Mystics 3-Book Collection (7 page)

“She’s an extraordinary girl,” said Agent
Barnes, and he winked at Zoey.

She had to force herself not to smile.

“I did what I could to survive,” she said,
feeling her voice stronger. “Until now, well, from what I’ve seen
here, I didn’t even know that there were friendly monsters—”

“We prefer the term
mystics
, if you
please,” interrupted the woman, spite coated her voice.

“The
M-word
is so very discourteous
to our friends and colleagues. It is forbidden in these parts, and
if you wish to remain here with us, you best remember that.” She
stared at Zoey accusingly.

Zoey shrank back. Why were these people so
displeased with her? They didn’t even know her.

“Let’s give her a chance to learn our ways,
director Campbell,” said the man with the dark skin. “She has only
just arrived. There will be time for her to learn the laws of her
people.”

Director Campbell continued to eye Zoey
suspiciously. “If you say so, director Johnson. Clearly she has
lots to catch up on. Are we certain having her here is the right
decision? Perhaps one of the Sevenths’ foster families will take
her in? It might be less of a
shock
for her to live with
them. It might make her transition to our world a little
easier.”

“She is one of us. She belongs here,” said
director Hicks impatiently. “From what Agent Barnes has told us,
she could do well in the operative’s program, but it is too early
to determine her fate.”

He turned to Zoey. “For all our sakes, and
yours, it would be best to put you on a trial basis for now and see
how well you do. Would that suit you?”

Zoey felt her spirits rise. “Yes. Yes it
would.”

“But she’s a Drifter!” Director Martin
raised his voice. “She’s had no knowledge of our people or our ways
since today—she’s practically a Mute! Without
basic
education and training, she’ll be years behind the other
operatives. It’ll take her forever to catch up, if by a miracle she
is
able to manage. But even then, is it fair to introduce
her to the program so early? And what about the other operatives?
Will she drag them down? We’ve never had a Drifter join the program
before. I say she should be sent to one of our foster
families—”

“She can manage,” interrupted Agent Barnes,
his voice rising as well. “All Sevenths children are schooled in
our ways and are taught to fight, why shouldn’t she learn to do so
as well? She’s already fought a Skin demon on her own, and many
others like it. She’s ready. She should be with the other kids. It
makes no sense to put her back into a foster home.”

“Will you vouch for her then?” said Agent
Johnson, his voice even.

Agent Barnes gave a nod of his head. “I
will. Little Red here’s got a lot of spunk. She has street smarts,
and she’s proven that she’s capable all on her own. I think she’ll
be a great addition to the program—the other kids could learn from
her. I would be glad to have her on my team.”

Zoey stared at Agent Barnes. Her heart
swelled with respect and admiration for him. No one had ever spoken
so highly about her before. She wanted to hug him.

“So it’s settled then,” said director
Hicks.

He smiled warmly at Zoey. “Zoey St. John
will join the operative program on a trial basis. She can board
with the out-of-towners at the Wander Inn. All in favor?” He raised
his right hand and looked to the other directors.

Slowly, director Johnson and director
Campbell raised their hands, but director Martin’s hands stayed
flat on the desk. He glowered at Zoey.

“Majority wins,” said director Hicks.
“Welcome to your new home Zoey St. John. I hope you’ll enjoy it
here and make lots of new friends.”

Zoey sat silently for a moment.

“Really?” she said finally, trying hard to
hide her excitement, although she wanted to jump up from her chair
and start dancing.

“Really,” said director Hicks.

Zoey grinned widely. “Thank you, thank you
very much. You won’t be sorry, I promise.” And when she looked over
to Agent Barnes, he gave her two thumbs up and looked very pleased
with himself.

“Agent Barnes, please escort our newest
member to the Wander Inn, they have already prepared her room.”

“Right away, director Hicks.”

After Agent Barnes had acknowledged the last
of the directors with a nod of his head, he steered Zoey out the
door—but not before she heard Director Hicks call out, “Good luck,
Zoey!”

As they made their way down the hall, Agent
Barnes laughed. “Thought you were going to faint in there—you were
as white as a sheet.”

Zoey felt a weight leave her as she stepped
out the room. “I was more worried about being sick than fainting. I
don’t think director Martin would have liked that very much.”

Agent Barnes laughed. “No, I don’t think he
would have.”

The outcome was better than Zoey had
expected and her memories of life with foster mother number 28
began to fade. But even as she walked back she was still worried by
the uncertainty in the faces of some of the directors. It was
almost like they felt she wasn’t
good
enough to be
there—like somehow her presence would taint the rest of the
Sevenths like a bad apple. Being a
Drifter,
it seemed, was
very similar to being an
orphan
.

Tainted by association.

They descended the stairs, passed the lobby,
and went out the front doors. Zoey followed Agent Barnes across a
smooth lawn. The moon shone down and cast long and looming
shadows.

About fifteen yards behind the agency, stood
a white-stone building the size of a large cottage. It had black
shutters and a welcoming wrap-around porch. Lights shone from the
inside, and a hand-painted wooden sign on the front post said
The Wander Inn
.

Agent Barnes walked up to the front door.
“This is where the out-of-town Sevenths stay when they’re visiting.
It’s your new home. It’s not as fancy as a hotel, but it’s real
cozy. Just what an inn should be.”

Zoey followed him in.

They walked into a living area where a man
reading a book sat comfortably in a large chair facing a fireplace.
Two sofas faced each other on a plush deep red Persian carpet, and
the room had a cozy feel. A large staircase led to the upper floor,
and on the opposite side was a dining area with a variety of small
wood tables and chairs. It reminded Zoey of the little café shops
she used to go to back in the city. The smell of cooked food
brought water to Zoey’s mouth. Only then did she realize how hungry
she was.

“Hello again, Agent Barnes,” said a
voice.

Zoey looked up. A six-foot tall woman with
shark-gray skin and long silky white hair came towards them. She
was so thin, just skin and bones, that she looked as though she was
drowning in her clothes. While she had odd cat-like yellow eyes,
what made Zoey flinch were the woman’s four arms. Zoey’s skin
tingled with a warm rush, similar to what she had felt in the main
hall when the mystics had first stepped out of the mirrors, but the
sensation was subtle and vanished as fast as it had appeared.

“Hi, Aria,” said Agent Barnes. “I’d like you
to meet your newest boarder, Zoey St. John. Zoey, this is Aria, the
owner of the Wander Inn.”

Aria held out one of her right hands.
“Hello, Zoey. Everyone here calls me Aria.”

Zoey shook one of her hands a little
awkwardly, trying not to stare at the woman’s other arms, which
hung at her sides like rubber hoses.

“Thanks for having me,” mumbled Zoey, not
knowing what else to say.

“I’m glad to finally meet you,” said Aria.
“Everyone’s been talking about you tonight. We’re all very excited
to have you here with us, and I’m very happy to have you stay here
with me. The hive being such a small community and all—you’re like
the newest celebrity.”

She stood with her four hands on her hips
and looked grim. “You haven’t eaten in a while. Let me fetch you
something to eat. I’ll bring it up. Agent Barnes, could you show
Zoey to her room—top of the stairs, it’s the last one on the
left.”

“Sure thing, Aria. Come along, Little
Red.”

Zoey watched Aria disappear through the
dining room. She then climbed the stairs behind Agent Barnes who
guided her to her room. A single bed was angled under a large
window with soft white linen curtains, and a large dresser stood
beside a closet on the opposite wall. Another door stood ajar and
revealed a shower, a toilet, and a pedestal sink—her own master
bathroom. She felt like she was staying in a fancy hotel.

“This is
my
room?”

Agent Barnes lost his smile. “What’s wrong
with it? You don’t like it?”

Zoey’s face lit up. She had never had a room
to herself before. She’d always had to share smelly old mattresses
and stained sheets with the other foster kids. This room smelled
like lavender and lilacs. She had never imagined a bedroom could be
so wonderful. And it was hers. “No, it’s perfect. I love it. I
couldn’t have imagined a more beautiful room. It’s really
amazing.”

“Good.” Agent Barnes turned towards the
door. “After you eat, you go straight to bed. You can do your
exploring tomorrow. Tonight you’ll need all the rest you can
get.”

Zoey frowned, tearing her eyes away from her
new room.

“Why’s that?”

“You have a big day tomorrow,” he said.
“Tomorrow, you start your training.”

Zoey hardly slept a wink. She had kept her
exploring
to the confines of her bedroom. She tried on all
her new clothes which, for the first time in her life, were
miraculously her size. She jumped on her bed and flushed the
toilet, just because she could. The excitement of the day still
rushed through her. After a quick shower, she had fallen asleep in
her bathrobe. She awoke to a soft tap on her bedroom door the next
morning.

“Time to get up Zoey, breakfast is ready.”
Zoey recognized Aria’s voice through the door. Her seventh sense
reacted with the subtlest of warm prickles on her skin, as though
she somehow recognized that the mystic was not a threat.

“Come down when you’re ready.”

“Okay,” mumbled Zoey, “I’m getting up.”

She swung her legs off the bed, her eyes
puffy with lack of sleep. She felt a pain in her arm from sleeping
in an awkward position, but she didn’t let it dampen her spirits.
At first when she woke up, she had thought it had all been a dream,
that the hive and the agency weren’t real. But now—sitting on her
lovely bed at the
Wander Inn
and staring out at the rolling
hills outside her window—and not at a concrete jungle—she knew it
was all
real
.

She pulled on a new pair of jeans, t-shirt,
laced up her sneakers, and brushed her hair into a static mess of a
ponytail. She closed her bedroom door and went downstairs.

She was greeted by the same man she had seen
the night before. He was sitting in the living area, and another
man in his thirties sat by himself. Zoey sat at a table near the
windows. As soon as she had taken her seat, Aria rushed towards
her, holding four plates piled with food.

“Nothing like a good breakfast to start the
day.”

She placed the plates carefully in front of
Zoey and watched her eagerly with her yellow cat-like eyes.

“Hope you like a big breakfast, I wasn’t
sure what you liked, so I made a little of everything. I’m afraid I
got a little carried away. But
please
don’t feel pressured
to eat
everything
, I don’t want to make you sick on your
very first day.”

Aria’s yellow eyes and four arms still made
Zoey a little uncomfortable, and she did her best not to stare. And
yet, there was something comforting about the gray-skinned woman.
Like a real aunt or close relative, Aria made Zoey feel safe.

Zoey had never seen so much food so early in
the morning. It was a breakfast buffet for her alone, and she was
ravenous.

“This is great. It smells amazing. Thank
you, Aria.”

Aria beamed and wiped her four hands on her
apron. “Well, let me know if you want anything else, I’ll go and
fetch you a nice big glass of orange juice. Be right back.”

There was bacon, scrambled and poached eggs,
eggs benedict, pancakes, French toast, potatoes, sausages, fruits,
breads, oatmeal, three different types of cereal, and baked beans.
She had two servings of everything and washed it all down with a
giant glass of orange juice. It was the most delicious breakfast
Zoey had ever eaten. Clearly Aria was a master chef. She burped
when she had finished, and Aria giggled.

“Morning Aria.”

Tristan strolled through the dining room.
Zoey’s eyes met his for a second, and he looked down with a
widening smile.

She wiped the crumbs from her face. She
realized that the enormous pile of plates in front of her made her
look like a pig, and that he had probably heard her burp, too.

Then another series of goose bumps riddled
her skin, but she had no idea what to make of them. Was it because
Aria was near? She would have to control her seventh sense. She
tried to calm down, and the feelings slowly disappeared.

Aria stacked the empty plates. “Hi Tristan,
can I get you anything? There are still lots in the kitchen. A
growing boy like you needs to eat.”

“Smells delicious, but I’ve already eaten,
thanks. I’m here to pick up Zoey for her first lesson.”

He stared at the leftovers on the table and
the crumbs on her shirt. “Someone’s been busy. Did you eat
all
of it?”

“What?” said Zoey, wiping her shirt. “I have
to catch up on fourteen years of malnourishment. Thought I’d get an
early start.”

“I can see that,” laughed Tristan.