The green and brown of trees blurred as we whizzed down the highway. A robotic voice droned in my ears, force-feeding me information about WAOIC headquarters. The agency had a special program that transcribed any written text into an audio file. I had listened to stories from people who had been released from their prisons and anonymous informers. Their information was quite limited, mostly confirming what the Director already told us.
My eyes focused on a sign saying 'Welcome to Siren' in the distance. I turned off the audio files I had been listening to just as Finn announced,
"Now arriving in Siren, Wisconsin."
"Thank goodness," Dari said. "I'm getting some major cramps in my legs. Why couldn't we have just flown to a closer airport instead of driving for four hours? We would have gotten here much faster."
"We have good rapport with the Appleton International Airport. We also need to trust the people who will be watching our specially commissioned plane. Oh, and they gave us a rental car," Finn explained.
"Alright, focus guys," I said. "It's four fifty-two in the afternoon. We need to go to the two Italian restaurants here. We need to arrive early, just in case Agent Fox arrives early as well. I provided each of you a picture of Agent Fox in your mission files, so you all know what she looks like. But she might be in disguise. Make sure you carefully observe every single person who enters the restaurant."
"Ay, ay, captain!" Ty said.
I nearly glared at him. I was not in a joking mood.
"One restaurant is an all out Italian restaurant, the other is a pizzeria. Which group wants to take which restaurant?"
"We'll take the Italian restaurant," Finn said. "Dari, Jef, are you good with that?"
"Yeah, I could definitely go for some pasta," Dari said.
"Same," Jef replied. "Traveling makes me hungry."
"We'll take the pizzeria then," I said. "The last thing we need to cover is our disguises. Ty, you said that you have the suitcase in the back of the car?"
"Yup, it has everything we'll need."
"Okay. Finn, first take us to our hotel. We'll check into the hotel and change into our disguises, then head to the restaurants."
"Sounds good," Ty said.
"Yup," Finn agreed.
He turned onto an exit, taking us off the highway. The car slowed to a halt in front of a traffic light. Shops lined the road, green grass and trees filling in any empty space. It was a nice touch from mother-nature, bringing life into the town.
Finn drove along the two-lane road until we came to the Motel Six. Finn pulled into the parking lot, driving up to the front of the building.
"I'll let you out here," he said. "I'll park the car."
"Thanks," Ty said. The others hopped out of the car right away, but I hesitated.
Is he the double agent, planning to contact WAOIC while we go inside?
I pulled my mini recorder from my belt, pressed the 'on' button, and dropped it in the panel on the car door. If he had a secret conversation with WAOIC, I would hear it.
I plopped onto the bed Dari and I were sharing in the hotel. I had already dressed in old jeans and a blue t-shirt. At last, my disguise was a casual person, not some beauty blogger or actress wannabe. I had lost some faith in Ty's ability to select a proper disguise for people after my experience in Belgium, but this helped to make up for it.
"Dari, Dawn, you ready?" I asked.
"Yeah," Dari called from the other room.
"Yuperooney," Dawn said.
I texted Ty in the room next door to see if they were ready. He replied with a thumbs up emoji.
He's really not one to waste energy.
"Let's head down," I told Dawn and Dari.
I opened the door to a chilly wind. I shivered. Couldn't Ty have provided jackets?
The breeze threatened to steal the shoulder-length, brown whig from my head. I resisted the urge to hold it down. That would be a dead giveaway that my hair was fake.
The guys were already waiting in the car. I hurried my pace and opened the car door. Ty was sitting in his usual seat in the middle. He seemed to be going for a rebellious, rocker-teen look since he had long, scraggly black hair, a black ripped shirt and jeans, and three earrings in his nose.
"Hey, glad you could finally join us," Ty said.
I slid into my seat. "How long have you been waiting out here?"
"Half an hour."
"Oh sure. We only arrived here twenty-five minutes ago, but yeah you've been waiting for half an hour." I turned around to look at Jax and Jef in the backseat. "How long have you been waiting?"
"Like, a minute," Jef laughed.
"That's what I thought." I glanced down at Ty's arm. Neon pink letters spelled out 'no regerts.' "Don't you think that's a little bit excessive?"
"Nope!" he said.
"That isn't permanent, right?"
"Of course it is!"
"Because tattooing yourself is against IIA rules."
"Oh, right."
"So it's not permanent?"
Ty grinned sheepishly. "You'll know tomorrow."
I rolled my eyes. Dawn took her seat on the other side of Ty.
"Nice outfit," she told him.
"Thanks."
Of course Dawn would think it's cool. She liked pretty much any music that gave her an excuse to scream at the top of her lungs.
"I'm pulling out now," Finn announced. "Make sure you all have your seatbelts on. Ty, I'm talking to you."
Reluctantly, Ty snapped the safety belt in place.
"Oh, by the way," he said, "I found your mini recorder in the side panel of the car."
I froze. Darn it! I slipped my hand into the plastic compartment and pulled out the recorder. The red recording light was no longer on.
"It was also on, for some reason," Ty added. "I turned it off since I figured you didn't want the battery to be wasted."
Well there goes my plan. Now I don't know if Finn contacted WAOIC.
I forced a smile. "Thanks. Not sure how it got there."
The car lurched backwards as Finn backed out of the parking space.
Was Ty searching the car? I wondered. And if so, why?
The pizzeria was only five minutes down the road. The small parking lot in the front was mostly empty, except for two other cars. Finn parked on the side of the lot, facing the street.
"It's five-thirty right now," I said. "But it doesn't seem like anyone is here."
"It's a little early for dinner," Dari said.
"Where should we wait?" Dawn asked. "We can't sit in the car. Dari, Jef, and Finn need to get to the other restaurant."
"We'll have to wait inside," I said. "That way we don't miss her if she eats here."
"But won't it be weird to just sit around for hours until she arrives?" Ty questioned.
"Not if you ask to use the restroom," I said.
Ty raised an eyebrow. "Me?"
"Yes, you. Go inside and say that you're going to the restroom. We'll sit down at the table and wait for Agent Fox to enter the restaurant. Then, when she arrives, we'll text you and tell you to come out of the restroom."
"But what if she doesn't come for half an hour? Or an hour? Or not at all?" Ty protested.
He had a point.
"Okay, scratch that."
"Whatever you decide, make it snappy. We need to get to our station," Dari said.
"Why don't we just go inside, order our food, and eat really slowly," Dawn said. "A lot of people go to restaurants and stay a long time."
"Okay we'll do that," I said. "Let's go." We hopped out of the car, and Finn sped away.
The smell of freshly baked bread wafted up to my nose the moment we entered. My mouth watered. Ah, pizza. Freshly made pizza was truly one of the most delicious foods.
A counter stretched across the back of the room. A guy in a red polo shirt stood behind a cash register on the left side. I waved the others to follow me over.
"Hello, Welcome to Mangia," he said, "What would you like to order?"
I glanced at the others. "What toppings do you want?"
"I'll do meat lovers," Dawn said.
"Same," Ty said. "What do you want, Jax?"
"I'll do veggie," Jax stated. I noticed that he was angled in such a way that he could subtly keep his gaze on the door. He's watching for the agent, even now. For some reason, this made me less suspicious of him. Even when we were distracted, he was vigilant and actively working towards our mission goal.
Maybe he's just doing it to win my trust, I wondered. But then again, I doubt that the double agent knows that we're onto him or her, which means that whoever it is wouldn't be trying to win my trust.
I forced my attention back to ordering the food. "Two medium pizzas, one meatlovers and one veggie."
"Coming right up," the man said.
I turned around to strategically pick our table. Booths lined the left and right side of the restaurant. Tables crowded the center and back, glass wall. My eyes settled on a spot that would enable me to see pretty much every other table.
"Follow me," I said. I walked to the table and slid into a leather seat facing the entire restaurant. Ty sat next to me, while Dawn and Jax took their places on the opposite side. It wasn't the ideal setup—Jax had his back to the door. But I didn't want to change seats. It would draw too much attention to us.
"It's kinda nice here," Dawn said. "It's got a charm to it, like a good ol' Mom and Pop shop."
"Yeah," Ty agreed. "I'll bet the cheese they use here is really good. Wisconsin is known for their cheese."
"I'm sure it will be delicious," I stated, monotone. My focus was on the door. I was ready for anyone who entered.
"Do you think it will be better than Italian pizza?" Dawn wondered.
"Ooh, that's a tough one," Ty said. "I mean, they say that it's the cheese that makes pizza good, right?"
"Naw, I thought it was the crust," Dawn countered.
"Hmm, true. But, I mean, the cheese is pretty important, too. If they have really good cheese here, then the pizza has got to taste really good."
"Maybe. But I think Italy has the best pizza. They have good cheese there, too."
I tuned out their dumb comparisons of pizzas. I was in no mood for this. If we had been in the car, I might have even told them to be quiet. But it was important to put up a front, like we were actual customers.
As long as they aren't talking about spy stuff in here, it's whatever.
Their loud chatter dropped to whispers.
"If Agent Fox really likes Italian food, I doubt she'd come here," Ty said. "I mean, this is for pizza. It's not like that have pasta or chicken parmesan, or—"
I elbowed Ty in the ribs.
"Ow!" he cried.
"Shh," I said.
Ty straightened up. "You know, I can't remember the last time I had pizza."
I couldn't believe that he forgot protocol. That was, like, rule one of the spy code: never talk about your mission in public.
Or did he do that on purpose? Does his error mean that he is the double agent?
I didn't know what to think. This whole double agent thing had me second guessing everything. I couldn't function like this, not knowing who to trust and who not to. How could we rescue Xara when one of the agents on my team might betray me?
There was only one thing to do—only rely on myself.
The bell of the door jingled and a burly man in a blue suit walked in. Even though he was a man, I didn't put it past him to be Agent Fox in disguise, especially after discovering that a female agent impersonated the Belgian representative in Brussels.
I was able to get a good look at his face as he passed. He had chubby cheeks, a button nose, and small, blue eyes. He seemed to look the opposite of Agent Fox. I couldn't see even the slightest resemblance.
The man marched up to the counter. I craned my ear to hear what he ordered.
"Two orders of breadsticks, three large, cheese pizzas, and two pepperoni pizzas. All of this is togo."
Hmm, probably not Agent Fox. She would have no reason to order so much food. If I had to bet, the man was having some sort of meeting or gathering where he needed to feed a lot of people.
The door opened again as a man and a woman entered the pizzeria. The file didn't say that she was traveling with anyone, but I suppose it's possible that he is assisting her on her mission.
A third customer entered, this one just a woman. She looked more like Agent Fox—tall and slender with an oval face. She was about five foot seven inches, the height of Agent Fox. But as I looked down at her feet, I noticed that she was in heels. Unless Agent Fox had shrunk a few inches, that was not her.
"One meat lover's pizza," a voice said. I whipped around to see that the server was standing by our table, holding two trays with our pizzas.
"Right here," Ty said, patting the space between him and Dawn.
"And the veggie goes here, I assume," the server said, placing the second pizza between Jax and me.
"Yes, thank you," I replied.
"Is there anything more I can get you?" he asked.
"Uh, can we have some water cups?" Ty asked.
"Sure, I'll be back in a moment."
The guy jogged to the counter to retrieve our glasses. I flipped my attention back to the female customer just in time to hear her order a house salad. Well, she's definitely not who we're looking for. Fox wouldn't order a salad when she can order pizza. Unless, of course, WAOIC decided to put her on a diet for some reason.
The pizza guy ran over with four plastic cups and four plates and set them on our table. "You can use these to get water from the soda fountain. I also brought some plates for you to put your pizza on, just so that nothing gets on the table."
"Cool, thanks," Ty said.
"No problem."
I passed out the plates and cups to the others.
Ty jumped up from his seat. "I'm going to get some water. Do you want me to get your water for you?"
Now that I thought about it, I could feel that my lips were cracked, and my throat was dry. I guess I hadn't been eating and drinking very much since I had been so preoccupied with the mission. You can't get dehydrated. You need to be in the right frame of mind.
"Yes, please," I said.
"I'll come with you," Dawn offered. She took Jax's glass with her as she followed Ty to the soda fountain.
I stared down at the pizza in front of me. Steam rose in a steady, upward stream, the smell accompanying it. A pang of hunger shot through my empty stomach. It'll probably burn my mouth, but whatever. I don't really care right now.
I tore a piece away from the pie, the cheese pulling behind it. My teeth sunk into the piping-hot cheese. Heat singed the roof of my mouth.
"Ah!" I cried, though it came out muffled since my mouth was full of food. I pushed the pizza to the side of my mouth, making sure that it wasn't touching my cheeks. Quickly, I chewed and swallowed. The mass burned as it slid down my throat.
Note to self: don't do that again.
"Didn't you ever learn that you have to let pizza cool before you can eat it?" Ty laughed behind me.
I didn't want to admit that I had been too hungry to care, so I just shrugged and snatched my glass of water from his hands. The ice-cold liquid soothed the roof of my mouth and hydrated my throat. I felt a faint pressure release in my head, one that I hadn't even realized was there. It must have creeped up on me as the day had progressed.
I blew on the end of my pizza before taking a bite. Now that it wasn't scalding hot, I could properly appreciate the flavor. It wasn't the best pizza I had ever had, even by Washington D.C. standards. The dough was a little too stale, the sauce too bitter, and the surface too oily. But the cheese was excellent.
The door jingled as another woman entered. I froze, the pizza slice still in hand. The heat of the crust seeped to my fingers, growing hotter and hotter until I had to set the piece down. I took a drink of water, but my eyes shifted to the woman who had entered. She was tall, even though she was in flat sneakers. She wore leggings and a tight fitting t-shirt, which accentuated how skinny she was. Her face was slim and her jaw was defined, her nose protruding. The corners of her lips were upturned in a sly smile. There was no doubt about it: we had found Agent Fox.
Agent Fox's brown eyes glinted in the sunlight as they shifted from side to side. Satisfied that no one else was around, she stalked to the counter to order her food. I quickly texted the others while she was turned away.
Agent Fox has arrived. Team A, I need you to drive over here so we can follow Agent Fox when she finishes her lunch. Team B, don't say or do anything suspicious.
I pressed send just as she was turning around. I took a bite of the pizza, trying to look nonchalant. For some reason, the flavor was duller than before.
Agent Fox slid into a booth, just barely in my line of sight. I decided to send another message, this time to just Team B. Eat slowly, we need to leave when she leaves.
Three phones buzzed the moment I sent the message. I was glad that none of them had ringtones on. That would have drawn too much attention to us.
We managed to polish off the entirety of the pizza pies we had ordered while we were waiting. What can I say? We were hungry, and we burned a lot of energy doing spy work.
Ten minutes later, Finn messaged me saying that they had arrived. I gazed outside the glass windows lining the wall beside me to see Finn's car pull into one of the parking spaces in front of the restaurant. I nodded to the others to leave the restaurant. It was better to watch for Agent Fox from the car that way we'd be ready to go when we needed to.
At six forty-three p.m, Agent Fox exited the pizzeria and got into a blue convertible a few spaces away from where we were parked. She wasted no time, backing out of space and speeding onto the road. Finn waited until she was far ahead of us before following.
The two-lane roads were tight and empty, which meant that there was less cover for Finn. He had to keep a wide margin between us and Agent Fox, especially when we were the only two cars on the road. I just hoped that she wouldn't notice us.
"I'm going to check into the hotel when we arrive," I announced. "We'll have a few of us stay in our new room, just to keep an eye on Agent Fox. The rest of you will go back to our old hotel and gather our things. We'll check out of the other hotel in the morning."
The agent pulled into a small hotel on the outskirts of town. It was two stories, made of chipped and dirty brick.
"Keep driving, Finn," I said.
"What? Why?" he asked.
"We don't want her to realize we are following her. We'll circle around."
Finn nodded. "Good idea."
"In the meantime, we need to change disguises. We don't want her to recognize us from the restaurant. Ty, you have your suitcase, right?"
"Never leaves my side," Ty said. "Jax or Jef, can one of you hand me my suitcase."
Jax handed Ty a huge leather case. He cracked it open and peered inside.
"Is there a reason why you're not opening it all the way?" I asked.
Ty grinned, wiggling his eyebrows. "It heightens the mystery."
Good grief.
Ty's eyes moved back and forth until they rested on whatever disguise he was going to give me. He gave me a new face, blonde wig, and a black trenchcoat.
I finished putting on my new disguise just as Finn turned into the hotel. He stopped the car on the curb, and I ran inside. Agent Fox was just disappearing into an elevator as I entered. For a second, her eyes rested on me. Adrenaline started pumping through my veins. Oh no! She's spotted me! I met her gaze, her brown eyes piercing me. But it only lasted a moment, and her gaze flicked to the doors shutting in front of her. The rational side of my brain kicked in.
I'm in disguise. She can't recognize me. A breath of relief escaped my lungs, and I hurried to the front desk to check in.