Total pages in book: 94
Estimated words: 88119 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 441(@200wpm)___ 352(@250wpm)___ 294(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 88119 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 441(@200wpm)___ 352(@250wpm)___ 294(@300wpm)
“So you believe that we could be next,” Kate said, a hint of impatience in her voice.
“Given your involvement in the last mission and Abel’s interest in that case, I’ve come to that conclusion, yes. The Variations gathered in this room are too valuable for them to pass up on. Appropriate security measures must be taken.”
“Alec should be safe, though, don’t you think?” Kate gave a delicate shrug. “After all, there’s nothing he can do that a machine can’t do in his stead. Strength isn’t that valuable.”
I couldn’t believe her audacity. Even in a situation like this, when agents were going missing and all of us were potential targets, she didn’t have anything better to do than continue to attack Alec. His fingers tensed in mine but his face remained a stony mask.
“Alec is a very important asset,” Major said sharply. Discussion over.
I glanced at Kate, but the expression on her face wasn’t the one I’d expected—not rebuffed, rather challenging. Kate had never defied Major openly. What the hell was going on?
“Until further notice, FEA headquarters will be on high alert. You will be on high alert. We have to take all necessary precautions to prevent another abduction from happening. Any kind of suspicious behavior must be reported immediately. Are we clear?”
“Clear,” we echoed as one. I wondered if the others were as confused about the meaning of suspicious behavior as I was. Everyone began rising from their chairs. Alec didn’t look half as freaked out as I felt. He even managed a smile for me, even though he usually kept our romantic interaction to a bare minimum.
“Alec, Kate.” Major’s voice lashed through the room like a whip. “A word with you.” I hesitated and glanced between Alec, Kate, and Major. None of them gave anything away.
Alec released my hand with an apologetic smile. “See you later?”
I nodded and with a last glance at him, I left the room after Devon and Phil, and closed the door behind me. A moment of awkwardness followed, when Devon and my eyes met. Then he looked away.
“Do you still need a tour of headquarters?” I asked.
“No,” Devon said quickly, even though Phil had looked like he wanted to say yes. “Tanner gave us a brief tour on our first day.”
“Oh.” I nodded. “All right. See you later then.” I turned, then realized I was still wearing Devon’s hoodie. I unzipped it and handed it to him.
“You’ll be cold in the hallways,” he said, his brows pulling together. His blue eyes were focused on the tip of my nose.
“I’ll be fine. Thanks.” I hurried away before the awkwardness could rise even more.
When I arrived back at my room, Holly was awake and reading an email on our shared computer. But as soon as she heard me, she quickly clicked the browser window shut before I’d even closed the door—before I could catch a glimpse at what she’d been reading. Holly and I didn’t keep secrets from each other.
“Hey,” she said without turning around. Her voice was too high.
Strange.
I walked up to her slowly, hoping to catch a glimpse of something on her screen that would give me a clue. But her desktop background—a photo of us in front of the Christmas tree in the common room, wearing red Santa hats and huge grins—was the only thing greeting me.
“Everything okay?” I asked, touching her shoulder.
She tensed, then put her hand over mine and turned around in her chair, giving me a smile. “Sure.”
I searched her face for any kind of a sign, but it didn’t give anything away. It was Holly’s cheery face, the same face that had brought me through many dark moments. Maybe all this high alert talk from Major had turned my brain cells to mush. Holly was the one person beside Alec I could trust completely. End of story.
I sank down on the bed and a moment later, Holly joined me. “Hey you, why the gloom face?”
I put my head down on her shoulder and told her what I’d heard about Stevens, and about Major’s suspicions.
“Oh wow, I suppose it’s a good thing that I keep messing up with my Variation. At least, that means I’m not valuable enough to be a target,” she said with a laugh. But even that sounded off.
I raised my head. “Holly, I don’t know what I’d do if…” I swallowed. Even thinking about it made me all choked up. “… if something happened to you.”
She blinked quickly, then hugged me. “Oh please. I’m safe. You heard what Major said. Only useful Variants should be worried. I still can’t get my invisibility under control.” She pulled back and changed the topic. “So! You spent the night with Alec?”
“Yeah,” I said, feeling a blush creep up my neck. I wanted to share every detail with her but at the same time I wanted to keep Alec and my relationship as close to me as possible.