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T h e H o l l o w s I n 
O U R F R E E D O M
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Jace stared at me.

That kind of attention from him would have made my heart flutter.

But my heart had stopped beating millenniums ago.

"What?"

I started pacing again. Backwards and forwards. Backwards and forwards. It was the only thing keeping my mind active in the current moment.

"How don't I know this? Does Sky know about this?" He asked, and I couldn't decide if he was shocked or angry at me.

I gnawed at my thumbnail.

"Jameson?" Jace prompted. I kept gnawing.

"Did Carter know?" Gnawing.

"Do Sky's friends know?" I nearly ripped my entire thumbnail off.

"Does anyone know?" Jace asked, raising his voice as the impatience got to him.

I shook my head. "No one but me, and a few Guardians in the highest positions."

Jace watched me for a few minutes. And then sighed. "What's her real last name?" He asked.

My stomach flipped. "I don't know."

"You don't–Alexi, this is a mess!" He yelled, reaching up to tug at his hair.

I nodded. "I know. I know. I'm trying to think. Hang on."

"It's not me you should be telling to hang on." He spat at me.

I tried to ignore the bitterness, but I couldn't. And so, my plan was a bit delayed, albeit eventually made it into my brain.

"Jace." I whispered, trying to get his attention from where he now stood brooding at the notice board. He turned his head, throwing me a sharp glare. I was almost hurt.

I signalled at him with my eyes, trying not to be obvious in front of the security cameras. Jace, obviously not trained to decipher my messages, looked back at me like I was an idiot.

I sighed, ready to just spit it out. Then a receptionist walked in. She smiled at us and sat down behind her booth.

Great.
Just great.

I pursed my lips, pulled out my phone, and composed a text. When it was done, I sent it to Jace.

I may or may not have added him to my contacts in the midst of our grand plan.

'I'm going to leave to find a computer. But I need your therapist status'

I thought about sending kisses, then just didn't.

Jace's phone beeped, and he turned back to the board to read the message, just making it look like he was trying to find some private time. Even if he wasn't doing it purposely, it was definitely a good tact.

'Therapist status?'

I rolled my eyes. He definitely isn't a Guardian.

'You're a therapist, right? Don't you have like secret hospital access or something? That, or you can use your natural charm.'

Upon receiving my message, Jace turned to give me a weird look, cheeks colouring slightly as he rose his eyebrow. I could only imagine that it was in response to the 'natural charm' part. I ducked my head, trying to hide my grin.

He shook his head, pushed his phone into his suit pocket and approached the receptionist. She looked up at him, did a double-take, and then smiled, her cheeks flushed.

For gods sake. Is there anyone who isn't in love with this man?

"Jace Clarke," he introduced himself, "I should be registered." He told her. It took her a moment to understand what she was saying. And then she started tapping away at the keyboard.

I rolled my eyes, but I didn't know if that was because I was growing impatient, or if I was just annoyed.

"You can..go." She said, meeting his eyes and giggling. Oh for–

Suddenly, I was tugged away.

When we reached a corridor that was out of sight, I wrenched my arm out of his grasp.

"Are you insane?" I hissed. "We're meant to be undercover."

Jace scoffed. "Therapy is my profession, not a cover. You're the one pretending."

"'You're the one pretending.'" I mimicked childishly, giving him all the backlash for being rude.

Jace's eyes grew cold. I flinched. "Can we get on with this? Sky is about to die." He said.

I knew that. Of course. And I was first and foremost concerned for her safety, but I also felt a small pang of jealously.

I wasn't her.
I'd never be her.
And he loved her.

I closed my eyes and nodded, before opening them and grabbing Jace's arm and taking off with him. We moved stealthily down the corridor to find a room with a computer in it.

I found an office named 'Hematology File Office'—I have no idea what that means, but it had a computer in it.

Jace and I snuck in, and I took straight to the computer, yanking out the chair and powering up the box.

Jace moved over to me. "You know that Hematology means the stu–"

"Can you fricking watch the door? Do you have any initiative?" I snapped at him. I didn't mean for it to come out like that. I liked that he knew this kind of stuff. I liked that he was secretly smart. But I was anxious and afraid for my best friends life.

I knew Jace was annoyed at my tone of voice, but he didn't say anything, and instead took his position by the door. I felt kind of bad after that. But I couldn't worry about that in the current moment.

After scouring the internet for only five minutes, I was angry. And so punched the desk table. Jace jumped, then threw me a frown.

"Don't break anything." He chastised.

I rolled my eyes, shaking out my hand—which now stung—and tapping furiously at the keyboard. "Don't worry; the desk is fine."

"I wasn't talking about the desk." It was nothing elaborate, but I had to look up to make sure he had said it. I was now distracted.

The sting on my knuckles brought me back to my senses.

"I don't know where to look. The adoption was closed." I sighed exasperatedly, burying my face in my hands. I raised my head slightly when I felt Jace's presence behind me.

"Are you forgetting who I am?" No. No, I could never forget that. I shook the useless thoughts away.

I was glad he was behind me, because I'm pretty sure I was blushing. But only mildly. "You're Jace Clarke, okay, I get it, but you can't get access to Sky's personal files."

"Are you sure about that?"

The tone of his voice told me something; he was far more ahead than me. And that was something I didn't expect from anyone. Sometimes not even Jameson. Even if our Guardian minds were programmed to work seconds faster, and tie ends you thought weren't possible to tie, I have the inability to be wrong. Most of time. My plans are pristine, and quickly thought out.

I've never found a person to best me. To match me? Yes. That was Jonah. But I now I realise that my affection to Jonah was just a childish phase. He is much more in love with Sapphire, and I respect and accept that.

Jace Clarke has just bested me.
And I wanted to believe, for the sake of my pride, that there was something he actually couldn't do.

I turned to face him, my expression probably speculative. He looked down at me from where he leant over me, and I was immediately entranced by the dangerous look in his eyes—the workings of a plan.

I knew it all so well. Because I could often see it in my own eyes. They lit up, my whole positioning changed. I was in charge. And I knew that.

I knew how that felt, and now I could see it unfolding before me.

I gestured for him to take over.

"Remember how Sky had a therapist back home?" Jace asked, filling me in with his plan as he leaned over me to grab the mouse. I drew back slightly, but his arm still crossed over me, pressing against my front. I had suddenly forgotten what he said.

He raised his eyebrow at me, but did not judge that I perhaps didn't know what he was getting at. He was a gentleman like that.

"And how her therapist back home–"

"–was you." I spoke over him, just as he said, "–was me."

He looked down at me and smiled, signifying that I had caught onto his plan. I hadn't really, I was just too engrossed to tell him that.

He tapped at the keyboard, pulling up some website I couldn't register, entering login details, and clicking a few times. At one point, he drew back, sucking in a breath. I had a feeling that he couldn't remember specific login details.

"Ah-ha!" He nearly yelled, satisfied with himself in that he solved a problem.

I blinked, coming back to reality.

"What am I looking at?" I asked.

"Nothing yet, the page hasn't loaded."

Great, now he probably thinks I'm stupid.
Great, great, great.

"Here we go." He said, bending down so that I could read the screen. We were now around the same height as I sat at the desk.

I read the screen.

'CERTIFICATE OF ADOPTION'

Oh god.

I felt like I was intruding, but it was a crucial component of Sky's survival.

Although the adoption was closed, this file held the top secret answer to the top secret question: who are Sky's real parents?

It was weird that it was here, just accessible to anyone in a medical profession who have had Sky as a client, but I guess it was part of the information pack. I'm also guessing that it's never really put in the print out version. Because that's how it's still a secret—no material version of it.

"I can't find it." I said uselessly, squinting at the screen, and even moving closer.

Jace swallowed, then reached out and pointed to the screen. "There, look."

I followed his finger, finding the 'Mr & Mrs Forest' part, but not the other.

Growing frustrated, I buried my fingers in my hair, ready to yank it the hell out.

Then I found it.

Two people, one surname.

'Mr & Mrs Beaufort'

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op

Honestly guys I'm shooketh this is the best first two chapters to a book that I've ever written lmao

...wait

....maybe this is why I've experienced writer's block...I've had all my amazing plot lines in the first two sentences 😭😭😭

Welp oops

Anyway

-I got shoved into a wall today but I'm okay thanks xx

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Next update: Friyay
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CHAPTER THREE SPOILER:

Blonde hair.

A walk that talks.

Calculating crystal blue eyes.

I think it's time that we unearth the truth.

But which of Sky's parents will we be meeting?