Page 81 of Love at First Sighting
But there is an entire weapons workshop.
There are several workstations for in-progress rockets, drones, and other technology I can’t identify. Based on PIS’s categorizations, these are Type I crafts—small and unpiloted. Each one is marked with Terra iconography rather than PIS’s logo.
I momentarily sigh in relief. This couldallbe Terra’s doing, and Marcus could have his hands completely clean. But why would he come here if there was nothing in it for him? If he hadnothingto do with this? El’s sighting, Ian’s party, Marcus’s name on that stationery. There are too many arrows pointing at him for me to ignore.
But…all the crafts in this roomlooklike UFOs. They look like the shadow that was looming in El’s video. They look like the unidentified threat I swear I saw behind my dad’s car andin the sky before. Sleek crafts with thin bodies and lights and buttons along the sides. The surfaces are all so shimmery, and as I hover over one, my reflection stares back at me.
It’s not invisible, but it’s damn near close enough.
“Holy shit,” El says. “Whatisall of this?”
My heart’s finally stopped racing from our hustle across the tarmac, but now it’s speeding up again, like I’m drowning under heavy waves. I’ve never assumed PIS was innocent. The government is full of branches and orders and chains of command. Obscuring and bending the truth is our entire job. There’s harm in discrediting, intimidating, and gaslighting the public, of course, but it’s for UFOs and aliens, for fuck’s sake. How many people has PIS really hurt? Was my dad’s death just the tip of the iceberg?
“This is far beyond what PIS has. This looks like it’s all Terra’s doing,” I say.
“Then why isMarcuscoming here?”
I rake a hand through my hair, and as I open my mouth to speak, voices echo outside the door.Fuck.
“Cover. Get behind cover,” I snap. El and I duck behind two stacks of crates on opposite sides of the hangar that’ll keep us out of sight. The door opens. Right away, I recognize Ian Forte’s smarmy British yapping. Who is he speaking to, though?
“You’re going to be impressed, chap. I promise you.”
The sharp click of dress shoes enters the hangar, along with the scent of cigarette smoke.
Marcus.
There are zero doubts about it.
I peer over the edge of the crate after they pass. Sure enough, Marcus has entered with Ian, who is wearing a gaudy bowling shirt and oddly tight white pants. He’s dressed forPalm Springs, all right. Marcus, meanwhile, towers over him in his sleek black suit, collar practically shielding his face, hat perched on top of his head. Marcus has neverscaredme. I feared stepping out of line, because I didn’t want to be a disappointment. But now, as I’m crouching behind a crate, hands shaking, I feel like a kid again.
I’m scared because Marcus might be so far from who I thought he was. Scared because the proof is being laid out piece by piece, and I’m still thinking about the best way to clear his name in my conscience.
“This is the one?” Marcus says. His voice is a low growl that makes my bones chill.
“Correct. We’ve improved the Teflon cloaking plating, so it’ll be much harder to catch it on camera, and it’ll record video in 4K.”
El peers around the corner discreetly. She’s pulled her hood over her head, like she thinks she’s a secret agent. After tonight, she might have a serious career in it.
Marcus and Ian walk around the large craft to the right.
“We’re going to ship this over to Terra’s test facilities tomorrow, but here is your proof of product. We made the upgrades with the intel you passed along to us.” Ian spits out a string of technological words I don’t understand, and Marcus hums in acknowledgment.
“I’m going to want to see videos from the tests. I can’t risk another sighting. And take our damn logo off the drones. It’s aTerradevice. Nothing else. The video that girl posted nearly blew our cover.”
“Hmm, yes,” Ian coos. “Thegirl. Funny you mention her.”
“What the hell does that mean?”
My blood runs cold, and I peek around the corner. Ianbreaks into a smarmy smile. “I didn’t put two and two together at first, but the girl who spotted the last test model? She graced us with her presence at my launch party. I find it odd that the girl everyone’s talking about—who saw one ofourcrafts and has brought a spotlight to our little operation—shows up mere weeks later at my party to cozy up to me. I think she might be smarter than she looks. Or she has someone on the inside helping her.”
El’s eyes widen. While she’s panicking about me, I’m panicking about her. I’ve kept her case as vague as possible, practically letting it go cold on the PIS servers to mute suspicion.
“She can’t be on to us. You really think she can make that connection? She’s a model, Ian. She’s only thinking about her followers and pictures. Besides, we’ve handled her. One of my agents is on the case, and he hasn’t updated anything in weeks.”
“How much do you trust this agent?”
“I trust him enough to not go digging. It’s John’s son. I practically raised the kid—he knows better than to question me. He knows it won’t get him anywhere.”
