letting you know you’re the patsy. True, they probably figured you’d freak out and hit the bricks, but still . . . that’s no way to run an operation. Ours is going to be a lot better. We’re going to uncover this mole, find out who he works for, and take the whole thing down. Are you with me?”
Erica held out her hand. I glanced at it warily.
It was obvious that my plan to leave for home in the morning was no longer valid. There were agents for an unknown enemy organization looking for me; and if they were willing to infiltrate a well-guarded, top secret campus to get me, our neighborhood patrol probably wasn’t going to keep me safe. I’d be better off at spy school than anywhere else.
However, that belief had little to do with the administration—which had screwed up pretty much everything they’d touched—and a lot to do with Erica. And though Erica seemed to have some qualms about her father being involved, I didn’t. In fact, I was happy to have Alexander Hale on the case.
But agreeing to a covert investigation was another thing entirely. It was reckless, dangerous, insubordinate—anddaunting, given that I hadn’t taken a single espionage class yet.
On the other hand, it’d give me an excuse to spend time with Erica. Most likely, the only excuse I’d ever have. If I turned her down, she’d probably never deign to speak to me again.
And yet there was something else that motivated me even more than my schoolboy crush: the chance to prove myself.
The academy had only recruited me as bait, for my math and my proximity. They didn’t think I had what it took to be a spy, and thus, chances were that, once the mole hunt was over, they’d find a way to jettison me. However, if I helped find the mole, that’d prove I was CIA material. They couldn’t get rid of me then.
Plus, even though it was dangerous, it seemed less dangerous than waiting around for the administration to take care of things.
In the end, however, it was really the getting-to-hang-out-with-Erica thing that made up my mind.
I shook her hand. It was soft and warm.
“What do we do next?” I asked.
DISSEMINATION
Hammond Quadrangle
January 17
0850 hours
“Hey, Ben,” Mike said. “How’s your lame science school?”
I should have ignored the phone call. It was 8:50 a.m. and I was trying to figure out how to get to my first class. But after all that had happened, I was desperate to hear a friendly voice.
“It’s not lame,” I countered. “In fact, it’s been pretty exciting.”
“Sure it has. What’d you do last night? Homework?”
“Not exactly.”
“Want to know what I did? Hung out with Elizabeth Pasternak.”
My step faltered in surprise. “You did not!”
“I did so.”
“When?”
“After my older brother’s hockey game. Her brother’s on his team. Our families all went out for ice cream afterward. We sat right next to each other. She even let me share her sundae.”
“Oh.” I squinted at my campus map as it flapped in the wind. It was bitterly cold. Two inches of fresh snow had already turned to slush on the campus walkways.
“And get this,” Mike went on. “Her parents are letting her have some friends over tomorrow night. Guess who’s invited?”
“No way.”
“No need to sound so down. She said I could bring a friend. Maybe my brother could bring me by and we could spring you.”
“I don’t think that’ll work,” I sighed. I’d been expecting Mike to tell me about a boring night in front of the TV, something that would make my new life sound infinitely cooler. Instead, I was missing out on the social opportunity of a lifetime.
“Are you crazy? You’re gonna pass on a Pasternak party?”
“It’s not like she’d talk to us anyhow.”
“Of course she would! And all her friends are gonna be there: Chloe Carter, Ashley Dinero, Frances Davidson. . . . You can’t pass on something like this! Do they even have girls at science school?”
“There’s lots of girls
Erica held out her hand. I glanced at it warily.
It was obvious that my plan to leave for home in the morning was no longer valid. There were agents for an unknown enemy organization looking for me; and if they were willing to infiltrate a well-guarded, top secret campus to get me, our neighborhood patrol probably wasn’t going to keep me safe. I’d be better off at spy school than anywhere else.
However, that belief had little to do with the administration—which had screwed up pretty much everything they’d touched—and a lot to do with Erica. And though Erica seemed to have some qualms about her father being involved, I didn’t. In fact, I was happy to have Alexander Hale on the case.
But agreeing to a covert investigation was another thing entirely. It was reckless, dangerous, insubordinate—anddaunting, given that I hadn’t taken a single espionage class yet.
On the other hand, it’d give me an excuse to spend time with Erica. Most likely, the only excuse I’d ever have. If I turned her down, she’d probably never deign to speak to me again.
And yet there was something else that motivated me even more than my schoolboy crush: the chance to prove myself.
The academy had only recruited me as bait, for my math and my proximity. They didn’t think I had what it took to be a spy, and thus, chances were that, once the mole hunt was over, they’d find a way to jettison me. However, if I helped find the mole, that’d prove I was CIA material. They couldn’t get rid of me then.
Plus, even though it was dangerous, it seemed less dangerous than waiting around for the administration to take care of things.
In the end, however, it was really the getting-to-hang-out-with-Erica thing that made up my mind.
I shook her hand. It was soft and warm.
“What do we do next?” I asked.
DISSEMINATION
Hammond Quadrangle
January 17
0850 hours
“Hey, Ben,” Mike said. “How’s your lame science school?”
I should have ignored the phone call. It was 8:50 a.m. and I was trying to figure out how to get to my first class. But after all that had happened, I was desperate to hear a friendly voice.
“It’s not lame,” I countered. “In fact, it’s been pretty exciting.”
“Sure it has. What’d you do last night? Homework?”
“Not exactly.”
“Want to know what I did? Hung out with Elizabeth Pasternak.”
My step faltered in surprise. “You did not!”
“I did so.”
“When?”
“After my older brother’s hockey game. Her brother’s on his team. Our families all went out for ice cream afterward. We sat right next to each other. She even let me share her sundae.”
“Oh.” I squinted at my campus map as it flapped in the wind. It was bitterly cold. Two inches of fresh snow had already turned to slush on the campus walkways.
“And get this,” Mike went on. “Her parents are letting her have some friends over tomorrow night. Guess who’s invited?”
“No way.”
“No need to sound so down. She said I could bring a friend. Maybe my brother could bring me by and we could spring you.”
“I don’t think that’ll work,” I sighed. I’d been expecting Mike to tell me about a boring night in front of the TV, something that would make my new life sound infinitely cooler. Instead, I was missing out on the social opportunity of a lifetime.
“Are you crazy? You’re gonna pass on a Pasternak party?”
“It’s not like she’d talk to us anyhow.”
“Of course she would! And all her friends are gonna be there: Chloe Carter, Ashley Dinero, Frances Davidson. . . . You can’t pass on something like this! Do they even have girls at science school?”
“There’s lots of girls
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