Adrenaline Rush

by Cindy M. Hogan

  “Why don’t we practice your walk, talk, attitude, and— jump?” Jeremy said with a light hearted laugh.

  “Okay,” I said, trying to pretend I wasn’t the least bit nervous about the jump anymore.

  We practiced for a good hour before Jeremy said, “I’m going to call your agent parents over so we can discuss a few things before we jump.”

  A jolt went through me. I was really going to jump from an airplane.

  Agent Wood and Agent Penrod came over and sat in the other two seats next to us.

  “I’m assuming you’ve had time to go over your assign-nments,” Jeremy said.

  We all nodded. Agent Penrod crossed her leg and then pumped the one on top up and down, up and down, her lips pressed together. Agent Wood sat ramrod straight, his wire spectacles sitting loosely on his nose.

  “Great,” Jeremy said. “The basics, then. You are a cozy little family—the Robertses. Your mission, Agents Wood and Penrod, is to support Agent Hadden…”

  My heart flipped hearing him call me Agent Hadden. It was thrilling.

  Jeremy continued, “as her parents and help her as agents as she seeks to join a group of risk-takers at Roseburg High. Once included, she will make herself stand out in the group in hopes of being chosen as one of eight students to be kidnapped by the kidnapping ring. There are already nine in the target group, Madness, we discovered at the high school. They lack a black-haired girl. Christy will be that black-haired girl.

  “We believe that once Christy is included in the group, the kidnappers will act quickly. Christy has a tracker inside her left arm that she can turn off and on to let us know her position without transmitting continuously and possibly giving herself up if she were ever wanded by some electronic device searching for trackers or wires.”

  “So,” I said, “will all four of us meet regularly?”

  “You,” Jeremy said, “will fill Agent Wood and Agent Penrod in on a daily basis. They will then pass on any intel they got during the day from myself and Division. They will also be there to help you in whatever capacity you need. You will meet with me a minimum of once a week. Just remember that any communication must be sent over secure pathways or be coded. Make sure to use proper protocol when setting up meetings or communicating. Understand?”

  “Yes,” the three of us said in unison.

  “Once kidnapped, Christy will let us know her position using the device in her arm. She will then uncover the reason these teens are being taken and press her locator again twice, indicating she is ready to be extracted. We will send a team to extract her and shut down the kidnapping ring.

  “Any questions?”

  The agents stared hard at me. I stared back. Inside, I was a mess, but I couldn’t let them know that.

  “Are you sure you’re up for this?” Agent Penrod asked, skepticism in the crease of her brow.

  “Of course,” I said, pressing my lips tightly together to prevent them from quivering. While this scared the pants off me, I was ready.

  “Nothing is ever as easy as it seems,” she continued.

  “I’m ready,” I said with as firm a tone as possible and never taking my eyes off hers.

  “You’re out of line, Agent Penrod. Agent Hadden is a full agent and deserves respect. If you are having trouble recog-nizing this, I can get you reassigned.”

  Her face turned to stone. “No need.”

  I’m sure she was thinking that getting reassigned never looked good in your file.

  “So, Mr. and Mrs. Roberts, we will meet you at the house. Misha is about to do her first daredevil act: skydiving.”

  The two of them smirked at me like they were sure I’d chicken out. Jeremy suited up and helped me do the same, but he seemed to be having trouble meeting my eyes.

  “What is it?” I demanded in a whisper.

  He whispered back, “You know, you don’t have to do this. There are young-looking agents who could probably pull it off.”

  “Are you kidding me, Jeremy? You’re not doubting me, too, are you?” I made sure the other agents were far enough away that they couldn’t hear us. I couldn’t believe he was suddenly telling me this. It made me nervous. He’d always believed in me before.

  “No, no, no. That’s not what I’m saying. I just don’t want you to get hurt. What if something goes wrong when you’re kidnapped, and I can’t find you? Things happen all the time and even to very seasoned agents. In fact, it already did. The last mission to infiltrate this group was a major failure. It has nothing to do with my belief in you. Things just go wrong. You can back out now. No one would blame you.”

  “No way, Jeremy,” I said. “I’m ready, and we’re going to stop this kidnapping ring. We’re unstoppable as a team, right?”

  He shook his head but said, “Yes, but I want you to be ready for anything. I don’t want you to think this will be easy. Anything could happen. Anything. Are you prepared for that?”

  Part of me did want to bail, but a greater part of me wanted to succeed. “I am prepared. But, nothing will happen, Jeremy. Together we can do this and do it well. Please. I need you to believe in me.”

  “I do. I will support you and help keep you safe.” The words were right, but he said it in a defeated way that didn’t make me feel much better. I wondered how I could be successful on this mission when my team didn’t trust me, my handler didn’t trust me, and I didn’t totally trust me. Once the plane slowed, Jeremy took me to the open hatch, my soon-to-be parents standing to the side, ready to close it after the jump. Then, without looking out or down, I jumped. I didn’t hesitate. Take that, doubters.

  I forgot everything I’d read and that Jeremy had just taught me about skydiving. Terror gripped me for I don’t know how long, but it couldn’t have been more than thirty seconds. I had to pull the cord at one minute. All the organs in my body flew into my throat, and I couldn’t breathe. My firmly shut eyes longed to open, but I couldn’t do it.

  Something grabbed my hand, bringing me back to myself. I opened my eyes. Jeremy was now reaching for my other hand. My eyes held his, and I refused to look anywhere but at him. I took a deep cleansing breath, concentrating on pushing the air out and in. The sensation of falling seemed to leave me as Jeremy smiled, and I found a smile to give him.

  A bell rang in my ears, and an echo of Jeremy’s voice reminded me that meant I needed to pull the cord within the next few seconds. Jeremy took my hand and put it on the cord. He winked and pushed away from me. Then he held up one finger. Then two, then three, and he nodded at me, pretending to pull his own cord, reminding me of what I needed to do. He nodded again, and I pulled. I don’t know where I got the sense of mind to do it, but I did. The chute yanked me up higher in the sky, and I screeched with sudden delight.

  I laughed out loud when the chute evened out and my descent slowed. It seemed I’d become a dandelion seed floating gently to the earth. I searched for Jeremy. He was a little bit above me and to the left, and it looked like he was laughing, too. What had started with sheer terror had turned into an extremely exciting moment. He motioned with his hands for me to look down.

  When I did, the ground was coming up fast so I looked back at him. He used his hands to remind me to flare. Once I did, the parachute breaks jerked me up and at a slight angle. Right before I landed, it seemed the earth moved up to greet me instead of me it. I thought I might splatter, I was moving so fast. My feet hit hard, harder than I’d anticipated, and I sat, pushing my butt hard into the grass-covered earth. I laughed at myself as the chute floated to the ground next to me. I unhooked it. Jeremy landed only moments after and it seemed a graceful, easy landing. Totally not fair. After unhooking his chute, he made his way over to me and sat next to me.

  “I thought I’d lost you there for a second.” He looked me directly in the eyes.

  I looked away. “I thought I’d lost me, too.”

  He started to laugh, and so did I. We both lay back and laughed and laughed for a good long while. He looked at his watch and said, “We
better grab our chutes and get moving. Our extraction point is twenty minutes by foot, and they’re expecting us in fifteen.”

  I sat up, grabbed his large, tan hand and said, “Thanks! That was the scariest thing I’ve ever done. And close to the best thing.”

  He stood up, still holding my hand and helped me stand. “Not for long.” He winked. It was suddenly weird that I’d grabbed his hand, and I casually pulled it away even though a part of me wanted to never let go.

  The next morning, I climbed out of my red Miata in the school parking lot thinking about how crazy it was to be putting myself right in the grasp of the kidnappers. I’d been taught my whole life to avoid this kind of people at all costs, and now I was running straight into their arms. I hopped on my longboard and casually glided down the sidewalk toward the school. I could feel the stares of the students at Roseburg High as I maneuvered carefully through the crowd, red cowboy boots in hand. I crossed my fingers that I wouldn’t face plant and make a fool of myself. I needed this. Several of the kids in the daredevil group I was targeting loved to longboard.

  Last night, as Jeremy taught me, we learned I wasn’t that good at it, and I about gave up on the idea, but Jeremy insisted this would give me another point of contact with the group I needed to join. I figured if I bombed it, I could just tell people I got the board yesterday and was learning how to use it.

  When I reached the main building, I grabbed the longboard and made my way up the steps in my yellow and red sundress with large red belt and huge brass buckle, red Vans, fake tattoo behind my ear, and fire engine red nail polish on my fingers and toes. I went for a sexy, flirty look that was sure to catch the guys’ attention. The trick was in pulling off a cavalier attitude while remaining fun, friendly, and carefree. Excitement set in at the reality that I was about to forge a new path through my third high school. I sat on a bench just outside the main building and switched from the Vans to my red boots.

  I’d never had to flirt before, so Jeremy and I had practiced as we’d hurried to the extraction point and for a short while at my new home. I felt like an idiot, but his response to my efforts made me feel confident. His nods, smiles, and laughter helped me feel beautiful, amazing, and carefree, as well as a bit guilty for letting him make me feel that way. I just had to remind myself that I was playing a part and it wasn’t real.

  As I walked to the office using the strut Jeremy and I had also worked on yesterday, boys whistled and cat called, and I knew I had made the splash I needed. I had less than a month to find the daredevils of the school, secure an invitation to join them, and have the kidnappers choose me as the black-haired adrenaline junkie of the group.

  After checking in at the office, a senior ambassador showed me around the campus. We left the building we were in that housed the office, counselors, and the career center and made our way to the fine arts center. Not only did it have the theater in it, but also the cafeteria and fine arts classrooms. It was crawling with students who stared and whispered when they saw me. The senior ambassador showed me my locker, and after opening it, I dropped off my Vans. I carried a pen and notebook, nothing else.

  Our next stop was the commons. It was packed with kids of all shapes and sizes, too. It surprised me that the population of Roseburg, 20,000, could support such a big high school. The library and media center sat under the roof of the commons and, of course, there was a gym.

  The open, airiness of the campus was comforting. The ambassador left me at the door of my first class and gave me the school map to keep. She hadn’t made an ounce of small talk. Once she walked away, I looked at the map and threw it into the nearest trashcan. One glance was all I needed to remember it, and it matched the one Division had given me.

  My first class was English. I sat at the back of the class so that I could watch as everyone came in. I recognized two of the girls in Madness as they entered, Tarran and Mindy, both redheads. They made their way to the other side of the room by the windows. A few people smiled at me, and the girl sitting next to me said hello, but did nothing more to welcome me. After Mrs. Richardson called the class to order, she said, “Looks like we have a new student everyone. Misha, could you stand and introduce yourself?”

  Heat rushed to my cheeks. I didn’t expect this. I pushed the awkwardness of the moment to the side and stood. “I’m from Denver, Colorado, and I love doing wild stuff.” I knew the second the words left my mouth that I’d regret them.

  Several girls in the class snickered, and a few boys that sat near me whispered some inappropriate things to me. That had been a bust. Both Tarran and Mindy had been looking out of the window the whole time. I spent the rest of the class refusing all sorts of advances and sexual innuendo in notes from various boys in class.

  Luckily, the science teacher, Mr. Edmondson, didn’t feel the need to introduce me. I located two other guys from Madness: Tate and Camden, both blond. I was assigned to a group of two girls to work on a dissection. The only interesting thing that happened was listening to a boxy boy in the group next to us, who was apparently named Houston. He had crazy reddish black hair and seemed to enjoy everything about cutting up and examining the frog. That boy was nuts. He continuously talked about how cool it would have been to do this or that to a live frog. I tried to catch up with both Tate and Camden at the end of class, but their group had finished before ours and I just missed them.

  My next class was drama, and I had to step up my game. I would approach at least one of the three adrenaline junkies in that class. If they wouldn’t come to me, I would go to them.

  There weren’t any seats in the large, open room, so I made my way toward the edge of the makeshift stage where other kids were hanging out. I chose a spot nearest my three targets and casually pulled myself up onto the stage, letting my pencil slip from my hand. It rolled and softly bounced against the shoe of one of the boys, who had his back to me. He leaned to retrieve it, and as he handed it to me, I nearly gaped at his angular, strong jaw, tan skin, midnight black hair, and brilliant white teeth.

  “Here ya go,” he drawled. I just stared, tongue-tied. His picture hadn’t done him justice.

  He turned one corner of his mouth up in a smile and chuckled a little, then leaned against the stage next to me. I gave my head a quick jerk and reminded myself I was supposed to be confident, fun, and flirty, not awe-struck by the first hot guy I saw. He was the kind of beautiful that made you have to turn away and compose yourself before looking a second time.

  I pulled it together, put the eraser of the pencil he’d just handed me between my teeth, and crossed my legs, making my light, flirty dress dance over them. I watched his eyes go from my red boots up to the hem of my flowery dress, just above my knee. His eyes finally rested on my face. I clicked the pencil between my teeth and smiled in thanks.

  “So, you’re the new girl I’ve been hearing so much about,” he said, his husky, masculine voice falling hot on my ears. I’m sure he made all the girls fall all over themselves. What was it with my hormones lately?

  “That depends on what you’ve heard,” I said, turning my head to look at him straight on and biting hard on the pencil, hoping it would help me feel more courageous.

  He threw his head back and laughed and then looked back at me. “Only that you were hot. The jury’s still out on what you’re all about. I’m Ian.”

  He raised his eyebrows as if he wanted my name, but the teacher, Mrs. Anderson, called the class to attention.

  “Hello, hello, actors! Yes, I see some of you have met the intriguing Misha. A new actor is among us! Perhaps our next Desdemona or Elizabeth Proctor. It’s exciting indeed, but I’ll not excuse you for chattering away instead of preparing your minds and souls for the immersion into character. Remember: ‘oftentimes excusing of a fault doth make the fault the worse by the excuse.’ That’s Shakespeare—King John—and you’d all do well to memorize it.”

  All eyes fell on me as Mrs. Anderson continued her monologue, and I allowed myself to look a bit embarrassed. I duck
ed my head and took the notebook and the pen to put them to good use by writing Ian a note.

  Have you ever been sky-diving?

  I slid the notebook, nice and slow, toward him. He pulled a pen from his pocket and wrote, Of course, before handing it back to me.

  You know that feeling you get, right after you jump? The one that screams that you are dead or soon will be? That’s what I’m all about. What are you all about?

  I watched his eyes read the words I’d written and saw him clench his jaw and take a hard swallow before writing,

  You’ll just have to see.

  The file indicated he was the most likely leader of Madness and probably the one recruiting for the kidnapper. It was easy to see why they came to this conclusion. I winked at him, just a nervous reaction, but he winked back. I felt ridiculous.

  Mrs. Anderson’s voice caught my attention again. “Today, actors, we will be honing our skill with acting out everyday tasks. Stage presence is communicated through our bodies, not our words! Everything must be completely natural and fluid.” She waved her arms as if in a dance the entire time she spoke. She started handing out cards, each with a task or series of tasks on it, which we were to act out without using any words. “This isn’t charades, people,” she called out. “Make it real, make us feel your actions, bring us into your world.”

  I looked at my card. I had to act out getting out of bed and getting ready for school. Everyone was very thoughtful about the process and acted out the instructions step by step. I knew exactly what each person acted out. They were great. I was third to last and thought I might dodge the bullet and not have to act mine out because class was almost over, but there was time.

  I took the stage, nervous butterflies fluttering in my stomach. I knew I had to play it cool. Misha lived boldly, and she would never back down from the chance to perform. I pushed down the butterflies and began my pantomime by batting at a pesky alarm. I acted out each aspect of getting ready, throwing in as much flair and personality as possible. I wasn’t just getting ready for school. I was Misha getting ready for school. And Misha had personality in spades. Cort, the agent who had taught me the most about disguise and playing a part, would have been proud. As I finished, my classmates’ applause was cut off by the bell indicating the end of class.