerous and irritated, hooked up to an IV. “Where the hell is Nari?” he snapped.

“I’m here,” she said soothingly, moving around Wolfe’s solid bulk to reach the head of the bed. “How’s the shoulder?”

“Fine.” He looked her over, his eyes flaring at the marks on her neck. “Jesus. Did I do that?”

She touched her bruised skin. “Considering we’re both alive right now, I’ll take a couple of bruises.” She smiled at Pippa and Malcolm, who’d moved out of the way so she could stand by Angus. “Did you tell everyone the team can go back to work?”

“Yes,” Brigid said, holding Raider’s hand and positively beaming. “Yay. Back to work. Do we get a new office?”

“One with windows would be nice,” Dana said, snuggling into Wolfe’s side. “I’ll text Millie to tell her to get back home.”

Angus cleared his throat. “Nari told me she loved me.”’

Nari started, looking down at his handsome face. “What are you doing?”

He shrugged. “Like they’re not a bunch of gossips. Plus, we’re family. I figured it out—why we all drive each other crazy. We’re family, and we share stuff like that with family.”