The Gemini

16. Agent Pearce

Jane-Anne Pearce

"So if Lena gets here in a few hours..."

"Stop, Finn," I warned.

"I'm just saying. If you have any ideas about where you want to start over, now's the time to start brainstorming," said Finn. "What about Canada?"

"Canada?" I asked. "Isn't it cold there?"

"I thought you didn't get cold," said Finn.

"Well, I..." Something felt off. I felt like I had been cold recently, but I couldn't put my finger on why. Even with Makaya gone, I couldn't remember anything correctly.

"Let me know when you figure it out, Elsa," said Finn casually.

I gasped, offended. "I am not a Disney Princess!" I exclaimed. "And put a shirt on!" I added. I grabbed one of the pillows and threw it at him from across the motel room. Finn turned away for to protect himself, an ugly scar on his back suddenly becoming visible. I paused.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Finn asked.

"Nothing." I clarified quickly.

"Okay." Finn surrendered, opening a drawer for a shirt.

"So, what are we supposed to be doing?" I stared at the confusing board on the wall, but I still couldn't figure any of it out.

"It's going to be super quick, I promise," said Finn. "I just have to go over the details of the case so far with the Sheriff. Obviously, he doesn't suspect anything supernatural is going on, but an outsider's perspective can help. And I'm going to get two today."

"Who's the other person?" I asked.

"It's you. That is, if you want to come with me," said Finn. "I've been over this stuff a million times, and I can't figure it out. Maybe when you hear it for the first time you'll pick up on something I can't."

"And then what?" I asked. It was naïve, but I wanted to believe that the Agency would spare a Forbidden who hasn't done anything except healing some victims of a car crash.

"When I figure out what and who the Forbidden is, I'm supposed to kill them," Finn answered.

"Are you actually going to do that?" I asked.

"I don't want to."

"How many missions have you done so far?"

"This is my second," Finn replied.

I knew that Lena had been on edge earlier, and I was starting to see why. There was a weird window of time when Finn had magically vanished, and it didn't feel right.

"So what were you doing before then?" I continued.

"It's complicated," Finn replied shortly. "Are you ready to go?"

"Sure," I responded nervously. "I just have to listen to you talk to the sheriff for a few minutes, right?"

"Right." Finn agreed. "And please don't tell Lena I took you with me for a mission. She'd lose her mind."

"Uh..."

"Just try not to tell Lena." Finn amended.

"Got it." I agreed. I couldn't promise to keep a full secret. Maybe I was getting better at lying, but I still didn't trust myself with anything. Finn seemed to know that he wouldn't get full clemency from me either and didn't argue about it on the ride to the station.

"This is Grayson road." I suddenly realized, reading the thin white print on the green sign above us.

"Yep." Finn agreed. "There's nothing special about this place as far as I can tell, though."