Chapter 3

Joe who had been staring at the desk, looked up quickly.

'What did you say?'

'I said I was a twin an-'

'I'm your biological father? Rachel I thought you and Matt changed you minds?'

'Wait sooooo you didn't know?'

'No.'

'That you were my Father?'

'Nope. Didn't know you were a twin EITHER,- he then turned his head to look at my mom- Rachel?'

My mom was staring guiltily at the ground.' OK. So we weren't completely sure whether or not you were the father and Cammie honey your brother died at birth. He was born too early two days before you. Joe you wouldn't have known this because the first time you held Cammie was 4 days after she was born since you were stuck in Australia on a mission, remember? –Joe nodded- And we decided no good would come by telling people that our other baby had-had died. Nobody knew we were having twins. Not even you Joe. It was meant to be a surprise.' Rachel gulped noisily and flopped down on her leather sofa.

'How could you? How you cheat on daddy?!' I seethed, my fists clenched and clued to my sides. To my surprise both my mom and Joe looked shocked instead of guilty.

'Cheat? Oh honey I could never cheat on your father. When we got married at twenty we both decided that due to the fact we were both spies and we didn't know what our futures would turn out to be-she choked back a sob- , We both wanted to have a family Cam. We both wanted YOU so badly, we decided to start trying for a family as soon as possible. Since we'd both had to go through some injuries from previous missions we decided to make sure that both of us could- you know- produce kids. I was fine obviously but your father. Unfortunately there was only a %34.2456 chance so we decided to keep trying but ALSO experiment with a sperm donor. Since Joe was both our best friend, we chose him. That's why we didn't know who the father was, we didn't want to know either. We didn't care because we knew that we would both always love you unconditionally.'

By this time both me AND my mom were sobbing and then I blurted out the final secret surprised that my mom and Joe actually managed to understand me through my tears.

'He's not dead. My Twin. Catherine organised for one of her undercover doctors to announce that he was dead and somehow managed to sneak him out. She told me he was at Blackthorn and that he was being trained for the CoC. She said- She said any agent with Morgan-Cameron Or Solomon-Cameron blood would be precious for the CoC. She was right. His Name is Grant Newman. I've met him. He's best friends with Zach, he's second in his class.'

My mom and Joe were staring at me in shock. It took a while for it to seek in suddenly my mom and Joe said at the same time-

'My baby boy is alive?'- Mom

'Grant Newman is my son?'-Joe

'Yep' I said popping the p, despite all the drama going on today I seemed to find this slightly funny.

'well I'll let you two process this new info, btw Joe if I ever had to have a new dad – not a dad that would replace the one who brought me up but a new one for after the old one. I would've wanted it to be you.' I smiled

Joe and my mom stared in at me in shock tears glistening in both their eyes. Then I turned around and walked out of the door.

Zach for some Zach-y reason had chosen the floor to sit on instead of one of the $645 chairs my mom had recently bought for the extended part of the wall opposite her door that served as a waiting room. It was kind of like it had once been either a very large-wide-long window seat that had been replaced with nothing or a compared-to-the-other-classrooms small room that was missing the wall that stood in between it and the hallway. (I put lots of detail in hopes you would understand what I meant). Anyway so when I walked out Zach looked up from his place from the floor and said 'Well should I go in now?' His voice was a bit sharp and bitter running chills down my spine.

'Actually even though you would've been a lot of help on our private conversation (help with grant) I think maybe I miscalculated the amount of shock I was about to put them through when I told them. However I believe we need to talk anyway right? So follow me cos I know somewhere private we can yell however much we want and no-one will hear us.' I was surprised with my own icy tone, not fully understanding where it was coming from. Maybe it was my brain using my vocal chords in preparation for when Zach most likely breaks my heart in the next 15 minutes.

'Ok' He replied shoving his hands in his pockets as he was now standing, 'Lead the way'. Turning the corner I saw Abby sneak into the office out of the corner of my eye. I walked Zach through the school and down to CoveOps. It was a Sunday so there were no classes and students weren't allowed into the sublevels on weekends. Students that is apart from Bex, Liz, Macey, Zach and myself since my mom had allowed us access to the files down there concerning the Circle of Caven.

As I had expected we were granted access and when we stepped out it was immediately obvious that It was utterly deserted. Neither I nor the other girls had got a wink of sleep so that's what they were probably catching up on right now. Part of me wished I could be up in my dorm sleeping with them but I knew that me and Zach had to Talk.

I leant against a desk that was directly in front of where Zach was leaning against Solomon's desk.

'So-' I sighed

'I hate this'

'What are you talking about? Zach what ar-'

'I hate that whenever my mother comes up, and I hear of the things she has done to you what she emotionally is doing to you I feel hate towards not only her but you as well.'- Zach was practically growling the words

'Zach it wasn't anybody's fault' – I was now whispering, tears forming in my eyes

'But IT WAS CAMMIE! I GAVE YOU THE IDEA! I'M THE ONE THAT DIDN'T KEEP MY PROMISE OF PROTECTING YOU! AND YOU! I MEAN REALLY WHAT WERE YOU THINKING CAMMIE! I know you thought it would protect us but didn't it ever occur to you to leave the protecting things to us- let us protect you for ONCE IN YOUR LIFE! Let us be the selfless ones.' Zach now had tears in his eyes. He was holding me by my arms gluing my arms to my side shaking me like a doll.

'Zach stop-' tears were now running down my cheeks as well. 'Think about this Zach, your mother wants you back. That's why she didn't take you as well. Because she knew that if she had you and had decided to keep you I would never have done the deal, I would've simply pushed her to letting you go too. Look at it this way. It wouldn't have been a romantic trip to go on and mess about and tease me on it would have been a deadly mission. We might have gotten far enough but what would've happened when the girls got taken you probably would've talked me out of it, tried to go in alone. What if I'd gone in and we'd all gotten out but you Zach because your mom had got you? I

Left for the protection of everyone but I was mainly protecting you Zach because… because' I was now holding Zach's sobbing face in between my two hands but I looked down when I almost confessed how I felt.

'Why? Gallagher Girl? Why did you have to protect me so bad?'

'Because Zach , your mother doesn't love you! Joe does though, like a son and so do your best friends and my best friends they love you like a brother! BUT I LOVE YOU WITH EVERYTHING! I LOVE YOU WAY MORE THAN A BROTHER, A SON, AND A BEST FRIEND! I LOVE YOU WITH MY WHOLE HEART! And I'm the one who knows more than anybody how much you deserve to be protected!' I was hysterical tears pouring out my eyes.

Zach just stared at me, and stared at me, and stared at me. Backing away slowly out of my hands and leaning back onto the desk. His face once again a mask.

I did the only logical thing a girl could do when she has shocked the boy she loves out of words by confessing her love to him. Yes, this may have been the normal reaction for a boy but Zach was a spy and a damn good one, I spy that I had just scared shitless. So I ran. I ran and ran down hallways and through doors until I found myself in a place, I hadn't been to in ages. When I had said (in book 4) that I'd never seen the Gallagher lake before that wasn't exactly true. I had seen it, I just hadn't seen that particular part before. That itself is very understandable since the lake is absolutely HUMUNGOUS. Anyway Hidden away behind a couple of trees just left to right to the academy is a clearing. In that clearing is a Small wooden hut. However its actually called Cammie Cottage (even though it isn't a cottage. It's a hut.). The Name was cliché, I know but hell, I was like 4. This is a hut that my father and I had built together the last summer before he had gone MIA. My mother's second summer of being Headmistress of Gallagher Academy. It was here I had spent time (when I wasn't in Nebraska visiting my grandparents) that I didn't want to spend in the castle. It was small with 2 floors. The bottom floor had a small safe gym with equipment that hadn't been updated since I was 12 , the last time I had been here. It also had a small comfy sofa, TV and a mini fridge that had once been stocked with bottles of water and Kiddie snacks and treats. The top Floor was much smaller since it had only been built big enough for a small bed. A couple of Drawers and a desk.

So after 5 years I ran towards the hut retrieved the key that only I had known about from the hiding place that only I had known about and barged in at the age of 17 looked around, sank onto the bottom staircase and began to cry my eyes out. About a boy.

I knew that as a spy, crying over a boy should be thought a shameful thing to do but leaning against the banister on the bottom stair of the old oak staircase my dead father had built for me I didn't care. I thought of nothing but my heart as my eyes, head and chest ached. My heart literally ached. I could physically feel the splitting of my heart tissue as it split open. I emotionally felt all the girly shyness, girly crushes, girly giggles and girly waves leave my personality as I painfully started to turn into a cold hard anti-Zachary-Goode shell.

The clock on the wall told me it was 5 past 3 in the morning. I had been in the cabin for roughly 10 hours and 35 minutes. I knew I'd come in at about 4 in the afternoon the day before, I had cried for about 4 and ½ hours stopping then starting up again. I was utterly hysterical. I had told Zach my true feelings. I had embarrassed myself in front of the boy I loved. That not only made me feel humiliated but also very un-chameleon-y, chameleons weren't meant to be seen. No. Chameleon's weren't seen because they don't make mistakes, they don't make loud noises and they don't turn bright colours. But above all Chameleon's do not get embarrassed. Embarrassed is bad because it is obvious. Obvious is attention-seeking. Attention-seeking is not the behaviour of a chameleon. Great. I'm a failure. I'm an utter failure to my CIA Legacy. Kill me now. Oh wait.. I don't have to worry about that do I? My mom, Joe, Bex, Macey and Liz will probably be so mad with worry they will each kill me and bury my body. Then the next will kill me again then once again bury my body. I shudder. I'll have to go through this at least 5 times before everyone is satisfied with themselves. Man I'm in for a long day.

I was still tired so I walked up the stairs and fell onto the bed that was WAY too small or me.

Opening my eyes the room was in total darkness. I hadn't turned any of the lights on so I guess it was evening. Looking at the clock my suspicions were confirmed. It read 8:27 in the evening. God had I seriously slept for 17 hours and 22 minutes! Damn! Taking my phone out of my pocket I noticed I had 23 missed calls and 17 messages from Bex, 20 missed calls and 15 messages from Macey, 28 missed calls and 12 messages from Liz, 15 missed calls from Zach, 9 missed calls from both Abby and Solomon and 38 missed calls and 19 messages from my mom. Choosing to ignore them I typed.

In cottage. Come alone plz

I pressed send, got up and flopped down the stairs to prepare something punch-able. 3 minutes 48 seconds later I heard a short rustle outside then my mom burst through the door.

'How angry are you cos I prepared a punch bag?' I said perfectly calm.

'CAMERON ANN MORGAN HAVE YOU ANY SLIGHT IDEA OF EXACTLY HOW WORRIED I HAVE BEEN? HOW WORRIED JOE HAD BEEN OR BEX OR MACEY OR LIZ OR.. OR.. ZACH? I HAVE THE ENTIRE STAFF LOOKING FOR YOU! I WAS ABOUT TO ANNOUNCE TO THE SCHOOL THAT YOU WERE ONCE AGAIN M.I.A! I THOUGHT CATHERINE HAD YOU! AGAIN! OH..OH..oh my poor..poor…poor sweet, darling, baby!' My mom started to sob uncontrollably wrapping her arms around me. Her tears set me off again and soon enough we were on the sofa my mom stretched out and me, lying head on her chest, between her and the back of the sofa.

'oh honey sshhhh, shhhhh, there, there darling everythings gonna be fine' she soothed rubbing circles on the small of my back. God I loved my mom. She was totally awesome.

'Mom?-sniff- how do you fix a broken heart? I mean literally broken, as in feel the flesh tear open, broken heart?' I sniffled my tears now only dribbling.

'I dunno sweetheart. I dunno. It's a question I've been asking myself for more than a decade my love' she whispered kissing my forehead and stroking my head.

'Honey we gotta go back but-but- maybe? do you wanna stay with me tonight?' she questioned a glimmer of hope in her voice.

I stared at her and whispered, 'yeah, yeah actually I think we both kinda need each other's company tonight. Can you tell Joe and the girls?'

'Yeah baby, sure thing.' She sighed once again pressing little kisses on my forehead.

'Hey mom?' something suddenly hit me 'How'd you get In? That door is quite literally non-break-down-able?' wasn't it?

'Chef Louis-' she said simply 'remember he was the only one apart from your father that had a key to this place because you loved it when he'd come and surprise you with left overs. She laughed he beautiful laugh quietly and fondly. 'God to think how much you've had to go through then my baby girl' she kissed my nose and forehead for the last time then stood up. Even after crying and being curled up on the couch for like… an hour she was still beautiful. Sure her outfit was rather wrinkled, her blood red pencil skirt had ridden up a few inches higher than her knees and her white, lace blouse had mascara stains on it (because even though my mascara was super-waterproof that Liz had designed, that didn't mean it wouldn't leave a mark if it came into contact with a material).

'Right come on, let's get you back before Joe sounds the alarm for me as well as you.'

We laughed and walked hand in hand back to the Academy.