Maggie slumped, turned away from Mara, and walked slowly to her desk. Everyone stared in disbelief, the room so quiet one could hear a feather drop. They stared at her, dumbfounded, speechless. She kept her face downward, avoiding eye contact.
Mara rubbed her sore cheek and followed her with narrow eyes.
“What?” Pyke spoke first, shaking his head. “I don’t believe you.”
“Yes, Pyke, it’s a long story.” She took a deep breath. “When I was working undercover at MI6, I was tracking a rogue insider, a traitor. He was a manipulative man. I fell in love with him. God help me. I found myself with an unplanned pregnancy, and if caught, I could lose my job. He tried to blackmail me into working with him, using our relationship as a weapon to ruin my career and supply information to adversaries. I
