Read Online Alien vs. Alien by Gini Koch - Free Book Online

muttered under my breath. But despite my desire to flip Sandra the bird, I left everything in my purse and sat in the chair.
    Sandra seemed about to say more when the door at the other end of the room, near the teacher’s desk, opened. An older man with wire-rimmed glasses, sandy hair, and a well-kept,
    “I’m looking for Susan,” he said. “She’s supposed to be helping me administer the HSAC.”
    “She went home sick,” Sandra said. “I’m covering.”
    “Then why are you in here?” He seemed to notice me for the first time as he stepped fully into the room. He wasn’t too much taller than me, and though he was dressed all in white, just like Sandra, his slacks and mock turtleneck fit him properly. He smiled warmly at me. “Ah, there’s my missing student. I’m John. I’d say welcome to your HSAC test, but you’re in the wrong room.”
    “Sandra said I was supposed to be tested alone, but I’d much rather be with the rest of my diplomatic mission.”
    John gave Sandra a confused look. “I didn’t get any instructions like that. I have six students listed on my roster. I can’t start the test without Missus Martini.” He looked at me. “You
are
Katherine Katt-Martini, right?”
    “Indeed!” I wasn’t going to let this opportunity pass. I got up and got my purse. It was close to impossible to get it out of the basket, but by using some of my hyperstrength I was able to do it. Then I trotted over to John. “Let’s join the others.”
    “Suit yourselves,” Sandra said quietly.
    We left my Solitary Confinement Classroom and went to another room. It was set up similarly to how the room we’d just left was, only this had plenty of desks and also had the others to be tested in it. Buchanan looked relieved to see me, but he wiped that expression off quickly.
    “You need to have at least one desk between you and anyone else,” John told me. I picked a spot in the middle between Amy and Len, which was in front of White. Kyle and Buchanan were both nearer to the back of the room.
    There was a stool for Sandra in this room, too, and she perched on it. “I was sent additional questions,” she told John.
    He stared at her. “Why? And why were they sent to you? I’m the administrator of this test in this facility.”
    She shrugged. “Maybe they couldn’t reach you.”
    “You can ask your questions at the end,” he said firmly. “These folks have been delayed long enough.”
    Sandra sighed and pulled out a packet from her jacket. I had no idea how she’d hidden it in there. “Official orders.”
    John took the packet and examined it. “Sealed.” He shrugged. “Looks right, so fine. Now then,” he turned to us, “please put all your personal items, including any electronics, in the basket under your seats and we’ll get started.”
    Amy’s purse was already in her basket. I reluctantly put mine away again. Happily, this desk’s basket seemed normal and not like it was trying to take my purse captive and never let it go again.
    John handed out a folder and mechanical pencils to each of us. The folders had our names on them. “This is not a timed test,” he shared as he went back to the teacher’s desk. “So there’s no pressure. Just choose what you believe is the best answer for each question, and when you’re done, turn re bacyour test over and raise your hand. Obviously, no talking amongst yourselves.”
    He sat and watched us while we got going. My mother had trained me to always read the test through fully before answering, especially if there was no time limit given, so I followed Mom’s teaching and did so.
    At least, I read the first few pages. Then I surreptitiously checked out what Amy and Len were working on. Their pages seemed normally thick. Not my set. It was like I was holding the Fall Fashion issue of
GQ
in my hands—my special test had a
lot
of pages. Sadly, most of them were not ads featuring handsome men in great clothes. All of them were filled with questions I