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I hand him the wrapped gift, smiling. “Happy birthday.”
He leans into me, pressing a soft kiss to my lips. And it’s wonderful. I love his kisses.
His messy light brown hair curls behind his ears; his hazel eyes crinkle in the corners as he smiles, his straight white teeth gleaming. “You didn’t need to get me anything, Cat.”
My sixteen-year-old self flushes. “Twenty-one is a milestone. It’s an important birthday. Of course you need a gift.”
His face turns angry, and then sad. He brings his forehead down on mine gently and whispers, “I don’t deserve you.”
My eyes close in contented bliss. I whisper back, “I love you, James.”
I come back to reality with a start. A sharp, “What?” flies out of my mouth.
Bob and Frankie both blink at me.
Bob utters quietly, “I’m sorry, girl. I shouldn’t have brought him up. It’s been a long time.”
I nod in agreement. It has been a long time.
He clears his throat, and then smiles. “So, what brought you down here quicker than a demon bat flying out of hell?”
I almost forgot. A small smile plays at my lips.
Screw James. This is my chance to prove myself.
I swallow hard. I’m not entirely sure how this will go down. “I-uh...I need access to Mirage.”
Silence.
More silence.
I chance a look at Bob, who watches me curiously through narrowed eyes. He asks carefully, “Why do you need access to Mirage?”
Standing straighter than a wooden plank, I put forward my best game-face and a
Frankie’s mouth gapes. Behind her eyes, I see her brain working a mile a minute. Finally, she whispers in awe, “This is a big deal.”
I agree. It really is.
Bob stares at me, into me. “You ready for this?”
I respond immediately, “Yes, sir.”
He swipes a hand down his face, looking anxious. “If this is about what happened yesterday in our session—”
I cut him off with a firm, “I’m ready, Bob. Really. I’m ready.”
Frankie pulls me tighter into her body. A silent show of support.
The look on Bob’s face worries me. He’s having a hard time believing me. He looks to be mentally arguing with himself.
Frankie offers, “Bob, if you’re worried, I can go too.”
I roll my eyes, shrugging out of her hold. “I don’t need a damn babysitter, Frankie.”
She raises her hands in surrender and immediately backtracks. “I didn’t mean it that way.”
My glare trains on her. “How did you mean it then?”
Bob stops our almost argument with, “Okay. You can go.”
We both turn to look at him in disbelief.
Watching him a while, I ask quietly, “Really?”
He nods once. “Yes. I trust your judgement. If you tell me you’re ready, I believe you.”
I tell him, “I am. I can do this.”
He breathes in and replies on an exhale, sounding suddenly tired, “I know you can.”
Right then, I vow that Bob won’t have any reason to feel anxious about my working at Mirage.
I can do this.
I can.
Chapter Four
“The key is to not think about them as people,” informs Bob. “You should think about them as pests that need to be exterminated.”
I nod vacantly while making mental notes.
Pests. Not people. Check.
This is really happening. I feel dazed and overwhelmed with the information being drilled into me in such a short amount of time.
Frankie walks with us. She adds, “The thing that’s hard to get past is that they look like regular people. And they may be people, but they aren’t good people, Cat. They’re scum, and they need to be stopped, whatever the crime. They wouldn’t be in our system if they were law abiding citizens. You got that?”
“Yeah. Okay.”
A mixture of excitement and fear causes adrenaline to violently course through my body. So much, it threatens to make me sick. I close my eyes and control my breathing, forcing myself to keep calm.
To tell you the truth, there is nothing about tonight that scares me—apart from the fact everyone expects me to fail.
That scares the crap out of me.
I give myself an internal pep talk.
James was a mistake. Never again. You can do this. You’ve been training for this since you were five years old. This is your second nature—your calling in life.
And most importantly...
This is God’s will.
I have had that fact drilled into me for forever. I have to believe that this is God’s will. If not, I am just a criminal, no better than the people I am to hunt.
Bob leads us through the kitchen, out the backdoor, and past my garden. We walk until we reach the barn that sits at the very back of the property. It’s an absolute eyesore. It almost ruins the elegance of the rest of the property, but that eyesore is there for good reason.
The big barn doors look old; it’s paint is peeling and faded. Bob avoids them, instead, moving to the side of the building to a steel-reinforced door with a keypad on the side. He keys in a six-digit number. “If you do well tonight, you’ll get your own code.”
Frankie smiles at me, and it calms my soul.
At least she believes in me.
The steel door whirs and vibrates a moment before we hear the latch click over. Bob pushes it in and we follow him inside. A spotlight comes on, bathing us in bright light.
Four vehicles sit covered by gun-metal grey covers, taking up most of the space in the barn. Bob moves silently between the cars towards the very back wall of the barn, where another steel door awaits. And my heart skips a beat. Or two.
This is it.
I’ve entered the nerve centre of Mirage only once before. That was two years ago. I was sixteen then, and Bob thought I was ready for my first job. At the time, I thought I was too.
We were both wrong.
Bob stands by the keypad. Without looking back, he asks, “You sure about this, Cat?”
I wish people would stop asking me.
Every time I’m asked this question, a small piece of my self-confidence bails on me. I grit my teeth, holding back the snide remark that sits at the very tip of my tongue, and I respond instead, “Sure as sugar, Bob. Do it. Let me in.”
He keys in his code; the door whizzes and purrs, clicks over, and then I wait.
Bob pushes open the door, steps back and offers a genuine smile, all for me. “Welcome back, Night Fury.” With a jerk of his chin in Frankie’s direction, he adds, “Moon Shadow will take you through. I have some things I need to do.”
“Thanks, Boss.”
He looks at me a moment before pulling me into a bear hug. “Just do your best.”
And then he’s gone.
Frankie—codename: Moon Shadow—takes my hand and pulls me along behind her. The steel door shuts behind us and she says, “You know he doesn’t actually have anything to do, right? He’s just scared shitless of his little girl growing up.”
I know this should make me roll my eyes, but I smile instead. “Well, he’s the closest thing I have to a dad. I guess it would be hard for him.”
She scoffs, “He’s been training you for over a decade, Cat. He needs to put a lock on those emotions. They don’t do anyone any good.”
Of course, she’s right, but it’s nice to have someone care about you that much.
I trail her down the long, dimly lit hall, the sounds of our footsteps echoing through the narrow space.
I’m walking towards my destiny.
How poetic.
We reach the end of the hall. Frankie clicks in her keypad code. More humming and buzzing, the steel door clicks opens and finally—finally—I’m home.I take the first step towards the rest of my life, and I do it wearing a shit-eating grin.
This is exciting.
I’m excited.
My life will be thrown one-hundred-and-eighty degrees. From boring to extraordinary.