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Chapter 1

MOST PEOPLE WOULD FIND being led into an underground bunker on a storht scary Not me

Things I could explain away and define with data didn't frightenfacts to myself as I descended deeper and deeper below street level The bunker was a relic of the Cold War, built as protection in a tiht nuclear missiles were around every corner On the surface, the building claimed to house an optical supply store That was a front Not scary at all And the stor And really, if you were going to worry about getting hurt in a storround was actually pretty smart

So, no This seehtenwas built on reasonable facts and logic I could deal with that It was the rest of my job I had a problem with

And really, round trips didn't fazevaet blood, and keeping their existence secret froave you a unique perspective on life I'd witnessed bloody vaical feats that defied every law of physics I knew My life was a constant struggle to hold back my terror of the unexplainable and try desperately to find a way to explain it

"Watch your step," ht of concrete stairs

Everything I'd seen so far was concrete - the walls, floor, and ceiling The gray, rough surface absorbed the fluorescent light that attempted to illuminate our way It was dreary and cold, eerie in its stillness The guide seehts "We've inally built You'll see once we reach the h The stairs finally opened up to a corridor with several closed doors lining the sides The decor was still concrete, but all the doors were reen lights He led ht, and I found e, like the kind of break room you'd find in any modern office Green carpet covered the floor, like soave the illusion of warmth A puffy couch and two chairs sat on the opposite side of the rooazines Best of all, the room had a counter with a sink - and a coffee maker

"Make yourself at hoe, eighteen, but his patchy atteer "They'll come for you shortly"

My eyes had never left the coffee maker "Can I make some coffee?"

"Sure," he said "Whatever you like"

He left, and I practically ran to the counter The coffee was pre-ground and looked as though it ht very well have been here since the Cold War as well As long as it was caffeinated, I didn't care I'd taken a red-eye flight from California, and even with part of the day to recover, I still felt sleepy and bleary-eyed I set the coffee azines were in haphazard piles, so I straightened them into neat stacks I couldn't stand disorder

I sat on the couch and waited for the coffee, wondering yet again what this ood part ofto a couple of Alchen to be a senior at a private boarding school in order to keep an eye on Jill Mastrano Drago her alivethat would definitely tip humans off to the supernatural world that lurked beneath the surface of modern life It was a vital mission for the Alchemists, so I wasn't entirely surprised they'd want an update What surprised me was that they couldn't have just done it over the phone I couldn't figure out what other reason would bring me to this facility

The coffee maker finished I'd only set it to etI'd just filled my Styrofoam cup when the door opened

A man entered, and I nearly dropped the coffee

"Mr Darnell," I said, setting the pot back on the burner My hands treain, sir"

"You too, Sydney," he said, forcing a stiff srown up"