Covert Operations by Sara Schoen Read Free Book Online

CIRA so that men like the Cardozas couldn’t hurt anyone else. Demon had once said when I finished this mission I could request whatever I wanted. Maybe I could request that she know about the agency, and then I could stay and she’d know I was alive. I had to get through this first. The computer finally booted up.
    “Where to start?” I asked myself. “You used to waste all your time on social media, Danielle. So let’s try that.” I knew she had connected all of her social media accounts to her Facebook in high school, even though Mom had told her it was a bad idea, so it didn’t take long to find out what she had been up to in the last four years. 
    I found photos of us, mostly old ones from when we were kids. She had a few status updates about her life, most of them including a plea to continue looking for me. I felt a pang of sorrow sweep over me as I realized I hadn’t seen any of these people in years. It had been so long, everyone must have moved on by now. To them, I had died, and they wouldn’t waste their time to look for a dead man. Danielle hadn’t believed that. I couldn’t blame her, because if she had gone missing, I never would have stopped looking. She had to let go. I had to find a way to help her do that.
    There were a few recent photos of people I remembered, including Natalie and Jamie. They had been best friends with Danielle since they were in elementary school, maybe preschool, I couldn’t remember. I was glad to see they were still inseparable even though they went to different schools, and lived in different towns now according to their accounts. I discovered Danielle had chosen Albany College, and I hoped the money from our parents’ deaths and the accident helped her make payments. It had to be difficult for her, especially with no one there to show her the way or help her through the hard times. I had my parents for most of my life, and they had taught me a lot, but Danielle hadn’t enjoyed the same time with them. I should have been there for her, but instead I had left her alone to deal with it on her own.
    I pushed past those thoughts as I followed the links to her other accounts, until finding one that showed nothing but status updates. She seemed to update them every hour or so. I guess she never got over having internet on her phone, and being able to do everything from her phone no matter where she was. I scrolled through the first ones as she talked about studying for a science test. She always hated science. I scrolled through a few more until the website updated to tell me that she had just posted a new one.
    Scrolling to the top, the newest update informed me she had finished getting ready for a date. She hoped it would go well, instead of ending like the last one. A few people commented, most I didn’t know, saying they were happy to see her going on a date. I saw Jamie’s comment telling Danielle to keep in touch with her so she wouldn’t worry. I guess Jamie had stepped up into the sibling and mom position to take care of Danielle after everything happened. I’m glad someone did. She needed someone to help her get through it. I continued to read Jamie’s comments, and other people’s responses, until I came across a familiar name. Cardoza. I felt as if my heart had stopped as I read over the comment again.
    She’s on a date with Camden Cardoza .
    I felt anger boiling up. Camden had said he was on a date with another girl. I shouldn’t be surprised that he had lied, because he did it all the time. Though he didn’t usually lie to me. There were a few comments asking where they had met, how they met, why there weren’t photos so they could see what he looked like, but I didn’t read them all, nor the responses Jamie sent. I erased the history of the laptop, and shut it down before stepping over to the window to get some fresh air.
    The partially open window offered a view over the street. There were a few people out, and the cool breeze helped some of my