“Have fun ladies.” Alfred waved us farewell.

“Bye Alfred. Please make sure Moonlight doesn’t cause trouble.”

“Of course,” Alfred smirked; his eyes softened, emphasizing the lines of his face. I wondered why he still hadn’t retired yet. I sighed.

“Retirement’s boring.” Aurora entered my mind.

“I couldn’t imagine sitting home all day long doing nothing.” Serenity appeared, agreeing.

I grinned at the entrance of my spirits – Aurora and Serenity. It still felt like a dream to finally discover who I was, or should I say, what I was.

I had always known I was different, since I was little. Of course, because of my visions, I was feared by my classmates and teachers. When high school and university followed, I was made fun of or talked about both behind my back and to my face.

Eventually, I gave up trying to make friends. There was no point in trying to fit in when I knew I’d always be seen as different.

My weird attributes didn’t stop my best friend Cece Alexandra from befriending me during my twentieth birthday in Cancun. Since then, she has continued to be my ride or die bitch, and I eventually found out she had been my guardian my entire life.

Knowing Cece was my guardian, from my mother’s side, gave me a sense of relief to have someone who dedicated their life to ensure my safety. It still made me question how old Cece was but to her, she was still twenty-five.

I walked through the rotating doors, pulling my suitcase behind me before I came to a complete stop; my eyes widened.

“Christian?”

The six-seven male grinned at my shocked expression, pulling his hands out of his coat pockets.

“Hey, Sexy. Someone told me you needed a ride to the airport.” He winked, nodding at Cece who made her way to the white Cadillac Escalade, our UBER ride.

Christian Ross, was one of my partners from Team Seven of Paranormal INC. His purple short hair with silver highlights looked magnificent under the sun’s rays, flowing lightly in the chilled breeze that passed. He wore black shades, Ray-Ban written in silver on the side.

He wore all black, down to his black Timberlands; a playful smirk lingered on his smooth lips. His amethyst eyes twinkled as he walked towards me.

“You’re not supposed to be—” I began, trailing off as his hand brushed against my cheek while he leaned forward, giving me a kiss. I pressed my lips against him, wishing I could continue to kiss and inhale the rich scent of his expensive cologne.

“Alright, lovebirds. As much as I love when you two are romantic, can we get to the airport? Pretty please?” Cece called out. I giggled against Christian’s lips as he pulled away.

“Is Cece being anal retentive?” He questioned

“Yup! It’s my fault, I slept in.” I sighed.

“I think it’s our fault for that. Maybe we shouldn’t have stayed up all night.” His hand slipped into mine as he looked at my outfit.

“What? You like?”

He let go of my hand for a moment, doing a full walk around of my body, even taking his time to “assess” my butt. He slid his hand back into mine before giving me a wide smile.

“I do. You look hot as fuck.”

I laughed, finding it hard to not be amused by Christian’s direct nature. He didn’t hesitate to say if he liked something or someone, even when we’d first met.

“Aren’t you cold?” He questioned, pulling me into a hug. I grinned, kissing him lightly on the chin, looking up at his curious look.

“Nope. Not even a little bit. It won’t be long to the airport anyway, and soon we’ll be on the docks boarding our cruise.” I explained.

“Any day now!”

We both sighed, looking over to see a grumpy Cece; her arms crossed as her feet tapped the pavement.

“Let’s get going before we feel Cece’s wrath. I can’t deal with her nagging.” Christian urged me to walk forward; his arm still wrapped around my waist as we stayed close.

It didn’t take us long to reach the airport; Christian’s skilled driving and knowledge of shortcuts got us there in twenty minutes.

Christian parked in the drop-off area, assisting us with our luggage. I watched him talk with another driver in a suit, who bowed deeply before taking the keys that Christian presented to him. He hopped into the car, driving the white Escalade away.

“Wait? He took your shiny car away.” I pointed out; my finger directed at the car that entered the highway, vanishing from my line of sight.

“Don’t need it. C’mon, I’ll escort ya.” He grabbed hold of my suitcase; his other hand grabbed mine as he began to walk forward. My legs automatically moved to keep up with his stride.

“You don’t have to,” I suggested.

“I want to.” He reassured me with another smile.

We made our way to the first checkpoint – confirming our tickets before heading towards security clearance.

I noticed Vinzent, Cece’s boyfriend, relaxing on the other side of the clearance.

Cece waved at him; a grin formed on his lips before he approached one of the security clearance posts. They exchanged words before the attendee nodded his head, ushering us to come to his station.

I gave Christian a look; his shoulders went up and down in a shrug as he followed Cece who was ahead.

“Benefits?” I whispered to him.

“Totally benefits.” He replied, nodding in agreement.

Security clearance was a breeze; all three of us presented our badges as IDs. I was glad I had brought it along with me. Thanks, Moonlight.

We ventured to our gate, turning left to a quieter section of the airport. I gave Christian a confused look.

“Aren’t we supposed to be going that way? That elderly couple is going to the same place we are.” I pointed out, glancing back at the couple who were slowly making their way to Gate 8.

“Nope, we are going in the right direction,” Christian noted. I was ready to ask Cece, but she was so far ahead; I could barely see her blonde locks. Vinzent was right behind her; he pulled her luggage as he casually kept pace with her.

“Is he used to her being anal retentive?”

“Yup. He says he just goes with it. Makes his life easier.”

“I can imagine.” I sighed, knowing my best friend and her issues with being on time and everything being squeaky clean. At least none of the boys had disappeared within ninety-one days of knowing her. That was a relief.

We turned the corner; my eyes grew wide at the group leaning against the help desk – four men in similar black clothing holding their duffle bags.

“What? Christian, what’s going on?” I demanded, tugging at him to stop. He smirked, kissing my hand lightly; the gesture calmed me down for a moment.

“You think we were going to let you go party without us?”

“Yes! I go with Cece every year.”

“But she’s with Vinzent this year.”

“Yes.”

“So, her boyfriend gets to come, why can’t we?”

“Because...well...” I trailed off, trying to think of a valid argument. I felt arms encircle me; a kiss landed on my cheek.

“Admit it, Scar. If Cece gets to bring her boyfriend, so can you.” Ethan confirmed; his playful tone made me grin.

“But there’s five of you. FIVE.”

“Okay. Can you choose?” Ethan offered. I took a moment to look over my shoulder at his playful grin; his emerald eyes glittered with delight, his ombre blue hair styled messily to one side.

I turned my gaze to Christian and then to the others – Jaxson, Michael, and Junho approached.

Jaxson was six-six in height; his amber eyes stood out thanks to his black hair which was styled back. Michael was the same height as Jax; his long ash blonde hair tied in a ponytail. He thankfully wasn’t wearing those brown contacts I hated, allowing me to enjoy his golden eyes. Junho was six-seven; his short, brown hair was combed over to one side, the parted half trimmed evenly. His turquoise eyes always reminded me of the ocean.

All of them wore black dress shirts, black pants in different styles and half wore combat boots while the others wore Timberlands.

“Fine, you can all come,” I grumbled. Ethan kissed me on the cheek before letting go.

“I call dibs on sitting next to Scarlet.” He announced. The others groaned.

“Here we go again,” Aurora complained.

“What? It’s cute.” Serenity commented. I zoned back into the conversation in time to hear Christian’s comment.

“And mysteriously a plane crash occurs, only two survivors remain when the rescue team arrives on the scene.”

We stared at his blank expression – horrified.

“You’re not even flying the plane!” Ethan accused. Christian shrugged, lifting my hand that was still in his and kissing it.

“Doesn’t matter. It’s a mystery for a reason.” He began to move forward, gently pulling me along, leaving the four stunned males behind.

“He always gets to sit with her,” Ethan complained.

“Well, maybe you can woo her with your iPad skills.”

“That’s not a skill, everyone can use an iPad, even little children,” Jaxson commented, sounding unimpressed.

“What are you gonna do? Tempt her with Netflix?” Junho mocked.

“Scarlet does love watching shows on there.” Michael reminded.

I turned my attention back to Christian as he pulled out his ticket. I let go of his hand to pull out mine with my passport to show the attendant before we made our way to the plane.

“This isn’t a plane! This is a jet.” I accused.

“You thought we would take a plane with the others?” Jaxson walked to my right; Christian trailed just behind to fit in the narrow hall. His hand claimed mine after I put my passport and ticket away.

“I thought we were going to be civil, yes?” I asked.

“It’s been a while since we’ve had a vacation together. I thought we’d go in style.” Junho admitted.

“Or, he didn’t want to be stuck in the middle seat.” Michael mused.

“I hate being in the middle. What if I need to pee and both individuals on either side are sleeping? That’s just a pain in the ass.” Junho argued.

“Not to mention their washrooms are so small your cock is at risk of touching everything.”

“Where the fuck, are you aiming your cock?” Christian questioned. I snickered, and Jaxson smirked in response.

“My cock needs space, alright? How about if I need to wash my hands before and after I pee?” Ethan complained.

“Please don’t tell me you pull out your cock, wash your hands, aim, fire, shake, and wash your hands again before putting your cock back in your pants.” Michael played out.

We stopped at the entrance of the plane, all of us turning to Ethan whose face was red.

“It’s called hygiene. I don’t want to infect my cock, okay?!”

We burst out laughing; the poor female attendant’s face was red – my gut told me she heard the entire conversation. Not like we were trying to be discreet to begin with.

“This is why we’re friends, Ethan,” Christian announced.

“Fuck all of you,” Ethan mumbled, his voice low.

“Hey now, don’t go flipping that switch on us. You cherish our loving friendship. Now make sure you use your hand sanitizer after you open the handle of the washroom or you’re infecting your cock regardless.” Michael explained.

Ethan froze; his eyes grew wide.

“WHAT!” He panicked. I sighed.

“You shouldn’t have said anything,” I whispered.

“I thought he knew,” Michael whispered back.

“Let’s just get on the plane. I can already sense Cece’s enraged aura taking over the jet if we don’t get our asses inside and buckle up.” Christian encouraged. We nodded in agreement, heading inside.

“Why didn’t anyone tell me?” Ethan called out.

We laughed, getting settled in our seats. Now, this is going to be interesting.

“Don’t you dare pick it up, Jaxson White.”

We all stood frozen in place. My finger pointed at the device in Jaxson’s hand; his finger only centimeters from the screen – Slide to Answer flickered from white to red.

We’d had an eventful plane ride filled with laughter and drinks before heading to the massive cruise ship. We checked in and had arrived at our suite, beginning to unpack before we decided to take a break and enjoy our time with some sun and more alcohol.

“But—” Jaxson began, but Junho cut him off.

“Nope, we’re on vacation.”

“Exactly. V.A.C.A.T.I.O.N! We told Kendrick that the other teams can handle any case that arises while we’re off.” Ethan emphasized. Michael groaned, falling back onto the couch.

“Can’t we just pretend like we didn’t have service or something?” Christian mumbled.

“All our phones have trackers, remember? Kendrick knows we’re here, and there’s definitely service.” Ethan reminded.

“Jaxson’s gonna have to pick it up whether he likes it or not.” Michael confessed. I turned to face him.

“Why’s that? For the love of God...Starlight gods? Ugh, don’t tell me you saw him pick it up with your foresight.” I accused.

Michael lifted his head up to frown. We all groaned, going back to our suitcases.

“Well, we might as well repack. Who wants to tell Cece were leaving because I will not volunteer as tribute.” I declared. I didn’t have the heart to tell Cece we’d have to be leaving her behind because duty called. Sure, she had Vinzent, but partying was always more fun with the both of us.

“Let me pick it up first,” Jaxson replied; his thumb slid against the glass screen, answering the phone call.

“Hey, Kendrick. Yes, we’re on vacation. Uh huh...Kendrick, we had this discussion before we left that my team wouldn’t work. Unless there’s a bomb threat we aren—” Jaxson began; his voice stern until he trailed off, listening to the response that followed on the other end of the phone.

I watched his stern expression turn to a frown; his eyes rose from the floor to lock onto mine.

“Yes, Scar’s with us.”

Oh no, what does this have to do with me?

“Kendrick, are you one-hundred percent sure about this? This can go horribly wrong if this report is inaccurate, you realize that? Not to mention, we have to change our appearances at this very moment and stay that way until we find the suspect. Cece may be able to do something about that. Fine, fine send us the information. Ethan has his laptop with him. We’ll look into it and get back to you with an update once we’ve reviewed the exact guest count. Got it. Bye.” Jaxson hung up, pinching his nose as he sighed.

“How bad is it?” Junho asked.

“And why did Kendrick ask about me?” I questioned.

“We need to change our identities by the end of today to find a criminal who has been sighted on this ship. He’s apparently planning a bomb that would detonate when the clock strikes twelve after his business transaction with a long-time client. And the reason why he asked about you, Scarlet, is because your hair stands out like a sore thumb.” Jaxson explained.

“I can’t be the only person on this entire ship with orange hair.”

They all turned to stare at me, even Michael who lifted his head back to glance my way.

“Oh c’mon. Seriously. I’m not dying my hair.” I complained, crossing my arms over my chest in defiance.

“Hey Michael, you think you can give her a new hairstyle?” Christian asked.

“I could...but how exactly are we gonna get the items I need?” Michael questioned.

“I can get whatever you need delivered in five hours or less,” Junho announced, pulling out his phone and tapping the screen.

“Um, hello. We’re on a boat, guys.” I reminded, waving my hands.

“They have to make one more stop to pick up people from the south. Junho, you think you can contact the team in that area to gather our equipment and anything Michael needs?” Jaxson inquired.

“Already on it. Ethan, you’re buddies with Team Fifty’s lead. You think he’d hook you up?” Junho questioned.

“Yup. I helped him out on a case a few weeks ago. I don’t think he’d mind helping us out in this pinch.” Ethan replied, reaching out for his laptop.

“Anything I can do?” I frowned; my shoulders sank as I stared at them. They all turned to see my saddened expression before they realized.

“Aww shit, sorry Scar, we didn’t mean to leave you out. Don’t get mad or sad or just um...I’ll buy you as many cocktails as you want.” Ethan offered. He hated when I got upset, not to mention his anxiety always went up when I was anything but my usual, feisty self.

Jaxson walked up to me, leaning in to give me a kiss.

“Sorry Scar. We’re working on it. We’re just used to it being us five in these types of situations.” He confessed remorse etched into the lines of his face.

“Becausem I’m either passed out or left out,” I mumbled under my breath. He pulled me into an embrace.

“No. That’s not the reasoning. Seriously, we’re sorry. We’ll work on it okay?” He suggested, pulling back to meet my gaze. I nodded in agreement.

I knew I shouldn’t be upset. They had been a team for years before I entered the picture. Even if six months had passed, some habits die hard. This included remembering me as the sixth member of Team Seven, especially at times when they became so engrossed in a case

The others got up; each gave me a kiss and apologized. I smiled, happy to see they all noticed what they did and apologized for their actions.

“Okay, you’re forgiven. I’m not gonna blow up the ship, relax.”

They all let out nervous laughs; my eyes rolled at their response.

“Anyways, what’s the plan till our next stop?” I inquired.

“Michael, Junho review all the files. Ethan, check the database and get as much info as possible on this suspect and the dealer he’s expecting to meet. Look specifically at any celebs on the ship. Also, look into all guests planning to board. Christian, Scarlet, we’ll be touring the entire ship. Take in as much detail as you can. Christian, when we reach the next stop, keep an eye out for our potential suspect and see if he’ll be greeting anyone boarding. Scarlet, once we do a tour, draw everything out. If you see anything suspicious or out of character let us know. Any questions?” Jaxson concluded.

I raised my hand.

“Yes, Scar.”

“About my hair?” I pointed to my ponytail. Michael stretched his hands, walking around us to face my back; his hands massaged my tense shoulders. I sighed, enjoying the moment.

“Don’t worry. I got the perfect plan.”