Dropping Like Spies - A Gallagher Girls Story

Chapter Twelve

But the most interesting part about that little park was not the iron statue saluting us from the corner and it wasn't the kite that was tangled in a tree.  The most interesting thing about that park was the pack of boys standing on the other side, dressed in navy and grey.

"The Exchange," Alice hissed, as if they were some sort of long lost rival.  Which, I guess that sort of were.

Some of the faces were familiar, making a return from last year.  Others were not and I realized that we were welcoming the newbies aboard the program.  Some faces, like my brother's and his best friend's, were missing altogether.

Will and Bill were easy to pick out of the crowd, their smiles brighter than any of the others', but I didn't run to join them.  Right then, my allegience was to my girls.  My sisters.

Woods and Dad called us all to a spot in front of that grand fountain.  Standing side-by-side, I couldn't help notice their similarities.  They moved the same way, both with that same half-smile on their faces.  They shifted their weight at the exact same time and even scanned the crowd of students with exactly the same patterns.  The only difference between the two was that Dad had his arms crossed over his chest and Woods held hers firmly behind her back.  

“Ladies and gentleman,” Dad said, sending a hush over his students.  “Welcome to Baker’s Garden.  A residential area full of cranky old people, aggressive cats, and the most comprehensive neighborhood watch in Virginia.”

The neighborhood watch.  A spy’s worst enemy.  As Woods whipped out a pair of fluorescent flags from behind her back, I realized that the neighborhood watch would be the least of my worries.  “It is also,” she said.  “The field for your Capture the Flag game this year.”

Some girls behind me exchanged a high-five.  Next to me, I saw a pair of boys I’d never met nod their heads at each other.  I, on the other hand, cut my glance to Will and Bill.  The three of us had already learned the dangers of residential surveillance and if I had to deal with another thorn bush, I was leaving spy life then and there.  “But...” I started.

You know, one of these days I’m going to learn to shut the hell up.  I mean it.  There will come a day when Morgan Goode is able to keep her big trap shut and not make an idiot of herself.

But that day would have to wait, because had already started my question and my CoveOps teachers were waiting for me to finish.  “But what about the golf course?”

Dad huffed.  “You hear that, Char?” he asked with a grin. 

“I did,” Woods replied, not taking her eyes off me.  Even she dared to smile a bit.  Dad was good at making her smile.  “The golf course,” she said to us all.  “Is an isolated area with defined territory lines.  The only enemy on the golf course is the other team, which makes it a perfect place to take the sophomores.”

I nodded, suddenly understanding.  "But we're not sophomores."

"No," said my father.  He looked particularly dad-like in that moment, tired old eyes and ruffled hair.  "No you're not."

"Alright," Alice said, rolling her eyes as she so often did.  "So we're taking it up a notch.  Got it.  Can we nominate out captains now?"

Alice opened her mouth to say more.  Knowing her, she was probably already moving on to nominate someone and if history tells us anything, that someone was probably me, but Woods cut her off.  “Not so fast, Anderson,” she said.  “We’re changing things up this time.”

“Oooof course we are,” I blurted, earning myself a stern look from my father.  I shrugged with faux innocence, giving him those eyes that he was a total sucker for.  “You can’t keep changing the rules on us, Goode,” I told him.