Russ strolled in and picked up his TAB from his desk. “Good morning, ladies. I’ve asked Lydia to cancel your history class this morning so we can have extra mental mission practice.”

I shifted in my seat and waited for his instruction.

“Your mission is different this time. Not only do you have to find the exit in a timely manner, you have to find the blue ball. I’ve administered Helix at double the dosage. I’m monitoring your heart rates and your blood pressure. If your body rejects it, I’ll be taking you out of the MM. It won’t mean you’re off the team, though.”

I released a sigh of relief. Careful not to disturb my tags, I craned my neck to see Brooke lying comfortably on the black leather reclining chair.

She gave me a thumbs up. “See you on the other side.”

I leaned back into my chair and closed my eyes.

Zap. I was in.

My face thrashed to the right and I slammed into the wall. Pain sliced through me as my vision went hazy. Someone squeezed my neck. I jabbed the man’s chest and kicked him off me, but from the force of the impact, I crashed to the floor. I peered up, dazed to see my team surrounded by large men.

The same guy who had hit me picked me up effortlessly and drove his fist into my stomach. I jerked back, moaning. But I knew what was coming next. His actions seemed to be in slow motion. I caught his second blow like a baseball flying perfectly into a mitt. Then I slammed my head into his. The force of the impact threw him across the open space.

When the next man came at me, I took a couple of running steps up the wall and flipped over to land on his shoulders with his head between my legs. I pressed my thumbs into his eyeballs and jumped off just before he hit the wall, trying to escape my torturous grip. Another one came at me, and again, I had no trouble taking him out. I’d always felt alive and strong with Helix, but the double dosage had me on fire.

I became unstoppable. It appeared my friends were, too.

“This way,” I said over a dozen inert bodies.

“In your face.” Brooke kicked one in the stomach, her chest rising and falling rapidly.

Tamara yanked Brooke’s arm. “That’s enough.”

“They’re not real.” Justine shoved Tamara. “It’s all in your head. Better get used to it if you’re going to stay on our team.”

“Hey.” I clasped my hands together to get their attention. “Stop bickering.” I was tired of their childish ways, especially during mental missions. “Let’s go.”

As the blueprint of the building appeared in my mind, I led them down the empty hall with more confidence than before. All the buildings in the mental missions were the same—gray walls, white laminate flooring, and a cool draft that stung to my bones, giving me the creeps.

Justine took long strides beside me. “We’re waiting for you, Ava.”

I halted and held out my hand. Footsteps pounded, and the red dots on my blueprint showed where they were located. The second time I had seen the red dots, and I’d not told anyone. I wanted to keep it to myself. So far, it had only happened with the higher dosage.

Brooke tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “Shhh ... they’re coming from the left. Can you hear them, Ava?”

“What should we do?” Tamara squeezed her hands together, seemingly trying to stay calm. “How much time do we have left? We need to find the blue ball.”

“I say we stay and fight.” Justine gave a cunning smile. “Don’t you feel it? I feel like I can fly. I’m faster and stronger than before.”

“I say we stay and fight, too.” Brooke nudged me. “You’re our map. What say you?”

I took a moment to consider their wishes and calculate the odds. “Tamara, you open every door and search for the blue ball. We’ll stay behind here and fight. Once you find the ball, let us know.”

“Can you tell which room I should go into?” Tamara asked.

“Every room has a ball. I can’t tell what color they are.”

Justine threw up her hands. “That’s just great. Isn’t there a faster way?”

“We’re wasting time arguing about it. Go.” Brooke shoved Tamara to force her to move.

Tamara dashed to the nearest door.

Brooke examined her hands. “I have nothing to fight with. Are we supposed to find a weapon in a room?”

I didn’t answer. I had no idea.

A noise grabbed my attention, and I craned my neck to the sound. “We don’t have time. Take weapons from them. They’re here.”

Shiny silver objects flew by our heads. I noted they were knives when I’d ducked. Blade after blade flew in my direction. When they stopped, I twirled to assess my team.

Justine had caught one, blade side in her hand. She winced, blood dripping, dotting the ground with crimson. Then she lit a wry smile and flung it back to the group of men coming toward us. It pierced one in the chest, dropping him to the floor. Fake blood pooled around him. A few men had long blades, and I had nothing to fight with except my speed and strength.

I knocked one down and stomped on his hand. When he loosened his grip, I picked up the knife and held it to his neck.

“Stand up,” I said.

Justine and Brooke held blades across their hostages’ necks, too. The fourth guy held a knife, ready to pounce at one of us.

“Don’t you dare. I’ll cut him.” I nicked the hostage to show the fourth guy I meant it. Blood trickled down and soaked into his shirt.

The guy didn’t listen. It was all computer generated by Russ anyway. Why should he care about his teammate? When he lunged at me, I slit the hostage’s throat, then pivoted to the right with a swing and speared through the fourth guy’s chest. He dropped, fake blood pooling around him. Justine and Brooke had done the same with their hostages.

“We have five minutes.” I looked down at my computer-generated wrist watch, my breath steady.

Usually, having so little time left made me panic, but today was different. Keeping my composure steady, I searched for one red dot in my mind. I located Tamara in the last room.

“Let’s go.” I led the way.

Tamara came out of the room with the blue ball.

“Here.” She handed it to me.

“We need to get back in.” I pushed her back into the room she had exited.

Tamara furrowed her brow. “Are you sure? I was just in there. I think—”

I went inside before she could finish her sentence, her words lost behind me. “You didn’t search for it. You were just looking for the blue ball. You wouldn’t have seen it. You don’t expect to have the exit door in the same room where the object is.”

“Clever.” Brooke twisted the doorknob, but nothing happened. “Not again. How much time do we have left?”

“One minute.” I scanned to see if anyone was coming for us.

“Step aside. I got this. We win this one.” I’d never seen Justine’s smile reach her eyes before. She pulled the door off. “Oops.” Justine shrugged and flung it across the room.

I wasn’t sure what sound echoed first—the door slamming against the floor or the unexpected sound of the bullets being fired from the doorway. Justine, Tamara, and Brooke fell to the ground, but before the enemy soldiers could turn the gun to me, I hurled the blue ball at the first guy. The impact of the ball on his forehead knocked him out. Then I took down the other two with my Taser.

Thirty seconds left. I picked up the blue ball and dragged my friends, one by one, through the exit door in four ... three ... two ...

* * *

I heaved a deep breath as my eyes adjusted to the light.

“Well done.” Russ clapped his hands.

The vision of my team getting shot kept replaying in my head. How many times had I done MM? It was silly of me to think they would get hurt.

I relaxed in my seat when Brooke gave me the thumbs up. Tamara smiled victoriously, and Justine lifted her middle finger when Russ faced me, making Tamara giggle.

Russ’s green eyes met mine, gleaming with approval. “You brought your friends through the door. Now that’s teamwork. That’s one reason you were assigned as their leader.”

I kept my lips tight. I didn’t want to be their leader. I didn’t want him to praise me in front of my team. We worked hard as a unit.

“Now. Can you smart ladies tell me why you didn’t anticipate anyone behind the door?”

“Umm ... because there wasn’t one last time.” Tamara shrugged sheepishly.

Russ cocked an eyebrow. “You’re joking, right?”

“Sure.” She laughed nervously.

Brooke gently peeled the tag off her temple. “If you gave us more time, maybe we would have.”

“Not a good enough answer, Brooke.” Russ shook his head disapprovingly and shifted his attention to me. “You need to be a step ahead. Anticipate the worst in every turn, every door, above or under. Wrong moves like that and you’re gone.” He swiped across his small TAB. “Thankfully the dosage of Helix was fine for everyone. Let me know if you have any side effects. Tonight, you’ll be practicing combat with Mitch.”

Hearing Mitch’s name left a foul taste in my mouth. I didn’t know why, but there was something about Mitch I disliked.

Russ continued, “He’s going to review and drill you on self-defense and offense, things you already know how to do. Your team has been designated for a very important assignment. You’ll get more updates tonight. You’re excused.”

“We’re not getting any feedback?” Brooke adjusted her shirt and combed her hair with her fingers.

“I just did. You did everything right, except at the end, when you got shot because you were too busy worrying about getting out on time.” Russ’s voice increased in volume. “You think you’re safe? You’re not safe until you’re home. Understand?” Russ bored his eyes into hers.

“Got it. Jeez.” Brooke craned her neck as if she couldn’t stand to be stared down.

“I’m thinking of your safety. You shouldn’t be ...” Russ stopped, seemingly distracted by something.

If I could fill in the words for him, I would have said, “You shouldn’t be here. You should be out in the real world with a family who loves you. You should be worrying about fashion, gossip, and what other girls your age worry about.”

I would never know what his true words might have been. I wasn’t sure if I wanted him to say what I’d thought. It would only break my heart, because I would’ve agreed with him. My destiny was irrevocable. I had to make the best of it. But again, the hole somewhere inside me, as if I lost a piece of my heart, reminded me I belonged elsewhere.

I wondered if I would have found that missing piece if I had run away with Sniper. Crazy thought. I would not let a whacko and his friends ruin my life. But his words, disclosing we had a past, crazy as it sounded, I couldn’t stop thinking about him.

I felt his lips on mine, smelled his earthy scent, and pictured his toned body and handsome face. Then I chastised myself for having such thoughts about a stranger who had tried to kidnap me.

I’m not giving up. This isn’t over. His words echoed in my mind.

Sniper haunted me while awake and in my dreams. My gut told me something wasn’t right. And the what ifs nagged at me. I shoved Sniper out of my mind.

“You’re dismissed,” Russ said. “It’s time for lunch.”