A/N: I'm actually so sorry that I haven't updated in forever! I've been seriously ill and had to do homework and stuff... Anyway, here's the next chapter. I'll try and update quickly if I feel like it.
After the last of the students left for their summer vacations (minus Bex, Liz and Macey. Obviously.), I knocked on Mrs Morgan's door. She opened it and let me in, going back to her laptop. I sat in the chair opposite to her desk and asked, "Any sign of Cammie?"
She shook her head and slumped further into her seat. "Nobody of her description has been seen in Virginia over the past week. She's either disguised herself or is hiding." she sighed, sipping a cup of black coffee. She looked like she hadn't slept at all - I know I've haven't.
"This is Cammie we're talking about. Cammie the Chameleon." I couldn't stress this fact enough. Everyone seemed to be overlooking the one thing that makes her so special. "I'm going to go with Bex to find her. Hopefully things will get better from here." I said, rising from my seat.
"Hopefully..." Mrs Morgan repeated, answering her phone. I walked out and headed to my last stop before I left - the infirmary.
The room was brightly lit and machines were constantly beeping. In the centre of the wires was Mr Solomon - unconscious and unmoving. From head-to-toe, bandages covered my mentor's body. He had been seriously burnt in the tomb explosion saving Cammie. I stood by his side and told him my plan - praying for some kind of reaction.
"Joe, I'm going to look for Cammie. She ran off to finish her dad's mission six days ago. I don't know where she is, but I'm giving myself two weeks to find her on my own. When the time is up, I'll go searching for her with the Baxters." Nothing. "I'll be back soon, Joe. Don't worry about me - worry about Cammie. I know how much she means to you and you know how much she means to me."
I walked out nonchalantly and went to my room. They had given me a room in the East Wing (they were converted into living space for the exchange last year) to stay in since it wasn't safe for me back at Blackthorne. The only thing they still had to arrange was which teacher would accompany me. To be perfectly honest, I don't trust anyone at Blackthorne. They're probably working for the Circle. I still had to choose a chaperone, but I had the summer ahead of me. I had a girl to find.
I took what little belongings I had (Joe's notebook, that's it.) and made my way to the girls' room. Their bags were half packed and the room was a mess. "Macey, can I borrow three hundred dollars?"
"Whatever. My parents won't care if I'm losing seven hundred dollars in a week." She tossed me a wad of cash and carried on with her packing. Liz, on the other hand, stopped and looked at me.
"What do you need that for?" she asked cautiously.
"Classified." I replied, dodging her question. She paused for a moment then shrugged her shoulders, not pressing on.
"I don't even want to ask." was all Bex said. She closed her suitcase and walked purposefully towards the door. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to try one last time to get Mrs Morgan to let me stay and help."
"I'm staying for a week. I've almost completed the machine need to keep Mr Solomon's muscles from atrophying whilst not in use." Liz piped in.
At the mention of Joe's name, I tensed a little. If it wasn't for my mother, he would be conscious. He'd still be fully alive. Everyone thinks he died a traitor in the tombs, but the truth is that he's alive and working against the Circle. He saved Cammie's life by setting off the explosions and risking his own - that's something that took courage to do. Courage was one thing I didn't have; I needed it to start my mission.
"I guess I'll be leaving now." I mumbled, shoving the money in my pocket.
"Where are you off to?" Liz asked innocently. I didn't know whether she was implying anything, but I just stood there frozen, not being able to speak.
"Erm... I've got to do something that Joe needed me to do. You know, before everything in the world was flipped upside down and destroyed." I was terrible at lying on the spot when it wasn't necessary. Liz nodded slightly and let me leave in peace.
I stepped out of the main doors of the Gallagher Academy and fidgeted with the strap of the rucksack. All it had inside was Joe's journal, a knife, the money and some food that I swiped from the kitchen. I took out the journal and pulled out the slip of paper that was covered in locations mentioned in it. On the reverse side was the locations mentioned in the journal Cammie took with her. They were almost exactly the same up until the last on Matt's list. Rome. The place where he disappeared from the face of the Earth. That had to be the place she went.
The next twenty-four hours were full of running, catching planes and hitch-hiking. I couldn't lose any time in doing this - Cammie would move on if she didn't find what she was looking for. By the time I landed in Rome, it was eight pm the next day. I checked into a cheap hotel and went through my plan of action. There were four places Cammie could be in Rome: in one of seven safe houses around the city, at the lakeside villa (another safe house), somewhere on her way to Vatican City or in one of the Circle's bases. I could cross the last one off the list - the Circle only uses each place once before leaving it. Looking down at the tourist map I had spread out on the floor, I decided to check the safe houses.
Grabbing the Swiss-army knife, I headed to the first place on the list. The sky was speckled with stars as I walked in the night. All around me were couples being romantic; I couldn't help but feel jealous. Frustrated even. Out of all the times Cammie could of disappeared, she chose the time where I'd be thinking about her the most. Since we first kissed and I left back to Blackthorne, I haven't stopped wondering about what she does when she's not using a cover - when she's not being a spy. I know she goes to her grandparents' ranch in Nebraska, but that's all the information I can get.
The building straight ahead was lit up from the inside - someone was in the safe house. I pulled my hood up over my head and shoved my hands in my pockets trying to look casual. I cautiously approached the house and looked up to see a window on the first floor was open. There was nobody around, so I stood on the ground floor window sill and jumped up and grabbed the ledge above, swinging my legs to land silently in the room with the open window.
The room I was in was small, but full of your usual spy stuff: weapons, blueprints, questionable phials of liquids, etc. . I scanned the room to see if anything was familiar, but nothing was. There was a bag on the bed, so I started to go through it. It contained several notebooks, a small handgun and two-hundred dollars-worth of Euros.
Quiet footsteps were coming to the door on the other side of the room. I could either jump out of the window and risk a stranger seeing me or wait to see who this mystery person is. It could be Cammie - she could've got this equipment in the last week of school.