G.U.A.R.D. Book #1: Clandestine

-15-

    "What?" I sputtered. "My mom? My mom? A deadly agent?" All of a sudden, my head felt dizzy again, and I breathed hard. This couldn't be happening. This had to be a joke. Was Conner and Winter behind all of this? But they wouldn't be able to make the flying car, or the "energy field" surrounding the gas station.

All my fears were coming true. My mom was "deadly." She killed. Dad was a secret agent, so he had to kill, too. But if they were agents going up against a bad agency, did that make them good, regardless of the fact they killed?

"Calm down," Knife said in a smooth voice, still completely relaxed in her chair. "There's no need to get worked up."

"Worked up?" I demanded, looking to her. "I'm not worked up. I'm out of my mind! My parents-"Knife stood, hands flat on the table. I quickly leaned back, gazing up at her with wide eyes. Her presence suddenly seemed to grow twice as large, like a shadow filling the room.

"I said calm down," she said.

My chest tremored. Still, though, after a moment, I asked, "Why didn't they ever tell us?"

"You really think G.U.A.R.D. would let your mother tell you? It's an independent agency, one that goes to incredible extremes to preserve its secrecy."

I wanted to defend her; say that Mom would've told us. She would never have kept this a secret. But this was Mom we were talking about—she had been keeping secrets my whole life. Then I realized Knife only mentioned Mom not telling us. Did that mean Dad could have told us? Or did Knife just not know him?

"Her name was Jo Race," Knife said, sitting down again. It took me a moment to realize she was talking about Mom. "She became an agent when she was fifteen. She instantly was recognized as one of the best," the lady spat. "It didn't surprise me, though. She and a few friends started a team, quickly known as the Elite Squad." Knife took a deep breath. "They were good, as much as I hate to admit."

After a moment, I huffed in disbelief. "I can't believe this. This can't be real."
Knife glanced to me from the corner of her eye, then stared at the wall ahead. "They nearly took down the League."

I glanced to her. "What happened?"
"Your mom left."

I tore my eyes from her and sighed, feeling cold inside. Everything I knew before felt like it was slowly slipping away. My life, my friends... my family.

"What about Dad?" I asked quietly. "What was his deal?"

"I honestly have no idea who he is. He never worked in G.U.A.R.D. Jo—uh, Shelby—probably met him in North Carolina."
"So G.U.A.R.D. doesn't have any files on him?" I asked, feeling a little panicked at the sudden turn of events. "What happened to being the most incredibly secret agency in the world?"

"I never said G.U.A.R.D. didn't have any files on him," she snapped. "I just said I don't know who he is."

"... Oh."

In a small silence that lapsed, I found my hand fingering the necklace Mom gave me for Christmas. I had long since memorized the bumps that decorated the front half, and the small notch in the smooth back. For some reason, it seemed to give me a small ounce of comfort. That at least some of the Mom I knew was real. I saw Knife eyeing it, and I instinctively covered it with my hand.

"Wait a minute," I said, sitting up straight. "You called Mom 'Jo Race.'"

"Yes," she answered. "Same name the League agent used."

"League agent," I repeated in a whisper. My head was spinning with all this new information. My eyes lit up. "What about Dustin? Who's protecting him?"