Shadow of Temptation (Asylums for Magical Threats #2.5) Read Free

afford.
    As she made her way back into the flow of people on the sidewalk, she checked the time on her cell phone. She had two hours before she had to file her report. Perfect. That gave her enough time to visit her local contact and set things in motion.
    Her contact, Yolanda, worked in a local restaurant and was the only person outside of the Feiru Liaison office in Mexico City who knew of Sabrina’s true purpose here in Merida. She had made it a habit to eat at the restaurant from her first days on this assignment. Watkins tended to keep an eye on his people, but there was nothing suspicious about going to her favorite restaurant for a late lunch.
    Over the last year, Sabrina had passed information over to Yolanda, who would in turn hand it over to Sabrina’s boss inside the Feiru Liaison section of the Mexican central government. Like all stable governments around the world, certain humans were aware of the existence of the Feiru and their first-born children’s ability to control the elements. The primary function of the Feiru Liaison offices was to prevent worldwide paranoia, no matter the cost.
    So far, thanks in large part to the Asylums for Magical Threats prison system, the Feiru had kept their elemental magic a secret from the general human population. Sabrina was one of the few privileged humans who knew about the Feiru , but she was also part of a growing number of Feiru liaison officers who wondered how much longer the secret of elemental magic would last, especially as discord continued to grow between the pro-AMT prison and anti-AMT prison factions amongst the Feiru .
    And when—not if—the secret got out, Sabrina had no idea what would happen. Humans finding out that magic was real might cause worldwide chaos, or worse, persecution of those deemed “different” from them.
    That was why it was imperative she finish this assignment and take down the Fed League. Fringe Feiru terrorist groups would only give humans more reason to hate and/or fear the Feiru .
    She reached the small restaurant a few blocks from the central main plaza and went inside. The hostess greeted her with a smile. After Sabrina sat down at a table near the back of the room, she pretended to look at the menu until Yolanda came up and asked, “Do you want to hear about the specials today or will you have one of your usuals?”
    Sabrina looked up at Yolanda. “I think I’ll just have my favorite light snack today before I go to work.”
    Yolanda nodded. A “light snack before work” was code for Sabrina having important information to pass on with the bill. “I’ll make sure to put a rush on the order. Did you also want some Chaya juice?”
    “Yes, thank you.” Sabrina said as she handed the menu over.
    The waitress left and Sabrina tried to decide what she’d say in her message. She wanted a team of people she trusted, but getting her boss to agree to that was going to be difficult. Especially since one of those trusted colleagues—Karla Torres—always seemed to be on some kind of probation. But they had worked together on Sabrina’s previous assignment and Karla was one of the few people she trusted at her back.
    There had been one man inside the Fed League she’d learned to trust nearly as much as Karla, but Sabrina had burned that bridge. It was for the best that she’d never see him again.
    Thinking about his humor during their long runs on their days off, or how she’d been determined to beat him at least once in a swimming contest, made her heart ache. She’d always been careful to keep her true self separate from her cover ID, but she’d failed utterly with him .
    Still, she’d done what she’d had to do to keep him safe. Dwelling on what she wished could’ve happened would just create more cracks in her delicate psyche. After this assignment was finished, Sabrina was going to take a long vacation and visit her sister down in her home country of Brazil, to re-discover who she truly was.
    Her glass of green