By the way his eyes brighten, I know his answer before he says it. “Why yes, it does.”

Ash knows what this means and I don’t. Again. The realization hits me like a punch in the stomach—this isn’t like the note in the quilt, this one is for me, and yet it’s not decipherable by me. My dad gave me a clue that required someone else to decode. And suddenly I’m angry. What if I didn’t have Ash here? Would I be stuck with a nonsense note, left to wonder where my dad is and what happened to him? Not saying anything personal is upsetting enough, but this is so much worse.

“Old. Effing. Jack’s. Dog.” I say each word under my breath like it’s an insult. It is an insult.

Ash’s gaze lingers on my features in a way that tells me he’s reading me, but he doesn’t press me to tell him my thoughts. “Angus is one of the older Strategia,” he explains. “He’s gruff and difficult to deal with, but he’s a genius with information. He knows just about everything about everyone.”

I nod, not in the best control of my emotions. “And you know where he is?”

“I do,” Ash says carefully, probably trying to figure out why a clue is causing me so much grief. “Scotland.”

“Right,” I say. “Of course you know.”

“And you wish I didn’t?” Ash asks.

“No. I just wish…” I shake my head, not ready to vocalize my hurt. “You know what? I’m going to go search the plane, see if that Lion assassin left anything behind.”

“Understood,” Ash says, and I don’t make eye contact with him as I walk away.

There is a slight shaking motion and a hand on my arm. I groan.

“November,” Ash says.

“Huh?” I open my eyes and sit up so fast that spots form in my vision. “Is everything okay? I was just…” I look around the bed where I went through all the items I found on the plane. As usual with Strategia, there was no written information, and there was absolutely nothing identifying the assassin, not even a clue that would tell me the plane belonged to the Lion Family. But at present, the bed is neat and tidy with nothing on it but me. Ash must have cleaned up.

“Sorry, I barely remember closing my eyes,” I say, rubbing my hands over my face. “Where are we?”

“The Highlands,” Ash says.

I practically fall out of the bed. “What? I slept through the landing? I don’t even…” I pull on my boots and straighten out the blankets.