That day, Summer and Ashton had stayed together until they were both feeling better. His hugs were just as warm and comforting as those of her parents. Nothing about his past scared her at all. How could it, if she felt so safe in his arms?

  Maybe it was a bit naive of her to think this, but it felt like everything was starting to go right again. She could just ignore Ned, and focus on training. Focusing on training was far easier than she expected, and after her chat with Kayla, the two of them had clicked. Working with her felt natural. Summer felt like she shared a secret, maybe even a friendship. She liked to think that Kayla felt the same.

  It wasn't just them. The entire team improved by leaps and bounds. The twins had found ways to use their power to fend off mental attacks, and their overall teamwork had improved. Was it because having an actual goal made them feel more united? Harper seemed to agree with their rapid improvement, because before they knew it, they had officially graduated training. Graduation came with the thing they had all been waiting for. A mission.

  Summer was a bit nervous when she heard the details. Their target was just a teenage girl. Not only was she suspected of having some kind of mental power, but she had information on one of the hero agencies they were going to be investigating. The fact she reported the agency in the first place is why she was suspected of having a mental ability. Reporting the agency wouldn't be a problem if it was a normal situation, but not a single person had reported this agency for anything before. Not one thing.

  Other than the fact she had reported at all, the report seemed normal enough. She was nervous because something seemed off about the contract and she believed her friends who had joined were in danger. They would be meeting her to discuss her concerns, but she would have no idea that she would also be investigated. The whole idea of tricking an unsuspecting teenager who might not even know she had a power made Summer uncomfortable, but this was exactly what their team had been made for.

  This would also be the mission that Jared would be tagging along with them. Ashton seemed to find that idea relieving, but it made Summer feel like they were being watched. What if Jared made a call to override them if they decided to show this girl mercy? No, that was going too far. Summer hadn't met her yet either, so she had no idea if there was even a reason to be worried in the first place.

  At least Harper seemed to have the girl's best interests in mind. She had explained that the whole reason this was their first mission was because she feared that the girl would be in danger. There was no way this agency with an otherwise squeaky clean reputation would take well to the existence of its one and only naysayer. Summer was relieved at the idea that they were there to protect her more than investigate her.

  "We will be taking my van for this mission," Jared announced, "It is too dangerous to bring personal vehicles, and your team does not have a company car yet."

  A company car? Summer recalled the van Jared had brought her to Gale Research in during the Queen Heart incident. If a personal car was too dangerous did that mean that the van was more special than it looked? She doubted it was just for privacy protection reasons. Maybe it was bulletproof, or had some kind of secret feature like in those super agent movies.

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  Summer paid special attention once they clambered into Jared's car for the meeting. It seemed normal enough, but those kinds of special features were always carefully hidden away so civilians didn't catch on. Summer refused to acknowledge the little doubts in her head that reality was never as cool as the movies. The fact that she was on a team with powerful people in a potential super van was the only thing calming her nerves as they drove head first into danger.

  "We need to come up with a plan," Ashton brought up once they were on the road, "We can't all just charge in there and interrogate her. It will scare her off. Besides, we need to split up and ensure that the location is secure from any threats."

  "In that case, why don't Summer and I meet with her?" Kayla suggested, "Out of everyone, we appear the least threatening and we are strong enough to handle ourselves now."

  "It's too risky," Kai argued, "What if you get a bad roll and Summer ends up with a useless ability? Neither of you can defend yourselves otherwise."

  "Ashton is the strongest of us, but that is exactly why we need him outside," Levi added, "We don't know what kind of ability she might have, or if it is even her ability."

  "Her ability is likely similar to mine," Jared spoke up, "Something like intuition, or gut feeling. She noticed something was wrong, but she didn't have enough expertise to figure out exactly what. The only reason she was able to report is because she was suspicious enough to read the fine print."

  "I looked into those contracts too," Ashton pointed out, "I had no problem noticing all of the downsides in the fine print."

  "Yes, but there are two main differences," Jared explained, "You looked into contract examples of several agencies, not just this one. You also actually read the contracts. No one really reads contracts anymore, Ashton."

  Summer was embarrassed to admit the only reason she had carefully read through her contract was because Ashton had told her to. There were just so many words and there was no guarantee she would understand or remember any of it anyway. She could easily see how it would be a common mindset. Still, there had to be other people like Ashton out there who actually read things.

  "Surely at least one other person must have read through it. Why didn't they report?" Summer asked.

  "If they were the type to read it on their own, they might have sensed danger and just avoided it altogether," Ashton suggested, as if it were something he would have done in that situation.

  "Those people definitely exist, but I will agree it is strange," Jared agreed, "That is exactly why we are going there now. With any luck, she might even have a copy of the contract."

  A copy of the dangerous contract that might be infused with some kind of hypnosis. That was a scary thought. "If she does, do we read it?" Summer asked.

  “We probably should,” Ashton considered, “and if that is a risk, we need to take that into account when deciding who goes in.”

  “I think it should still be Kayla and I,” Summer doubled down, “If I read the contract, you guys should be able to tell if I enter some sort of hypnosis. I will also be the least threat if it somehow turns me into an enemy.”

  Ashton was clearly against the idea of self sacrifice, but no one could guarantee the contract wouldn’t affect them, and they didn’t have any better ideas either. That was how Summer found herself climbing the stairs of an old apartment building with Kayla. The only thing they had on them was one temporary serum in case something drastic happened.

  Summer hesitated at the door with the number Jared had given. Was she really ready for this. Kayla, who didn’t seem to notice her sudden nervousness, knocked.