“Good.” Martin nodded and glanced at me. “What about you, soldier?” he asked. “What are your thoughts on this girl?”

I kept my voice and expression blank. “I haven’t discerned anything yet, sir. So far she hasn’t given us any proof, only happenstance.

Based on that, I couldn’t give you a sure answer.”

“Forget proof, then.” Martin narrowed his eyes. “Sometimes you have to go with your instincts, regardless of everything else. What does your gut tell you?”

“That…” I paused, remembering Ember’s smile, the way her eyes flashed when she was angry or excited. That eager, defiant grin that said she wouldn’t back down from anything. The unfamiliar twisting sensation in the pit of my stomach when our eyes met. On the surface, she acted no different than anyone else; there were no obvious clues that hinted she was anything but an ordinary girl.

But my instincts, the gut reactions that had kept me alive on the field of battle all this time, said otherwise. Ember was different. Maybe it was her passion, a fiery determination that I’d seen all too often in the creatures I fought. That stubborn refusal to die that made them such lethal enemies. Or that sometimes, when she looked at me, I caught something in that stark gaze that wasn’t entirely…human. I couldn’t explain it, and I knew St. George would never accept those as valid reasons to eliminate a suspect. But, Martin wasn’t asking for proof now. He understood that soldiers sometimes had to make choices based purely on intuition. And my instincts had rarely been wrong.

“She could very well be the sleeper, sir,” I replied.

Though, for the first time, I hoped I was mistaken.

Martin nodded solemnly. “We’ll have to see what comes of this information,” he murmured. “Sebastian, your goal now is to get as close to this girl as you can. See if you can get inside her house.

Talon bases will occasionally have underground lairs where they receive Intel from the organization. If you find that room, you have the Order’s full permission to take out the entire household. Just be discreet about it.”

“Should we stake out the house, sir?” Tristan asked, but Martin shook his head.

“No. Talon operatives are trained to notice anything amiss, such as a strange car sitting in the road. We don’t want to give them any clues that we could be in the area. Set up electronic surveillance to monitor the exterior, but your primary mission remains. Gain entrance into the domicile—any concrete intelligence will be found inside.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Good work, both of you,” Martin finished, the faintest hint of a smile crossing his face. “We’ll follow up on the leads you’ve provided.

But for now, take the night off. You’ve earned it.”

The image disappeared as the video feed disconnected. Tristan blew out a breath and closed the laptop. “Well, that’s done,” he muttered, stretching his long limbs. “I’m glad we could finally give them a name. They were probably getting a little nervous with the lack of progress. Now we can focus our efforts on this girl, and maybe her brother, until we have an answer.”

I didn’t respond. I should have been relieved; the mission was back on track, and we had a real course of action. I didn’t like the unknown; I wanted a visible plan, orders I could follow, an objective I could reach. I had my orders now. Engage the target. Discern the target to be the sleeper and, if she was, kill the sleeper. Simple, familiar commands. My mind should’ve been on the mission and how to accomplish it.

But now, all I could think of was Ember. Seeing her again, getting close, learning her secrets. And, just a few hours from our designated meeting time, I found myself strangely torn. I wanted to see her, was looking forward to it, in all honesty…but at the same time, I was reluctant. I didn’t want to lie to her.

I didn’t want Ember to be the sleeper.

Shaken, I grabbed the binoculars from the counter and headed toward the door. I couldn’t think like that. Personal feelings had nothing to do with the objective. I had my orders, and I’d never failed a mission yet. I would not waver now.

“Uh, Garret?” Tristan’s voice halted me at the door. I turned to find him watching me with his arms crossed, a bemused look on his face. “What are you doing?”

I held up the binoculars. “What we’ve been doing every night since the time we got here. Why?”

He rolled his eyes. “Didn’t you hear the lieutenant? We have the night off. Seriously, put down the damn specs before I hit you with them. Garret, we are in California. Beaches, volleyball, bikinis, nightclubs. It can’t be missions and training every second of every day.” He snorted and gave me a look that was sympathetic and exasperated at the same time. “Even the Perfect Soldier needs to take a break once in a while. Hell, you have permission to relax from Headquarters itself. Forget the mission for one night.”

Forget the mission. Forget the Order, and the war, and my objective.

Before today, I wouldn’t have considered it. My life was the Order; I had to be exceptional, unyielding. The Perfect Soldier. That was what everyone expected of me.

But, this afternoon, I’d gone surfing with a beautiful red-haired girl, and everything about the Order and the war had flown out of my head the second my board sliced down that wave. It was the most exhilarating moment in my life. I couldn’t remember having that much fun in…ever, really. My free time, when I had it, normally consisted of training—honing the skills that kept me alive. While the other soldiers went to bars and nightclubs, Tristan included, I was usually at the gym, or the shooting range, or studying mission tactics. There were a few non-training activities I enjoyed—reading and action movies, and I could hit the center of a dart board nine times out of ten—but as a whole, my life consisted of training and battle and little else.