Page 11 of Stranger Gifts

“Sort of,” smirked Hawke. “I find a bird and it allows me into its brain. I can guide it with suggestion but I see what the bird sees. I’ve gone hundreds of miles in a duck and a goose. Hawks work best for seeing though. Although eagles are pretty damn amazing.”

“Do you think you could find a bird and find our gang?” asked Nine.

“Yeah, definitely. It helps if David is on the ground on foot. I can guide him to different locations to double check things for me.”

“Can you do that without being seen?” asked Ghost.

“From what I understand you have a stealth suit that could help me,” smiled David. “Plus, remember that Griffin can leave the property. He isn’t seen by anyone unless he chooses to allow them to see him.”

“Let’s go with that one first,” said Kane. “Hawke and Griffin can see if they can track where they’re hanging their hat at night. I can’t see them in a hotel.”

“It’s doubtful. I’m not doubting they would have the money, but they don’t want to be seen by everyone and they damn sure don’t want to draw attention to themselves. They might be camping or staying in a motel on the backroads. I want to know why they’re here.”

“They want the bikes,” said Juan. “Isn’t that what they said?”

“It’s what they said, son. But I don’t believe them for a minute. They could have just as easily ordered a bike online, given their request and specs, paid for it, and we would have delivered it. There was no need to come all the way down here and make a scene.”

“I think we should speak to Sister Agatha. She’s going to be terrified of us, most likely but we have to find out what happened with her,” said Ian. “This is a delicate situation and we can’t just have people running up to her interrogating her. The question is, who should we send?”

“Mama,” said the Robicheaux boys in unison. They smirked at one another and they all nodded.

“I will go with her,” said Trak.

“Me too,” said Angel.

More often than not Trak and Angel or Trak and Miller were paired together. Their styles were similar, yet different in so many ways.

“Alright, the two of you and Mama.”

“Mama what?” asked Irene standing in the door. She had on a pair of navy capri pants with a light-weight, white cotton blouse and a white cardigan. Her purse was draped over her arm and she looked ready to go wherever they were sending her.

“We’ll tell you on the way,” laughed Angel. “Ace? Send us the address through comms.”

“I will. She’s not far. She was part of the Carmelite Monastery west of Baton Rouge.” They nodded, leaving the others but Irene stood in the door staring at the men.

“You okay, Mama?” asked Miller. She gave a sad smile and nodded.

“Yes. Just looking at all my boys, thinking about how lucky I am.”

“Irene, we can send someone else if this is too much for you,” said Nine. “I could send Erin or someone.”

“No. No, this one needs to be me,” she said. “We’ll be back soon.” They watched as she, Angel, and Trak left and then turned to look at one another.

“You think she’s okay?” asked Luc looking at all the men, but mostly his siblings. Gabe nodded.

“I think she’s mama and knows more than we do.”

“That seems obvious,” smirked Kane.

“Oh, big man is funny,” laughed Ghost. “Let’s go. We need to find these assholes before they hurt someone else.”

“She doesn’t live at the convent any longer,” said Angel. “The address is an apartment about a mile from them.”

“I can’t imagine it would have been easy for her to go back to the order after what happened to her,” said Irene.

“They would have allowed her to return, right? I mean, they wouldn’t have held it against her would they?”

“No. No, I can’t believe they would. But she would have felt different. Ace says he contacted Father Hebert and he reached out to her to let her know we were coming. He wasn’t sure how helpful she could be.”

---