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  Copyright ©2022 C. Reilly

  All Rights Reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the author except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  This is a work of fiction. All names, characters, businesses, events and places are either the product of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously.

  Cover design by Opulent Designs

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  Title Page

  Copyright

  About This Book

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Acknowledgements

  Tessa has finally made peace with her life as a Variant. She and longtime love Alec are officially a couple, and for the first time, she has everything she wants.

  But the air is tense at FEA headquarters. An agent has disappeared, and rogue Variant organization Abel’s Army is likely the culprit.

  When Tessa is summoned for her second mission, she is unexpectedly launched into a massive conspiracy. Her best friend Holly is kidnapped, and Tessa knows it was meant to be her. But who is after her? And more importantly, why?

  When the FEA’s efforts to rescue Holly don’t yield results, Tessa takes matters into her own hands. Desperate to save her friend and uncover the mystery behind Abel’s Army, Tessa launches her own investigation—but nothing could prepare her for what she finds.

  Summoning all of her courage and strength, Tessa must decide who can be trusted and what is worth fighting for.

  The floor of the helicopter vibrated against my ballerina flats. I could feel the constant buzz humming through my body, and my rapid heartbeat seemed determined to keep up with it.

  In the distance, the mountains of Glacier National Park rose against the darkening sky. Their peaks were framed by crimson as the day bled away. Was Major already awaiting us? We’d be in for an ass-kicking after what we’d done. Maybe the sky wouldn’t be the only thing bleeding tonight.

  Alec squeezed my hand and his gray eyes briefly darted toward me, as if he could feel the worry rolling off me. This had been a difficult day for both of us. Nobody understood me like he did. I looked over at him. His dark brows were drawn together on his tanned face. My eyes glide lower to where the snarling head of a dragon peeked out. He’d loosened the top buttons of his black shirt and it had slipped, revealing his right collarbone and strong shoulder with the top of his tattoo. He was focused on the controls of the helicopter but he was smiling encouragingly. I wanted to lean against him and breathe in his scent—cinnamon and something spicier—to convince myself that this moment was real.

  Only two hours ago, Alec had admitted that he wanted to be with me. But now that the news had time to sink in, I couldn’t help but wonder: how would Kate react when we got back to headquarters? When she saw us together? Alec had emphasized that their relationship hadn’t been about love, but I was sure she wouldn’t give him up without a fight.

  His black hair was all over the place from running his hands through it earlier. I loved that it was a little longer than how he usually wore it—or rather, how Kate had wanted him to wear it. It made him look more rugged.

  Finally, Alec broke the silence. “You’re so quiet. What are you thinking?”

  Heat slithered up my neck. It was almost like he’d read my mind. “Just about the mission.”

  “Do you want to talk about it?”

  The events of the last few weeks still weighed heavy on me. I’d completed my first mission as an FEA agent, and it hadn’t been easy. Ultimately, I’d performed successfully, but I could just as well have died.

  My palm rested over my ribcage where a serial killer had cut an ‘A’ into my skin—the mark he left on all of his victims. It was a wound I’d sustained while pretending to be someone else, but it didn’t disappear once I changed back to my own body. I’d keep the ‘A’ forever: a constant reminder of a mission that had come dangerously close to breaking me. Despite my layers of clothes, I imagined I could feel the rough edges of the scar. My chest vibrated against my palm; I wasn’t sure if it was from the helicopter movements, or because I’d started trembling. I dropped my hand before Alec could notice it.

  I had no doubt that upon our return, Major would be furious with Alec and me. As the head of the FEA, Forces with Extraordinary Abilities, he was our boss and the person responsible for overseeing all of our actions. We’d gone against his orders by returning to the place of my mission, to attend the funeral of the girl I’d impersonated. But it was something I had to do for closure. I was grateful that at least Alec understood that.

  He dipped the controls forward and we began to descend, the skids of the helicopter almost brushing the tree tops. The huge gray FEA building came into view surrounded by small cottages, forest, the glass dome of the swimming pool and our training grounds.

  This, I reminded myself, was my home.

  Alec steered the helicopter toward the landing strip at the back of the property, which was illuminated by red fog lights. And as I let my gaze stray farther north, I could indeed see a wall of white mist creeping toward us. I shivered violently. Alec’s eyes swiveled to me, away from the landing strip.

  I forced my body to relax, remembering that returning to headquarters meant good things too, like getting to see my best friend, Holly, again. Whenever we were separated, it felt like a small part of me was missing.

  After a moment, Alec turned his attention back to our landing. There was no hiding now: the hissing of the propeller blades would alert Major and everyone else to our arrival. This was the moment of truth.

  The skids touched the ground and, with a jerk, we halted. I could still feel the vibration in my body. In combination with my trembling, it created a strange rippling in my body, not unlike the feeling I got during a shape-shifting transformation.

  The blades slowed, their hissing dying down.

  A heavy weight settled in my stomach.

  Alec brushed a strand of hair from my forehead. The auburn lock had stuck to my sweaty skin. “It’ll be okay. I’ll be at your side,” he said softly.

  At Alec’s touch, my trembling halted. I buckled off, removed the headset, slid open the door and jumped outside. My breath left my mouth in small clouds and iciness slithered through the thin soles of my shoes and into every inch of my body. It was April, but this year the winter was particularly hard in Montana. Alec rounded the helicopter and took my hand. For years, I’d been longing for this moment, for his touch, and now I had what I’d always wanted. I tried to savor it despite the circumstances.

  I tugged at Alec’s arm. “Come on. Let’s go,” I said. “I want to get this over with as soon as possible.” And as long as my new bravery lasts, I thought.

  We hurried across the slick pavement—it must have rained recently and the water had frozen in a thin layer. My eyes darted toward the building looming threateningly in front of us.

&n
bsp; Whoever had built FEA headquarters must have been a fan of the Bauhaus architecture with its square forms; clear and simple without any flourishes. If I didn’t know better, I’d have sworn Major had commissioned it. But headquarters had been built in 1948—long before Major was born.

  When I’d first glimpsed headquarters after Major and Alec picked me up, I’d been disappointed. I’d expected an old manor with brick chimneys, ivy-covered walls and stone gargoyles on the ledges of the roof. Instead I’d gotten a run-of-the-mill office building. But once I’d seen the wide corridors that prevented me from losing my way and the picture windows in the rooms, I changed my mind. And it was better than anything I’d experienced before. This time, though, the inside of the building wouldn’t bring me comfort.

  I could already see Major standing behind the floor-to-ceiling window of his office, arms crossed, waiting for us, and he looked royally pissed.

  I sank down on the glossy, black hardwood chair across from Major’s desk, which was, as usual, spotless. The photos from the Livingston murder scenes were gone from the pin board on the wall and were replaced by a map of Arizona, which was marked up with red crosses. But the images were burned into my mind: the wire cutting into the neck, the bluish, bloated body of the floater, the lifeless eyes. I let the feel of Alec’s touch bring me back to reality.

  Alec hadn’t let go of my hand yet, though I’d tried to wriggle free. Our open act of togetherness would only increase Major’s fury. But from the stony look on his face, I guessed we’d reached its peak anyway. He hadn’t even said a word yet. He’d simply prompted us to enter his office with a curt nod. Now we were left staring at his broad back and stiff shoulders beneath his perfectly ironed uniform. His eyes were trained on the snow-crowned peaks of Mount Glacier National Park. But I didn’t think he was actually seeing it.

  I glanced at Alec. Maybe Major expected us to start talking, to explain ourselves and grovel for forgiveness?

  But Alec gave an almost imperceptible shake of his head. I stared down at my free hand that was tugging at the hem of my black blouse. I couldn’t wait to get out of my clothes. Somehow they smelled of death and misery, though I knew that wasn’t possible. But how could I ever wear them again without remembering Madison’s funeral?

  “The FEA is built on trust. And yet, you ignored my direct orders not to attend Madison’s funeral. But what’s worse: you abused your Variation to get your way and broke Tyler’s, Agent Summers’s and my trust by doing so.” Finally he turned, his face grave. “I’m very disappointed in you, Tessa.”

  Despite his words, I knew it had been the right decision to say a last goodbye to Madison and the Chambers family. Maybe now I could find peace and leave the guilt behind.

  I peeked at Alec but he was busy glaring at Major who in turn was only too happy to ignore his presence altogether. Major hadn’t even acknowledged our linked hands yet. But I knew he’d noticed.

  “How did you get Agent Summers’s clothes?” he asked all of a sudden. For a startled moment, Holly’s name hovered on the tip of my tongue and that had probably been Major’s intention: startling me into an honest reply. But if I knew how to do one thing, then it was lying. How else could you live among a loving family pretending to be their daughter without them ever being the wiser? I was the master of all liars and maybe that as much as my disobedience worried Major the most. He liked being in control of everyone and everything.

  “I borrowed them from her room and returned them after I’d given orders to Tyler.”

  Major’s glare seemed to pierce right through me but I didn’t flinch. If it was true what some people said that Major was a Dual Variant and his second, secret Variation was some kind of lie detector, I was screwed anyway—unless he needed eye-contact for his power, like Kate needed for her mind-reading Variation. I focused on the lapel of his uniform, to be safe.

  “Going by your standards, I should probably ask Kate to confirm your answers,” he said.

  I froze. How did he know that she’d been on my mind seconds before? Kate would find out the truth, or make up the worst possible version of it after I’d taken Alec away from her.

  “Sir—” Alec’s voice cut through the breathless silence Major’s words had created. But Major raised his hand to stop Alec from saying more. “I’m not considering it.”

  A strange look passed between him and Alec. I tuned back in to Major’s words.

  “I’m just saying that rule breaking leads to more rule breaking and some day, there’ll be anarchy. I’m trusting you to say the truth, but even if I knew you were lying, I wouldn’t break your privacy and trust by using Kate’s Variation against you just to make my life easier or to get my way. You, too, have the responsibility to honor the rules even if it means you’ll have to forget about your personal wishes. This is how a community works.”

  I didn’t know what to say. “I’m sorry, sir. It was just that I felt the need to see them one last time.”

  “Everyone finds a justification for their rule breaking and everyone thinks that their justification weighs so heavy that it makes their actions okay. Look at Ryan. From his standpoint, killing his victims was justified. But it isn’t. Sometimes we have to bow to the rules that others impose on us and trust that their judgment is better than our own.”

  Had Major just compared me to a serial killer? To a guy who’d strangled his victims with a wire or his fog Variation, and cut “A’s” into them like a proud artist?

  “The FEA is your primary responsibility. Nothing should get in the way of that,” Major said, and briefly his eyes leveled on Alec. “Remember what we’ve done for you.”

  How could I ever forget? I wasn’t sure where I’d be today if it wasn’t for the FEA—if I’d still be alive.

  A few moments of silence followed but I could tell Major wasn’t done with us yet.

  “I find it quite peculiar that Holly asked Agent Summers to give her additional Variation training exactly at the time you were posing as Agent Summers,” Major said.

  I stayed silent. I had a fantastic lie planned—that I’d suggested to Holly to take additional Variation classes to improve her Variation—which had been giving her trouble for ages—in order to get rid of her and Summers, and have time for my plan. But after what Major had said, I couldn’t do it.

  “We have reason to believe that Abel’s Army sent a scout to Madison’s funeral. Tessa noticed a man watching her,” Alec said, saving me from a reply.

  It was the first time Major took his eyes off me for more than a second and turned his full attention to Alec. But the reprieve was short-lived; after only a moment, he returned his gaze to me. “What makes you think it was Abel’s Army who was watching you?” His voice revealed a hint of worry.

  “I don’t know if the guy was there to watch me. Maybe he noticed me standing off to the side because I looked like I didn’t belong, and that made him curious. What worries me most is that he was wearing sunglasses, as though he was trying to hide his eyes, and he kept staring at me. It didn’t even cross my mind that he could be a Variant until Alec mentioned that you were worried about Abel’s Army because they’d been keeping an eye on Livingston and might have noticed me.”

  Major’s gaze sprang to Alec, annoyance crossing his face briefly before he switched it off. I bit my lip and squeezed Alec’s hand. I probably shouldn’t have told Major what Alec had told me; that they were worried about me because Abel’s Army could be after me now that they knew about my talent.

  Alec gave me a tiny smile. At least he wasn’t mad for my slip. “I thought Tessa needed to know about the danger she might be in. Every secret she’s not privy to might make it worse.”

  What the hell did that mean?

  One of Major’s hands curled to a fist. “We don’t know how much danger Tessa actually is, but I would have liked to have that talk with her myself. It’s not wise to spread speculations. Some things are kept a secret for a reason.”

  I got the impression that they were talking about mo
re than Abel’s Army’s interest in me.

  “Sir, do you think Abel’s Army sent a spy to Livingston to make sure Ryan proved worthy of their attention and that they noticed me?” I asked.

  “We can’t be sure. But it’s certainly worrying that someone at the funeral who saw reason to hide his eyes kept watching you. I think we need to be extra careful. You won’t leave headquarters without permission ever again, understood?”

  Ever again sounded a bit extreme but I didn’t want to start an argument. I nodded.

  “Now leave. I want to have a word with Alec alone,” Major said.

  I hesitated a moment before I released Alec’s hand and stood. I didn’t like the thought of them talking without me. Alec smiled reassuringly. I trudged toward the door and with a last glance at Alec and Major facing each other with stony expressions, I closed the door but stood with my palm against the cool wood for an instant. There was no denying it: Major was against my relationship with Alec.

  Slowly I walked to my room, through the ocher corridor, my legs too heavy to lift. The smell of detergent rose from the floor. Voices came from the common room at the end of the hall.

  When I opened the white door to our room, Holly was lying on her bed, reading a textbook about forensic theory. She peeked over the edge and dropped it before she rushed toward me and hugged me. I rested my forehead against her shoulder—where her skin was still smudged red from dying her pixie-cut styled hair fiery red.

  “I’m sorry I had to tell Alec about the funeral. He seemed so worried and it just slipped out,” she mumbled.

  How could I be mad at her for that? Without Alec, the funeral would have been too much for me. So many emotions had flooded me—emotions for Ronald and Linda Chambers, for Devon, my pretend twin while I’d been playing Madison. Emotions I shouldn’t have developed in the first place. Major had trained us from day one that we shouldn’t get emotionally involved during a mission and I’d failed in that regard. But no one would ever master the art of shutting off their emotions as well as Major did.