Synnr's Hope - Kate Rudolph Page 0,49

by the flashing red light over the door. A second later the computer started talking.

“Your mission is to protect the Synnr ambassador during a gala. Reports indicate Apsyn agitators are prepared to assassinate him and any high ranking Synnr in his proximity. You must find the agitators and neutralize them. You have three hours with an additional hour to prep. Your time begins now.”

The voice cut out, and just like the day before dossiers slid out of the wall. Lena was thankful that she now knew how to read the Zulir writing. She didn’t need an extra obstacle when it came to carrying her weight in this partnership.

Solan finished reading first. “We work together, room by room, to clear the building.” He spread out the map of the building they were provided with, tracing over areas they’d need to cover.

Lena had done plenty of protection details in her life and was sure this was a place she could actually be of use. “In my experience we’re looking for a sniper or a bomb. Why would he need to get inside?” Massive destruction, massive casualties. She was too used to dealing with monsters.

But Solan didn’t agree. “Because he needs to make sure the ambassador is a victim. A bomb isn’t exact enough.”

Maybe he had a point. “And the sniper?”

He was shaking his head. “Not Apsyn style. And they’ll be indoors. Sight lines are all off.”

And this whole job just got more complicated. The building was huge and three hours was no time at all. “We should split up. We only have three hours and can cover twice as much ground.” What they needed was a strike team. That would take care of any threats. Of course, it wouldn’t exactly be subtle, and subtlety was needed for this mission.

“I don’t know...” he stared at the map as if it could tell him the secrets of the universe.

“If you trust me, trust me to do my job. We’ll have our comms on the whole time and we have a picture of the suspect. I can do this.” She didn’t want to be following him around like some junior agent fresh out of training. She knew Aorsa wasn’t Earth, but it didn’t mean her experience was useless. She still had the instincts that had been trained into her and the analytical skills that had gotten her far.

He relented. “Very well.” But he didn’t sound happy about it.

When their prep time was up they trekked back to the basement and the simulation came alive around them. Lena looked down at herself and saw her body wrapped in a sleek red dress. Solan was dapper in a long green coat and tight dark pants that left very little to the imagination. Not that she was going to imagine anything, not while they were on the job. They were already in the building since there was nothing about this assignment that said they’d need to infiltrate it.

Solan tapped his ear, reminding her they were connected by comms. Lena nodded back. She went east, he went west, and if they worked fast they could clear the building and find the threat before the ambassador knew he was in any danger.

The building was full of Zulir, with a few humans and other aliens scattered among them. Lena focused on the Zulir. Apsyns were racists—speciesists?—and they wouldn’t think a human or other non-Zulir was smart enough to do the work. She had a picture of the target saved on her communicator, but she remembered exactly what he looked like. It would only call attention to herself if she was checking her comm to confirm his appearance every ten seconds.

Was that him?

She’d cleared three rooms with no luck, but then there was a Zulir standing in the hallway. He was tall with dark hair and green eyes that practically glowed with brightness. He wore an outfit that was just as richly red as her dress and he stared her up and down with open hunger.

He smiled wide enough to show a hint of fang. “You’re radiant. Would you dance with me?” He held out a hand. Distantly, Lena could hear music from the ballroom.

Was this dude for real? Doubt crept in, but he looked so much like the agitator that she couldn’t take the chance. “Can I see some ID?” That hadn’t been the procedure laid out in their dossiers, but the words were programmed deep into Lena’s psyche. It couldn’t hurt, right?

“I beg your pardon?” Whoever the guy was, he