Mystics 3-Book Collection by Kim Richardson Read Free Book Online Page B

cigarettes. Zoey didn’t like that way he emphasized the
word Drifter . His pale face had wrinkled prematurely, and he
looked much older than he probably was. He had dark hair with
splashes of gray, dark eyes, and a sunken face that looked like he
hadn’t eaten in months. His striped gray suit was tailored to
perfection.
    “She doesn’t look like much. She looks
half-starved and dirty, like one of those street kids,” he said
with disdain.
    Zoey disliked him immediately.
    “I don’t see how that’s relevant, director
Martin,” said director Hicks.
    He turned his blue eyes to Zoey. “So, Zoey,
Agent Barnes tells us that you are an orphan and that you have no
idea who your real parents are. You were given to the St. John’s
orphanage without any sort of identification, without any birth
records. Is that correct?”
    “Yes, sir.” She saw the woman and director
Martin exchange a dark look.
    “And how old are you?”
    “Just turned fourteen, sir—director, sir,”
answered Zoey, and then she added, “They gave me the sixteenth of
May as my birthday, but I don’t know my real one.”
    Director Hicks nodded and laced his fingers
on the desk.
    “And you’ve been living in foster care this
whole time, fighting off dangerous mystics on your own to stay
alive. What’s even more remarkable to us is that for fourteen years
you’ve managed to keep the Mutes from discovering you—discovering
what you are to be more precise. For someone so young,
that’s quite extraordinary.”
    “She’s an extraordinary girl,” said Agent
Barnes, and he winked at Zoey.
    She had to force herself not to smile.
    “I did what I could to survive,” she said,
feeling her voice stronger. “Until now, well, from what I’ve seen
here, I didn’t even know that there were friendly monsters—”
    “We prefer the term mystics , if you
please,” interrupted the woman, spite coated her voice.
    “The M-word is so very discourteous
to our friends and colleagues. It is forbidden in these parts, and
if you wish to remain here with us, you best remember that.” She
stared at Zoey accusingly.
    Zoey shrank back. Why were these people so
displeased with her? They didn’t even know her.
    “Let’s give her a chance to learn our ways,
director Campbell,” said the man with the dark skin. “She has only
just arrived. There will be time for her to learn the laws of her
people.”
    Director Campbell continued to eye Zoey
suspiciously. “If you say so, director Johnson. Clearly she has
lots to catch up on. Are we certain having her here is the right
decision? Perhaps one of the Sevenths’ foster families will take
her in? It might be less of a shock for her to live with
them. It might make her transition to our world a little
easier.”
    “She is one of us. She belongs here,” said
director Hicks impatiently. “From what Agent Barnes has told us,
she could do well in the operative’s program, but it is too early
to determine her fate.”
    He turned to Zoey. “For all our sakes, and
yours, it would be best to put you on a trial basis for now and see
how well you do. Would that suit you?”
    Zoey felt her spirits rise. “Yes. Yes it
would.”
    “But she’s a Drifter!” Director Martin
raised his voice. “She’s had no knowledge of our people or our ways
since today—she’s practically a Mute! Without basic education and training, she’ll be years behind the other
operatives. It’ll take her forever to catch up, if by a miracle she is able to manage. But even then, is it fair to introduce
her to the program so early? And what about the other operatives?
Will she drag them down? We’ve never had a Drifter join the program
before. I say she should be sent to one of our foster
families—”
    “She can manage,” interrupted Agent Barnes,
his voice rising as well. “All Sevenths children are schooled in
our ways and are taught to fight, why shouldn’t she learn to do so
as well? She’s already fought a Skin demon on her own, and