Push and Shove: The Ghost Bird Series: #6 (The Academy) Read Online Free PDF Page A

“But shouldn’t we work with him? Couldn’t we get information from him? Maybe he knows something we don’t and it would help you figure out what Mr. Hendricks is up to.”
    “Maybe he could help us,” he said. “But we haven’t confirmed why he’s working for Mr. Hendricks in the first place.”
    “For money,” I said, recalling the conversation I’d had with him. “He said he doesn’t get paid enough.”
    “I think there’s more to it,” he said. “I’m pretty sure Mr. Hendricks has a couple of partners working with him, I just don’t know who. It might be Morris or it might not. But don’t worry about it for now, just stay away from him. Mr. Blackbourne has taken over giving him the information you promised him. He’ll figure it out.”
    The vibe I got from Mr. Morris was that he was under pressure from Mr. Hendricks and thought the surveillance was pointless. I glanced once more at the sedan, but then relented. Kota and the others may have decided they needed to be more careful. Given recent events with Volto, I couldn’t blame them. We still had no idea who Volto was; he could be anyone.
    If Mr. Blackbourne took over what I was supposed to be doing, I had to let it go. They must have had a plan, and I had to trust them.
    I followed Kota down the road and to the garage door of his house. Max, his golden retriever, was out on the lead. Kota ignored Max’s happy barks at our arrival. Max approached me, following us inside the garage, as far as the lead would allow. I dropped my fingers behind his ears, giving him a small scratch.
    Kota stuck his key into the lock, twisting the handle, and shoved the door open. He stepped back, stretching his arm toward the open door. “Coming in?”
    I passed him, stepping into the short hallway inside the house and then paused to wait for him. The rest of the house was dark, ominous.
    Kota dropped our things just inside the door, and stepped back out. He unhooked Max’s lead. The retriever made a dash for the open door. Max paused long enough to sniff my leg once before trampling on through the house, smelling every corner as if inspecting.
    I had to smile. I wasn’t sure if he was glad to be inside or if he was trying to do a security check. I suspected the latter. Max was Kota’s dog, after all.
    Kota came back inside, shutting the door. “Where do you want to sit?”
    I eyeballed his bedroom door and then the hallway that led to the rest of the house. “Is Jessica here?”
    “She must have been home,” Kota said. “She let Max out. But I have a feeling she’s at a friend’s house. She would have popped out and checked on who was coming in if she was here.”
    If his sister wasn’t going to be home for hours, and his mother didn’t usually get off work until late, and Nathan was away...
    My tongue suddenly glued itself to the top of my mouth. We were alone?
    I stared at Kota, wearing his faux school uniform. The maroon tie was still neatly tied at his neck and the dark blue jacket was buttoned properly. I tried to focus on them as it felt easier, because his eyes had a way of making me feel he could see into my thoughts. I didn’t want him to know I was nervous.
    He bent at the hip to meet my face and catch my attention. His smile softened. “Something wrong?”
    I shook my head, trying to force a smile. I didn’t want to tell him the truth. My heart raced just thinking about it. Despite all we’d been through together, being around the boys was what I enjoyed the most, but being alone with one of them terrified me. I was excited by the idea, but he was afraid he’d discover that I’m just ... me?
    Kota bent over, scooped up our bags with one hand, and with the other he nudged me toward the living room. “Why don’t we sit downstairs today?”
    That sounded good to me.
    He dropped our bags on the floor by the coffee table and sat back in the corner of the couch, putting an arm up on the armrest. He patted the spot next to him.
    I settled onto