Page 35 of Code Name: Reaper
She studied me for a long moment, her green-blue eyes searching my face for deception or hidden agendas. “What does Dagger know about Mercury’s current situation?”
“Nothing that he’s said. And if he did know anything, he would’ve.”
“Which means Prism doesn’t have her.”
“Almost certainly not. If she did, the paranoia wouldn’t make sense.” I stood and began clearing the dishes, needing movement.
Amaryllis stood too, took her laptop from its case, then returned to the table. “We should review what we have. Cross-reference Dagger’s intelligence with what Nemesis shared today, see if we can build a clearer picture.”
I wanted to point out that she could barely stay awake, but I recognized the determined set of her jaw. The need to do work, to feel like she was making progress, outweighed her body’s demands for rest.
“Let’s sit in the living room.”
I was stunned again when she got up from the table, settled on the sofa, set her laptop on the coffee table, and opened it. “I’m sure Nemesis will brief everyone more in depth tomorrow about what we discovered today, but the most significant thing is that Prism was undercover at the academy before Mercury was. They were investigating something called Operation Avalon.”
I shifted closer, reading through the report she’d pulled up on her screen. There was something familiar about it, but like hers, my brain was too tired to process it. When we reached the end, I rested against the cushion. “So the investigation was terminated when she left the academy?”
“Weird, right?” She rubbed her temples. “There’s a web here. Like trying to see a constellation through cloud cover. The stars are there, but not enough of them are visible yet.”
“If you’re okay with it, I’ll contact Dagger to see what he knows about Avalon.”
After she said she was, I sent a quick text, then watched as she fought to keep her eyes open, forcing herself to focus on the words on the screen that I was sure were starting to blur together. She rested against the cushion, and when, seconds later, I heard her soft snore, I shifted to study her.
In the soft lamplight, she looked younger, more vulnerable. The fierce agent who’d fought her way out of Berlin, who’d gonetoe-to-toe with me over every decision, was a woman who’d been carrying too much weight for too long.
As much as I didn’t want to wake her, if she slept on this sofa, she’d have ahelluvasore neck tomorrow.
I slid one arm under her knees and the other behind her, lifting her with more care than I’d used handling live explosives. Her head fell against my shoulder as I carried her down the hall to the first bedroom I came to. I settled her on top of the mattress, covered her with a blanket, then stood there, watching her sleep.
I knew I should leave. Go to the other room, get some sleep myself, pretend holding her hadn’t felt so right that it scared the shit out of me. Instead, I memorized details like the way her hair fell across the pillow in dark waves. The gentle rise and fall of her breathing. How her hand curled near her face as if she was holding onto precious cargo in her dreams.
I turned to go, when I heard her say my name—Kingston.
I went still, barely breathing. Was she dreaming again? I waited to see if she’d say anything else, then watched as she shifted on the bed. “Don’t leave me,” she said in a voice thick with sleep. “Stay.”
I stood there in the darkness, hands clenched at my sides, torn between walking out of the room and staying where I was, knowing that whichever decision I made would be the wrong one.
9
AMARYLLIS
Iwoke with a start to find Reaper standing in the darkness near the foot of my bed.
I sat up, went to cover myself with the blanket, then realized I was still fully dressed. “How did I get in here?”
“You fell asleep on the sofa, and I carried you.”
“Oh, um, thanks.” My voice was thick with sleep and confusion. “Is everything okay?”
“You were dreaming.”
My face burned as fragments of the dream returned to the forefront of my mind.
He moved toward the door. “I should let you sleep.”
“Wait—” The word escaped before I could stop it.
He paused and rested his hand on the doorframe. “Yeah?”
