“Mist.” I smiled, holding her gaze. “The pleasure is mine.”
“Ms. Anderson is one of our newer operatives,” Mr. Roth continued, seemingly unaware, or uncaring, of the tension as we sized each other up. “She comes highly recommended by her trainer, and we believe her skills are adequate for this situation. She will be aiding you in the search for our wayward Ember.
“Ms. Anderson,” Mr. Roth continued. “Would you please introduce Mr. Hill to the rest of his team and then have someone show him his office? I would take him myself, but I have a meeting with your trainer in a few minutes. Mr. Hill…” He turned to me. “You say you have your sister’s best interests at heart? Now is your chance to prove it. Bring her back to Talon, where she belongs. We will be keeping an eye on your progress.”
I nodded politely, though I knew the meaning behind those words. We’ll be watching you was the translation of that statement. Don’t disappoint us.
I won’t, I promised silently, and turned away.
As I followed Mist out of Mr. Roth’s office, I nearly ran into someone coming in, and I stepped aside with a hasty apology. The person I’d almost hit barely gave me a second glance as she passed, but my stomach dropped as I met her familiar poison-green eyes. Lilith, Talon’s elite Viper assassin, gave a short nod, recognizing me as well, before continuing into Mr. Roth’s office and closing the door behind her.
Apprehension flickered. Why is Lilith here? I thought. Is she…? I glanced at Mist, walking beside me with her eyes straight ahead. Is she Mist’s trainer? Is that why she’s here?
Wary now, I followed Mist into the elevator, keeping her in my side view as she pressed a button, still not looking at me. The doors slid shut, and the box began to move.
“So.” Mist’s voice echoed in the tiny space, startling me. I’d been expecting her to stay quiet and distant, not speaking unless absolutely necessary. I’d been about to break the silence myself and was surprised that she’d beat me to it. “You’re Dante Hill.”
Her voice was a challenge. It seemed we were going to butt heads after all, unless I could win her over. I could’ve used my position to demand obedience; Roth had put me in charge, after all, but resentful employees did not produce fast results. If I was going to find Ember quickly, I needed her on my side.
Smiling, I leaned against the wall and put my hands in my pockets, adopting a pose of easy nonchalance. “I am,” I agreed pleasantly. “Though you seem surprised, Mist. Let me guess—you expected me to be taller.”
Mist’s expression remained neutral. “A Chameleon in training,” she remarked, raising a slender eyebrow, “using humor to defuse a tense situation. Classic disarming technique.”
I kept the smile on my face. “Did it work?”
She blinked, and the other corner of her mouth twitched. “No,” she replied, though her eyes said differently. “But thank you for trying. I am, unfortunately, well versed in the various faction trainings and techniques. Your Chameleon charm is not going to work on me, I’m afraid.”
“Give it time.”
The elevator had passed the first floor. And still, we continued to descend. Past the basement, and the subbasement, going even deeper underground. “Do you have something against Chameleons?” I went on, wondering how many sublevels this place had. The glowing numbers above the door had stopped moving altogether.
“Not at all,” Mist replied. “Chameleons are a vital part of Talon. We all have our place.” Her piercing blue eyes remained brutally honest as she looked me over, assessing. “What I don’t like is having vital information kept from me, especially if I need it to do my job.”
I gave her a puzzled frown. “You think I’m hiding something from you? That’s a rather hasty conclusion. We haven’t known each other very long.”
“It’s not you, Mr. Hill.” Mist’s tone remained coolly polite. “But you must know that this situation with your sister is not normal. Why is Talon so interested in her? Cobalt I can
understand—he’s a dangerous fugitive who has caused real harm to the organization, and his actions cannot be ignored any longer. The rogue must be stopped, that is very clear.” Her piercing blue gaze sharpened, cutting into me. “But why is Talon so invested in bringing her back? Why go through all this trouble? Ember Hill is a hatchling who has done nothing for the organization.” Mist’s eyes narrowed even further. “Why is she so special?”
Her words were eerily familiar, as I heard my own suspicions parroted back at me. The situation with Ember wasn’t normal. Talon was expending considerable resources to return her to the organization when they could have sent out a Viper and been done with it. Even bringing me on was puzzling. Yes, I was her brother and the person who knew her best, but why bother? What made her—our—situation so special?
However, I wasn’t going to tell Mist that I shared her concerns. If I was going to bring Ember back, if I was going to make a future for us in Talon, then I had to appear fully in control of the situation at all times. I could not appear weak, or scared, or unsure, because Talon had no use for dragons who failed. I was not going to fail.
“I’m afraid I can’t give you the details,” I told Mist, who gave me a cold look but didn’t seem surprised. Talon shared information only if they thought it was necessary; that much at least she understood. “I would,” I went on, “if I were allowed. Just know that finding Ember is our top priority. The Elder Wyrm wishes that she be returned to the organization. The reasons are irrelevant.”
The elevator stopped, and the doors slid open. Mist watched me a moment longer, blue eyes appraising, then gave a tiny nod. “Of course,” she said, coolly professional once more, and motioned me into the hall. “This way, Mr. Hill. I’ll introduce you to the rest of the team.”
“Just call me Dante,” I invited, a tactic to gain her loyalty, and followed her down a long, brightly lit corridor past several offices, until we came to a door at the very end. Without hesitation, Mist pushed it back, and we went through.
I gazed around, impressed. The room beyond was enormous, a sprawling floor of desks, computers, flashing screens, and people. Aisles of long counters snaked their way across the room, each holding numerous computers with glassy-eyed humans sitting in front of them. The entire back wall was one enormous screen divided into numerous parts that projected a dozen images of maps, satellite feeds, security cams and more. The murmur of voices, ringing phones, buzzing computers and clicking keyboards all blended into a general cacophony of noise that flowed over me as I stepped through the door.
“This is our operating center,” Mist explained, leading me across the floor. All around us, humans hurried by or typed feverishly at their desks, avoiding eye contact. Mist continued as if she didn’t notice or care. “Talon has dozens of these centers all around the world. It’s where we monitor Talon’s assets, keep an eye on St. George movement and track persons of interest to the organization. We’re mostly in charge of the western region of the US, which is where we think your sister is right now.”
She stopped at a desk where two humans sat across from each other, a pair of large screens separating them. When Mist’s shadow fell over the desk, the overweight male and small bespectacled female looked up and gave her polite, fixed smiles, which she ignored.
“Mr. Davids and Ms. Kimura have been tasked with locating your sister,” Mist told me, not even looking at the two humans. “They’ve been trying to pinpoint her location ever since she left Crescent Beach. Unfortunately, they’ve been unable to find any trace of her, or Cobalt,