Piece By Piece (Complete)

9. Trust

Sang

Flowers and a stuffed bumblebee embroidered with Bee Well appeared on my bedside table sometime while I slept that afternoon, and since then I'd found myself cuddling the bee more frequently than I knew I should. There wasn't a card, but my nurse had said the blonde boy had dropped them off for me — Luke, and now I had half convinced myself of something I knew was a fantasy. I needed to be rational about this whole situation. He'd been doing his job, he was being nice.

But even still, Phoebe the bee was my buddy for the next few days while I was in the hospital, and Sean had barely teased me about her. I was also sure part of my attachment was because it was the first gift I'd been given in a long time. And it was also the first thing I packed when I found out I was leaving.

"Tomorrow?" I repeated, sure I'd misheard. Sean nodded. "But where..." I knew foster care, I'd already come to terms with it, but I needed details. Names, a location, anything.

"Do you trust me, pookie?" he asked, reaching for Phoebe. He studied her while I watched him, and I knew I did. His team had done so much, and most of my questions had been answered. I'd gotten a chance to visit Georgia yesterday, who I was relieved to see smile again, and I'd seen an article in the paper about the school's closing, an exposé on what had happened there. And just this morning the news had announced there would be a federal investigation concerning the legality of pets.

Real change was happening, and it was because of Sean and his team, I was certain of it.

"Yes," I said, and I knew that wherever they were sending me, I would be ok.

He turned Phoebe around in his hands again and then those green eyes that still appeared in my dreams were on mine. "I know you've been through a lot. More than one person should have to deal with," he murmured. "And what I'm about to say..." he sighed. "You are under no obligations to accept, alright?" I didn't know what he was talking about, but I nodded. "My team and I are in the middle of another operation, and with your skills—"

"Skills?"

"Your compassion, Miss Sorenson." I wasn't surprised to see Mr. Blackbourne standing in the doorway, and I was now pretty certain that my pulse would never be normal when he was around. "Your ingenuity," he continued, stepping into the room.

"And you're quieter than a mouse," Sean added with his signature grin. "I'm sure there are others we're missing."

I was looking between the two of them now, sure I knew what they were suggesting, but needing to hear the words all the same. "What does that have to do with your, uh, operation?" I managed.

Mr. Blackbourne now stood at the foot of my bed, sharing a look with Sean before he continued, "We would like for you to join us."

***

My hesitation to join could've been measured in nanoseconds, and the next afternoon I found myself exiting Mr. Blackbourne's pearl gray BMW outside of a stately home nestled in suburbia. "Is this your headquarters?" I found myself asking, and a quick look at him revealed the smallest of smiles, his eyes amused.

"Something like that," he replied. "I think of it as home."

"Home?"

I was still trying to process this as he nodded, gesturing for me to precede him up the cobblestone pathway. The neighborhood was reminiscent of the one I'd lived in for years, but it felt anything but isolating like Sorenson Academy had. Mr. Blackbourne held open the door for me, and I stepped inside a minimally decorated foyer, which seemed to fit Mr. Blackbourne's style. And then I noticed the pile of guys crowded in the next room, the source of the laughter and shouting I could hear.

"Miss Sorenson?"

I was frozen in place, simply staring. I didn't know if I could do this, join this team. I didn't have any real skills — why was I letting myself believe that?

I took a slow step back, afraid if I made any noise the boys would turn and see me.

A warm hand fell on my shoulder, and I glanced up, meeting Mr. Blackbourne's concerned gaze. "You have nothing to fear," he reassured me, and I knew he believed that. I just...

He thought for a moment and then steered me into another room, which I found was a kitchen filled with chrome fixtures and gleaming cabinets, a large island dominating its center. And on top of that sat a familiar blonde boy, a package of cookies in his lap.

He spotted us immediately, the cookie he was eating crumbling around his lips. He looked guiltily at Mr. Blackbourne before his eyes landed on me. "Sang?" he said, his mouth still full of cookie.

"Mr. Taylor, if I may remind you—"

"Sorry Mr. B, I didn't..." he turned back to me as he hopped down, my stomach doing a weird flip as he approached, offering me the open package of cookies he was holding.

I reached for one and Luke grinned, knocking his partially eaten cookie against mine in a cheers gesture. "I'm glad you came," he breathed, and all I could do was smile.

"Miss Sorenson, may I offer you something to drink? Water, juice...?"

I glanced over at Mr. Blackbourne, feeling a blush rising since I was certain he could tell what Luke or even he could do to me with a glance, a whispered word. "Um, water is fine. Thank you," I said softly, and Luke grinned at me as he took another cookie.

"Luke!" A deep voice boomed from the other room, and I stilled. Who was that?

"Uh oh," Luke muttered, shoving the cookie in his mouth.

"Luke—"

"Mr. Taylor, please refrain from shouting," Mr. Blackbourne said as he filled a glass with water from the fridge. At first I thought he was talking to Luke, until I turned to find a different guy, whose handsome face was drawn down into a scowl as he wandered into the kitchen.

His dark eyes assessed Luke quickly, and I was sure he was going to shout again when he saw me and paused, the tension in his shoulders settling slightly. "North, this is Sang," Luke said, stepping to the side. "Sang, meet my baby bear of a brother, North."

North scoffed and I couldn't stop myself from asking, "Brother?"

"Stepbrother," North replied gruffly, and I was distracted by his presence, as it seemed to fill the room.

"But we're still family," Luke said with a grin. "We all are," he added. "Our team is a family and we're all—"

"Excited to meet you," Mr. Blackbourne added, handing me the glass of water.

I thought things over. Sean, Mr. Blackbourne, Luke, North. There was that guy named Kota I'd heard them mention. "How um, large is the team?"

"There's nine of us, Miss Sorenson."

"Nine," I mused. Nine?

As if on cue another voice shouted, "Oy, Luke! You're up next!"

I felt three sets of eyes on me, and I tried to stay calm. They'd all been nice so far, I probably had nothing to worry about. "How many of you are here now?"

"Seven."

"Seven," I repeated, taking a breath. I was doomed to be a parrot around Mr. Blackbourne, I was coming to terms with that. "Ok."

"Miss Sorenson?"

If we were going to be working together, and maybe living together, since I still wasn't confident this wasn't their secret headquarters, I needed to meet them sooner or later. I'd have preferred later, but time was, as always, out of my control.

"I... I think I'm ready to meet the team."