The Gender Lie (The Gender Game #3) by Bella Forrest (ebook reader for laptop TXT) 📗

behind his eyes. Maybe the others picked up on it as well, but I could tell that he knew we weren’t what we said we were. However, he didn’t say anything to the contrary, he just continued talking and watching, all while he navigated the boat through the bubbling waters.

I looked over to where the group was sitting, toward the bow of the ship, and realized Amber and Quinn were asleep. Owen and Solomon had their heads bent toward each other and were whispering. A part of me wanted to go over and interject myself in the conversation.

Owen’s tight-lipped attitude toward the mission was still a bone of contention with me. I didn’t like being left out of the loop when it came to missions, but then again, it wasn’t a surprise. Lee had left a lot of details out of his plan to bomb the lab and retrieve the egg. However, he had told me the plan in general, with several glaring exceptions. I understood the need for operational security, but not at the expense of leaving everyone blind.

I also wondered how much Amber, Quinn, and Solomon knew compared to me. This was Amber and Quinn’s first mission, but they had done far more training with Owen and Solomon than I had.

In all likelihood, this wasn’t the first time Owen had infiltrated Patrus, and he probably used Alejandro to help move his team up and down the river all the time.

The boat dipped sharply, breaking my train of thought, and I grabbed the edge of the boat to steady myself. Quinn and Amber jerked awake and grabbed the bench they were sleeping on, while Solomon and Owen simultaneously gripped each other’s forearms and turned their heads toward the stern of the boat.

“Yeeeeeeeeeehaaaaaaaaaaw!” bellowed Alejandro, a wild smile on his face. We reached the apex of the dip with a splash, and I ducked, covering my head with my arms. The move proved to be pointless—none of the toxic water that the boat kicked up made it over the sides. We leveled out and I sat up, picking a stray lock of hair off of the faceplate of my mask.

We all looked around, checking to make sure we were okay. Owen’s gaze slid over mine and a small smile formed on his lips—I imagined how disheveled and panicked I must have looked, and relaxed my features. My only experience with boats was with the one that took me to Patrus. Had that been so recently? It had actually only been a little over a month ago, but it felt like a lifetime.

Alejandro sauntered up, his rolling gait confident as he moved. He was definitely a man of the river—every time I tried to stand up or walk, it was in the form of a controlled stumble. I couldn’t anticipate where the deck would be as the boat was constantly being rocked by the turbulent waters below.

“We’re through the worst of it,” Alejandro announced. “Should be a peaceful trip to your drop-off point.”

Owen nodded in acknowledgment and turned back to Solomon.

I frowned, and looked up at the old man. “Thank you,” I said.

Alejandro tipped his head to me, the glare that he had been directing at Owen and his rudeness dissipating. “Think nothing of it, my girl,” he said.

“No,” I said, moving unsteadily on my feet. “It really is generous of you to risk your life and your boat for us. I understand that we’re paying you to, but I can also imagine that some jobs aren’t worth the risk. I, for one, appreciate the sacrifice.”

Alejandro flushed behind the clear plastic face of his mask. He whipped off his hat and ran an embarrassed hand through his white hair. “You’re much more sociable than your compatriots,” he said after the red of his cheeks had faded.

I gave a small laugh. “Well, let’s just say they take their work very seriously.”

“And you?”

Ducking my head, I shrugged. “I’m serious… but being serious is no cause for being rude.”

He guffawed and clapped me on the arm. It was my turn to blush—not from his laugh or even staggering under the force of his hand on me, but from the attention I was drawing from Owen and the others. I gave them a small shrug, and after a questioning gaze, they turned away.

I could tell Owen didn’t approve of me talking to Alejandro, but I didn’t really care. The man seemed sweet, if not a little eccentric, and since no one else seemed interested in talking to pass the time, I was going to make do where I could. Owen just needed to trust that I wouldn’t do anything to jeopardize the mission.

Just like I needed to trust that he knew what he was doing, and that he wasn’t doing anything to set me up.

It was unfair to Owen, but I couldn’t help feel a little doubt. The last mission I’d been on with a partner had ended with me having to kill him, and I wasn’t eager to relive that experience. I did trust Owen, but the doubt was always there in the back of my mind. I knew it wasn’t rational, but drawing from history was never a bad thing. It kept me from blindly trusting people, and helped me keep an eye out for potential threats to me or the mission.

Alejandro moved back to the captain’s station, and I followed him. I moved at a slower pace, my legs and arms stiff and ungainly against the roll of the deck. He shot a glance back at me, a knowing smile on his lips.

“You have to bend your knees, girl,” he said. “You look like one of those wooden puppets on strings, but the river is alive, and your arms and legs need to be alive if you’re going to master her.”

I couldn’t resist the urge to smile. “Have you mastered her yet?” I asked.

“Oh, no… no one can ever master a great beauty like this. She’s far too wild and unpredictable. However,