Amara closed the umbrella and slid into the backseat of the armored SUV. The heavy door shut with a solid, airtight thud, cutting off the sound of the storm.
The middle-aged woman in the driver's seat turned around. It was M. Holloway, the director of the orphanage, and Amara's dark web handler.
Holloway handed a dry cashmere towel over the seat. "Commander."
Amara took the towel and rubbed it over her damp hair. The quiet, submissive teenager vanished. Her posture straightened, and her eyes turned sharp and calculating.
"The Valentine family suspects nothing," Holloway reported. "They believe you are throwing a teenage tantrum and will end up on the streets."
Amara let out a short, harsh laugh. "What is the status of the Project GF9 assets?"
Holloway swallowed hard. "The Aegis Directive has tightened their surveillance. All of your offshore accounts remain frozen. We cannot move the money without triggering their alarms."
Amara's jaw clenched. She needed to maintain a civilian cover to stay off the government's radar.
Holloway reached into the passenger seat and handed back a thick file folder. "This is your new social integration plan. An adoption application from the Richmond family."
Amara flipped the folder open. She stared at a photo of a smiling woman named Bernice Richmond.
"They were a backup option," Holloway explained. "They run a small farm. Their financial records show they live paycheck to paycheck. But they pushed hard for the adoption."
Amara closed the file. "It does not matter. I just need a legal shell to hide my identity."
The SUV sped through the rain, leaving the wealthy estates behind. It pulled into the muddy parking lot of a rundown highway diner on the edge of the city.
Holloway looked at Amara through the rearview mirror. She could not comprehend the sheer stupidity of the Valentine family throwing away the most lethal asset on the planet.
The SUV parked. The rain was still coming down in sheets.
Amara looked through the tinted window. Under the flickering neon sign of the diner stood a man, a woman, and a teenage boy.
Holloway held out a micro-communication earpiece.
Amara shook her head. "No electronics. Aegis scanners will pick up the frequency."
She grabbed her worn canvas backpack. She relaxed her facial muscles, dropping the commander persona, and stepped out into the rain.
Her sneaker splashed into a deep mud puddle.
The woman under the awning, Bernice, gasped. She did not care about the mud. She ran straight out into the pouring rain.
Bernice threw her arms around Amara and pulled her into a crushing hug.
Amara's combat instincts flared. Her muscles turned to stone. Her right hand twitched, ready to strike the woman's throat.
She forced her hand down. She stood completely rigid as Bernice held her.
"You are freezing," Bernice choked out, rubbing her hands up and down Amara's wet arms.
The man, Jimmie, walked over with a large black umbrella and held it over both of them. He had a warm, goofy smile on his face. "You're getting her wetter, Bernie."
Behind them, the teenage boy, Kenny, stood with his hands shoved deep in his pockets. He rolled his eyes hard, staring at the muddy ground.
Amara looked at the three of them through the rain. A tiny, microscopic crack formed in the ice around her chest.
