Trust. We stake our lives on it, but it's a subject that not even the Gallagher Academy can teach. When do you let your guard down? Who do you let in? And I knew at that moment, as I sat beside my mother, bathing in the warm spring light, that those were the questions a good spy never stops asking

Zach walked away, but I stood there for a long time, wondering if I should go to my mother; if I should go to my friends; but instead I slipped into the corridors I hadn't used in months, pushed my way through cobwebs and darkness, trying to walk away from the tears that burned hot down my cheeks, because maybe I didn't want to admit weakness; maybe I wanted to wallow in my solitude and grief. Or maybe crying is like everything else we do—it's best if you don't get caught.

Kat!” Gabrielle hissed. “You’re going to get caught." The smile Kat flashed over her shoulder was almost wicked. “I know.

and then Zach said a really bad word, but I doubt DeeDee noticed because it was in Farsi

No one would have ever guessed that seven of the world's most talented teenagers were coming to the Henley that day for an entirely different sort of lesson.

Good-bye Dr. Steve,' I said, then climbed the stairs and went to the fifth floor to die.

Sometimes it takes an outsider, someone with fresh eyes to see the truth.