Chapter 27 Take Me With You
Summer held the thick dictionary in her hands, sitting silently for a while before glancing over at Jasper, who had also turned his gaze toward her. She whispered, “Liam, is he stupid?”
The gift was nice, but the intention behind it…
So many words for just one sentence. How many pages would she have to flip through to get the full meaning?
Jasper scoffed, then kicked Liam lightly. “She’s a little chatterbox. If you ask her to use this dictionary to talk, she’ll be at it from dusk to dawn!”
HA
He hadn’t forgotten how, when Summer was first learning to speak, she would endlessly repeat The is useless, even with just three words.
Liam, who had been feeling awkward, burst out laughing at Jasper’s comment.
Summer huffed, turning her back to him in disdain.
Helena kept her eyes closed, but when she heard the noise, she didn’t open them. She merely patted Summer’s back, a small smile curling at the corners of her lips.
Summer, obedient as ever, nestled into Helena’s embrace, the hum of the train’s engine filling the air. Her little mind was whirring as her system worked at full capacity.
Her brain was running at full speed, and with no chance to rest, the system prompted her to reach out to Jasper, clearly wanting to be held.
With two of them resting, someone had to be awake, after all.
When Liam saw Summer extend her hand to Jasper, he couldn’t help but laugh. Still on alert, he nudged Jasper.
Once Jasper opened his eyes, he quickly wrapped his arms around Summer, settling in to rest.
Jasper sighed in resignation and lifted Summer into his arms. “What do you want to talk about?”
Summer tilted her head slightly, her bright eyes darting around before she cheerfully asked, “Uncle, bribing who?”
Jasper blinked in surprise, his mind briefly whirling. Was she still fixated on the airplane incident?
Seeing Summer’s serious little face, she emphasized the importance of the matter in her usual direct way, and Jasper couldn’t help but smile faintly. He raised his hand and gently ruffled her soft hair. “It was a janitor at the National Airport. They were bribed by a spy.”
“Janitor?” Summer asked
- v. then pointed to the trash in the aisle.
lasner followed her finger shook his head, and sighed. “Look at this man. Thanks
Chapter 27 Take Me With You
Finished
Summer wrinkled her nose in distaste and quickly looked away. She then tilted her head back, her eyes sparkling as she looked at Jasper. With a small, pleading gesture, she said, “Uncle, take me with you, on the mission.”
Jasper raised an eyebrow. “Why?”
“To save you!” Summer’s voice was high–pitched and sweet, with an odd, almost mischievous excitement.
Jasper’s eyes flickered, his eyelids twitching involuntarily. Something about her words made it sound like he always got into trouble during his missions. It felt… unnervingly ominous.
He raised an eyebrow and glanced at Helena, sitting opposite him. Her brow was slightly furrowed, and he assumed she didn’t appreciate such talk. He pinched Summer’s nose lightly. “I’m about to retire. There aren’t any missions for me. Now go to sleep! Otherwise, you’ll never grow tall.”
With that, he grabbed his coat and draped it over her.
The moment the coat covered her, Summer shivered instinctively, her childhood fear kicking in. She couldn’t help but cry out, “Grandma!”
The coat was immediately lifted, and Helena pulled Summer into her arms, gently soothing her trembling form. “It’s okay, I’m here! Don’t be scared!”
Liam, watching Summer shake in fear, leaned toward the grumpy Jasper. “Why is she so scared of the dark? Could it be that…
“ג
Jasper couldn’t help but run his hand through his pocket, feeling a twinge of an old craving for a cigarette. “Yeah, it’s probably tied to what happened to her before.”
He exchanged an understanding look with Helena. Summer’s fear was likely the result of experiments she had undergone in the past, where she was left in the dark, which probably caused her fear of it..
At first, Summer only vaguely sensed the suffocating darkness. In that instant, fear flooded over her like a tide, her heart racing. She instinctively curled up, a sense of panic overwhelming her. But after a moment, she gathered herself, and a faint blush of embarrassment colored her cheeks. She softly called out, “Grandma.”
Helena’s hand gently stroked Summer’s thin, still–feeling face, her eyes full of compassion. “Don’t be afraid. I’m right here.”
“Mm!” Summer nodded quietly and stopped fidgeting, snuggling into Helena’s arms like a docile little kitten. Soon, her breathing evened out, and she drifted into a deep, peaceful sleep. The noise of the outside world seemed to fade as she became perfectly still.
However, just as Summer was slipping into a gentle slumber, a cold, malicious gaze pierced the back of her neck like a blade. The icy chill shot straight up her spine, and in that instant, her eyes snapped open, the drowsiness vanishing in an instant.
