Rule #1: Never Date An A.C.E. [COMPLETED]

Chapter 6: Rule #3: Don't Stand Out In A Crowd

Vanessa drives me to the nearest drug store and we grab the hottest pink hair dye available, while Flower and Alex stayed home to get the bathroom "ready" for my homemade dye job. Once the hair dye is bought (including some chocolates and gummy bears) we head back to the Underground, what they called the home base of Ace. When we return, we shoo the boys out, telling them we would see them at dinner.

Dylan rolls his eyes and says just before I close the door in his face, "Rule #3, don't stand out in a crowd. I think dyeing your hair pink violates this rule, blondie."

"Not blondie for long," I huff in return, and bounce into my bathroom where a dining room chair had been set up near the sink. A quick 45 minutes passes with joke between all of us, including what Lacey's face will look like, my hair gets dried with a hairdryer. By the looks on the girls' faces, it either looks great or terrible.

I jump down from the chair and turn to look at myself in the mirror, my hand brushing the new pink strands of my hair, "Woah."

"Woah is right! You look hot," Vanessa says and the other two girls agree. I give my thanks to them doing such a great job and we head out of the bathroom to relax on the couch, since we have an hour until dinner is served.

"Would you like to learn more about us?" the question comes from Flower, and I nod in return. "I'll start then,

"Unlike you and most of the people here, my parents aren't agents," she begins. "I was recruited by the Director when she saw me fight off a bully who had broken my leg, and then watched me set my leg back in place myself. Guess she saw some potential in me as a medic," she laughs and we join her.

"I'll go next," Vanessa says. "My grandparents are retired Ace agents, and when I turned sixteen, I joined the family business. My uncle is also an agent, but my mother refused this life. She allowed me to join on the condition that I come home for Christmas," she grins cheekily. "So far I haven't broken that promise."

"Oh, tell her about you and Sheridan," Alex gets a dreamy look in her eyes and Flower nods vigorously.

Vanessa blushes, "It's nothing really. He's here in an exchange with another agency, you know since Rule #1, he's one of the heads in the Three Princes case. He thought I was nice, asked me out, and the rest is history." My blood runs colder in mention of the Three Princes, but I smile at Vanessa's cute story. I want to ask what Rule #1 is, but Alex speaks up before I can.

"My turn, my turn!" Alex exclaims loudly. "Dylan was the one recruited me after I was caught hacking into the school's grading system to change my P.E. grade from a B to an A, I deserved that A!" Alex says stubbornly and we all chuckle. "Ace is always in need of computer wiz's, so I was snatched up."

"And you all went through the same test as me?" I ask, curious, and they all nod.

"It really was inventive of you," Alex states, and the other girls nod. A knock on the door prevents me from answering, and Vanessa stands to open the door. Boone stands on the other side, his face serious. Our happy atmosphere changes almost instantly as the three girls get on high alert.

"The Director has called a meeting before dinner," Boone says, and the girls quickly stand up, and I follow, trailing behind everyone as we file into the hall. The rest of the boys are outside the door and I watch as Sheridan quickly grabs Vanessa's hand and gives it a squeeze. Dylan's face is also serious, and I hang back to have a word with him.

"What's going on?" I whisper and Dylan's attention snaps to me as we walk side-by-side.

"The Director only calls meetings when there is an update to the most pressing case, or," he pauses to rub a hand across his face.

"Or what?"

"Or another agent has been killed."

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After Dylan tells me the two possible reasons for the meeting, I am as tense as the others, bouncing on the balls of my feet as we gather in the cafeteria. Director Lancaster is standing to the side, gesturing violently to the man in front of her, who is angry, but it doesn't seem to be directed at the Director. Director quickly turns around and assesses the amount of the people in the room before deciding it was sufficient for whatever announcement she was about to give.

"Firstly, I want to thank you for coming so quickly. I have grave news, Agent Dereks has been killed, his head was found severed from his body in the last place he made contact with Ace. It seems the Three Princes have caught us again."

I visibly see everyone in the group tense simultaneously, and I can't help but begin to think, "What have I gotten myself into?" Director had paused to allow everyone to come to terms with what they had heard and as soon as my thought is finished, she speaks again.

"New information had been sent by Agent Dereks before he was killed. We are unsure if this information is the reason he was killed, but to be safe we want some senior agents to investigate this new information. Beside me, I see Dylan, Boone, and Alex raise their hands and the Director nods to them, "Agents Lancaster, Mansfield, and Carmichael, the agent beside me will brief you on the information. The rest of you, eat dinner, if you can, and have a good night." She finishes her briefing and Alex, Boone, and Dylan all silently head to the front of the room. I long to run after them, but I also understand that losing what sounded like another agent was more important than my curiosity. I don't realize I've been staring after them until I feel a hand on my arm, and turn to see it's Levi.

"They'll be okay," he says with a small smile, his voice slightly quivering, as if he was trying to convince himself more than me. I give him a small nod and smile in return and follow him to where the rest of the group had gotten into line. Everyone orders small items like a fruit bowl or French fries, no one in the mood for a whole meal. I see Lacey with her group, and she's glaring at me, or specifically my hair. Any other time and I would've found it funny, but at this moment I am disappointed in her inability to feel upset at what we were just told.

"It's really sad to say, but there have been so many deaths, it's almost like we're all numb to them now," Vanessa says as we sit down. "It's still nauseating and depressing, but it's just another punch in the gut after twenty plus." She lies her head on Sheridan's shoulder for a moment and he rests his head on hers. Just as I'm about to take a bite out of my meager meal, a hand is placed on my shoulder and I spin around to see Dylan with a smirk on his face.

"You're coming with me."