Page 2 of Rhys

The secrets and lies. So many lies.

After years of playing the whole clandestine game with people’s lives—her own, included—Vanessa was done with having her hands bound by the rough and ragged proverbial ties the government had knotted tightly around her wrists the day she’d agreed to work for them.

When she’d first been approached by Mulvaney, the man who’d been her CIA handler since the beginning, she’d been intrigued. Excited, even.

After all, being a spy was supposed to be cool, right? And let’s face it. Being afforded the opportunity to have such a kick ass job…the decision had been a no-brainer.

So at the ripe old age of twenty, Vanessa became one of the CIA’s youngest clandestine agents in history, doing so with the hope that she would make a difference—arealdifference—in a world that held so much evil.

And for a while, that was exactly what she’d done. Along with other highly trained operatives, Vanessa had helped the Agency rid the world of monsters who were very, very real.

It was a great feeling, really, knowing she was a part of something bigger than herself. At least, it used to be.

Lately, however, the multitude of rules and government red tape that often prevented her from doing what she knew in her heart was right had begun to take a toll. It didn’t help that she was forced to live in a world where the only rule in existence was to survive.

And now, after tonight…after sacrificing everything for an agency that had turned its back on her…Vanessa had no choice but to accept that she could never return to that life.

Not now. Not ever again.

But even that wasn’t the source of the overwhelming grief she was feeling. No, it didn’t come from a place of profession, but rather the loss of someone who’d started out as just another asset. A woman who, less than an hour ago, had died in Vanessa’s arms a friend.

My only friend.

Another tear fell as she dropped her head and stared down at her trembling fists. Rose’s blood may have washed away, but it would always,alwaysbe on Vanessa’s hands.

Your minute’s up, Nes. Time to make a plan.

Straightening her spine and wiping her cheeks dry, she did what she did best and pushed it all away. With one final glance around the small, dingy space to make sure there weren’t any smoke detectors present that could alert authorities, she pulled her metal Bic lighter out of her pocket and flipped open its lid.

Grabbing a fresh paper towel from the metal holder, Vanessa held it out in front of her with one hand while bringing the newly ignited flame to one of its corners. Then she lit it on fire.

She waited while the inferno to spread. Confident she wasn’t leaving evidence of her presence behind, Vanessa flipped off the light switch and cracked open the door. She scanned the immediate area.

Training and experience had provided her with the evasion skills necessary at a time like this, but she knew better than to assume, well…anything.

The tiny station had closed an hour before, which was the only reason she’d risked stopping here. Lucky for her, the outside bathroom had been left unlocked, giving her the time and privacy needed to clean up and collect herself.

Relieved to find hers was still the only car in sight, Vanessa pressed the button on her key fob to unlock the vehicle as she speed-walked to the driver’s side door. With another quick glance in her rear-view mirror, she grabbed her laptop from the passenger seat and flipped it open.

Fingers flying over the keyboard, she used her secured password to access a database very few people knew existed. Using her top-secret credentials, she was able to find the most recent cell number of a man she thought she’d never speak to again.

Pulling up a map of Richmond, it took her only a few seconds to find her current location. With a close study of the surrounding area, she chose a random location with absolutely no connection to her.

A perfectly random meeting place.

She returned the computer to the passenger seat. Leaning back, Vanessa lifted her hips and slid her hand into her jeans pocket, yanking out the burner phone she’d purchased earlier that morning.

Her thumb hovered over the padded numbers. A brief hesitation before dialing the number she’d looked up minutes before. Out of options, she put the phone to her ear and shoved her car’s gearshift into reverse.

The phone rang again. And again.

And again.

Come on. Please pick up.

Each unanswered ring pushed the rate of her racing pulse that much higher. By now, her nerves were shot, her anxiety was on freaking point, and paranoia was threatening to take over.

And Vanessa wasn’t used to feelinganyof those things.

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