Keeping Me (Spy Chronicles Book 2)(19)

“Can you guys at least tell me a little bit about what Protocol Lex Luthor means?” I ask.

“Umm...”

Brett and Sander both share a look.

“I’ll tell you this,” Sebastian says. “Protocol Lex Luthor means we get out. We get in the car and we don’t stop driving. Once we’re far enough away, we get on an airplane and we leave the country.”

“But why?” I ask. “I mean, who is after us if it’s not Nolan? And what did Nolan get that made him suddenly not want to come after me anymore?”

“You have to ask your dad both of those questions,” Brett says.

“Then give me a phone. I’ll call him,” I say.

“Can’t,” Brett says. “We left our phones at the apartment. Protocol Lex Luthor means we ditch all electronics that have GPS on them. The last thing we need is somebody tracing us.”

Oh, my gosh. These guys are frustrating me. The only thing that is keeping me in this car right now is the fact that they are protecting me. I don’t know the first thing about the world that I am now living in, and I need them.

“I swear, as soon as I learn how to fight, I’m going to kick all of your butts for this,” I say.

They laugh.

Just wait, boys. Because I am dead serious.





You’re my family now.





A couple of hours later, I am at a small airport in the middle of nowhere. When I get aboard the small plane, I see that Jax and Hunter are already there. I haven’t seen the two of them since I was in the hospital. I take a seat by Hunter and get buckled in.

It’s crazy to think that a couple of weeks ago, I was living with who I thought was my mom, and had never once in my life been on an airplane. Now, I’ve already been on two flights, three if you include this one.

“Have you ever been on a small plane before?” Hunter asks me, as the plane starts moving.

“No,” I answer.

“It’s a lot different than a large plane. It’s going to be bumpy,” he says.

“I’m not scared of planes,” I say. “After surviving a gun battle at my house and jumping out of a two-story window, I’m pretty sure nothing could scare me right now.”

“You jumped out of a window?”

“Well, technically Sebastian did, but he took me with him,” I say.

“Sounds like something Bass would do,” Hunter says. “Were you scared?”

“I didn’t have time to be.”

“Maybe Bass should be taken off your protection detail,” he says.

“Nah,” I say. “He saved my life. More than once.” I look behind me where Bass and Sander are fighting over something and smile. “I think he’s kind of growing on me.”

“You were only supposed to be with us for a few days, at the most,” Hunter tells me. “When your dad sent us to find you, we had no idea who you really were. We thought it was just some random assignment. We’re the best, so it was a little insulting that he sent us after a teenage girl who clearly had no training. But then we all met you, and you surprised us. Even without training, you have amazing instincts.”

“Not that amazing apparently,” I say. “I trusted Nolan.”

“We all did,” he says. “Nobody could’ve predicted what happened with him. It was horrible. But agents go rogue.”

“Why?” I ask.

“Nolan’s parents went rogue his first year at Spy School,” he says. “It was tough on him, but it made him train harder. He hated his parents for what they did, but then he went and did the same thing.”

“Maybe he’s with his parents now,” I say.

“Maybe,” he says.

That I can live with—if Nolan turned on us because of family. Who could blame him for wanting to be with his parents? I mean, I kind of thought that all of us were a big family, but I can’t fault him for not feeling the same.

“So, do you know what Protocol Lex Luthor means?” I ask.

“Nice try,” Hunter says. “That might work on Gage, but not on the rest of us.”

“Do you realize how annoying it is that everybody knows except me?”

“Yeah, well, you can blame your father,” he says. “Your dad doesn’t want to scare you; especially when you’re with us instead of him. He will tell you when the time is right. Until then, we go back to Spy School. We’ve all got a job to do.”

“And what is my job?” I ask.

“You are going to go back to training. You and Sebastian. Sebastian is technically done with his training, but I think your dad is going to keep him at school with you for protection. Since Bass saved you at the bowling alley, your dad has decided to trust him.”

“What about you guys?”

“I think he’s a little worried that one of us will follow in Nolan’s footsteps,” he answers. “But don’t worry. The rest of us aren’t going anywhere. We will gain your father’s trust back soon. I mean, we’re here with you now, so he doesn’t completely distrust us.”

“Do you think we can all be a team after all this?” I ask. “I mean, after I graduate.”

“You want to be on our team?”