3.
My eyes searched frantically for the familiar head of dark hair and emerald eyes. Thanks to her tall frame, I noticed her easily.
"Cassie!" I yelled, acting like an old friend. She turned around.
Once she spotted my blazing eyes, she caught on that we needed to talk. "Hi, Mikky. How can I help you?"
I pulled her into the alleyway next to us. "You promised." I growled.
"What?" she laughed. "I did promise, and I've kept my promise." I looked at her incredulously. Was she serious?
"How have you kept it?"
She looked irritated. "I'm not here for Morgan's daughter, Robinson. I'm here to get you. And as I recall, you were never part of the promise."
Oh my gosh. I had been to preoccupied in keeping Cameron safe, that I haven't even thought about stopping Cassndra from getting me; resulting in Cameron being in danger. I was so stupid. "Why are you here, Cassandra?"
Before she could answer, my phone buzzed. I looked down and saw a message from Zach. Solomon took Cameron back to Gallagher. She has no idea. I wasn't sure whether he was saying that Cassandra has no idea that Cameron was gone, or that Cameron has no idea that Cassandra was here. I was hoping both.
When I looked back up, Cassandra was gone. Just a note left on the floor.
Mikky,
We will get you one day. You and my son may have gone rouge on us, but we will have you back. We know that you have people on us; we know that you have insiders, but you can't always be the wiser person in our little game we have here. One day, we will have people on you; we will have an insider to get us to you. Then it'll be our turn with the ball.
CoC.
I crunched the note back up, and put it in my pocket, frustrated I had let my guard down. Things like this really irritated me.
It was 6:13pm already, and all I had was the van to go home in. So I set off. If I drove right on the speed limit, I should be at Gallagher before midnight. Thanks to my previous training – before I came to Gallagher – I could drive long distances without falling asleep.
I drove a little past the Gallagher Academy entrance and jerked the wheel, so I was on the very narrow lane. Since the road was really rough, and I knew that it got rougher, I stepped on the gas a little harder, loving the feel of the van bouncing up and down all around me.
Once I heard the suspension of the van almost snap, I smiled... and slammed down the gas, bounding over gorges allowing mud to spray the van. Another jerk of the wheel and I was speeding towards the ivory-covered wall.
I pushed a button on my dashboard, and for a minute, I felt the van move faster, even though the button had nothing to do with the van.
And then I was flying. Flying into a lake.
I braced myself for the impact, the seatbelts snapping back to keep me in place. I could see the water engulfing the van; however, not a drop seeped into the van. I drove along the bottom of the lake, watching fish swim by as if it happened every day.
"WARNING: RESTRICTED AREA," a loud voice echoed through the van speakers. "AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY. ACQUIRING RETINAL IMAGES NOW." The van flashed a bright orange, causing me to almost squint. Almost. A minute later, the voice returned. "PRESENT VOCAL RECOGNITION, PLEASE."
"Mikayla Robinson. Guardian Agent and Gallagher Girl," I stated my voice strong and clear. I stopped moving completely and all the water drained from around us as we entered the caves.
I stepped out the van and picked a leaf off the window. Walking around to the back of the van, I opened the doors and pulled out my bags.
I started walking down the long walkway leading to school, thinking about what I had said earlier. Mikayla Robinson. Guardian Agent and Gallagher Girl. My title as Guardian Agent is something I'm happy to have, however, Gallagher Girl isn't me. I'm not – nor will I ever be – a true Gallagher Girl. I know too much to be considered as a Gallagher Girl.
Just before I came to the entrance that led to Dr Fibs' filing cabinets, I turned right and pushed the Gallagher Academy crest carved into the wall.
Walking out of Sublevel Three, I had certainly not expected to see Solomon.
"You're good, Robinson," I heard him say from behind me.
I snapped around quickly, recognising the broad outline of Mr Solomon.
"How do you know so much about this school and the people in it? You've been here two days," he asked me.
"You know as well as I do that you can never be too prepared. I'm a Guardian Agent, so I have to be prepared. Such as, I know that Cameron is going to be hurt one of these days-"
His eyes darkened. "You can't know everything about Cameron and her future. No one can predict what'll happen. You know that one second of hesitation can change everything." I wasn't sure what he was talking about, but, I didn't care. He wasn't worth my time.
"Solomon?" I asked. "Don't you remember our talk? We need to work together-"
He cut me off. "No!" he shouted. "You're my enemy. You may think you know what's good for Cameron, but you've only known her for two days, so there is no way you can even dream of knowing her."
"Are you saying you're going to risk letting her act like a normal spy-in-training? I know she doesn't know what's going on in the real world, but what happens when she graduates and doesn't have you to spare her the troubles?"
He looked at me blankly.
"You can't let this carry on! SHE'LL GET HURT! Trust me," I said, trying to convince him that his actions aren't always the best.
"How do you know she'll get hurt? Maybe everything will work out okay?"
I sighed, suddenly very tired. "Because my friend tried to hide me from the dangers of the real world; he too was the best spy I know, and he still slipped up and I ended up hurt, and so did he. You may be the best of the best, but no matter how hard you try, you're never going to be able to protect her." I didn't allow him to answer because I was already running to the elevator back up to the main level.
I'm better than they think.