The Search for Artemis - By P. D. Griffith Page 0,114

but he’d never expected someone else to breach the subject for him. Now that it was on the table, he needed to find out what Cortland knew. Could he know the identity of Artemis? After all this time, could it have been that easy?

“You don’t know?” he asked. Landon could see the excitement building in Cortland’s eyes. He leaned in closer and explained, “She’s the Pantheon’s top threat. This whole last year she keeps popping up and sabotaging our missions. She keeps to the shadows, moving undetected, waiting for her opportunity to strike. She’s a master of the spy game.” Cortland spoke about her with utmost reverence. “She even broken into the Gymnasium last fall and stole some top secret project the scientists were working on.”

As Cortland talked, Landon’s mind reeled. The thief, the girl who he’d chased through the halls in the middle of the night and who’d pinned him to the door, was Artemis. He knew they were connected. Even then, he could feel it in his gut, but now he knew for certain that they were one and the same.

“But who is she?” Landon pried. “You’ve identified her right?”

“Ha, I wish,” Cortland replied laughingly. “We’ve been trying to track her down and get anything we can on her for months.”

“And?”

“Nothing,” he said. “She’s like a ghost. I think the higher ups are really starting to worry about her.”

“You should worry, too.” Brock chimed in on their conversation as he walked past on his way to his locker. Without turning to speak, he added, “Especially on this mission.”

“Why’s that?” Cortland inquired.

Brock slipped off his shoes and removed his shirt. “Because latest intel said they think she works for Metis Labs, and where are we headed tonight?”

“Well, then I take back what I said, Apollo. Maybe you do have to worry about running into Artemis tonight.”

Landon was speechless. He’d been going about his search all wrong. Every woman on his list of suspects was someone within the Gymnasium. When Dr. Pullman said to find her, he figured she had to be someone he had access to, but as it turned out, Artemis was someone who operated on the outside. Finding her just became more complicated.

“Hey, why haven’t I heard about her before?” Landon asked. “I’ve been on the Pantheon for almost six months. Why haven’t you guys mentioned it until now?”

“Because, roomie, until today you weren’t actually a member of the Pantheon.” Brock replied bluntly. “Stuff about missions or Artemis or anything for that matter is meant for active team members, not trainees.”

“It’s Apollo, not roomie, and I’m not a trainee anymore,” Landon said combatively.

“And now you know, don’t you, roomie?” With his tactical uniform half on, Brock stepped directly up to Landon, towering over him.

Not backing down, Landon stood as tall as he could and glared contentiously back at Brock. “It’s Apollo,” he reiterated through gritted teeth.

Brock started to lean closer, but fell back when Dr. Brighton entered the locker room.

“All right, guys, up to the Stable ASAP. Wings up in thirty.” Dr. Brighton looked at Brock and Landon with a forceful glare. “Ares, is there a problem?” he asked.

“No, sir,” Brock replied. “No problem.”

“I didn’t think so.” The authority Dr. Brighton imposed as Zeus was unyielding and accepted without question. “Now finish suiting up and get up to the Stable.”

Leaving Brock alone in the locker room, Landon, Cortland and the Cranes made their way to the hangar a minute or two behind Dr. Brighton. As the lift stopped on the appropriate floor, Peregrine and Parker were already standing beside the Alpha Chariot, waiting for them to arrive.

Peregrine looked like she was made to be a spy; her cropped blonde hair slicked tightly against her skull and her body perfectly formed in the tight tactical uniform gave her a femme-fatale quality. She’d taken to the Pantheon with much more ease than Landon, and she’d proved herself to be an apt team member. She was much more adept than anyone would have thought. Although she was still not the greatest lifter, Peregrine had become a great asset when it came to stealth and agility.

As Landon got closer, he noticed she had an anxious but determined look on her face, like the wait for the mission to begin was too much for her to handle. Seeing the aircraft, Landon had a similar feeling running through his body.

It took around five minutes before Brock emerged from the locker rooms and joined the rest of the Pantheon in the hangar. They then