Read Flutter for Free Online Page A

laughed, but my
happiness made fresh tears in my eyes. “I miss you.”
    “I miss you too. You can come home, Alice, whenever
you want. No pressure.”
    “I know. But I have to help. It shouldn’t be that
long, I don’t think. We’ll find Peter, and then come straight
home.”
    Jack started saying something about the Finnish
wilderness being complex, but Ezra came out of the bathroom,
distracting me. He had changed into flannel pajama pants and a tee
shirt, and he ruffled his hand through his damp hair, looking at me
questioningly.
    “It’s just Jack,” I told him, holding the phone a
little way from my mouth.
    “Ezra’s there? Let me talk to him!” Jack
demanded.
    “You don’t need to talk to him,” I sighed.
    “I take it he knows we’re in Finland then?” Ezra
asked me, and I nodded sheepishly. “Oh well. He’d find out sooner
or later.”
    “Look, Jack, I should get some sleep anyway. I’ll
call you soon and let you know how things are going,” I said. Ezra
rolled down the teal bedspread, meaning he was getting ready for
bed and I should probably do the same.
    “Alice…” Jack was almost whining, and he realized it
so he stopped. “Just call me soon, really soon. And take care of
yourself, okay?”
    “I will,” I promised.
    When I hung up the phone, I fought the overwhelming
urge to sob. Hearing his voice only made things worse. My heart
ached in my chest, and my body felt completely out of whack. I
hated that I could barely even survive being away from Jack.
    “You didn’t have to get off the phone because of me,”
Ezra said.
    I swallowed back tears, staring down at my phone, and
heard the rustle of blankets as he settled himself into bed. Even
though I’d just gotten off the phone, I thought about calling Jack
back. It wouldn’t do any good to make me feel better, so I decided
against it.
    “I know,” I said. Setting my phone on the nightstand,
I crawled underneath the covers myself. “Are you going to call
Mae?”
    “Not until I know anything. Jack can fill her in.” He
rolled onto his stomach and rested his head on the pillow. “Are you
going to be okay with all of this?”
    “Yeah, I’m fine,” I nodded, and I wasn’t sure if I
was lying or not.
    Rolling over so my back was to him, I allowed a few
silent tears to slide down my cheeks. He didn’t say anything, and
eventually, his breathing had the regulated quality that comes with
sleep. Unfortunately, sleep wouldn’t be as easy for me.
    Ezra tore open the shades while the sun was still up,
and I squinted and pulled the blankets over my head. The little
experience I had with the sun so far made me tired and cranky, and
I had no urge to relive that. Fully dressed and whistling an old
Neil Young song, Ezra went about the room, and I knew it was time
to get up.
    “What time is it?” I mumbled, still buried underneath
the thin hotel comforter.
    “It’s a little after one, but we need to get going.
We’re burning daylight.” He chuckled at his own joke, and I was
starting to think that I didn’t agree with his sense of humor.
    “You’re actually expecting me to get up now?” I poked
my head out, braving the blinding light that filled the room.
    “We do need to get going.” He checked something on
his phone, then he glanced back at the open window. “I can close
the shades, if that helps.”
    “You know it does,” I yawned.
    Ezra complied, still fiddling around with his phone,
and I hoped that meant that he had a lead on something. His half of
the room was already completely straightened up, the bed made and
everything, and I wondered what time he had gotten up.
    “I wish I still drank coffee or Red Bull or
something,” I said as I stumbled out of bed and made my way to the
bathroom. (Fun fact: Vampires still pee. Blood is a liquid, after
all.)
    “Just take a cold shower. That’ll perk you right up,”
he said.
    Following his advice, I took a quick, cold shower,
and it helped some. I dressed in a hurry and blow