I spent the next ninety minutes grading Annalise’s latest homework assignment while she rambled about verb conjugation in Spanish. Then I endured an hour and a half where Cadence alternated between ignoring my presence and barking orders at me. Since Ernest was still unaware of who he was, I returned to the Crypto Bank to spend the lunch hour with Penny and Gemma. After lunch, I joined Thad at the front of his classroom and observed the students taking a pop quiz.

  “So, exactly how did you end up as an assistant Instructor?” Thad whispered, giving me the opening that I needed for a more in-depth exploration of his mind.

  “I failed my solo mission for the Hunters,” I admitted, staring at my tightly clasped hands in my lap.

  “Really? I saw you in the demonstrations the other day, and you seemed to know what you were doing.”

  “Yeah, but being in the field is so different. I was sloppy, and it got me captured.” I glanced up to gauge his reaction. The fact that I’d failed my qualifying assignment was common knowledge, but being captured wasn’t.

  “A Hunter’s worst fear.” He nodded knowingly and gave an involuntary shudder.

  “Were you ever captured?” I asked, diving into his thoughts. Images of close calls and near misses floated through his mind.

  “Thank goodness, no.” He sighed. He was telling the truth. “There were a couple of times that I thought for sure my team wouldn’t make it out, but we were never taken.”

  “Mr. Wietz, I’m finished,” a curly-haired boy proclaimed, setting his quiz paper in front of Thad.

  “Great, Justin. You’re excused for the day,” Thad responded.

  After that, students began to stream to Thad’s desk to turn in their quizzes. My chance to engage him in any more reminiscing was gone, but it didn’t matter. It wasn’t necessary; Thad wasn’t our spy. I decided to ask Mac to let me out of my obligation to assist in the history class.

  As usual, Griffin’s class was the highlight of my day. I loved watching his students improve from one day to the next. After their initial hesitancy about my abilities, many of them had come to regard me with a certain amount of reverence, especially after watching me in the Hunters’ demonstrations. The students were actually interested in my help, and they took my advice to heart.

  I was in a good mood when I arrived at Ursula’s class, but unfortunately it didn’t last long.

  “I hear you offered to train Kenly Baker.” Ursula smirked as we stood side by side, watching the students attempt to throw one another across the mats using their minds.

  “Yup,” I confirmed.

  “She’s a lost cause, Talia,” Ursula insisted, placing her hands on her ample hips.

  “Eh, I wouldn’t count her out just yet. She just needs more training.” Even as I was singing Kenly’s praises, she failed to make her partner so much as stumble when she concentrated her energy on the girl. Ursula gave me an “I told you so” glance. I just shrugged, trying to appear unfazed by her poor showing.

  “You aren’t focusing, Baker,” she shouted at Kenly, causing the girl’s face to flush and her feet to became entangled in each other.

  “It’s okay, Kenly,” I called reassuringly. “Just concentrate and envision your ultimate goal.”

  Ursula laughed. “Good luck with that one.”

  The way that Ursula mocked Kenly angered me. I knew that I shouldn’t, but I couldn’t stop myself from sending her partner flying through the air on Kenly’s next attempt.

  “Nice!” I yelled to Kenly, who looked shocked as her partner lay on the mats gasping for breath.

  Ursula looked irritated that Kenly had proven her wrong, and she decided to take her frustration out on me.

  “So, how do you know Erik?” she asked, a devilish grin on her pouty lips.

  “From the Hunters,” I said slowly, turning my attention to her. “How do you know Erik?”

  “Mutual friends. We all go way back,” she replied evasively.

  “Like who?” I pressed, hoping she would dispel my fear that she knew him on an intimate level.

  Ursula sized me up, the gleam in her eyes giving away how much she enjoyed making me squirm. “Erik . . . dated my best friend for years,” she finally answered.

  “When?” I hissed through tightly clenched teeth, hating myself for playing right into her trap.

  “Oh, it was ages ago, before he got hung up on some chick that he met last year and stopped being fun,” she rolled her eyes skyward. “You might as well give up any fantasy of catching that boy. It’s as much a lost cause as you making Baker a Hunter.”

  “Who said that I wanted to ‘catch’ him?” I demanded.

  Ursula gave me a sympathetic look, like I was a child and she was about to tell me that unicorns weren’t real.

  “I saw the way that you look at him. You’ve got it bad. I’m telling you, he’s not exactly a one-girl kind of guy. After the way he’s been acting since that chick broke his heart, you don’t stand a chance.”

  Broke his heart? Had I broken his heart? He was the one who’d stormed out of my room! He was the one who hadn’t called. Well, okay, maybe neither of us had called; but where was he when I needed him? Where was he while I was learning to walk again? Sure, he claimed that he’d missed me and the kiss in the hangar made it feel as if nothing had changed between us, but still.

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  “Don’t look so depressed, Talia,” Ursula continued. “The way I hear it, you’ve got the Director’s son wrapped around your little finger.” She held up her pinkie for emphasis.

  “It’s not like that,” I insisted.

  Ursula didn’t look convinced. “If that’s the case, turn him loose so that the rest of us can have a shot. He’s the only good-looking guy with all of his hair at this school, unless you count the students.” Ursula shrugged, surveying her class of teenagers like she was selecting her next meal. I gaped at her, shocked and disgusted. The oldest students at the School were two years younger than I was, and like six years younger than Ursula.

  “Alright, class dismissed. Good job today, guys,” she yelled, cupping her hands around her mouth to amplify her voice.

  I turned and left without another word, feeling slightly dirty after watching her ogle her male students. It was unlikely that Ursula Bane was a traitor, but she was most certainly a cradle robber.

  I caught up with Kenly, and we walked together to the indoor arena for our first nightly training session. After her less-than-stellar performance in Ursula’s class, I decided to start with the basics.

  Since Kenly’s Higher Reasoning Talent was more developed than her Telekinesis, she hadn’t taken advanced combat and weapons training. I’d hoped that Kenly’s poor performance during the Career Fair was nerves. Unfortunately, the more that I watched her, the less optimistic I was; Kenly wasn’t a particularly good fighter.

  We worked on basic maneuvers into the night, but she never once complained. Every time that she fell, she got right back up. She took every correction that I made to heart, and tried to implement them immediately—emphasis on tried. By the end of the evening she’d made no discernible improvement, yet I still left the Arena feeling confident in my decision.

  “It takes time,” I assured her as we crossed the campus grounds.

  Kenly pulled absently at a loose thread on the hem of her workout tee. “I know, but it feels like all the practice in the world couldn’t prepare me for my exams,” she replied.

  “You’ll be ready,” I promised, willing her doubts away.

  “I’ll see you tomorrow, Ms. Ly—I mean, Talia,” she said, turning to veer right on the path leading to her dorm.

  “’Night, Kenly,” I called after her.

  When I returned to my room, I had several comms waiting for me. One was from Erik, one from Donavon, and one from Mac. Mac wanted to know how my training session with Kenly had gone. I wasn’t eager to inform him that she was even worse than he’d originally thought, so I decided against calling him back. Donavon wanted to know if he could come over; I knew that was a bad idea, so I didn’t respond to him either. Erik’s message reminded me of something that I’d forgotten about: Festivis Day.

  I hit the reply button immediately, and Erik answered on the second ring.

  “Hey,” his voice filled my room.

  “Hey ...how are you?”

  “Better now that you decided to call me back,” he teased. I heard the bedsprings squeak and I imagined him flopping carelessly on to his bed, hopefully shirtless.

  “Sorry, I’ve been busy,” I said lamely.

  “Yeah, I kinda figured. So ...how about meeting me in the city for Festivis?” Erik asked tentatively.

  “I have to ask Mac. I’m not really clear on whether I’m allowed to leave campus,” I said apologetically. I wanted to go - I wanted to see him. Hearing his voice wasn’t enough; I needed to touch him.

  “Why don’t you suggest that you deserve some time off?” he said, emphasizing “suggest.” I caught his meaning; he wanted me to manipulate Mac into letting me go. A thrill ran through me; I wasn’t the only one missing the physical closeness.

  “I’ll ask,” I promised, not bothering to hide the smile creeping into my voice.

  “Good. Call me as soon as you know?”

  “I’ll talk to him tomorrow,” I swore.

  There was a long pause, neither of us speaking. Erik’s breathing became heavier, and my thoughts of him half-naked in his bed ran wild.

  “I miss you, Tals,” he finally whispered.

  “I miss you, too,” I breathed, getting a little choked up. I swallowed over the lump forming in my throat. “I’ll talk to you soon.” I disconnected before Erik could realize how emotional I was.

  I considered calling Mac right then, but I wasn’t sure if he was on campus. If I was going to “suggest” that he let me go to the city for Festivis, I needed to see him in person. Resolving to hunt Mac down the following day, I crawled into bed feeling a little happier. I wasn’t sure that I’d be able to convince Mac, but the prospect of seeing Erik again so soon was too enticing to not at least try.

  ***

  “So, what would it take for you to help me with Kenly?” I asked Donavon the next morning over runny scrambled eggs and burnt bacon in the cafeteria.

  “Wow, admitting that you can’t do this already? She must be really awful,” he teased.

  “No, no, I’m not admitting anything. I’m just asking for a little help. After all, you’re a teacher, aren’t you? Maybe you could just give me some ideas.”

  “Tal, you’ve been training to be a Hunter for years. Why don’t you just do the same things that we were taught?” he asked, shoveling a huge spoonful of egg in his mouth.

  “Right, and Kenly doesn’t have years. I’m looking for more of a crash course in becoming a Hunter.”

  “Exactly. That’s why this is a lost cause—there’s no such thing as a ‘crash course’ in becoming a Hunter.” He grinned and bit into a heavily buttered piece of cranberry bread. I rolled my eyes.

  “Donavon, look at me,” I demanded. “I really need your help.”

  “Don’t you dare use your manipulation on me, Tal,” he warned.

  “Pretty please,” I begged, switching tactics.

  “You’re pathetic,” he declared. “But I’ll make you a deal. Tell me why you didn’t return my message last night, and I’ll help you.”

  “I told you. I didn’t see your comm before I went to bed.” The lie came easily to my lips. Part of me had really wanted to see him, but another part of me felt guilty about doing so after I’d promised Erik that I would try to meet him in D.C. If I’d agreed to let Donavon come over, I would have only been using him for the comfort that he provided. That wasn’t fair to either of us, or to Erik. I wasn’t ready to distance myself completely from Donavon, evidenced by the fact we were currently having breakfast together, but I knew that I needed to put a stop to any alone time.

  “You’re lying,” Donavon accused.

  “How dare you make such an accusation!” I feigned outrage.

  “Talia, I know you better than you know yourself. I know that you’re lying.”

  “You’re right,” I admitted, hoping that honesty would win me some brownie points. “Look, Donavon. I just need some time to think. I’m really confused right now.”

  “About us?” he asked.

  “Well, yeah—us, the spy, my health, everything,” I rambled. I knew that I didn’t want to get back together with Donavon, but I also wasn’t ready to lose him completely. If I told him about Erik, that we’d kissed and I’d nearly fainted, it would be the end of our friendship. Now who was the one lying and omitting important details, I thought.

  He put down his fork, reached across the table, and took my hand. “Take all the time you need, Tal. If you want help with Kenly, then I will help you. And if you don’t want me to come over at night, I understand.”

  “Thanks,” I whispered. “I just need some time to think.”

  By the end of the school day, I was in a horrendous mood. My extra time in the Crypto Bank wasn’t yielding any results, I wasn’t getting anywhere with my remaining suspects, and I hadn’t managed to locate Mac. I felt dejected and hopeless. If we didn’t find the spy, would I ever get better? The Instructors that Mac assigned me to had raised red flags initially, but they couldn’t be the only ones. I understood that they were just a starting point since they were here, but was Mac planning to send me undercover everywhere that he found a suspect? That would take years. I didn’t have that much time; Ian Crane was still out there, killing innocent people…or was he? You have no idea what your Agency does to innocent people.

  At the very least, I needed to talk to Crane again. I needed for him to answer my questions, and I needed to know why he’d sent his men to kill my parents. I needed to know what he meant by those words, the ones that played in my mind like a mantra—You have no idea what your Agency does to innocent people.