Page 8 of Blissful Devotion

And this time, when he meets my gaze, I see a man on a mission, one he's willing to do anything in his power to succeed in.

“To get our girl back.”

3 Days without Kat

My mind has yet to stop.

Ever since Nathan told us there had been a crash, my mind has been racing. At first, I was worried about the state of them, but as he recounted the story from Vince, I realized being hurt might have been the better option.

Kidnapped, Kat has been kidnapped.

It didn’t make sense at first; why would they take her? To the rest of the world, she was only Addison’s ex-teacher turned nanny. Even if they were interested, Addison would have been the better choice; she ensured the payout, or whatever it was they were looking to gain, and I had no doubt it was something.

I’m sure Kat was aware of it too. Her offering herself, or making them take her, made sense if you even got a glimpse of how she is with Addison.

I spent the flight trying to think over anything we might have overlooked, scouring information online for anything related to a star tattoo, be it in gangs or even the trafficking rings, though most of them appear to be actively stopped.

It’s strange, but I can’t deny that the information makes me feel just marginally better.

I’m sure Kat’s already going through hell; she doesn’t deserve this.

The rest of the cabin is quiet; everyone lost in their own thoughts. Desmond seems to have a plan, and while he’s declared that we're on our way to get Kat back, none of us knows what that means.

Nathan looks angrier than I’ve ever seen before, and my father… Well, he looks drunk, or nearly there.

He’s always enjoyed his alcohol, with dinner, when winding down, or to celebrate, but he’s also been known to overdo it when emotions run high.

That hasn’t been a problem since Kat’s been around, actually, since he met her, now that I think about it.

I don’t blame him, though, not like I might have before. All I can think is worst-case scenarios, and if we might never see Kat again, it's enough to make me want to drink, too.

I shouldn’t have tried so hard to resist her; I wasted all that time. I should have treated her better, the way she deserved. Instead, I let my own insecurities get the best of me, and I took out my fear and anger on her.

Just thinking about what she might be going through makes my stomach churn, and I’m not a religious man usually, but I say a prayer to whatever god will listen that she’s okay. It might be selfish, but I want a chance to fix this, or even for her to tell me I blew it.

So long as she’s safe.

“Whatever you’re thinking and blaming yourself for is silly.” My father’s voice comes out deep and husky, but not slurred, which lets me know he’s not as far gone as I’d thought.

I take him in, really look him over, and think that perhaps I misjudged him. There’s no doubt he’s been drinking, but I’ll hand it to him; despite it, he’s still as sharp as ever.

“I just know I messed up.” The words are out of my mouth before I can stop them, and I cringe because how on Earth can I be worried about myself when she’s missing?

I expect one of them to say as much, but instead, everyone remains quiet.

“The fact that she’s gone means we all did,” Nathan says after a long pause, and I don’t need to ask to know if the others agree. The guilt shines in their eyes the same way I’m sure it does in my own.

The plane begins its descent before we can get any more depressed, and the only one who doesn’t seem surprised is Desmond.

“We’ve only been in the air a short time,” Nathan says, and I’m shocked he isn’t demanding answers from Desmond by now, even though I want to.

“I never said we were going home.”

The plane lands, and I’m surprised to find we’re still in Italy, Olbia Costa, to be exact, according to the airport name.

Sardinia, an island off the coast, and while I’m not sure why we’re here, I understand why he chose to fly. Boats take forever.

A car waits, and Desmond doesn’t hesitate to climb into the back.