When they were outside, they utilized satellites to triangulate their position, which was easy enough since they could hack into just about any computer system. Indoors could be a bit tricky because so many factors interfered with getting a clear signal. So in their infinite wisdom, Nemeanians had their homes equipped with teleporter devices that boosted the signal and allowed them to move around the planet freely.
Kat’s teleporter and equipment was located in a hidden area, whereas her comrades’ were typically stored in a spare room. But Kat’s unique living arrangement required her to live a completely different lifestyle from her Nemeanian counterparts.
Hybrids lived with their Hybrid parents, but when Kat’s alien Hybrid father died when she was a child, her mother was ordered to marry a human. It was an unprecedented arrangement for their kind. Hence the fake shoe rack in her closet. And since Vanessa loathed sneakers, they never worried about her accidentally stumbling upon it.
“They had mentioned this in our last meeting,” Julianne flipped through a couple of pages. “Have they come up with some definitive proof to warrant the girl’s termination?”
“Yes, ma’am. They have a few humans on the payroll, so one befriended Elizabeth and confirmed that she was romantically involved with her boyfriend, Philip.” Lauren said.
“Was that not part of her mission?” Kat asked.
“Nope, she never had a reason to interact with humans. But they became involved because he approached her on several occasions. It was something she said she couldn’t help because of his persistence.”
“Where did she meet him?” Kat laced her boots.
“Says here that he was in several of her classes at NYU,” her mother read through the packet. “But that was over a year ago now. Why haven’t they sent in her lifemate? That could have eliminated the need to date the boy.”
“They did.” Lauren answered. “She was apparently cheating on him with this human. That’s crazy, right?”
“Yeah, totally nuts,” Kat stepped into her closet and wiped her sweaty palms on her clothes before tossing them into the hamper. “Did anyone ever find out what motivated her to behave so out of character?”
“No,” Lauren shook her hand. “But the pics at the end of the packet speak volumes. So the Elders ordered her termination.”
“Yeah, absolutely,” Kat looked out the window. “Who needs an agent that actually likes being around humans?”
“I totally agree, so let’s get going so I can set up shop,” Lauren waved and headed toward the closet. “Blessed be, Mrs. Bloomfield.”
“Blessed be, Lauren.” Her mother said stepping closer to Kat.
“Was there something you needed, Mother?” Kat asked after switching off her earpiece. She was sure her mother didn’t want their conversation broadcast to everyone currently sharing her frequency.
“I wanted to discuss this mission with you. I hadn’t realized that your team would be selected for the termination. After my meeting with Council I’ve been trying to find a private moment—”
“Yeah, it’s always so busy around here lately, with the campaign and all.” Her stepfather was running for district judge, a complication Kat didn’t need. “What’s up?” Kat gathered the three packets.
“We have been ordered to halt all interactions with humans. With the exception of Brian and Vanessa that is, which means you won’t be able to stay with Roger after prom.”
“Of course, Mother...I wouldn’t want to jeopardize our ultimate mission for the sake of a couple of humans.”
“It is a dilemma, though.” Julianne lifted a picture of Kat and Roger and studied it. “You go. I’ll meet with Elder Jay and discuss our options.”
“Yes, ma’am. Blessed be.”
“Blessed be, Daughter.”
Kat walked into her closet then hit the button that shut the door and simultaneously turned on the light. She took several deep breaths then banged her head against the wall. After a moment, she dropped the packets into the paper eliminator, then stood center of the teleporter. She entered the coordinates and materialized in New York.
“What took you so long?” Lauren asked after muting her microphone. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah—” Lauren stepped back suddenly, which caused Kat to raise an eyebrow and continue cryptically. “Mother wanted to discuss mission details.”
“I see.” Lauren motioned to her ear just before Ariel teleported into the room. Kat turned her earpiece back on. “Testing,” Lauren said after taking her mic off of mute.
“I hear you loud and clear,” Kat sighed.
When Lauren connected the last of the equipment, the other teams came online and tested their equipment to ensure that Lauren could communicate and monitor everyone. Kat listened to the other teams over her earpiece while she assembled her M40, a Marine Corps sniper rifle that was one of Kat’s favorite weapons. She pulled the bipod legs down, attached the silencer, then set it by the window.
Kat read over the brief then peered through the curtain to get a better sense of her target. She walked to each window and did the same until she returned to her weapon. She opened the window and anchored the curtains in place.
“Are you all set?” Lauren asked her.
“Yeah,” Kat got into the prone position and listened to one of the other teams over her earpiece. For this mission, there were two teams in place. One team would be terminating Elizabeth’s boyfriend, while the other team handled Elizabeth’s termination. Kat was part of the second team, she was a sniper, and had been selected to ensure Elizabeth was no longer a threat.
She listened while the first team entered Washington Square Park and approached Philip. The agents were pretending to mug him, which somehow made it worse. The loss of an innocent life under false pretenses was just plain wrong. They could have at least had the decency to tell him why he was really being murdered.
She closed her eyes as she listened to the dialogue over her earpiece. She flinched when she heard the tale-tell sound of the pistol’s silencer muffling the bullet that killed him.
“Team Alpha, target down,” David said.
“Alpha two, moving in,” another guy said.
“Team Bravo,” Lauren said. “Move into position. Bravo two, get rolling.”
“Team Bravo in position,” a girl confirmed.
“Bravo two on the move,” Ariel said. “Radio silence in three, two, one...”
Just as the microphone went offline, the bass from the vehicle down the street erupted; the music was loud enough that even on the fourteenth floor it was crystal clear. Kat looked through her scope, blinked several times to clear her vision, then steadied her breathing. She watched as Elizabeth’s lifemate moved along to the exercise video they were doing together, which had been the plan put in place to ensure that Elizabeth would be an easy target.
“Okay, Kat, you’re on.” Lauren said after muting her microphone.
Kat took another steadying breath and released it slowly. She had the girl in her crosshairs but couldn’t bring herself to fire.
“Kat, you have to do it,” Lauren whispered. “The police are coming down the street so Ariel is rolling. We lose our noise cover in less than seven seconds.”
Kat adjusted her position. Elizabeth was still in her crosshairs. She took a deep breath then released it evenly. She pulled the trigger. Elizabeth Moore collapsed onto the floor. Her lifemate stopped when she went down and stared at her lifeless body for a moment then turned and grabbed a towel. He wiped his face.
“Team Bravo, move in,” Lauren said.
“Bravo two, back online and moving into position,” Ariel said.
“Team Bravo in place,” a girl said.
Kat sat up and watched as Team Bravo entered Elizabeth’s apartment. Her lifemate had stopped long enough to turn off the television and grab his water bottle before he pulled the door open for them. Disgusted, Kat pulled her earpiece out and disassembled her weapon. She put the rifle in its case then placed it center of the telep
orter beams. She replaced her earpiece and nodded so Lauren knew that she was ready for the next part of the mission.
Kat materialized on the roof of Philip’s apartment building. She ran down several flights of stairs, entered his apartment and swept it for everything relating to Elizabeth. She uploaded a virus onto his computer, so the hard drive was wiped clean of everything, then set the apartment on fire on her way out.
Just before she pushed the door open to get back onto the roof she stopped and took several deep breaths. She couldn’t let anyone know how upset she was, so she had to pull it together. When the fire alarm started blaring, Kat ran onto the roof and radioed Lauren. The two teams had already disposed of Elizabeth’s and Philip’s bodies, so Lauren teleported Kat to Ariel’s house.
Kat greeted Ariel’s parents then made her way to the conference room. She tossed the contents of Philip’s apartment into the paper eliminator then took a seat beside David. He was Ariel’s lifemate and someone she genuinely liked. When Lauren and Ariel arrived, the teleconference with their High Council began.
They reported that Elizabeth and Philip were no longer a threat to the Agency. High Council commended Kat’s excellent marksmanship and when the meeting adjourned, Kat teleported home.
She locked her bedroom then bathroom door. After starting the shower she sank onto the toilet seat. A hollow feeling was lodged in the center of her chest. She didn’t know what it was because she had never experienced anything like it before.
Startled when water fell onto her hands, she slowly lifted them to her face and gasped. She walked to the mirror and examined her reflection. She was crying. She had seen Vanessa do it so often that she knew what it was. But she had never cried before. It was such an odd feeling. And stranger still because it somehow reduced the aching in her chest.
Stepping into the shower, she washed her face vigorously. Kat could only surmise that she was mourning Elizabeth’s death. Not that she had known her but she understood her. Kat knew how it felt to be different. Nemeanians had long since deleted all emotion from their genetic make-up because feelings were bad. Emotions were not conducive to the greater good. Yet, she had them.
Julianne, and all the Hybrid parents, had been created on Or-Pisc in as full-blooded Nemeanians. Being the strongest of their kind, they had been selected to undergo the painful process of hybridization. Then, once on Earth, they raised their Hybrid children under Nemeanian customs and courtesies and enforced their laws onto them.
Kat wondered if being created on Earth had anything to do with her ability to feel. She knew she wasn’t supposed to cry, yet she couldn’t help it. She could only assume that the human DNA and the environment somehow triggered her ability to do so. She took solace in knowing that she wasn’t alone, she had Lauren to keep her company in that regard, which oddly enough, made her feel better about it.
She had just stepped from the shower when she heard a knock on her bedroom door. Kat pulled on her bathrobe then stepped from the bathroom and pulled open the door. Her mother studied her as she walked across the room and took a seat in one of the armchairs.
“How was the mission?” Julianne asked.
“It went well.”
“I haven’t gotten in touch with Elder Jay. I’m sure he’s busy with this latest development, so he’ll get back to me when he can.”
“He wasn’t with the High Council when we debriefed.” Kat pulled a comb through her long hair.
“I’m sure you would be relieved if you didn’t have to go through with it,” Julianne said. “Staying the night with Roger, that is.”
“Either way, Mother, I’ll do whatever it takes to ensure that we accomplish our mission.”
“But I’m sure not having to go through with it would be a relief,” Julianne studied her in the mirror. “These past two years have forced you to hug and kiss and be part of a couple, which is so unpleasant...”
“It’s just as you said it would be.” Kat stood and reached for some lotion. “It causes no emotion other than a slight discomfort to have someone standing so close.”
“Uh-huh,” Julianne studied her for a moment longer. “I’ll get in touch with Elder Jay and keep you posted, but, Katarina?”
“Yes, Mother?”
“If you need to talk about anything…”
“I’m fine, Mother. There has yet to be anything worth discussing.”
“All right, get dressed. Brian called while you were gone and asked us to join him and Vanessa for lunch. And Roger called. I told him you were over at Ariel’s.”
“Okay, thanks. I’ll be down in a few.” Kat disappeared into her closet.
When she emerged her mother was gone and the door was closed. She dropped into the armchair and picked up the phone. She was sure Roger wanted to meet up, so she needed to think of an excuse beforehand. As much as she wanted to see him, she knew she had to put distance between them before anyone became anymore suspicious. Ariel’s snide comments gave her cause for concern.
Now, more than ever before, Kat had to make sure that it appeared she was the perfect Hybrid. She had to follow her orders and abide by all the regulations, a list of which was memorized by each of them. Intergalactic alien rule number one clearly stating that acting in ways that opposes those of your species was permitted if such behavior was necessary to fit in among the planet’s indigenous population. Enjoying those prohibited behaviors and indulging in them outside of a mission was not tolerated…and was apparently punishable by death.
Kat took a moment and thought of an excuse for Roger. After calling him, she went to her closet and picked out an outfit. She reached for the shoes Vanessa insisted she wear with the top. The memory of her sister’s disgusted face when she had worn the outfit last with a pair of sneakers made her laugh.
Kat studied herself in the mirror and forced the smile off of her face. She loved Vanessa and her life as a human. But she couldn’t ever let anyone know that. It was a lesson she had just learned thanks to Elizabeth Moore.
Chapter Two First Comes Love…
“Joe, you remember my daughters,” Brian asked one of his coworkers, “Kat and Vanessa.”
“Wow, they were kids two seconds ago.” Joe chuckled as he shook each of their hands.
“Time flies, right! Kat got a full ride to Georgetown; she starts in the fall.”
“Wow, full ride, that’s impressive! What are you planning on majoring in?”
“Government—”
“So she could do stellar and grow up to be just like daddy.” Vanessa interjected with a fake smile in place.
“So I should be seeing you around as an intern pretty soon then?” Joe teased.
“Yes, sir, but only if I’m good enough—”
“And she will be, have no doubt. My daughter is going to make partner long before I ever did!” Brian bragged as he guided Joe toward the bar.
“Oh, Kat is so perfect.” Vanessa snorted as she downed her champagne.
“Where did you get that?” Kat asked.
“That very hot waiter over there,” she waved at him. “I think he wants to take advantage of me. Of course, you wouldn’t have noticed with everyone fawning over you. Oh, Kat is so smart, and oh, Kat got a full ride to Georgetown, and she’s just like her dad.”
“Am I detecting a little hostility?” She chuckled. “You know Dad is just as proud of you—”
“But I’m not a stellar student and I have no interest in being a lawyer—”
“We know that, Vanessa. And we love you for all of your strengths. We don’t expect you to be…”
Someone laughed in the distance, which caused a chill to pass over Kat. She searched the room to find the person who owned the laugh that had distracted her. She spotted him as he walked further into the room with a friend. Something his friend said made him laugh again. The sound had the most profound effect on her. Not to mention that he was the most amazing-looking person she had ever laid eyes on.
She studied him as he made his way to the bar. He wa
s tall, definitely over six feet, but only by an inch or two. And his black suit jacket was perfectly tailored to his very broad shoulders. And something about the black shirt underneath, unbuttoned because he could definitely pull off not needing a tie, made her bite her lower lip. His jet-black hair was cut short on the sides and was longer on top. He styled it with something that helped keep it perfectly spiked up and gave it a glossy sheen.
She wasn’t close enough to see his eye color. But she was in the perfect spot to admire his smile when his friend said something that warranted the response. Her heart pounding against her ribcage, Kat wondered if he was a Hybrid or a human. Guys were not as easy to pick out of a crowd as the girls were.
Male Hybrids all shared dark hair, with shades varying from brown to black. Their eye-color varied, so that never helped when it came to telling a hybrid apart from a human. But they all shared a very athletic build. Of course, there were plenty of tall, muscular, dark-haired, pretty-eyed guys in D.C., so it always required personal interaction to guess who was who. When her hot mystery guy looked at her, Kat turned away, her cheeks blazing.
“Whoa.” Vanessa giggled. “You’ve got it bad! I swear I’ve never seen you that engrossed in a guy before! You weren’t even hearing me and…Oh. My. God! You are beat red!”
“Would you shut it?” Kat turned to look out the window.
“Oh, no, you tell me which one sent you over the edge like that because I have to go over there and shake his hand!”
“Dammit, Vanessa, lower your voice!” She turned to face her. “Are they still red?”
“Like Santa’s suit.” Vanessa giggled. “Okay, which one?”
“The one with the black suit,” Kat searched the room for him.
“They both have black suits on, dodo, and they’re both pretty hot.”
“Him,” Kat sighed when she spotted him. “He has a black shirt underneath, black hair and check out that smile…”
Sleeper Cells Page 2
