Page 74 of Nova Academy

‘I cannot give you all the details, of course. You must understand that the offer I am presenting to you ishighlyclassified,’ he began.

I widened my eyes as if in shock and leant forward to act eager. ‘A highly classified position? Why could you possibly need me?’ I asked, forcing a breathiness to my voice to imitate awe.

He smiled then, a slow stretch of his lips that came across as more creepy than pleased. He believed he had me on his hook. ‘Why did you join the military, Arthur? I read your file. You’re here on scholarship with some of the highest test scores Nova Academy has seen in years. What made you choose this life?’

Ah, here was the part where I had to start selling myself. One look at the false nonchalance Markus was trying to exude provided all the information I needed to proceed: with caution.

‘I wanted to make something of myself,’ I began, attempting to pull off the same level of false nonchalance, as if I cared but didn’t want to advertise as such. ‘If I’d stayed where I was, I would have fallen down the same traps as everyone else. I would’ve been stuck. I figured I could join the military and work my way up.Besomeone.’

It felt like I was overdoing it as I spoke, but my little speech seemed to have achieved its intended goal. He was eating up every word.

‘What if I told you there was a chance to make something of yourself without having to jump through the military’s hoops?’ he asked, that wicked gleam glinting in his eyes once again. ‘And with better pay.’

I leant even further forward, as if I were excited to know more. ‘How much better?’

His smirk was positively snake-like. ‘Triple the military’s starting salary with bonuses and opportunities to further your career.’

For an entry-level position that was quite a fat sum. Even I could admit that.

‘And what would I have to do?’

‘That’s not something I’m at liberty to reveal just yet, Arthur.’

‘I can’t know what job it is you want me to do before I agree to do it?’ I asked, searching for verbal confirmation that I didn’t really need, but it would have been useful.

‘Highly classified, remember? Until you’re officially a part of the team, I do not have the freedom to discuss the details.’

I sat back, my face falling. It wasn’t a total act. I was disappointed he hadn’t taken the bait, but it wasn’t a completely hopeless situation. I had an in with this mysterious job offer. I didn’t need him to outright tell me he worked for The Program, that they had their greedy little fingers in this pie too, because I had surmised as much before I’d even enrolled at Nova Academy. It was the sole reason for my enrolment in the first place, but it would have been nice to have that information concreted and at my disposal.

‘Right, sorry,’ I muttered, behaving as if I were a properly chastised child.

He contemplated me for a beat. ‘You’ll find out soon enough, Arthur.’

I brightened at his comment. ‘Does that mean I got the job?’

He seemed pleased by my enthusiasm. ‘I think so. You’ll need to be brought up to speed, but that will have to wait until we can meet with my colleagues on Nova Station. In the meantime, keep an eye out for a message from me.’

He rose then, opened the door and waited by the empty frame. ‘It was a pleasure, Arthur. I’ll be in touch.’

I took his dismissal without a word beyond thanking him for his time and the opportunity, then I left.

This was it. I was in. I was closer than ever to finding my way back to Libby. I just had to ensure the mission stayed on track. No more derailments.

Which meant that until I heard back from Markus, my fullattention would have to be on finding the assailant wandering around The Carina as if he owned the damn ship. And for all I knew, he did.

I shouldn’t have been surprised that when the elevator spat me out on the upper deck, Adara was already waiting for me by the door. ‘Well?’

‘Shh,’ I hissed. ‘Not here.’ I was well aware that Markus was probably watching me, or at the very least recording my every move for others to rifle through. He exuded an air of importance that gave me the sense he was used to people working beneath him. He was no stranger to delegating tasks.

Captain Hironimus was milling about the kitchen when we arrived, placing leftover containers in his refrigeration unit that held a much larger capacity than Markus’s. He paused mid action when he saw us enter. ‘Where have you been, Mercer?’

I didn’t know how to answer that without raising suspicion, so I looked to Adara with a wide-eyed look as if I’d been caught doing something I shouldn’t have been doing. She merely snorted and faced the captain.

'We need the room, Xan.’

He closed the fridge unit and stood to his full height to scowl down at us both. ‘You’re kicking me out of my own suite?’ he asked incredulously.

‘What’s going on?’ Reece appeared in the second bedroom’s doorway followed by Henrik.

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