Finn contemplated an answer to their dilemma, “Meet me at your post.”
They traveled forward to the next car to involve Norine in the conversation. Finn needed more information about her power. “How strong are your suggestive powers?”
“It’s hard to say. What is it you need me to do?”
“I need you to make this whole train believe that someone other than Tessa saved the train from the attackers.” Norine took a few moments to crunch the possibility. “We have little time here.”
“If we could replace Tessa’s image with someone else’s that resembles her.”
Finn requested Melody forward. Tessa realized where he was going with his idea. Melody was taller than Tessa, but they were both female with long dark hair. When Melody arrived, Finn instructed her to pull her hair into a ponytail and put on the same hat as Tessa. H.I.V.E still wanted to capture Melody for being a rebel, but she was not as well known. They had a better chance of Melody sneaking past without recognition than Tessa.
The downside to the plan was that Tessa had to switch places with Melody, meaning Norine would now be paired with Melody to complete the ruse. Tessa now had to tolerate Stonewell, but more troublesome Norine would no longer be masking her identity. If someone recognized her, it would be up to Tessa to convince them otherwise. Finn promised that once they reached Los Alamos, he would accompany her, but for right now, she had to swap with Melody. Too many changes would arouse suspicions.
Tessa was at least satisfied that Finn would be with her once they reached base. He could scramble facial recognition cameras and change computer specs. It offered Tessa a bit of protection from being recognized. Better than nothing. She was a high-profile enemy of H.I.V.E, and they would watch for her.
Norine walked Melody up and down the train cars with passengers to work her mental magic. Melody acted the part of the heroine to complete the picture in their minds. Most of the people accepted the new reality with ease, but there were a few confused faces causing Norine to pause and work harder.
Tessa stayed in the back with Stonewell tucked away in the shadows, tasked with watching a cargo car, so there were few people for them to interact with.
Stonewell couldn’t stand being quiet, “You know, you and I are not so different.”
She snapped at him in a whisper with her lips pursed together so no one would see her talking, “We are nothing alike.”
“How do you figure that? We both have the same enemy.”
“My enemy might be the same, but I won’t use people to get what I want.”
“Isn’t that what you’re doing now. You’re using your aunt’s ability for your gain.”
Tessa turned to address him, “Wrong. We asked Norine if she would help us out, and she complied. I didn’t force her into submission. Everyone is here because this is what they believe in, and this is where they want to be.”
Stonewell was silent only for a moment to contemplate, “If it makes you feel any better, I didn’t want to inject you with the adrenaline. I couldn’t see another way in which my team survived.”
“You could have asked.” Tessa looked him in the eye, “If you had told me the team would die unless I did something, I would have accepted action. I would have saved the team, but I wanted to make that decision. It was my choice, not yours.”
“I understand that now.” It surprised Tessa to sense humility in Stonewell’s voice. Maybe he finally understood what Tessa stood for and why she was upset with him. She wanted humanity to rise against their oppressors. She didn’t want to become another tyrant, forcing people into war; instead, she wanted to spark a rebellion and give people hope. Humanity could come together and topple a dictatorship to retake their future.
Tessa observed Norine and Melody from the shadows, and it seemed like their plan was working. People believed that Melody saved the train from bandits. The train slowed as it approached the Los Alamos depot, and Tessa could see the bright lights illuminating the complex from afar. There were moments of doubt swirling through her head as they approached, but she pushed those thoughts deep down, trying to ignore them. Her gut told her this was a mistake, but it was the teams plan, so she honored their request.
Tessa almost held her breath as they pulled into the depot. She was delivered into the lion’s den but had to appear like one of the sheep. The train stopped at the station, and people disembarked. There were tales spun of their hero agent who saved them from bandits. Finn met with security leadership on base to give his statement on what happened. They seemed to congratulate Melody without recognizing her.
Tessa’s heart skipped a beat when security informed Finn and Melody they would debrief before continuing with base orders. They had to give an official statement on the attempted hijacking. That meant Melody would be vulnerable without Norine, but she had Finn, so everything would work out according to plan. Tessa re-approached Norine to protect herself from recognition while awaiting Finn’s return.
No one said anything to their small security team. H.I.V.E sent personnel to unload the cargo while they waited. Tessa instructed Sam to vocalize the core goes last. The core was supposed to be transported by an escort, meaning Finn and Tessa were to accompany the device to its delivery point. If they lost that cargo, then they might never find where H.I.V.E was hiding its most top-secret projects. Finn posed as a senior officer, so they had to wait for his orders.
The other team members branched off to complete their
