Spying Over You

Three: Emma

I wish I had jet lag. I know it's horrible but at least if I had it I'd be able to sleep in and put off the mission. But no, we had to be in the same time-zone as New Mercia. And my aunt just has to stay on schedule. Or better yet, it would have been better if they never got rid of time-zones.

"Are you up yet?" I groan and crack my eyes open. She comes around the corner, both her hands up at her left ear trying to put her earring in. She sighs when she sees I'm still bundled up in the blankets. "Seriously, any other day you can sleep in."

"But-"

"No buts! You have to get back to the train station and act as if you showed up early. We can't risk them seeing you going through the front."

I throw the blankets off, cold bitter air nipping at my legs. Aunt Val turns back around and heads back into the bathroom. I roll out of the bed and onto the clothes I had discarded the night before. I eye them and look over my shoulder. Would she notice if I wore the same clothes? Would it even matter? I pick the shirt up and bring it up to my nose, taking a big sniff. It doesn't smell gross. I'll just throw some extra deodorant on just in case.

Before Aunt Val can come back out I throw the clothes on and place my pjs into my suitcase. Then I manage to get my hair up into a bun. It's the best I can do. Glancing into the mirror, the messy bun and the wrinkled clothes give to the appearance that I've been traveling. The bags under my eyes help enhance the look. Maybe it wasn't such a bad idea to wear the same clothes as yesterday.

A sigh sounds from behind me. "Seriously?"

I turn to my aunt with a smile. "I thought the wrinkled clothes would add to the appearance of traveling, you know?"

Her eyes flick up and down me. I try not to squirm and shift under the intense gaze. Finally she huffs and her shoulders drop. "Fine. I don't want to argue about this. Are you ready to go?" Her eyes flint to the ground beside me where my suitcase sits all packed.

I nod and grin. "Yep!"

She turns to the mirror once more, tucking a stray strand back behind her ear before nodding. "Let's go then."

We leave the hotel much the same as how we left it. But this time I head out first and then she follows behind me. When I leave the hotel she stops at the front desk to return the key and check out. I try my best to haul a hovertaxi but either none of them notice me or I'm not doing it right because no one stops for me. When Aunt Val comes out she frowns and hauls a hovertaxi like it's nothing.

I slide in behind her with my head down and say nothing.

When we arrive at the train station I get out and grab my suitcase from the trunk. Before it's even closed the driver is peeling away. She didn't even stick around, just as soon as I was out of the hovertaxi she said goodbye, and good luck. It really shows how much she cares for me and the mission.

I take a deep breath and head into the station. The doors slide open and let me into the main drop off and pick up spot. I should be fine to sit here and then when they walk in I can act like my train got here early. It's not that hard to believe. I find a bench that's off to the side and close to the arrivals door. Hopefully this'll give me a better chance of spotting them first and then if I have to I can act like I snuck through the doors and they just didn't spot me. I am an unknown face to them, so they don't know who they're looking for.

Some people rush through the station, heading for trains about to leave. Others stand around and stare down at their screens, fingers flicking through them. A group stands around the arrival door. Some people hold their screens up, most likely having names on the front of them. I wonder what the Mars family will do for me. Will my name be projected onto a screen? Or will they have paper signs with my name on them?