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like it was yesterday. It was the best day of
my life. I’d always wanted to be an agent, you know. My parents are
retired now, but they both worked for the agency. Ah, enough about
me. I’m sure you’ll like it here. For one thing, the air’s a lot
better than that filth you were breathing before in the city.”
    Green forests ran for miles on the opposite
sides of the narrow road. Rolling hills loomed in the distance, and
she could see a river snaking through acres of swamp. Zoey had
never been in the country or so far north. She had lived surrounded
by dirty concrete buildings and smelly paved streets for as long as
she could remember. She had never seen anything so beautiful. It
was like stepping into a National Geographic magazine.
    The SUV climbed a short rise and then
descended into a circular valley surrounded by mountains. A giant
building made of metal and glass rested in the middle of the
valley. As they got closer , Zoey could see it was made in the
shape of a capital A , lying flat. A for Agency , she realized. It sparkled in the moonlight, and
yellow light seeped out through rows of windows. It stood alone and
proud—set back from the forest—keeping the wilderness at a
respectable distance. It looked out of place in the rough country,
like an alien spacecraft that had just landed.
    They drove around a circular driveway and
parked the SUV in front of the building. The driver kept the motor
running.
    “Let’s go, Little Red,” said Agent Barnes
cheerfully as he clambered out of the car.
    He opened Zoey’s door for her. “There’s a
boardroom filled with important people waiting to see you. I think
they’re still in shock, to tell you the truth. It’s been a while
since anyone’s seen a Drifter. You’re quite the mystery to all of
us. I can’t wait to see the look on Director Martin’s face when he
sees you. I just might take a picture.”
    Zoey climbed out of the back seat and stood
on a stone walkway at the entrance of the building.
    They were all a mystery to her as well. She
clenched her trembling fingers into fists so that Agent Barnes
wouldn’t see how nervous she felt. The building looked like a
research facility or a giant laboratory, imposing yet cold and
probably super clean—nothing like the foster homes she’d lived in
before, with her friends the cockroaches and Mr. and Mrs. Rat.
    Grand double glass doors stood at the
entrance, like the gateway to some other world. She could see
shapes moving inside, and her stomach did a summersault. The ground
began to waver, and when she realized she was holding her breath,
she exhaled and did her best to breathe normally, even though she
could feel a panic attack on its way. She couldn’t decide it if was
from the excitement or the fear in the back of her mind. This was
still new territory. Agent Barnes was nice enough, but he was a
stranger. This whole thing could still be a trap.
    Agent Barnes drew himself up proudly and
said with a smile, “Welcome to the hive number 416, the best darn
place on earth, if you ask me. It is the only place where mystics
and humans work together…and don’t kill one another.” He
tapped his gun, and Zoey could see a glint of mischief in his
eyes.
    “Come along, Red. They’re waiting for us. Be
prepared to be amazed.” He strolled up to the front entrance with a
hop in his step and held the doors open.
    Bracing herself, Zoey walked through the
front doors and stepped into a vast marble hall.
    At first it looked like the normal lobby of
a government building with high ceilings, windows, and a
comfortable seating area with brown leather sofas and plush chairs.
But the further she went, the more obvious it became that this was
no ordinary government establishment. She had never imagined such a
peculiar and wonderful place.
    Tall mirrors lined the walls on either side
of the great hall in the same way that important portraits of past
officials lined the walls of government buildings. The mirrors were
round,