Nigel ran through Mr. Tage’s dining hall as if he were on fire, looking for someone, anyone.

“I found it,” Nigel screamed as he entered Mr. Tage’s office and saw him sitting at his desk.

“What are you going on about, my boy?” Mr. Tage asked.

Nigel was breathless. He had run up and down each hall in Tage Manor and hadn’t seen Alexei, Natasha, or anyone else he knew.

“Where’s everyone?” he asked.

“The Collective and Black Iris decided to have a closed-door meeting to discuss . . . items on the agenda,” Mr. Tage said.

“Well, you better get them. I know where they are!”

“Who?”

“Jet, and probably Jeremiah and Delta,” Nigel said.

“I see. Yes, I’d better get them,” Mr. Tage said as he left the room.

Nigel turned to follow Mr. Tage when he spotted Melissa out of the corner of his eye. He froze for a second before continuing to follow Mr. Tage.

Since Mr. Tage didn’t invite me, I will see what this meeting is all about!

Nigel crept down the hallway, just keeping Mr. Tage in sight. Mr. Tage rounded the corner and looked behind him, probably checking to see if Nigel was following; Nigel stayed in the shadows.

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

He probably hasn’t spotted me yet—but why is he being so secretive? Nigel wondered. Stupid old billionaire!

Nigel waited a few moments, and then rounded the corner just in time to see Mr. Tage enter a door at the end of the hall. He was careful not to make a lot of noise. A few moments later, he entered through the same door Mr. Tage had used. He entered a dark room, and light spilled in from an adjacent room. He heard voices within.

“The attacks have only increased since we’ve been here,” Viktor said.

“The Colossal Machine has been under siege for weeks. Sasha said it is being used as a conduit for other attacks,” Alexei said.

“Is Sasha even capable of defending against any of these attacks? Can we use Nigel?” Natasha asked.

“I don’t want to take Nigel away. He’s going to be pivotal against any attack that Jeremiah has in store,” Alexei said.

“What do you mean?” Natasha said.

“I’ve been doing research on Dr. Mason, and he has a history of extremist behavior. He often uses people to his advantage. When he’s done with them, he eliminates them,” Viktor said.

Why isn’t Mr. Tage saying anything?

“So what’s our next move?” Natasha asked.

“We wait for Nigel’s results,” Alexei said.

I need to see who’s in that room!

Nigel positioned himself so he could look into the room without being seen. He could see Natasha, Alexei, and Viktor. Mr. Tage was nowhere to be found.

Where did he go?

Nigel looked around the room he was in, but couldn’t find any other exits. He barged into the room with the members of the Collective.

“Nigel!” Alexei exclaimed. “Glad you are here. Did you find anything yet?”

“I know where they are!” Nigel cried.

“Where?” Natasha asked.

“Africa, or at least just off the coast.”

“So, I guess you’ve cracked the messages, then!” Alexei said.

“Not yet.”

“Then how do you know where they are?” Natasha said.

“Jet left me a message.”

Nigel explained how he had found the secret message hidden on one of the Milford High School servers.

“Let’s regroup. Dahlia’s team might have something by now,” Alexei said.

“Have you seen Mr. Tage?” Nigel said.

“Haven’t seen him since earlier this evening. Why do you ask?” Alexei said.

“No reason,” Nigel said.