CHAPTER FOUR: THE BACKUP TWINS
1531 Words
“Where are all the agents?” Skye asked as she stared at the encrypted message on her phone.
Kai leaned closer, slurping his iced coffee. “It says Orion’s short on hands. Everyone’s on vacation or off duty. Typical.”
“They seriously want us to run a mission on campus?” Skye raised a brow.
Kai grinned. “Guess we’re the discount agents today.”
She rolled her eyes. “Budget spies.”
Their phones pinged again.
Mission Brief:
Locate and retrieve Package A. Dropped near tennis courts at 9am. Check full details in Terminal 4B.
Package may contain high-level Intel. Minimal exposure required. Complete before 3 p.m."
“Great,” Skye muttered. “So much for our smoothie run.”
“Smoothie run’s still on,” Kai said, adjusting his hoodie. “We’ll just add ‘spy mission’ to the schedule.”
In class, Kai couldn’t sit still. He kept tapping on his tablet, trying to track the location of the package. At one point, he laughed to himself when Isabella tried to peek at his screen.
She blushed and looked away.
“She’s got a crush on you,” Skye whispered, smirking.
“She has a crush on my laptop,” Kai replied. “It’s got better specs than her whole life.”
Skye snorted, drawing a sharp look from the lecturer.
Meanwhile, Zayn was at his usual seat, leaning back like he had no idea what was going on. He dropped his pen twice in one hour and kept asking for the wrong textbook.
Skye glanced at him. “Why is he like this?”
“He’s like a cat that walked into the wrong building and just stayed,” Kai replied under his breath.
Zayn sneezed loudly.
“Bless you,” Skye said, deadpan.
“Thanks,” he smiled, eyes wide and goofy.
She sighed. Why do girls like this walking question mark?
By the time class ended, the twins slipped away again, claiming they were headed to grab a quick bite.
“You two eat a lot,” Ariella said, sipping her drink.
“Fast metabolism,” Skye lied.
Zayn nodded. “You’re not even gaining weight. It’s like magic.”
Skye stared at him. “It’s called genetics.”
“Cool.”
Kai dragged her away before she started roasting him again.
They made their way behind the old sports hall, dodging a couple making out under the bleachers. “Romance is thriving,” Kai whispered.
Skye snorted. “Focus.”
They reached the dusty old equipment shed. No one ever came here. It was their safe spot.
Kai opened his backpack and brought out a small, sleek metal case with a fingerprint scanner. He placed his thumb, and it clicked open. Inside was a USB stick, a tracking device, and a folded note.
Skye unfolded it.
“‘Check Terminal 4B for data. Use caution. Someone may be watching. Deliver info by midnight. - O.’”
“Creepy,” Kai muttered.
“Suspicious,” Skye corrected. “And also rushed.”
They plugged the USB into their laptop. The screen came to life, showing a web of contacts, encrypted files, and location pings across the city.
“This isn’t a joke,” Kai said, eyes scanning the screen. “This is high-level tracking stuff. Someone powerful dropped this.”
“Could be a former agent… or someone still in the system,” Skye replied.
Kai narrowed his eyes. “You think we’re being tested?”
“Maybe. Or maybe they’ve got no one else.”
Just then, a shadow passed outside the shed.
They froze.
Kai quickly closed the laptop, and Skye shoved the case back in the bag. They held their breath.
The door creaked open slowly.
It was… an old janitor, holding a mop. He sneezed loudly, looked at them, and said, “Y’all shouldn’t be back here. Too dusty.”
Skye smiled. “We were just—uh—looking for lost tennis balls.”
Kai nodded. “Yup. We play tennis.”
The janitor blinked. “You got no rackets.”
“We use our minds,” Kai said.
The janitor walked off, muttering something about weird kids.
Once he was gone, they burst into quiet laughter.
“You use your mind?” Skye asked, wiping a tear.
“Under pressure, I panic.”
They packed up quickly and left. As they turned the corner, Kai added, “This mission’s gonna be interesting.”
“Let’s just hope it doesn’t mess with our squad time,” Skye said. “Ariella’s already suspicious.”
“Zayn’s too busy trying to find the cafeteria entrance. He’s not catching anything.”
Skye chuckled. “True. But Ariella’s sharp.”
“She’s not spy sharp.”
“Yet.”
---
They returned to campus like nothing happened. Kai kept cracking jokes while Skye checked their surroundings with sharp, discreet glances.
Back near the science block, Isabella was crouched behind a column, typing furiously on her laptop. When she spotted Kai walking toward her, she slammed the lid shut and stood like she hadn’t been spying on NASA.
“Hey, Isabella,” Kai said coolly.
She blinked. “Oh—hi. I wasn’t doing anything suspicious. I was just… coding.”
Skye raised an eyebrow.
Kai leaned a little closer, smirking. “Still working on that AI voice assistant?”
Isabella nodded too fast. “Yep. And it totally doesn’t sound like you or anything.”
Skye’s jaw dropped. “You made your assistant sound like my brother?”
“No,” Isabella said too quickly.
Kai just grinned. “Flattered.”
Isabella’s face turned bright red. She scrambled away mumbling something about “syntax errors.”
Once she was gone, Skye nudged him. “You’ve got a laptop stalker.”
“She’s harmless,” Kai replied. “If she ever hacks our comms, I’ll just distract her with compliments.”
As they continued walking, their phones buzzed again — this time, a red alert from Orion’s private line.
Kai opened it first. “‘Code Blue. Agent missing in Sector 9. Surveillance compromised. Possibility of rogue intel leak. Investigate quietly.’”
“Sector 9?” Skye repeated. “That’s like... downtown, past the bridge.”
“No wonder they’re calling us. Everyone else is on a beach somewhere sipping coconut water.”
Skye looked up at him. “Two missions in one day?”
Kai shrugged. “We’re the only ones left standing.”
They slipped away from the courtyard and headed toward the parking lot, pretending to be on a casual walk. Ariella spotted them halfway and jogged over.
“You two disappearing again?” she asked, playful but a bit suspicious.
“We’re grabbing fries,” Skye answered smoothly.
Kai nodded. “Crispy ones. From the new food truck.”
Ariella smiled. “Bring me some.”
“Totally,” Skye said, and before she could ask more questions, they were off.
When they reached their hidden car — a beat-up old Toyota that was way more than it looked — Kai opened the trunk and pulled off a layer of junk to reveal a hidden compartment. Inside, small gadgets glowed faintly under a soft light.
“I’ll drive,” Skye said.
Kai raised a brow. “Why?”
“Because last time you nearly crashed into a delivery van.”
“That van came out of nowhere,” Kai defended.
Skye smirked. “It was parked.”
They switched seats and peeled out, heading for downtown. Traffic was light, but the tension grew as they neared Sector 9. It wasn’t the safest place to be on a normal day — let alone on a classified search.
Their comms earpiece clicked on with static.
“New objective,” a robotic voice said. “Retrieve GPS chip from missing agent’s gear. Possible traces of a new code signature detected.”
Kai frowned. “A new signature? That’s rare.”
Skye's knuckles tightened on the wheel. “It means someone else is in the game.”
They pulled into an alley near a closed tech repair shop. Skye scanned for cameras and signaled the coast was clear. Kai reached under a dumpster and pulled out a small gray pouch — the missing agent’s gear, right where the beacon had led them.
He opened it carefully. Inside: a cracked phone, a blood-stained glove, and a chip still intact.
Before they could inspect further, Skye froze. “We’re being watched.”
She didn’t look up. Her eyes flicked to the reflection in a car window across from them — a shadowy figure stood at the edge of the alley, unmoving.
Kai whispered, “Ready to run?”
Skye gave the tiniest nod.
But just before they could move, the figure turned and walked away, disappearing into the smoke of the nearby food stand.
Kai let out a breath. “Creepy exit level: ten.”
Skye pocketed the chip. “Let’s finish this before someone else does.”
They jumped into the car, hearts racing but faces calm.
And in the distance, far from the alley, someone watched them through a lens, tracking every move.
- Writer
