"That was The Hood. He's back."
The wrench in her gut was something she only got in night terrors, the ones that threatened her brothers. It made her want to curl up in a corner and hide, to never come out. There was a reason she had a muffling bubble around her room. She didn't want to cause panic if she started screaming blue murder in the middle of the night.
That man, that absolute bastard towering over them, was her uncle. What if they found out? The thought petrified her. She could feel Scott's anger from where she was sitting and she couldn't help imagining what it would be like if it was directed at her. Scott had always been the most vengeful when it came to their father's death, if he knew…
No. She couldn't let herself think like that. They were her family, her real family, and she would do anything to protect them. Even if they were at a disadvantage now.
Penelope had just hung up, probably to do some more sleuthing. She cursed herself for not paying attention. She was supposed to know everything that went on.
"John, contact Colonel Casey."
"Already done it. Putting her through now."
They barely had to wait a moment before Colonel Casey's hologram appeared.
"International Rescue, I assume this isn't a social call."
" 'fraid not. You got that message, right?"
"It was hard to miss. Can we trust you to handle the situation?"
"Of course, we're working on it now."
Colonel Casey gave a grim smile, her support for International Rescue had been unyielding, even before she became a Colonel. She had every confidence in them and if she didn't, she was good enough at hiding it to fool Kayo.
"Do you have any idea who's behind it?"
Scott didn't even hesitate. "It's the Hood."
Colonel Casey's gaze softened. Her silence said it all, of course Scott in his anger wouldn't pick up on that, but Kayo did and it looked like the others did too. "I know this is a very personal but…"
She would need evidence and they didn't have any. Technically. Legal evidence. Well, Kayo did, but she wasn't brave enough. Not yet.
It would have to be soon, she knew it would be soon, and she hoped that she would be ready because Scott's anger was a wildfire and she didn't want to get burnt.