"So what was that about?" Justine sits on top of one of the suitcases Erik had dragged in. It hadn't taken either of us very long to pack, seeing as there wasn't all that much in the first place. I sit myself on the bed, my head against the wall. The room was already bare, with just two single beds pushed to the far side of the wall and a relatively small, wooden cupboard to one side of the room. It looked exactly the same as the other two bedrooms the boys' were in, with only a single window to let in daylight. I frown at the grey sky through the window. So far, the weather had been usually sunny, with just a few breezes blowing every now and again throughout the day. The temperature dropped at night, but not by a huge amount. It didn't look like it was going to rain quite yet, but if it continued on like this, there wouldn't be a doubt that the whether would become relatively miserable. Well, I'm glad we're leaving when we are. Suddenly recalling that Justine had asked me something I shake my head.

"Sorry, what did you say?" I draw my gaze away from the window.

"In the hallway with Mark." Justine had a small hint of a smirk placed on her face. "What happened?"

I shrug, guessing that she had probably overheard, and wasn't sure what the big deal was. "He was just warning me that the assassins were after me."

"Is that all he said?" Justine pries.

I blush, trying to think of whether I had actually heard his last sentence or not. "I think so." But I wasn't so sure. Did Justine hear him? Did he actually say that? What's it matter if he did anyway? I try to reason. It's not like it means anything... does it?

"Right. That's why you're so red in the face." Justine cocks an eyebrow at me.

I cover my face with my hands. Stupid pale skin. Gives away everything.... "My face always goes red, okay?" I shoot back.

"You seriously don't see it do you?" Justine narrows her eyes at me.

"See what?"

"You're telling me that you haven't even noticed a little?" Justine prods. "Mark mad at Kol... Kol acting the way he is..."

I raise my eyebrows at her. A small part of me knew where she was going with this, but for some reason my stubbornness did not want to give way. What if I'm wrong? "What?" I say, as she continues to eye me analytically.

Justine sighs. "Well if you haven't figured it out by now, I'm not going to bother. You're smart, you'll fit the pieces together." Justine picks up her luggage and begins to move out.

"He doesn't like me in that way." I say quietly. "Neither of them do. If that's what you're saying." I add quickly. "Kol is just like that and Mark is just... protective." I can see a hint of a smile appear on her face and I'm quick to add, "As a friend. Protective as a friend."

"Well I don't know Kol well enough to say anything about him." Justine sighs. "So maybe your right, but I've Mark much better than you Audrey. You're fun to be around, you're serious but funny, and you care heaps about others. You're a likeable person, and you're pretty. So is it that hard to believe that a boy might like you? Let alone, two?"

I open my mouth to protest but she shakes her head at me. "Like I said, it's hard to tell with Kol. But Mark... I've known him since forever."

"So did I," I add indignantly and Justine grins.

"So you remember?" she smirks. "Still, my point is, I saw him more often than you did, especially these past couple of months when we first spotted the assassins lurking near the school grounds."

I try to come up with a response, but find nothing. She was right after all, with all the relationships she's had, and after knowing Mark for so long, she should know. "Do you like him?" I'm surprised to find myself asking, and she shakes her head at me seriously.

"He's sweet, and protective and not to mention hot..." she grins and I feel myself flush as I half nod at her. "But, he's not really my type." I look doubtfully at her but she simply smiles and shakes her head. "I'm not just saying this Audrey. I reckon he likes you a little more than just a friend. Trust me." Without another word she leaves the room, suitcase in tow, leaving me to my thoughts.

***

"Are you sure you're happy riding in the passenger seat?" I look at Justine hopefully, who turns around to face me as much as she can with her seatbelt strapped on.

"Yeah I'm pretty happy here thanks," she grins happily.

Somehow I had found myself stuck in the back seat between Kol and Mark once again. It was a stupid question, plus we were already on the road, but I thought to ask anyway. I can't last being an hour in between these two! Already, I had caught Mark glaring at Kol, who returned his stare with a grin. I notice a small smile spreading on Erik's face through the rear-view mirror. I lean forward, uncomfortable. Kol yawns and stretches, subtly placing an arm behind my back.

"What's wrong Audrey? Don't you like sitting next to me?" Kol pouts.

"It's not you," I say, shifting awkwardly in the hopes that he might remove his hand from my back. Noticing my discomfort, Kol moves a bit closer to me, a twinkle in his dark eyes.

"Then what?" he runs a hand through his dark hair, and I hate myself for thinking that he looks even cuter with his hair messed up like that.

"Um," I stutter. Was he always this adorable? I find myself wondering. "Well... Justine?" I squeak for help. Justine always knows what to say to boys. She glimpses between me, Kol and Mark.

"It's just that she's not interested in you Kol. She likes Mark. Sorry." Justine says flat out.

I gape at her. She did not just say that. "What? I... That's..." I struggle to find words, my face reddening by the second.

Thankfully though, Kol frowns and removes his hand from my back. I glance at Mark, who stares back at me, his face unreadable. If I thought this car trip was awkward before... I note Erik as he attempts to hide a smile, but failing.

"What are you smirking at?" I grumble.

He shakes his head, chuckling. "Nothing. Nothing at all."

***

"Finally." I stretch my legs out as I stand on the grass. After a long stiff hour or so in the car, my legs felt like pins and needles. This time, Erik had though it best not to stop anywhere in case an assassin thought it amusing to try and blow us up again. I take in the park's sight with the many kids, yelling and playing on swing sets and other such playground equipment. Exactly like in my dream. I think, a sense of Déjà vu filling me. Except I doubt I'll find Dad here. I bite my lip and cast my eyes downwards at a clump of overgrown grass.

"Right, so the main focus of the camera was on the tree," Erik states as we begin to walk closer to the park. "Which means we should probably check that out first." Eagerly, we all pick up our pace. This could be it. This could be where the gold was hidden.

"So we're looking for a clue as to where Audrey's dad hid the gold, but we have no clue how this clue looks like." Justine mutters. "Well this isn't complicated at all."

I look around the playground. Everything was the same as I remembered, just older. A few memories flash in my mind of me as a kid with my father. I walk past a swing set with two kids fighting over a swing and place a hand on the huge tree. Children were climbing up the big tree and crawling across one particularly thick tree branch. The tree must've been many years old, as it was intertwined with others, making it look like a mass of messy, brown vines locked together. I walk around the tree, finding small dark hiding spots in it, small enough to fit a little kid. I think back to my dream and how my dad had told me that the shadows were my friend. Yet, as a child, I never picked dark hiding places because of my fear of darkness. I make my way back to the front of the tree absent-mindedly.

"Nothing up here!"

I look up to find Justine amongst the kids climbing the huge branch. She was on her hands and knees, crawling.

"Are you even looking for anything or did you just climb that tree for fun?" I muse, smiling and shielding my eyes as I looked up at her.

"Bit of both," she admits, reaching the end of the branch where children were sliding down a wooden pole that was holding up the dense branch. Erik was taking in the tree with full perspective while Mark and Kol scoured around the trees near it. Justine slides down the pole and hops down near the end, walking towards me with a slight smile.

"Nothing on the pole either." She sighs. "It'd help if we knew what we were even looking for."

I nod my agreement, then head back around the tree, where a few kids were trying to lift themselves up onto the big trunk that lead to the huge, outstretched branch. I smile, remembering how my dad would have to lift me up because I was too short to find a footing on the large trunk. I place my foot into a gap in the tree and lift myself up. I wait as kids start to crawl their way through an arch in the tree and finally onto the long stretch of branch. I crawl on my hands and knees under the arch, but lift up my head too soon.

"Ouch!" I rub my sore head. "Guess I've grown since I last came here." I mutter to myself. I look back at the arch and am about to continue crawling when I notice something. I try to turn my head back as much as possible without losing balance on the branch. Someone had scratched the letters: R O + M E. I stare at the letters for a while. It seemed like one of those typical things couples did, scratching their initials on trees, and if I had only looked at it briefly, I may not have noticed, but something about that writing was awfully familiar.

"Can you move?" a small boy with red hair and freckles was waiting just behind the arch with an annoyed expression. Gathering my thoughts, I smile briefly at the child.

"Yeah, sorry." I quickly shuffle the rest of the way and slide down the pole.

Erik shakes his head. "Nothing." He was waiting a little away from the big branch, so I joined the flustered looking man. Mark soon returned, followed by a bored-looking Kol.

"We didn't find anything either," Mark says, crossing his arms, probably annoyed by the fact that Erik had made him investigate with Kol in an attempt to get the two boys closer.

"Where's Justine?" Erik asks, scanning the playground.

I spot her reaching the bottom of a slide, but before I can say so, she hurries over to us. "Nothing in the playground," she grins.

Erik's shakes his head, clearly troubled. "So we have nothing."

"Well," I interject. "Maybe not." I briefly explain what I saw in the arch of the tree. "At first I thought some couple had just written their initials in the tree but..." I search their faces, wondering if I sounded ridiculous. Justine nods, urging me to go on. "R, O plus M, E? The writing... it kind of reminded me of my Dad's..." I say slowly, and I see Erik's eyes light up. "But I'm not too sure." I say carefully, not wanting to raise his hopes, only to have them crash back down. "It was kind of hard to tell but the other thing that made me think was..." I hesitate. "Is it just a coincidence that those four letters spell Rome? The city I've always wanted to go to as a kid?"

There is a moment of silence and I feel myself grow hot. I'm so new to this whole thief and intelligencer thing. Maybe it was just a coincidence. Maybe it won't help at all knowing this. Erik's face suddenly breaks into a beam. For the first time, Erik seems less worried, less serious and less... weary. He spreads his arms out wraps me in an overjoyed bear hug.

"I always knew you had your father's intelligence!" he laughs. "We have a lead! Finally!"

Mark smiles warmly at me and Erik. Surprised at Erik's outcry, I take a second before hugging him back. I smile at Erik, happy to see him so euphoric over what seemed like such little news to me.

"So what now?" I ask.

"Now," Erik says, looking at us each in turn, his gaze stopping on me. "You get to visit your dream city."

My heart skips a beat, and I'm not sure whether he was joking or not. "Seriously?" I can barely contain my excitement. Is he actually serious? I've always wanted to visit Europe, but Rome was always the one place I was truly set on.

Erik nods. "Next stop, Rome."

| Dedicated to @Alla_rosier_|

Who left a really sweet review in her book "Reviews & Recommendations". Really grateful for that so thank you Xx

CAN YOU BELIEVE IT? JUST 8 MORE CHAPTERS TO GO, ERMAGAWSH!!!

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