It's been six months, 4 days, and… I sighed internally. Can't the stupid clock inside me just shut up? It's not like I don't spend most of my waking moments thinking about how I'm going to find Zach. Which I'm definitely going to do, by the way. School's out, and all I have to do is find an excuse and go off by myself. Which shouldn't be hard, right?
"Cammie!" Bex burst into our suite on that sunny, warm, last day of school. A big smile was plastered all over her face in a way that only a spy mission that includes boys can induce. "Mr. Solomon just told me to tell you that this summer we have a special assignment. Highly classified." She laughed lightly, plopping down on the floor next to me and our half-packed bags.
Right. Sneaking off isn't that easy when you go to a school for spies and your best friends just happen to be some of the best spies in the world. Which you probably know already, since you have to have a pretty high clearance to be reading this. And although under normal circumstances I'd be extremely happy to hear this news, I sighed inside. "Bex, are you sure? What-"
"Cammie, this is good news! Try to be happy. It's part of our summer homework in preparation for senior year," she said, eyeing me. "It'll be fun. Trust me, okay? We're going to kick some serious bad-guy ass." Again, she smiled happily.
"I'm sure, it's just…" I trailed off, looking down as Zach's face flashed through my head. Everything that had happened last winter, going on that assignment, seeing Zach, pretending to be a couple, getting captured, almost escaping, Zach's strong hands choking me, the appearance of my hurt ex-best friend Sam… Something felt wrong. What was I missing?
"Cam. Please." Bex lowered her voice, the grin slowly fading off her face. "We're going abroad. We're doing something that's real, not just to pass our grade. And we'll find them, you know." She looked down, rubbing the silver charm bracelet Grant had given her the last time she'd seen him. "I want to find them just as much as you do."
I glanced at her, and put my arm around her. It still confused me why Grant had disappeared a few days after Zach had. He wasn't in danger, and he wouldn't just leave Bex like this, with no warning. "Okay, okay," I smiled. "We can do both, right?"
Bex smiled confidently at me. "Of course we can," she said, pulling me up and dragging me all the way to Sublevel Two.
A few fingerprint scans and retinal scans later, we walked into a classroom full of whispering girls. I picked up a couple of conversations as we sought out Macey.
"I heard that we're protecting a celebrity!"
"Probably someone hot, like Taylor Lautner."
"This mission is supposed to count for a third of our grade next year."
"And senior year hasn't even started yet… Intense."
Macey cocked a perfectly plucked eyebrow at us as we took our seats next to her. She'd been bumped up to our grade, and she fit in perfectly. "So Cam, you ready for this?" She asked, but I could tell there was a second layer of meaning behind her question.
I sighed. "Am I really that obvious?" But before anyone could answer, Mr. Solomon walked in, looking hot in a simple fitted white t-shirt and dark jeans. He leaned against the whiteboard as the whole room of girls fell silent.
"Ladies, get ready for a summer full of spying. Say goodbye to your grandparents and your parents for the time being, you're alone on this mission. You'll be in teams of 3, and your paths with other teams this summer." He looked directly at me as he said this, and I looked back in confusion, with a small sliver of hope forming.
"The teams will be as the following…"
I listened nervously as my class got split up and handed thick manila folders. Eva, Courtney, and Tina, from the sounds of their screams, were assigned to Hollywood. Anna, Mick, and Kim got to go to France. As Mr. Solomon passed by my desk, he dropped the folder with a thud.
"Be careful," was all he said before walking back to the front of the class. I glanced at Bex, who was so excited she was practically bouncing in her seats.
"Listen up, ladies. Helicopters with leave for your respective destinations tomorrow at oh seven o'clock. This mission is extremely important, because you'll be protecting, or ending, real people's lives. It will affect the world around us. So be careful, be quick, and most importantly, don't get caught. Have a nice summer." Without a smile, he left the room. I got a hunch that this mission wouldn't be all fun and games, but Macey only yawned next to us, examining her perfectly painted nails.
"Get ready," Bex whispered dramatically, taking the folder and opening it. She glanced through it, and I took a deep breath as Macey leaned across the desk.
As we read through the files, the room suddenly went silent. My heart felt like it had stopped beating, and I sucked in a breath. Every girl in the room had noticed the large, bold letters on the last page of all the files.
NOTICE: YOU WILL BE JOINED BY OPERATIVES FROM BLACKTHORNE.
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
Hey guys! I'm back So I don't think this is up to my usual standards, it's basically just a setting for the story. Anyways, we'll have a lot of drama in this story, and I promise, tons of Zach/Cammie action. And Sam might make an appearance too. So please write a review, tell me what you think, what you expect, and I promise I'll make it as unexpected and good as possible!
Lots of love,
Lexi
PS. You know my other story, A Forgiving Heart? I might consider finishing that up later, but this is a totally different story line that follows Stolen Heart. Please, constructive criticism! I'll update soon.