“Old man Bennett will get tired of you someday,” came the reply. “If I were you, I’d clear out before he gets sick of playing Daddy Warbucks.”

“That old man,” Gabriel said, each word pleasant and precise, “could take on everyone in here—and then some.”

I wasn’t an expert at the art of persuasion, but that didn’t seem like the most effective way to ask for a ride.

“Can I help you, sweetheart?”

I turned toward the mechanic who’d asked that question. I couldn’t offer Gabriel anything in exchange for what he’d given me up on the mountain, but I could save him from having to ask someone who was giving him a hard time for a ride. “I need to borrow a phone.”

I dialed Jude’s number from memory. He answered on the first ring.

“Kira?” The hope—and tension—in Jude’s voice reminded me that I’d taken off without a word. Jude and Free would have set Duchess on my trail.

She didn’t find me. Knowing Jude and Free, they’d probably tried Saskia next. And she couldn’t find me, either.

“I’m fine,” I said quickly. “I’m with Gabriel.”

Jude let out a long breath. “I was in no way concerned that you might have been snatched by the person who took Bella or buried in post-tremor rubble. The phrase lying in a ditch somewhere never even crossed my mind.”

There was no guilt trip like a Jude guilt trip.

“It’s a long story,” I told him, “but I promise that I’m fine. I just need you to come pick me and Gabriel up.”

There was a brief pause on the other end of the line. “Dare I hope this long story will be accompanied by an elaborate reenactment? Preferably with musical numbers?”

I told him where I was.

“On my way,” Jude told me cheerfully. “But fair warning: Free might have been slightly less optimistic than I was when your trail disappeared in the mountains. She called Mom.”

* * *

Jude came to get us in Gabriel’s truck. Free was with him.

“You abscond with our Kira,” Jude informed Gabriel cheerfully, “we abscond with your truck!” He paused. “I’ve never driven a stick shift before.”

Gabriel audibly groaned. “Move,” he told Jude. Free was sitting in the back of the truck. NATO, Duchess, and Silver were with her. Saskia was there, too, but the other three were giving her a wide berth. I took that to mean that she’d been a bit testy. I climbed in, positioning myself next to Sass.

If Jude had been worried, there was a very good chance that Free was pissed.

“Hey, Free,” I said, well aware that I might be poking a bear. Free stared at me. NATO snuffed in my general direction, and Duchess farted—loudly.